My report of the 2008 IL GOP Convention:
The Illinois Republican Party had their convention this weekend in Decatur. I was there; my first convention. It was an eye-opening learning experience. i was glad for the opportunity to see how things work first hand. Delegates from all over the state came together to approve a new platform, elect delegates to the national convention, as well as a new National Committeeman and Committeewoman. Unfortunately, despite spending the money and taking the time away from my family, I found that delegates had very little to do at the convention besides rubber-stamp what was presented by committees appointed by the State Central Committee. We were not given past minutes of the convention, no agenda, no copy of the Rules; there were no microphones set up around the convention for input from delegates. If there were rules preventing delegates from speaking, we can't be sure because the Rules committee presented their report that they had met, made new rules, and this report was accepted (meaning the unknown rules were accepted) by a voice vote of the delegates despite calls from the floor to know what the rules were.
Of special interest to many attending was the issue to reinstate direct election of the State Central Committeemen. I attended the Resolutions and Platform committee meeting on Friday and I was dismayed to hear that some on the committee didn't want the issue presented to the convention, because "the delegates might not be Republicans." I found this to be somewhat curious, because I understand the delegates are elected at county conventions, the same way the Central Committee is elected. I was also dismayed to see how confused the committee was about this issue; a great deal of time was wasted on having what they were voting on and how they should vote explained to them. They ended up submitting a negative resolution to the convention regarding this issue, to NOT support SB600, legislation that would reinstate direct election of the Central Commttee. I'm not sure if they all realized that they were sending the issue to the convention, and I'm not sure if many of the delegates understood what they were voting on either. The vote was meaningless anyway; it wouldn't have changed anything had the convention rejected the resolution.
To hear more about the ineresting goings on at the convention, listen to the archived Champion News radio show: http://www.championnews.net/talk/podcast.html
"Of special interest to many attending was the issue to reinstate direct election of the State Central Committeemen. I attended the Resolutions and Platform committee meeting on Friday and I was dismayed to hear that some on the committee didn't want the issue presented to the convention, because "the delegates might not be Republicans." I found this to be somewhat curious, because I understand the delegates are elected at county conventions, the same way the Central Committee is elected."
Not necessarily true. In Champaign County, at least, our County Convention elected a Delegate Selection Committee, which then sent suggestions for Delegates and Alternates to County Chairman and State Party.
That said, I'm glad you enjoyed the convention, and I'm very pleased with the election of Brady and DeMonte as RNC from IL.
I too was miffed at the implied accusation of being a Democrat 'mole'.
How can the platform committee (or the party that appoints it) welcome us and then turn around in a fit of paranoia and claim our selection committee's judgment, or we the delegates ourselves, are not to be trusted. Not a particularly wise stance. Suspicion doesn't lend itself to loyalty.
We were told before the meeting no public participation was allowed.
Afterwards, when I asked one Committeeman why Blago and Obama had been referenced an inordinate number of times (17) IN THE GOP PLATFORM ITSELF (which is supposed to state core values and goals), he said they were simply doing their job as they saw fit.
The listing of core party values and goals, I guess. When I asked him if he was afraid of actually calling attention (and by extension, legitimacy) to the opposition, he kindly said 'a little'. I told him I ran a small business and that I would never disrespect my hard work by mentioning IHOP, McDonald's, or Perkins during a self promotion...he then walked away.
I just wish the state GOP was as welcoming, unified, and diverse as the Champaign County Delegation. I was proud to be a member!
McClean County Pundit had a nice live blogging thread on the convention. Not sure if it has been linked over here yet or not, but an interesting take for those interested.
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Glock21 Op/Ed
McLean county pundit gives the "second dog view" .
A more interesting and accurate treatment of the convention can be found over at Illinois Review.
The sidebar poll at Illinois Review indicates that nearly 80% of those participating in that poll think that the GOP convention contributed to division rather than unity. Many are calling for the resignation of Andy McKenna in the wake of the convention. McKenna's handlers are unlikely to let that happen without a fight. Decency doesnt seem to be a core value otherwise no one would have to ask for his resignation. Everyone should take time to hear the Champion News radio program (link posted by ManicMondayMomma).
The fellow on there says that one of the Central Committeemen says during Kathi Salvi's speech/Q&A that "GOP voters are too stupid to vote", which is certainly an interesting comment. Perhaps he is is afraid they are so stupid that he would not have been elected? Thanks to the banishment of the press from the convention, there is only a low quality audio of Salvi's speech, but I did find the negative remarks about GOP voters at about the 12:00 minute mark on the .mpg file.
