"Sen. Kennedy is the biggest soft-money recipient in the Senate, and he's against education reform because he's in the back pocket of the teachers' union," Robinson said.

He also proposed streamlining Medicare, increasing military readiness, paying off the national debt by 2012, and adopting a flat, across-the-board capital gains tax cut.

In a half-hour question-and-answer session following his speech, Robinson--a Law School and Business School graduate--advocated several ideas that made him sound Democratic, not Republican.

"I'm probably one of the few Republicans that have faith in the U.N., if they're run correctly," Robinson said, adding that the U.S. should pay the $1 billion it owes in dues. "The U.N. is the best policeman in the world to deploy in these hotspots and the U.S. should do what it can to support the U.N."

He said he is pro-life, but added he supports the distribution of RU-486--assuming it is safe--and is against the repeal of the landmark abortion case Roe v. Wade.

"After 25 years of Roe v. Wade, I think a sudden change would be a cataclysm in this country," Robinson said.

On other issues, Robinson sounded decidedly Republican, proposing a missile defense system and strongly supporting the death penalty.