Thoughts on the RPV Convention
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As the dust settles on an exciting and entertaining weekend in Richmond, I have just a few thoughts on what we witnessed this past weekend and what me might expect moving forward.
First, it was fun to meet and greet so many wonderful Republican friends this weekend. I am constantly impressed at the energy and passion of so many folks in our Party, both young and less young. I spent time this weekend with folks from Lee County to Alexandria hailing from all walks of life. Their commonality, however, lies in the fact that all of them care deeply about our fair Commonwealth. Despite the challenges the GOP has encountered over the past few years, it is always encouraging to be around such fine citizens.
Second, I want to point out a moment that really stuck out to me this weekend as emblematic of the character of our Virginia Republican Party. During Vice President Cheney’s speech at Friday night’s gala, he included a line thanking the troops for their sacrifices on behalf of our nation. The standing ovation that followed was truly spontaneous and clearly heartfelt. As a member of the Armed Services, I admit that this moment made me a little misty-eyed. It is so refreshing to be around a group of folks who not only appreciate the job that our soldiers are doing, but also understand why they are doing it and the tremendous sacrifice that it entails.
Next, I just want to mention what a great team we have leading our Party in AG Bob McDonnell and LG Bill Bolling. Bill Bolling is probably the most beloved man in the Republican Party right now for his unselfish decision to run for re-election as LG next year. As a friend of mine noted, Bill Bolling has earned a blank check from the Party fathful for whatever office he wants to run for in the future. Further, Bob McDonnell simply exudes the type of competence and confidence that has been sorely missing from the Governor’s mansion of late. I am really looking forward to 2009, and I know I’m not alone.
Finally, the election of Jeff Frederick as Chairman seems to be indicative of something that is happening within our Party all across the Commonwealth. Youth and energy are clearly the order of the day in the Virginia GOP. In politics, as in many areas of life, there comes a time when the old guard must give way to a new generation of leaders. I feel we are at such a time in our Party right now. I see energetic young District Chairs like Mike Ginsberg in the 8th and Michelle Jenkins in the 9th. I see energetic young legislators like Chris Saxman, Ben Cline, Rob Bell and Manoli Loupassi. I see two energetic young candidates for Attorney General in Ken Cuccinelli and John Brownlee. I see energetic young congressional candidates like Amit Singh stepping up to the plate. Most importantly, however, I see energetic young individuals from all over our Commonwealth getting involved and making a difference at the grassroots level of our Party.
This certainly doesn’t mean that the storms are behind us. Indeed, the Democrats are very confident that they can win Virginia this fall in both the Presidential and Senate elections. It is going to take a lot of hard work on all our parts to ensure that does not happen. However, even if we endure some more bumps along the road ahead, I am hopeful that a new approach and new leadership will yield better results in the long run than we have recently had.
As our friend Jason Kenney has so aptly stated today, “Now is not the time to quit, it is the time to keep fighting and ensuring there is one less pawn for a Democratic agenda that harms Virginians and Americans.” I second Jason’s motion and note that his call extends well beyond just the Senate race this fall.
The next chapter begins today.
A message was sent loud and clear that Virginia republicans expect their leadership to believe the same things we believe.
We will no longer accept leaders who cross the aisle to enable the Democrats to pass a larger tax increase than Mark Warner asked for, and to make a national star out of him.
Thank you, Preston Bryant.
The republican leadership protected him from a primary challenge, and a short time later he joined the Kaine administration!
John Chichester, the recent state senate republican leader cut a commercial for Mark Warner on Saturday as we nominated the weakest candidate we could find on God’s green earth to put up against him.
These are the people whom the base rejected in an overwhelming fashion with the routing of John Hager, last seen, by the way, in Mark Warner’s administration!
We allow Mark Warner Republicans to dictate to the party, and then wonder why he keeps beating us.
HELLO!!
The base is sick and tired of the Republican establishment rigging party elections against conservative challengers, then telling us to vote for them because the Dem’s are worse.
Recently,I ran against the establishment candidate for 5th District Republican chairman.
Certain folks who shall remain nameless for now tried to deny delegate status from my supporters in a certain locale in the 5th, telling them they had to be unit members to serve as delegate to the conventions.
While I encourage all my supporters to join their local units, the Party Plan specifically says nothing to the effect that you must be unit member to serve as delegate, and in fact to deny them to opportunity would have been a violation of the Voting Rights Act.
Those are the kind of dishonest, and often even illegal tactics regularly employed by the Republican Establishment always, of course, against conservative challengers to an incumbent Republican Party position holder.
There is a new wind blowing now, and it will blow away all these gutless, and cowardly leaders who currently are attempting to lead the Party to ruin if necessary to hold their own little kingdoms in tact.
Behind the leadership of Jeff Frederick we can begin to clean our house, and then invite the voters of our great commonwealth in to check out the new Republican party that has returned to Reagan Conservatism, and actually will govern as we claim to believe.
It may take a while to convince the voters that we really are what we say we are, having lost their trust during the Bush era of Republican Liberalism, but Reagan did it, and we can do it again following his model.
I am saddened that we did not give Bob Marshall the opportunity to present an actual challenge to Mark Warner, but time will vindicate those of us worked our hearts out for him, and who have maintained all along that he would be a far better candidate than the hapless Jim Gilmore.
I think Jim, with with much less arrogance, could have been a good candidate, if he would respond to the base.
But, hey, maybe he will surprise me, I certainly hope so, and I am pulling for him against Warner to be sure!!
Come on, Jim and John, surprise me, get conservative, stay that way, and make us a good senator and President.
Governors mansion, here we come!!
[...] Jim Hoeft over at Bearing Drift sees signs of a generational change in the Virginia GOP: [T]he election of Jeff Frederick as Chairman seems to be indicative of something that is happening [...]
I agree with Tim Boyer on the point that it gets sickening to find conventions being rigged against true conservatives. Bob Marshall’s speech was cut abruptly short and he would have helped to further the cause of life through the U.S. Senate if honestly granted the opportunity. In God we still trust to straighten out the details. I’m glad we got Jeff Frederick to chair the party and head it back in a direction that may restore our gleam as the party of Lincoln and Reagan, growing our ranks in a faithfully rightward direction. As the convention button from the nineties when Ollie North was running said “It’s not right or left, it’s right or wrong”!