Other comments seem to reflect the attitude of GOP leadership and the frustration of some of those posting here.:
I was a delegate for Lake Co. Last Wed., a member of the platform committee told me (and about 10 other people) that, during Saturday's meeting, we would discuss the platform for an hour. He said that any delegate would have the opportunity to tell their views about the platform, for up to three minutes per person. We discussed the platform for about a minute, and it was approved with a voice vote. I heard many people say "Nay," and Chairman McKenna should have asked us to stand and be counted. He didn't do that.
In the races for national committeeman and committeewoman, I wanted to vote for Rauschenberger and Salvi, but those choices were taken away from the delegates. I know an election lawyer who said that the convention was similar to the Soviet Union. In almost every election, in communist countries, each race has one candidate and voters are asked to vote yes or no. Last Sat., we had similar elections for national committeeman and committeewoman.
Rah. Rah...uh...Rah.
"A more interesting and accurate treatment of the convention can be found over at Illinois Review."
While I'm certainly no fan of the State GOP, I had to laugh at the characterization of the Illinois Review as "accurate." The folks over there have their own axes to grind, their own agendas, and their own corrupt cronies to push (Rauschenberger!?!) but like to pretend that they are only working for the best interests of the entire party, and so should be above the same sorts of criticism they regularly level at other Republicans. The folks at Champion News are similar, IMO.
In reality, most of their conspiracy theories are just loony, and they spend just as much of their time and energy working against Republican candidates they don't like as they do working for the candidates they do like. Often, they're just wrong about the facts of the stories they're attempting to spin to favor their own interests.
IMO, the IL GOP clearly needs major reforms, in procedures and and issues and leadership. There are lots of ways to work towards that reform, and lots of avenues to pursue in doing so. But following the Illinois Review's/Champion News' leaders and prescriptions is a pathway to destruction and even more corruption, just with a different set of hacks being enriched, and a different set of less-than-stellar candidates being clobbered by Democrats.
Thanks for the clarification in your first comment, IP. Could you eleborate on the better ways you would suggest to work for reform, and how the way prescribed by IR/Champion News folks leads to destruction?
I have to agree with apomonis-- why focus so much on Obama and Blago? Are Republicans a good choice because of what we stand for, or simply because the democrats are worse? I didn't think there was much to celebrate if the best thing to happen to our party is the other party's failure- we had to wait for the D's to screw up so much before we can start looking good by comparison? That doesn't say much positive about us.
"Could you eleborate on the better ways you would suggest to work for reform, and how the way prescribed by IR/Champion News folks leads to destruction?"
Sure, although I certainly don't have all the answers. IMHO, and I've written about this for years, the IL GOP needs to be the party of anti-corruption and the party procedures and policies and structures should reflect that, featuring openness and better communication (both ways!) and a bottom-up process for pushing issues like limited government and accountability and transparency about how the government functions and why. I think the IL GOP focuses too much on being anti-Blagojevich (or anti-Jones or anti-Madigan, etc.) rather than being for policies which would reduce government interference and control of the lives of Illinois citizens.
There should be special emphasis on finding, training and empowering precinct committeemen and county chairmen who are the backbone of the party. Empowering local/county organizations is one of the reasons why I oppose direct election of State Central Committeemen, though I used to support it. I want our reform efforts to work through our local organizations, for County organizations to be relevant and empowered, and direct elections is just one more step towards complete emasculation of Precinct Committeemen and County Chairmen. I also think that direct election is not a quick-fix for the problems of the IL GOP, but has become a cause célèbre with the Illinois Review/Champion News folks to the point where they will portray everyone opposed to it as supporting corruption.
Which leads to the other point – the IR/CN folks (painting with a broad brush here) aren’t about growing the Illinois Republican Party, they’re about shrinking it through their own intolerance of those who disagree with them. They don’t want to reform the IL GOP; they want to control it with their agenda, their cronies and their pet issues. Their support of Steve Rauschenberger for RNC is a great example: SR is a former lawmaker, and someone with whom I’ve worked in the past. He’s a good person and was a excellent legislator, especially on budgetary issues. But he was a horrible statewide candidate, losing badly in multiple primaries. Despite being touted as a paragon of anti-corruption and GOP virtue by the IR/CR folks, Rauschenberger is now a lobbyist working for Rod Blagojevich’s largest campaign contributor. He’s not part of the solution, and is rather part of the problem, but the IR/CR don’t mention that and didn’t care about that because they saw in Rauchenberger a vehicle whereby they could work towards controlling the Party for their own benefit rather than reforming it to benefit all.
