Ann Romney may have been the reason the lion’s share of national viewers tuned in last night to watch the National Republican Convention, but she wasn’t the only one who got a chance to bask in the warm glow of the national spotlight.
Among the most watched, and most covered, speeches of the night were those by a handful of GOP governors, who were given the chance to take a turn on the high-profile platform while also hyping up their accomplishments to voters back home. (Voters, we should point out, who in several cases are in states seen as pivotal to this November’s presidential election.)
Here’s a small sampling of how the night played back home in five of the governors’ home-state newspapers:
The (Columbia, S.C.) State: “Haley: Romney will fix America“:
“Gov. Nikki Haley took to the national stage in Tampa on Tuesday night, highlighting her struggles with the federal government and contending that GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney is the candidate to fix America. …
“The governor’s performance, which could launch a national political career, received high marks from S.C. delegates. ‘It could open a lot of doors,’ said former S.C. Gov. David Beasley, the last governor to address the national GOP convention, in 1996.”
Milwaukee (Wisc.) Journal-Sentinel: “Delegates greet Walker with rousing applause“:
“[Gov. Scott] Walker has been treated like a star after scaling back collective bargaining for most public workers amid massive protests and then becoming the first governor in the country’s history to survive a recall election. …
“The speech gave Walker his biggest national forum yet and it underscored the increasing power he has in the party. At a Sunday event in Tampa that featured Mike Huckabee, Newt Gingrich and other nationally known conservatives, Walker was the only one to draw protesters.”
Richmond (Va.) Times-Dispatch: “McDonnell extols Romney, touts GOP leadership“:
“Gov. Bob McDonnell stepped to the national stage Tuesday night to tout the economic successes of Republican governors and to make the case for Mitt Romney, who he said would lead a change to an “opportunity society.” …
“Virginia political analysts said McDonnell’s turn in the national spotlight, which was carried nationally on C-SPAN, could be of particular import as he heads into the last year of his gubernatorial term. Virginia governors cannot serve consecutive terms.”
Cleveland (Ohio) Plain-Dealer: “Gov. Kasich takes stage at GOP convention, tells of real progress in Ohio“:
“Ohio Gov. John Kasich returned to the national stage Tuesday night, a dozen years after his last speech at a Republican National Convention.
“And try as he might to downplay the political calculus, his remarks on economic revival in a battleground state might be more helpful to his future than to Mitt Romney’s.”
The (Newark, N.J.) Star Ledger: “Chris Christie at Republican convention: ‘Our ideas are right for America’”:
“In the most important speech of his life, Gov. Chris Christie last night thrilled the national Republican Party with a political manifesto inspired by his experience growing up and governing in New Jersey. …
“For Christie, the prime-time speaking role was the crowning achievement of a political career marked by unabashed challenges to New Jersey’s Democratic-controlled Legislature and issues they hold dear. His first public office was Morris County freeholder; today some call him America’s governor.”
