VPOD: Del. Jeff Frederick, candidate for RPV chairman

By J.R. | April 14, 2008
Filed Under Campaigns and Elections, Republicans, podcasts |

Del. Jeff Frederick is criss-crossing the commonwealth running a very aggressive campaign amongst Republicans to be the next chairman of the party. I recently heard him speak in Virginia Beach, today I caught up with him while he travels in the Shenandoah Valley. In this podcast, Frederick addresses concerns over endorsements he said he received and the analogy of a “rat in a coke bottle” that he has been using in his speeches. He also discusses his vision for the RPV, why an elected official makes sense as party chairman, and much more.

Quotes of the podcast:

“I have no problems being a team player, but when I think we’re being marched into a burning fire, I’m gonna say something.”

-and-

“We can’t continue to do the same thing over and over and over again and expect we’re going to get a different result.”

Listen to the entire interview either by visiting our site on Podshow, downloading our feed to iTunes or your podcatcher, or streaming below:

Del. Jeff Frederick -- Apr. 14, 2008 [25:31m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (255)

Comments

12 Responses to “VPOD: Del. Jeff Frederick, candidate for RPV chairman”

Lee Talley on April 14th, 2008 5:59 pm

All fluff and no stuff. What is his plan… all he’s done is complain. Offer me a plan. Be agressive… duh. Last time I heard someone say so much and say so little at the same time was in a Barack Obama speech. And as he said he’s the only one who’s won in his district. If he can’t help other Republicans win in his district then how in the heck can he be chairman. The most used word in the whole podcast was I… I this… I that. Please. Try saying We everyonce in a while successful chairmen say that alot. Lastly, I loved how he said RPV needs to use technology better. He runs a technical consulting firm for conservative candidates and how much of HIS technology as in kind contributions has he provided for candidates in this state… Zip, Zilch, ZERO!!!!! Ugh… Even still if he can’t give a plan at least tell us promised donors he can bring to the table so we can get more money to build our party with.
Buddy on April 14th, 2008 7:08 pm

JR,
I came to your site from here:http://squeakysworld.blogspot.com/
Within that blog is an article butchered and plagiarized from me (the first one). Seeing this blog I find it hard to believe there is any association. That said, if you know anything about it, please have my article removed.

Buddy Tripp
Brian Kirwin on April 14th, 2008 7:09 pm

Funny, Lee. I just read your email endorsement of Hager and you wrote “it began to dawn on me that Jeff Frederick’s ENTIRE campaign is built on negative”

Well, it just dawned on me that your ENTIRE comment was negative, too.

I have nothing against Hager, and I have nothing against Frederick, but one thing he said is accurate. No one’s happy with RPV. Hager deserves kudos for standing up after Gillespie bolted. And I have no problem with Frederick bringing in new ideas that sound like good ones.

If politics is an old-school game that we’ve just been playing wrong lately, then Hager is the better choice. If politics is merging into new communications that the old “stuff the mailbox” methods fail to keep up with, then Frederick deserves a look.
Lee Talley on April 14th, 2008 7:50 pm

Ah yeah I’ll admit to that post being negative but I just get crazy everytime some politician comes down and offers nothing but yeah such and such is broke without a plan to fix it. If he would come out and state his plan I would be more than happy to give level evaluation and input. Personally, since John Hager took over I’ve seen plans being worked, action being taken, and RPV be more responsive to my colleagues and my own needs than ever before. Ultimately. I just ask. What is your plan Jeff Frederick? He is always touting his personal accomplishments but give me your plan. Give the Republicans of Virginia your plan. Is that so much to ask? I don’t think so!
J. Tyler Ballance on April 14th, 2008 11:28 pm

I think there are plenty of specific areas where Jeff Frederick indicated where he would make some changes. It is not realistic to expect him to read a list of new donors in a podcast. However, I think Jeff made a valid point when he described that the money he raised in just his single House district was nearly as much as the whole RPV raised all year, statewide.

His emphasis on improved use of technology and improved Unit and Precinct organization is another specific area where he can get immediate results.

One refinement to his point about improving outreach to new voters that I suggest is that we focus on the new voters from the Latino and Asian communities. Outreach by Republicans to the African-American community has been a total waste of resources and has, in many parts of the Commonwealth, alienated many of our most loyal supporters. A specific case was the Mark Earley campaign. Going against the advice of his campaign volunteers, Mark cozied-up to the NAACP. He even proudly crowed that he held membership in that organization, known for their many members who are overtly anti-Southern, Black racists, who are in the same league, of the now infamous, “Reverend” Wright. With his Black outreach scheme, Mark Earley quashed the enthusiasm many Virginians previously had for his gubernatorial candidacy and it cost him well over one hundred thousand votes.

Certainly the door must be open to conservative minded African-Americans (if there are any besides Thomas Sowell, Clarence Thomas and Alan Keyes), but the real gains can be made with direct outreach to Asians and Latinos. Both of these communities are growing faster than the Blacks and do not have the long history of being anti-Republican like the Blacks do. Indeed most members of the Latino and Asian business community, already share the core values stated in the Republican Party Creed.