The other thing I don’t care for in that crowd is their demand for ideological purity, and especially their doing so in a very inconsistent way. Rauschenberger is a good example, but the list of good GOP candidates who have been absolutely trashed by IR/CN and their followers is long and doesn’t share any common traits other than the IR/CN activists thought they might stand in the way of their dominance of the Party. And that trashing most often isn’t issues-based, but rather personality or faction-based – Sen. Somebody was rude to them at some conference, or didn’t hire the right consultant, and so is the target of their wrath.
Again, I’ve been critical of the State GOP for a long time, and I’m not here to carry water for the current (or previous) regimes, who certainly could have done and should have done better. But given the sad state of the IL GOP, we should be working towards constructive growth and proactive reform rather than enabling a faction which has demonstrated a willingness to destroy other Republicans to advance their own agendas or vendettas at the expense of the greater good of the Party.
Sorry for the length.
There should be special emphasis on finding, training and empowering precinct committeemen and county chairmen who are the backbone of the party. Empowering local/county organizations is one of the reasons why I oppose direct election of State Central Committeemen, though I used to support it. I want our reform efforts to work through our local organizations, for County organizations to be relevant and empowered, and direct elections is just one more step towards complete emasculation of Precinct Committeemen and County Chairmen.
This does at least make it clear where you go astray on this, IP. First, you fail to recognize that the backbone of the party is its individual members. The party elitists who say that the individual members of the party who vote in the Republican primary are "too stupid to vote" are disfranchising the grassroots. It is no wonder that the party is losing its base.
Secondly, you express you disdain for "ideological purity". I have heard some others talk about their contempt for ideology also. What Illinois needs is a return to basic fundamental principles. The moderate element of the party has taken it down this path to destruction and is continually alienating the base. I would agree that all extremism is dysfunctional, but when you are stuck in the ditch, an extreme opposite shows the direction for progress.
"First, you fail to recognize that the backbone of the party is its individual members."
No - I just think that will of those individual primary voters is best expressed by voting for a representative for the party at the precinct level.
"The party elitists who say that the individual members of the party who vote in the Republican primary are "too stupid to vote" are disfranchising the grassroots."
I agree - nobody is too stupid to vote. I simply think that the best, most effective way to reform the IL GOP is by empowering the grassroots local organizations by giving them more responsibility and more authority rather than less.
"Secondly, you express you disdain for "ideological purity". I have heard some others talk about their contempt for ideology also."
Oh, I think most John McCain supporters would say that I'm too ideological. And I've been pretty clear in my call for Republicans to stand on principles.
My disdain is for those who use a fabricated sense of ideological purity to drive away those with whom they disagree, rather than working together to find agreement on issues and methods to move the party forward, grow it, and win policy debates and elections. IMO, the IR/CN folks use contrived debates about ideological purity to drive out those who they see as a threat to their own control of the party.
I think most John McCain supporters would say that I'm too ideological.
Good for you. It's almost too much information about McCain and his support.
It seems to me that you are turning the points raised by apomonis and manicmondaymomma on the convention and the party into a factional dispute with IR/CN, rather than directly addressing the question of what to do. It's a long time before anyone can vote for or run for precinct committeman again, so that method will be totally ineffective in preventing another Topinka-esque trainwreck for the governor's race. You said there were lots of options and avenues. We are still waiting.
Now that we know that you are discouraging people from getting the viewpoints of IR/CN, what information sources do you suggest that Republicans should use? McKenna has issued a statement on the convention that is laced with falsehoods and utter nonsense, stating that the convention was fair and open. We have a cloud of witnesses that state it was neither fair nor open. What did you see at the convention that makes you think that the reporting in IR/CN and by 2 local witnesses was flawed? What sources of information do you recommend that meet your standards of ideological purity? ( since you contend that IR/CN are biased and corrupt, supporting a hidden agenda perhaps at least as vile as that of McKenna himself)
"It seems to me that you are turning the points raised by apomonis and manicmondaymomma on the convention and the party into a factional dispute with IR/CN, rather than directly addressing the question of what to do."
