The Conservative Political Action Conference will be one of the first major events of 2009 that will find the Republicans seeking a direction for the party.

You’ll recall that this is the event at which Mitt Romney dropped out last year.  John McCain was booed emphatically and Romney won the straw poll despite having dropped out earlier in the day.  Ron Paul’s speech was well-received and he placed third in the straw poll, tied with Mike Huckabee at 12%.

CNN reports that McCain has not been invited to the 2009 event, while Romney, Paul, Newt Gingrich, and Bobby Jindal have received invitations to speak at the event.  Sarah Palin has been invited to attend; no word yet on whether she will be addressing the conference.

I will be keeping a close eye on this event and those like it.  Just like most of you, several of my conversations yesterday revolved around the question of, “What happens now to the Republican Party?”

While I would like to believe that yesterday’s results will be viewed in part as a vindication of the work we all did and continue to do as Ron Paul Republicans, I harbor no illusions that the collapse of the party will result in the emergence of a libertarian doctrine from within.  If we are pragmatic, patient, and persistent, our efforts and the efforts of those like us might one day result in a true conservative party… and it may or may not be called Republican.

- You can learn more about CPAC at their official site.