I especially like the point Jeff Frederick makes about how we cannot continue to do the same old thing and expect a different result. What Mr. Hager promises is just the same old thing. Mr. Hager is also unfortunately tainted by his ties to “W” Bush. I fear that resentment toward “W” and Mr. Hager’s close ties to Bush, will serve to continue to drive support away from the Virginia GOP.

It is time to let the younger generation of Republicans step into the leadership roles of our State Party. Virginia is moving in a new direction, with different priorities. We need energetic, young leaders who can recognize where our citizens are headed and who can leap out in front and lead them to where they want to go.

The only way we will win is to distance our RPVA as far away from Bush and the Neocons, as possible. Let us return to the Party of less government, more freedom and let us be the Party with a clear plan for a return to prosperity.
Neither here nor there on April 15th, 2008 9:48 am

Interesting comments here. Lee Talley’s criticisms here and on Raising Kaine are legitimate and valid. Frederick hasn’t given a red cent to the party, not ever.

Brian Kirwin spells out the choice clearly and dispassionately. And J. Tyler Ballance has good analysis but buys in to Frederick’s self-promotions. Again, what good is it if Frederick raises a million dollars for himself but has never helped anyone else?

The bottom line here is not about personalities, popularity or who can campaign better. RPV needs to do many of the things listed above. And yes, Hager is now tied by impending marriage to Bush–but Frederick spent years worming up Bush’s and DeLay’s derrieres.

So who do we trust? Who’s the better choice? Who has a longer record of working with Republicans in Virginia and being likeable and genuine?

To me the choice is clear. Of course we need to change how we do things. Of course we need improved technology and turnout programs.

I just don’t think throwing John Hager overboard and putting Jeff Frederick in is the way to do that.
Darrell -- Chesapeake on April 15th, 2008 7:43 pm

Frederick? Wasn’t he the one who introduced a Constitutional Amendment that would not only limt increases in real estate assessments but also increases in tax rates, ala Calif. Prop 13?

No wonder the GOBers are trying to ignore him.
res ipsa on April 15th, 2008 10:37 pm

Neither Here nor There - know your facts before you post. Who said Frederick has never helped anybody but himself? That’s either willful ignorance or purposeful deceit. He has helped others plenty, giving directly to candidates. Just this year he gave to Lee Ann Washington and Rob Whitman. If you want to vote for Hager - fine. But don’t make up crap about Frederick to justify sticking with the status quo. If you don’t think Frederick is genuine, then you don’t know him. He wins elections big because he keeps his word, and delivers for the people there.

And Darrell, he has never voted for a tax increase - ever.
NoVA Scout on April 16th, 2008 10:49 am

Frederick has no place to go politically. He’s kind of boxed in in his current position. He has no non-governmental resume and no legislative record to speak of. I guess it might shuffle the deck for him a little to be RPV Chairman and get to a position where he might be able to influence things like up-coming re-districting. But it has to be a terrible idea to have an elected official in the role as Party Chairman, even if it were someone who had some identifiable accomlishments in private and public life to point to. One of the worst elements of Republican politics in Virginia is our continued willingness to be attracted to mediocrities. Surely we ought to be able to attract people of substance to these positions. Hager may not be without shortcomings, but he is worlds ahead of where we were even a few years ago.
Brian Kirwin on April 17th, 2008 7:20 am

“But it has to be a terrible idea to have an elected official in the role as Party Chairman”

Randy Forbes might disagree with you.
Gnarly on April 17th, 2008 5:39 pm

Brian Kirwin sums up the RPV Chairman’s race very well with his comment above.

It’s not enough to figure out which candidate is the best fundraiser (and for me…I’m not sure at this point). I think the better question to ask the candidates…How will you use that money to effectively translate it into election wins….or as Brian Kirwin pointed out so perfectly, what methods are we as a party going to employ to move votes effectively by moving beyond the old “stuff the mailbox” tactics.

This deserves some serious debate as we ponder who will be the best person to lead RPV. There is an interesting thread over at BVBL that discusses this subject.

http://www.bvbl.net/index.php/2008/04/16/john-hagars-uncomfortably-close-relationship-with-a-top-rpv-vendor/#comments
Brian Kirwin on April 17th, 2008 5:54 pm

This was interesting. John Hager does give a lot of money to Republicans.

Gilmore Inaugural Committee 1998 $285
Graeber, Beverly B $1,000
Hager for Governor $64,391
Hager for LG $15,411
Kilgore for Governor $600
McDonnell, Robert $150
Republican Party of Virginia $125
Va Conservative Action PAC $370
Virginians for Responsible Government, Inc. $250
Wilder, L Douglas Jr $500
http://www.vpap.org/donors/results_level2.cfm?key=INP000240003&Year=All&CandFilter=A
That’s almost $80,000 of his $83,000 in contributions were to himself.