Where Was Jeff Frederick?
By Jason Kenney | Wednesday, April 1st, 2009 | PoliticsIt’s Mid-September, 2008. Election day is six weeks away and Virginia is a battleground state, teetering on the brink of not only voting for a Democratic Presidential nominee for the first time in over a generation but also in risk of losing three Congressional seats and former Governor Jim Gilmore risk being swept in every county in his Senatorial race against former Governor Mark Warner.
Virginia grassroots Republicans are fighting in the trenches, trying their best to keep this scenario from happening.
And Chairman Jeff Frederick plays hookie:
From: Jeff Frederick <jmf@rpv.org>
To: ——@votejeff.com <——@votejeff.com>
Cc: ——— ——– <———@rpv.org>
Sent: Sun Sep 14 11:10:13 2008
Subject: Info/Talking points about my tripThree things about this trip:
1. It is state-related. I’m going with other legislators (and I am still a legislator) and has an economic development component to it (this past week, the Governor signed an agreement with Israel on some of this stuff).
2. It is church/religion related for me personally.
3. I am not a paid chairman; I have other jobs.
Don’t volunteer to people that I’m gone — just make like everything is normal, and as always, tell folks that I respond quicker over email.
I don’t think many people will know I’m taking this trip, since I will be active on email throughout for at least a few hours each day (likely from about 2-5pm EST), and my phone will work to get calls (although it is very expensive, so I may not answer) and text messages (less expensive). In other words, I’ll be almost as plugged in there as I am here in communicating.
If you need a quick answer from me urgently, try to text message me (I’m told that will work).
Lastly, there is emergency contact info in my calendar, which Amy, Kathy, Gerry, and Allison all have access to.
Thanks!
When Virginia grassroots Republicans needed him the most, Jeff Frederick went AWOL and did not want anyone to know he was gone.
Instead of knocking on doors for Mark Ellmore, Jeff Frederick was hanging out in expensive hotels with his opponent, Rep. Jim Moran.
Instead of making phone calls for Virgil Goode, Jeff Frederick was wining an dining out of the country.
Instead of offering any assistance at all to Thelma Drake, Jeff Frederick is sneaking to Israel, a voluntary trip labeled as official duty for his elected office yet one that is not to be made public, as per his instructions.
Is this leadership at a time when Virginia Republicans are facing their largest electoral defeat in memory?
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About the author
Jason Kenney has blogged at J’s Notes since 2001, is the director of RedStormPAC providing online fundraising for Republican candidates in Virginia, and co-founder of K6 Consulting. He is a graduate from Virginia Commonwealth University and resides in Richmond, Virginia.
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16 Responses to "Where Was Jeff Frederick?"
Continues a theme of immature paranoid behavior. I can’t wait for this boy to go home.
That was an elbow blow that I mentioned earlier this week. I am sure a technical foul is not far behind.
He should have had more confidence than to hide the trip. But most likely he did because he knew there would be those who would criticize him no matter what he did.
If anyone really believes that he would have made the difference in a race where the top of the ticket had negative coattails, please raise your hand. Hmmmm…. didn’t think so.
More to the point would be the inability of the party to field candidates that fire up the grassroots to really get the job done.
As a Republican State party chair he had a DUTY to work for his nominee period.
Typical me-first Frederick behavior!
Agreed that him working for the candidates was not a good thing, but that just shows how unsuited he is for this particular job. When you would rather have the RPV Chairman NOT helping you out and out of the country, things are in a sorry state.
With the election a week away, nearly every major state GOP official is busy scrambling to line up for votes for Republican state legislative candidates.
After suffering losses in the last three statewide elections, many GOP leaders say the outcome of Tuesday’s vote will be a critical test of the party’s resiliency in traditionally conservative Virginia.
This year’s campaign is also a precursor to the 2009 governor’s race. Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling (R), Attorney General Robert F. McDonnell and former governors James S. Gilmore III and George Allen have all been mentioned as possible GOP candidates for governor.
Over the past week, Bolling has essentially cleared his scheduled to campaign for GOP candidates. Gilmore and Allen are also out on the campaign trail. But McDonnell has been noticeably absent.
McDonnell left the country last Wednesday for a 10-day trip to Israel sponsored by Israel and the American-Israel Friendship League.
J. Tucker Martin, a McDonnell spokesman, called it “a very important trip” because McDonnell is being briefed on Israel’s efforts to combat crime and terrorism. Yesterday, McDonnell met with former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“They are on the edge of the war on terror,” Martin said of Israel. “With all the risks we face in Virginia, it’s probably a good thing for the attorney general to be there.”
Martin said the trip was originally scheduled to be held earlier this year, but was rescheduled for this month. “The timing was not what we preferred, but we needed to attend,” Martin said.
Because the stakes are high in next week’s legislative elections, McDonnell’s absence could become fodder for activists who support one of his rivals for the GOP nomination for governor.
But Martin stresses McDonnell has been heavily involved in supporting GOP candidates for most of the year. Between June and early October, McDonnell has attended or hosted dozens of events for candidates, Martin said.
McDonnell also plans to hop back onto the campaign trail when he returns from Israel Friday morning. “The (McDonnell) organization continues to work harder than ever for candidates,” Martin said.
It is also my understanding that during his trip to Israel he also blew off two critical events import to RPV. Both were scheduled before Jeff made his advisors aware that he was suddenly going “out of town”.
1. One was a fundraiser with Michael Steele in DC that would have raised $25k or more for the RPV. It was cancelled when event sponsors found out from Jeff that he wouldn’t be able to attend but his wife Amy could in his place.
