So, I am often criticized, for being so critical of the Sussex County GOP Executive Committee. But I have to say, the monthly meeting that I attended tonight was the best, and most organized that I have attended in years. Not wanting to start my usual trouble, over the sign in sheet, and since no one was standing guard to enforce a make-believe rule, I simply signed in and went my happy way.
I also was not my usual early self, and was stunned by the number of people who were in attendance. I don’t believe there had been this many people in the room, well, since the meeting following last year’s elections, when so many had shown up to take their victory lap. Whether deservedly so, or not.
I have to admit that the room had a different quality about it. There were so many new faces, and I have to say that it seems as if the outreach programs are starting to pay off, since there were quite a few minorities present.
The meeting was called to order. Following the invocation and the pledge, first time guest were asked to stand and give their names, and be welcomed. There had to be at least fifteen or twenty people who stood to be welcomed.
Then came the introduction of all the elected officials in attendance. I couldn’t believe it, but nearly every Sussex, Republican, elected official was there, even Sheriff Robert Lee. Since there were so many in attendance, only the two minority leaders were asked to speak and to give a brief rundown on what was coming in the closing weeks of this General Assembly.
Both Rep. Danny Short, and Sen. Gary Simpson spoke about bills that were coming, but more importantly, they spoke of the need for the party in Sussex to build towards 2016, and to hold the ground that we took in 2014, while our fellow Republicans in Kent and New Castle wage the battle to expand on the success of the last election cycle.
Next came the Treasurer’s Report, now I have to be honest, in the past I have taken great joy in poking fun at the fact, that the Sussex GOP Executive Committee, cannot raise money and that they are going broke at a break neck pace. However, I was shocked and amazed when the Treasurer stated that the Committee had received several large donations, along with quite a few smaller donations, when totaled, amounted to $4,956.12. This actually means that the Committee took in more money than they spent, and there weren’t even any filing fees collected!
The Chair spoke about how this was the beginning of a new effort to raise money for the GOTV in 2016, and to support our Republican candidates. The hope is to raise at least $4,000.00 a month, or more, every month leading into the 2016 election cycle.
Following this came the Secretary’s Report, as always the report was accepted without objection. The previous months ED nominations were voted in, and then the Secretary asked for new nominations, and out of about forty vacant slots, the RDs nominated almost half of those vacant slots. Guess that explained the many new faces.
The Chair’s Report was oh so brief, merely stating that in the future, every monthly meeting would set aside time for public input from the guest who came out, but who were not members of the Committee.
All of the Republican Clubs were asked for short updates about coming events and voter registration efforts.
In new business, it was announced that the Sussex GOP website that had been costing $100.00 a month for upkeep, but which had rarely been kept-up, would be turned into more of a bulletin board style site, and that all Republican elected officials in Sussex would be given access to post time, dates and locations of events, or other important notifications, such as upcoming bills that needed to be gotten out to the people. This would allow the Committee to go into action, to mobilize a grass-roots effort to put pressure on other elected officials before the votes, instead of always criticizing after it is too late.
There were no guest speakers, besides the elected officials, so no one patting themselves on the back for blocking chicken plants, no one’s favorite minister preaching a long sermon at a political meeting. so the meeting was adjourned promptly at 8:30.
I was so excited about the changes, that I sat in the parking lot and wrote this on my laptop.
I have to apologize. I have been working some long and unusual hours lately. I came home tonight and sat down on the couch, and in short order, I had fallen asleep. Many of you may already know, or have figured out that there was no monthly Sussex GOP meeting this month, it was suspended due to the State Convention last week.
What I wrote above was a dream, a dream of how the Sussex GOP monthly meetings could go, and in my opinion, should go. And while the above may have been nothing but a dream, I truly believe that dreams can come true, if we work hard enough to make them so.
The Republicans of Sussex still have a chance to make my dream come true, we can elect leadership that has a real vision, and the institutional knowledge to implement that vision, to do more than just talk about it.
I also believe that there are many, many Republicans in Sussex that share this dream, well, it’s time to stop dreaming and wake-up and get busy. 2016 is just around the corner, and we in Sussex must hold our ground if the other counties are to expand.
Here’s to dreams coming true.
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Good job. You fooled me and had me worried for a while.
Good work. Now if you can get them focused on things that matter like Social security, medicare, and renewable energy and away from obsessions like the sheriff, sexual issues, the poor getting too many slices of welfare cheese, illegals and uneducated white people resentments, the party might have a future.