I'm sorry - I think I've been pretty clear that I think the most effective way to reform the IL GOP (and to both grow it and improve it's electoral chances) is to focus at the precinct level. Recruit and train precinct committeemen who can work one voter at a time. Give them responsiblity and authority and tools and allow them to guide their local parties, and the local parties to guide the state party.
"It's a long time before anyone can vote for or run for precinct committeman again, so that method will be totally ineffective in preventing another Topinka-esque trainwreck for the governor's race. "
No, it's not. We vote for both PC and our next nominee for Governor in February/March of 2008.
"Now that we know that you are discouraging people from getting the viewpoints of IR/CN, what information sources do you suggest that Republicans should use?"
I'm not discouraging anything - please stop putting words into my mouth. I read both IR and CN myself. My warning is against relying on them for accuracy, and against thinking that they are somehow working for the good of all Republicans rather than just themselves or their faction.
I love how the only comment there is overwhelmingly in favor.
That sounds good but how do we do that if the current system is top down? Do we wait for a magnanimous king to give up the throne and give power back to the precinct committee people?
IP- you give some great argument for opposing direct elections. Thank you for taking the time to provide such an extensive explanation (Honestly, I really do appreciate it. Don't want you to think I'm being sarcastic- this IS the Internet...) It's unfortunate that the convention didn't allow for debate so such arguments from both sides could be presented so that delegates could consider all the implications of this issue.
It's also unfortunate that we were presented with such a confusing resolution. I heard people around me making comments like "we vote for our legislators, governor and president..." as they voted yes for the resolution-- I think they thought they were supporting direct elections.
But back to direct elections-- this changed for the IL GOP in the 80's, right? Has this improved and strengtened local organizations? It seems the IL GOP has been significantly weakened in recent history.
And how can we hope for people to be a part of the process when the convention wasn't much more than a glorified pep-rally for the delegates?
"That sounds good but how do we do that if the current system is top down? Do we wait for a magnanimous king to give up the throne and give power back to the precinct committee people?"
No - we do it one County - and precinct, neighborhood and block - at a time, starting here in Champaign County and in Central Illinois.
The Illinois Republican Party, as an organization, is completely irrelevant here in Champaign County. Our local party recruits our own precinct committeemen, candidates, volunteers and donors. We manage our own campaigns, and our candidates are elected or defeated on their own merits and based on our own organization and issues. As it is, the State Republican Party provides next-to-nothing for Champaign County Republicans. Why do we need to wait for them to do anything? Why does it really matter, to Champaign County, whether the State Party Chairman is Andy McKenna or Bobo the Clown? Either way, the party needs to be rebuilt from the bottom upwards, and the rebuilding will never happen if we continue to focus at the top first.
We can do it all ourselves, and when we demonstrate successes here, other activists in other counties will take notice, and either mimic our successes or be replaced by activists who are interested in achieving similar levels of success. And when reformers have achieved enough successes in enough counties, then those rebuilt, successful county organizations can decide what to do about the state party.
But reform has to start at the local level (and we've already made great progress on it here in Champaign County, IMO). If we wait for reform to start at the state level, it will never happen.
"But back to direct elections-- this changed for the IL GOP in the 80's, right? Has this improved and strengtened local organizations? It seems the IL GOP has been significantly weakened in recent history."
Yes - but lots of things have changed since the 1980s, too. The most significant being the death of patronage, which the IL GOP relied upon much, much too heavily during its decades of control of the Governor's mansion. The death of patronage is a good thing, IMO, but the GOP still hasn't really figured out how to function without it.
"And how can we hope for people to be a part of the process when the convention wasn't much more than a glorified pep-rally for the delegates?"
Remind them that the most important part of the process and the place where they can have the most impact is right here at home.
And remember that political conventions these days are intended to be nothing more than glorified pep rallies - the state convention is just emulating the same theater and pointlessness that the national conventions have exhibited for decades. The important point to remember is that important decisions aren't made at political conventions, either state or national. Major decisions are already foregone conclusions by the time the convention rolls around because of election results in local counties and districts that are the result of years of hard work (or, in Illinois' case, years of inertia) by grassroots activists and leaders.
Gordy,for a guy that says he is burn't out,,,,,,,,,you are really on top of your game...these are the best examples and explanations of politics I have heard from any source in years,,,,PLEASE dont leave the game now! You even got me fired up,,,and that is not easy.:)
Local politics is where it's at and where we build a strong foundation, ect ect..., I absolutely agree.