2. More importantly, Jeff’s key advisors had arranged a face to face meeting between Jeff and the entire VA GOP Congressional delegation in DC. At that meeting Jeff was going to lay out plans for RPV and if the Congressional delegation liked what they heard they would support Jeff and RPV. That meeting also had to be cancelled. To this day… Jeff has not had one single substantive meeting with his Congressional delegation including Rep. Eric Cantor.
Is this really the kind of leadership we want running the RPV?
Eighth District Congressional nominee Mark Ellmore called RPV 11 times in August and September requesting a meeting with J-Fraud to discuss his race. He never could get the Chairman on the phone, but staff assured Mark that the Chairman was much too busy to meet with him personally as there was really nothing the Chairman was planning on doing for him. Staff did offer to meet with Mark themselves and outline the lack of support that was planned.
Yep! No doubt about it! If Hager had been elected the RPV chair, McCain would be president and Gilmore would be our Senator. Congress would be majority Republican. China, Iran, and Russia would lay down their arms. Bin Laden would give himself up. Gosh! If Frederick would just give up now, even now, tomorrow all would be well. All the elected Democrats would resign in pure astonishment.
This nonsense is so silly. You have not got anything so you trot out this utterly stupid email. Assuming it is real, all it indicates is that Frederick is too self conscious — as if none of you care about appearances. What this email does not provide is grounds for Frederick’s removal.
We don’t elect saints to public office. We elect silly, stupid, pride filled people. And yeah, I know it is an embarrassment to be human. If this email or some other such silliness is worst thing you can charge Frederick with, what is the point? Who are you planning to replace Frederick with, Mother Teresa? Sorry. She has parted from this life, and Jesus would not be interested. If you want someone who is totally unselfconscious, perhaps you can get a three year old child or an adult dog to take the job.
Actually, this email is probably the least of what J-Fraud is guilty of. I think most would agree it is the complete lack of ethics and financial impropriety and unathorized skimming for personal financial gain of 7% off the top of financial contributions by grassroots activists to RPV that leads the list of the Bill of Particulars. Each of the 10 charges is serious in and of themselves to remove J-Fraud from office, but the first charge of financial impropriety is enough to remove him from office 10 times.
So talk about the ten charges and have a PUBLIC HEARING. If Frederick did something illegal, CHARGE him with it. This stupid business of mongering rumors against the head of our own party is absurd. Constantly berating our supposedly miserable leadership over supposedly suspicious activities proves only one thing. We can destroy our own party faster than the Democrats can do it.
OFL, Why do you try to make the case that Frederick can only be removed if he did something illegal? That is not the requirement to remove him. This is not an impeachment, it is a vote to remove. Many CEO’s are asked to step down when the board deems them to be ineffective, incompetent, not following the bylaws of the company or organization. Think about it, the SCC is the Board of Directors for the RPV and if 75% of us believe Frederick has misused his position, violated the State Party Plan, etc., etc. then it is our duty to remove him. If this email asking other to lie for him doesn’t embarrass him to the point he resigns then it is clear he has no morals, no conscience, and will do anything to deceive people. He has made my very easy decision much easier. Saturday can’t come soon enough!!!
Linwood Cobb
7th District Chairman RPV
Bravo, Mr. Cobb!
Linwood: Where did Jeff ask people to lie? He said don’t volunteer the info.
Mr. Bowden,
If you look where he says “just make like everything is normal, and as always, tell folks that I respond quicker over email.” — in otherwords “pretend” I’m around, but can’t come to the phone — I believe that answers your question.
I’m sorry, are we really back to “it depends on what your definition of ‘is’ is?”
With all due respect, sir, I must completely disagree that asking staff to intentionally mislead people, but not actually typing the word “lie” in his directions is somehow acceptable.
While I was convinced, when I signed the letter, that I was doing the right thing, each passing day, and each new revelation, does nothing but solidify my convictions that Mr. Frederick is not fit to serve our Party.
Becky Stoeckel
11th District Chairman
Mr. Bowen-
Ms. Stocekel makes an excellent point and she is a stellar example of what a Congressional District Chair should be. Lying by omission is the same as lying: PERIOD. If I were to sell you a car with a bad motor and leave that fact out, wouldn’t you consider that lying OR at the very least deceit.
The grassroots got sold a car without a motor when they elected Jeff Frederick. They picked a young guy with charisma and instead they got an empty suit with no motor (brain.)
Jeff was out of the state in the middle of the most important election in recent history. When Virginia was a major battleground state our leader was wining and dining in a foreign country. It amazes me the length the pro-Jeff movement will go to in their rationalization. In fact, I remember the SCORN Hager got when in November he was at the White House for an engagement Party during Election Day. In fact, that was the centerfold of Jeff’s campaign, that John was not in VA during Election Day. So, how does this argument hold?
And since you got me started lets just recap the glorious leaders decision making ability or lack thereof. At not time has he ever displayed good decision making skills. He used his own company to process RPV funds which put him in a huge ethical position because he was making money off the Party, he deceived the Executive Committee about this, he was paying for his office which by the way if you visit it has his name misspelled which is a common theme for Jeff, please remember the fundraising letter he sent from the RNC Convention with his name misspelled. At no point did he ever tell anyone about the money from the Dumfries office.
Then, we have the vacation he went on in the middle of the election. Followed by his Obama/Osama Comments in the paper, always one of my favorites, then we move on to his MORONIC comments on the floor of the House about Darwin and him tweeting that there was a defection in the Senate.
This guy has no common sense and no leadership skills. If for no other reason, are these above points a valid reason to get rid of him because he is incompetent? If Jeff was an employee of yours and he displayed this kind of judgement would you fire him? I would guess so…Since he is in an important job like Chairman, shouldn’t we be allowed to fire him for GROSS incompetence and being a general boob?
Food for thought before you vote on Saturday…and stop trying to lawyer his letter above, he lied either by omission or just by stupidity, so I would not even argue that one.
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