But alas, self-identified “conservatives” are all, by definition, repressed, regressive individuals. This goes far beyond mere ideology, of course. Movement “conservatism” is as much a life style as a political philosophy; in fact, more so. It has its “correct” music, movies, and certainly TV, in the form of Fox. In an atmosphere like that – where to step out of established life style norms runs the risk of banishment or at least being branded as a RINO – there is a constant reinforcement that one’s basic primal drives be kept out of the public eye.
There’s no corresponding form of ostracism in leftish circles, simple because small ‘L’ liberal dogma is so much more of an open discussion than a closed orthodoxy. It doesn’t cost anything to be either a religious or a queer liberal. Critical analysis and empirical science are welcome in pursuit of truth.
Conservatives don’t need discussion nor debate to find the truth — they have their catechism which they rehearse nightly as they take in the prophets of greed on talk radio and Fox news.
So, they are stuck, many of them living lies of one sort or another, and closeting away their predilections; which, being suppressed only grow stronger, and that bends them further towards the closet, and further into various addictions that are not right wing accepted behavior. In my mind, it’s a wonder that even more of them aren’t complete closet cases. It’s as much a requirement of membership as a flag label pin.
God forbid that there is one news cast that has conservative views. We can’t have that can we, herr maus ?
Mouse, I hate to be the one to inform you, but you just alliterated the liberal dogma that you claim doesn’t exist. That all conservative are this or that, and of course we all listen to FOX ONLY!
Anybody with half a clue can get information from the internet, and form an opinion be it conservative or not, without Fox News , but It is kind of revealing in an unnerving way, that there is a broad culture of intolerance that would end opposing views like that of Fox if they could.
Hey Frank, I hate to inform you but Mouse barely alliterated when he wrote “repressed, regressive”. My all-time favorite alliteration was delivered by Frank Morgan playing the Great and Powerful Oz:
“Step forward, Tin Man. You dare to come to me for a heart, do you? You clinking, clanking, clattering collection of caliginous junk. And you, Scarecrow, have the effrontery to ask for a brain! You billowing, bale of bovine fodder.”
William Safire’s alliterative phase as delivered by Spiro Agnew doesn’t even come close: “nattering nabobs of negativism”.
@FBH: We’ve been through this elsewhere. Fox News starts each day’s news meeting with the talking points from the RNC. That has been revealed by several ex-Fox people. Whether you listen to Fox or read right-wing web sites, they’re all operating off the same script.
@Frank: You really ought to look for bigger fish to fry. These anchovies are nothing but batter.
Sorry Geezer, but I was always taught, get your own house in order first. And currently our house looks like an episode of Horders Buried Alive.
Honi, you are correct. I posted that comment from my phone and due to fat Fred Flintstone fingers and suggested words, I didn’t see illustrated became alliterated. But thanks .
@Frank. I hear you, but let me add that sometimes it’s easier and wiser to just move out.
Well Geezer, I’m stubborn and not much of a quitter. I drop back and punt once in a while, but quitting is not an option.
Well ok, maybe a bit of hyperbole. But I believe the overall points are spot on. And I have yet to see a single example of critical analysis in the conservative party. All sources of media are an echo chamber of canned talking points by cartoonish types shouting down anyone who doesn’t agree. Science is routinely attacked, education and the educated are routinely attacked-and I forgot that the ones who don’t exclusively watch only fox news listen to talk radio. In my anecdotal experience, the people who call themselves conservative or religious republicans are far more interested in the food fight than solving problems with reasonable compromise. In fact, republicans have drawn primary challenges for just saying the word compromise. This is a losing strategy from a party that is disproportionately old, white, mean, angry and on their way out when the next generation starts voting.. I was once registered republican and help republican candidates into office. I can’t imagine doing that now. And that is sad not to have a choice besides a slightly less bad democratic party and 3nd parties that can’t win
“…. I’m stubborn and not much of a quitter. I drop back and punt once in a while, but quitting is not an option.” – Frank
Frank, Quitting the GOP is as much a desirable option as quitting cigarettes.
There’s clearly a broad culture of intolerance that would ban dishonest, misleading misinformation/propaganda like that from Fox. I as most liberals I know welcome dialogue and critical analysis. Dialogue and critical analysis are threats to the insular nature of today’s single message GOP.