However, *don't worry about what's going on at the top* and *conventions are intended to be a sham*-- do you really embrace that kind of corruption? It's just not good enough for me to be okay with.
(Gordy just needs a few contrarians to argue with him time and again to get him going. Glad to be of service. :) )
"However, *don't worry about what's going on at the top* and *conventions are intended to be a sham*-- do you really embrace that kind of corruption? It's just not good enough for me to be okay with."
No - I'm not embracing corruption.
<sighs>
I'm arguing that I think the most effective and expedient way to reform the State GOP is to do so from the bottom up, and that focusing on who is State Chairman or National Committeeman when there is so much work to be done locally seems like a counterproductive distraction to me, because it really has absolutely no effect on whether we win or lose a local election.
It has an effect when local republicans are afraid to run against incumbents like Naomi Jakobsson, as an example, because of the outside support she has.
"It has an effect when local republicans are afraid to run against incumbents like Naomi Jakobsson, as an example, because of the outside support she has."
No offense, but replacing Andy McKenna or directly electing State Central Committeemen isn't going to have any effect on Jakobsson's races. The State GOP doesn't really give money to State House or Senate candidates, as the outside-the-district support usually comes from their caucus' leader, not the State GOP.
Grassroots organizing and campaigning and fundraising will have a lot more effect, and it will take a Schock-like effort to win the 103rd for a Republican, and even then it will be more difficult, as Jakobsson is much better at constituent services and community outreach than Rep. Ricca Slone (sp?) (Schock's State House opponent) was.
The only effect the State GOP has on elections (even statewide) is that they usually coordinate a statewide Get-Out-The-Vote (GOTV) mailing/phone call to Republican voters right before the election. Sometimes they get involved in recruiting sacrificial lambs to run in hopeless statewide races.
And, uh..... Ummm..... Yep, that's about it.
They don't really raise any significant money, they don't have any sort of real organization, their messaging operation is more hinderance than help.
Don't get me wrong - I'd love for our State Party to be more active, but at this point, they're not capable of it, and I would rather have our local organizations asking for such things from a position of strength, rather than having the current hierarchy handing out such resources as a way on entrenching themselves further.
Just my $0.02. Of course, reasonable people can disagree, but I feel pretty strongly that the quickest and most effective way to enact meangingful change in the IL GOP by working locally.
Actually, contrary to what IP seems to think about it, ONE MAIN HOPE FOR THE REPUBLICAN PARTY IN ILLINOIS IS THAT SOMEHOW MCKENNA BE REMOVED OR OTHERWISE NEUTRALIZED.
Gordy-
As one of the afformentioned contributors to Illinois Review, I was wondering if you had anything to say to me about my intentions with regards to the Champaign GOP....
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j
Part-Time Pundit
"Actually, contrary to what IP seems to think about it, ONE MAIN HOPE FOR THE REPUBLICAN PARTY IN ILLINOIS IS THAT SOMEHOW MCKENNA BE REMOVED OR OTHERWISE NEUTRALIZED."
Well, given the ineffectiveness of the State GOP, McKenna is already pretty neutralized. What difference would replacing him make for us here in Champaign County?
"As one of the afformentioned contributors to Illinois Review, I was wondering if you had anything to say to me about my intentions with regards to the Champaign GOP...."
No - should I?
I didn't know you were a contributor over there, and I do realize that my saying "IR/CN folks" is an imprecise term that unfairly lumps people in with the destructive factionalists...
My dear friend Susan Ryan regularly writes on IR about homeschool/freedom in education issues. Her only agenda is to protect homeschoolers.
IP-- I totally get you about how important local organization is. But we can't pretend that an ineffective state party has no effect on us. We can see the tremendous negative impact of a lack of Republican principles in the state government.
I think a number of external measures would quickly reform the R party, like term limits and ballot access. That principle of competition has amazing power.
"My dear friend Susan Ryan regularly writes on IR about homeschool/freedom in education issues. Her only agenda is to protect homeschoolers."
Well, as I said, my lumping everyone who writes there in with the destructive factionalists is imprecise. But there is a significant portion of the higher-profile people involved with those two sites who are destructive factionalists, interested only in securing power for themselves.
"IP-- I totally get you about how important local organization is. But we can't pretend that an ineffective state party has no effect on us. We can see the tremendous negative impact of a lack of Republican principles in the state government."
