Right-leaning Binghamton University students attended the annual Conservative Political Action Conference in the nation’s capital earlier this month where they had the opportunity to listen to conservative speakers, meet heroes of their movement and network with like-minded students from across the country.

BU’s College Republicans organized the trip to CPAC at the Marriott Wardman Hotel in Washington, D.C., from Feb. 9 to Feb. 11.

Right wing luminaries — or villains, to their opponents on the left — who attended the conference included writers Anne Coulter and Andrew Breitbart; legislators Paul Ryan and Rand Paul; and three Republican presidential candidates — Rick Santorum, Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich.

Jimmy McMillan, of “the rent is too damn high” fame, also spoke at CPAC.

About 60 percent of the more than 11,000 conference-attendees were students, according to Aaron Ricks, a junior majoring in political science and the editor of Binghamton Review, BU’s campus conservative magazine.

Ricks told Pipe Dream that many of the people who traveled with the Binghamton party were able to meet CPAC speakers, and that some even enjoyed conversations with presidential candidates.

Aylon Pesso, a senior triple-majoring in philosophy, politics and law, Judaic studies and history said he was pleased with the number of people who attended CPAC this year. Two alumni and a friend of Tara-Mare Lynch, the executive chairman of the College Republicans, joined the 13 club members who attended.

“We heavily recruited more of us to come this year,” Pesso said. “The year before, it was nine and before that, six. Word is getting out.”

CPAC tickets were $35 for students, while a regular three-day pass cost $195. The BU party pooled money for transportation and hotel fees, according to Ricks.

Lynch thought the conference was well worth it.

“I kind of had a favorite each day,” said Lynch, a senior triple-majoring in economics, political science and international political economy. “Marco Rubio was an amazing speaker and I wish we had someone like him in the race … The most entertaining speaker, and I noticed on the website they had to take out some parts, was Ann Coulter.”

Troy Shirley, a senior double-majoring in geography and Spanish, said that CPAC allowed him to learn about the details of conservative policies.

“We all believe in the conservative ideas,” Shirley said. “What I thought was really great was that it exposes you to all these new policy ideas.”

Kevin Greer, publicity director of the College Republicans and a senior double-majoring in history and political science, said he was awe-struck when he bumped into the executive producer of “The O’Reilly Factor,” a talk show on Fox News.

“I said to him, I’m a huge ‘Factor’ fan, and he said ‘that’s great, tune in tonight,’ and walked away,” Greer said.

Lynch said she remembered the moment when they nervously walked on stage to greet a politician.

“We went on the stage, a little nervous that Secret Service would tackle us, because they were everywhere.” Lynch said.

Pesso said CPAC ultimately was a major confidence-booster for the club.

“It’s a message targeted at the students and the leaders,” Pesso said. “A big message there was be proud to be a conservative. Go to demonstrations in a positive way. We are the ground forces.”