An Abdication of Truthfulness
“Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom.” –Thomas Jefferson
We live in a world where it seems politics today includes the abdication of truthfulness. At the State Central Committee meeting where my appeal from the Sixth District Committee was heard regarding allocation of up to $30,000 for the legal defense of the Sixth District Committee, the former Chairman (Scott Sayre), and the current and former Secretaries and Treasurers – the arguments from the supporters of Scott Sayre were replete with half-truths.
The former Sixth District Committee Treasurer Hud McWilliams (who should not have been anywhere near a voting seat at State Central Committee or on the Sixth District due to a conflict of interest) was the proxy for State Central Committee member Nate Boyer. Mr. McWilliams addressed State Central saying that he could be held personally liable.
Under “Treasurer’s liability in enforcement actions” from the FEC website, it specifically says that a Treasurer can be found personally liable “if he or she knowingly and willfully violates the Act, recklessly fails to fulfill duties imposed by the law, or intentionally deprives himself or herself of the operative facts giving rise to the violation [emphasis added].”
While Mr. McWilliams may have referenced the section, “Treasurer’s liability under administrative fine program,” where it says that “both the committee and the treasurer are liable for the fine,” the same concept still applies.
Mr. McWilliams would have needed to knowingly and willfully violate the Act, acted in a reckless manner, or intentionally ignored the circumstances that allowed the violation to occur. When Mr. McWilliams addressed State Central Committee and stated that he could be held personally liable and gave no further explanation, one could be led to consider whether or not he was admitting reckless or willful violation. I sincerely doubt that and I sincerely doubt that Mr. McWilliams knowingly violated the law.
However, Mr. McWilliams did participate in a blatant conflict of interest by voting at State Central Committee against my appeal and on Saturday the 28th to spend the $24,000 because he was, basically, voting to spend money on himself. Mr. McWilliams was named in the FEC complaint because of his position as former Sixth District Committee Treasurer.
The $30,000 motion specifically was to cover the legal defense of the former Chairman (Scott Sayre), the current and former Secretaries (Karen Kwiatkowski and Sandy Gates), and the current and former Treasurers (Donna Moser and Hud McWilliams). Even though he was a proxy in both cases, he did cast votes and speak on behalf of defending himself.
Countless times the Sayre crowd has been heard complaining about legislators and their conflicts of interest, yet they apparently have no problem when it’s one of their own.
We’ve seen further abdications of truthfulness in Washington D.C. – from the Democrats. Their attempts at a brutal character assassination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh are nothing short of despicable.
We’ve seen similar character assassination attempts in the Sixth District Committee by the supporters of Scott Sayre in regards to Jennifer Brown. They have called her a dictator, a monster in heels, a consort of a powerful man, and a child. The levels to which the supporters of Scott Sayre will stoop to achieve their political goals is amazing.
I’m going to quote someone who I never thought I’d be quoting, Senator Lindsey Graham:
“Boy ya’ll want power … I hope you never get it. I hope the American people can see through this sham.”
Senator Graham said those words to the Democrats on September 27th when demolishing their attempts to destroy Judge Kavanaugh personally and professionally. The sentiment carries to anyone who would attempt a personal or professional character assassination. No matter if the person is a federal judge, a Congressional District Committee Chairman, or a freshman college student.
Make no mistake about it, the supporters of Scott Sayre are, indeed, no better than Senator Dianne Feinstein, Senator Kamala Harris, and Senator Cory “I am Spartacus” Booker. That’s the level of vitriol that Jennifer Brown and her supporters face. Why? For simply challenging the status quo, for demanding accountability and a fair process.
Requiring truthfulness, accountability, transparency, and a process that is fair for all is a cornerstone of the approach that Jennifer Brown and I take on the Sixth District Committee. It’s the approach that President Trump has taken in Washington, D.C. – and it’s the approach that I know Ben Cline will take when he joins Congress in January. However, the abdication of truthfulness still abounds within the majority of the Sixth District Committee and the Democrats in Washington, D.C.
Speaking to transparency: at the Sixth District Committee meeting on September 28th in Lynchburg, Waynesboro City GOP Chairman Ken Adams presented a motion to pay a bill of over $24,000 to the Bopp Law Firm – leaving us roughly $5,800 left on the $30,000 cap. When I asked for the bill, because I didn’t (and don’t) like voting on something that I haven’t seen, Ken Adams flat out refused to show the bill … because it was property of the Committee.
You read that right. Ken Adams refused to show a bill for north of $24,000 to the Committee because it’s property of … the Committee. Are you kidding me?
Ken Adams became incredibly flippant, self-righteous, and arrogant in his presentation to the Sixth District Committee. The majority of the Sixth District Committee voted to spend over $24,000 on the legal fees without seeing the bill, including the following people:
- Ken Elkins, Vance Wilkins, Ken Adams, Matt Fitzgerald, Larry Bandy, David Fisher, Charlie Nave, John Massoud, Donna Moser, Karen Kwiatkowski, Steve Troxel (by proxy), Carrie Thompson (by proxy), Anne Fitzgerald (by proxy), Joseph Sonsmith (by proxy), Steve Kurtz, Nate Boyer (by 2 proxies), Randy Gilbert, Donald Helms (by proxy), Steve Richards.
What these 20 votes represent is an affirmation of Nancy Pelosi’s statement when passing Obamacare:
“We have to pass the bill so that you can find out what’s in it.”
The majority of the Sixth District Committee affirmed the actions and sentiment of national Democrats and big government. The majority believe that they know what’s best and that you just have to trust them.
If you’re like me, you believe in the American system of government where the people have the say and the people control leadership and the direction of government.
It has become evident that the majority of the Sixth District Committee, led by Ken Adams, Matt Fitzgerald, Charlie Nave, Steve Richards, and Steve Troxel, do not care about the best representation of the Sixth District, the Republicans in the Sixth District, or the Republican Party in general. Rather, their actions are a practice of the saying, “of the majority, by the majority, and for the majority.”
That’s not indicative of a representative republic. That’s evidence of a dictatorship.
“Truth is like the sun. You can shut it out for a time, but it ain’t goin’ away.” –Elvis Presley