It has a negative impact in the sense that if it were active and resourceful, it could be useful, but otherwise they're an absolute non-factor in local organizations and campaigns. And as I've said, I'd rather have our local parties asking for help from the state party from a position of strength (and we're not quite there yet) rather than rely on them for largesse handed out from on high. The latter is what causes so much decay during the last days of patronage.
And if you want to impact state government, again you're better served working outside the state GOP - they have no impact, and rightly so. The way to impact state government is by electing outstanding legislators, both in our area and around the state, and that is something with which the state party has traditionally had zero involvement, and has been led by the caucus leadership. And rightly so, IMO.
"I think a number of external measures would quickly reform the R party, like term limits and ballot access. That principle of competition has amazing power."
I'm not sure what you mean - term limits for elected officials or for party officials? I'm not a big fan of term limits in either case, but especially not for volunteer, unpaid party officials. And ballot access? I assume you mean direct election of State Central Committeemen, which I've already outlined my reasons for opposing.
Regardless, I'm glad so many people actually care enough about the State Party to want to fix it. In that respect, we're leaps and bounds ahead of where we were a few years ago. And I'm happy to agree to disagree of how to achieve that change, as it's so encouraging that the desire for it actually exists now.
John McNeal who served as a Platform Committee chairman writes in the Illinois Review about how it used to be:
Everything of substance had to pass through a committee in order to be presented to the convention delegates. Committee chairs were appointed by the State Chairman, who also had to be a member of the state committee (no longer true). Members of the state committee appointed the committee members. County chairmen and Cook County ward and township committeemen appointed the delegates and the state party had NO veto power over their delegate appointments (which allowed a person at war with his local party officials to be appointed by a kindred spirit official from another area). State party personnel had no authority and they were considered staff not power brokers. The Credential Committee held appeal hearings the day before the convention and operated as a vehicle to seat, not unseat, delegates.
When I chaired the platform committee, I made some changes in its operation. It was not behind closed doors. I ordered a huge room and invited public and press. Any delegate was allowed to speak on any proposed plank for 2 minutes on any proposal. We filled the room and went to marathon sessions which started at 2 pm on Friday and ended at 5 am on Saturday.
Then as now, the convention delegates voted yea or nay on committee reports (recommendations). But if 1/3 of a committee signed a minority report, the convention delegates got vote on which report to adopt, after floor debate. The floor debate would include at least two speakers for the majority and minority report. It was made clear (contrary to the recent conclave vote on SB#600) that a Yea vote was to adopt the majority report and a Nay vote was to adopt the minority report.
The whole tone and tenor was to allow participation, transparency, and unification of ALL wings of the party. I appears that is no longer the case and will require multiple changes in rules and format. However, I sincerely believe that will NOT happen until we begin with a return to an elected state committee who had to stand for re-election. We reflected the philosophy of our Republican voters in our district not the views of the party power brokers whose first mission was to preserve and protect their power. John McNeal Riverside, IL
IP- to clarify-- I mean term limits for elected officials and ballot access in general elections-- external competition would strengthen the party-- at least give it more reason to strengthen itself.
Yes, we all agree that the state party is ineffective. My point is that an ineffective state party as an affect on us as citizens in Champaign County.
Curiouser and curiouser...
The Loony Conspiracy Theorists (LCT) at Illinois Review are uncovering more and more dirt on the behind scenes activities of the ILGOP. Some of this is at the mouth of ILGOP's own people. The LCT can't make this stuff up:
If the recommendations would have gone to the floor for a vote, Heffley said, there was concern that the vocal and organized Ron Paul delegates would have moved to have their candidates included. And it was the Ron Paul delegation that the IL GOP was instructed by the national convention to keep from taking over the proceedings and why security guards were brought into the convention floor. . .
& Mr. Kantner, it really IS a fresh wind that blows against the empire.
The conspiracy theories I was specifically referring to were regarding Rauschenberger, Brady and DeMonte and the RNC race, not regarding Ron Paul delegates, many of whom were selected as Champaign County delegates earlier this year by a Committee which I chaired. Please don't try to paint me as part of some effort to exclude Ron Paul supporters from the Convention. Thank you.
As I've said, I'm excited so many people are interested in working towards reforming the IL GOP, and I really don't mind reasonable disagreements about how we go about doing so.
I must admit that I've enjoyed reading Fran Eaton's articles/interviews with IL GOP Executive Director Jason Heffly today. This may be the best article/interview she's ever done, IMO.
Please don't try to paint me as part of some effort to exclude Ron Paul supporters from the Convention. Thank you.
Not in any way was painting you any part of the intent. You are welcome.
Further, I am told that the delegates selected from this county conducted themselves honourably and with appropriate decorum.
But it is interesting that the National acting through the Illinois leadership feared the Conservative Libertarians enough that they brought in security guards. The Soviet method of voting appears to be a pre-Ron Paul phenomenon as far as I can tell.
I don't care where reform starts, at the local, state or national level, but the GOP at all levels needs help, reorganization, and energy, or it will go the way of the dinosaurs. In Illinois, I fault the party for abandoning Jim Ryan when his marital issues came up (they should have just said that was between him and his wife and supported him anyway)and for continuing to support George Ryan when it was clear he was corrupt. At the national level, I fault the party for insisting that we elect McCain, who is now running to the left of Hillary on some issues. I have no idea what is going on at the local level. If the RNC and the GOP insist on trying to compete with the Democrats on liberal notions, such as higher taxes, bigger government, amnesty, etc. then they might as well fold up and go home. And then we will have a choice between the socialists and the Marxists for our elected officials.
Do you want to get more involved in the process? Be a part of it. "This $#!7 can be turned around..."
Join our local Champaign-Urbana Ron Paul meetup http://ronpaul.meetup.com/305/
We are networked with like-minded conservatives, libertarians, and conservative libertarians, across Illinois and the USA.
There are no dues, no fees. All are welcome. We are a diverse group.
Also you can join Ron Paul's Campaign for Liberty. visit the new website at http://www.campaignforliberty.com/
I really don't think there was enough Ron Paul delegates there that the leadership was worried about them taking over the Convention, they weren't even worried about the Conservatives taking over the convention. Sorry I don't remember if this was my third or fourth all of them have been contentious in some way. I think it is always good to see how it looks and try to get involved to change it if you feel it should be changed. As far as how it was run, with committees deciding what the body as a whole is going to vote on is not all that uncommon and even John McNeal’s example is really the same pattern. Conventions are only so long and there is a lot to get done. It takes organization to get things done and the committee of the whole would take months to look at everything so they send it to a committee (as Gordy said). Which makes the decision and sends it to the body of the whole and if they really think what came from the committee so bad they can get 50% of the vote plus one and send it back to the committee to change it. The problems arise with who picks and then might pressure on the committees to get the votes they want from any side. I will agree with someone else the Champaign Group was a great group to go with and I had a lot a fun.
I know you can still "meet up" but didn't I just see on the News that Ron Paul quit saying he wouldn't endorse McCain?
I know you can still "meet up" but didn't I just see on the News that Ron Paul quit saying he wouldn't endorse McCain?
You might see almost anything on the news except Ron Paul saying that he has quit or that he endorses McCain. There will be a Ron Paul rally in Minneapolis during the RNC convention. As they say, the convention will be in St. Paul, but St. Paul will be in Minneapolis. Several thousand supporters are expected.
http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/06/12/ron-paul-ends-campaign-will-shift-gears/
I guess I read it here. I said he did not endorse McCain.
"The campaign is not ending ...It's just starting." - ron paul
"Not in any way was painting you any part of the intent. You are welcome.
Further, I am told that the delegates selected from this county conducted themselves honourably and with appropriate decorum. "
Thank you. I'm excited to have such a large and active contingent of Ron Paul supporters working with our local GOP to help change things.
One at least somewhat bright spot in the convention was the platform approved. Gene Watson did an outstanding job and worked very hard with a difficult group of committemen some of whom had some quite strange notions. The adoption and discussion of resolutions was not as advertised. Committeemen were told that there would be one hour at the convention to discuss matters from the floor with 3 minutes per speaker. That did not occur. GOP members were invited to submit comments and resolutions, and more than 80 submissions were considered and incorporated into the platform. It is a testimony to the work of the Gene and his committee that the platform does not resemble a platypus. It can be viewed here by those who are interested.
"In Illinois, I fault the party for abandoning Jim Ryan when his marital issues came up (they should have just said that was between him and his wife and supported him anyway)"
Since when does Jim Ryan have any sort of marital issues?
Since when did Illinois differentiate between Ryans? :-)
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Glock21 Op/Ed