UNPRINCIPLED: Republican Donor Group Sets Aside Ideology
Posted by: Editorial Staff | 08/04/2008 3:22 PM
We Republicans are in serious trouble when the big money folks
start openly advocating that we "set aside ideology and focus on find
good, electable candidates." Isn't the entire
point of the party system to identify qualified individuals who are
willing to aggressively advocate on behalf of one value system who then
compete in an election against those who represent another value system?This was just posted over on the Total Buzz blog by Martin Wiskol:
OC Group Trying to Reverse GOP's California Fortunes
Former state GOP Chairman Duf Sundheim leaned on several big-money guys in OC to launch "California Republicans Aligned for Tomorrow." The group plans to set aside ideology and focus on finding good, electable candidates for statewide office. One name that has come up for governor: Meg Whitman, former chief executive officer of eBay. After all, the GOP has won just four of the 24 statewide races held since 1998.
Read the complete story on the Sundheim's group, whose Orange County members include George Argyros, William Lyon, Michael Hayde, and Larry Dodge.
Here is the corresponding newspaper article written by Martin Wisckol and his associate Ronald Campbell:
Local GOP donors at core of new party strategy
Wealthy Republicans set aside ideology and focus on finding candidates who can win.
By Martin Wisckol and Ronald Campbell
The Orange County Register
When former state GOP Chairman Duf Sundheim decided to launch an unusual plan to get Republicans elected in California, he turned to big money men in Orange County.
He rallied together nine donors at $100,000 each. Six are from Orange County, including the New Majority political action committee and four of the New Majority's key members.
Why did the Palo Alto lawyer lean so heavily on the Orange County-based New Majority?
"They tend to see things as they are and say, 'Why not try something different,' " said Sundheim, chairman of the state party from 2003 to 2007. "They are creative and they get things done."
Exhibit No. 1 might be Arnold Schwarzenegger. The New Majority lent critical early backing to Schwarzenegger's campaign. Despite criticism from grassroots Republicans that the new governor was not a GOP purist, Sundheim stuck by Schwarzenegger throughout his term as state chairman.
But Schwarzenegger was a rare win for Republicans in this heavily blue state.
The GOP has won just four of the 24 statewide elections since 1998. Sundheim said the genesis of his new group came in October 2006, when he was trying to raise money for lieutenant governor candidate Tom McClintock and secretary of state candidate Bruce McPherson. He says surprisingly few potential donors even knew the two were running. Both lost.
"In the future, I want to make sure people like this have the money and resources to get the ball over the line," said Sundheim, who started organizing the group last year.
Sundheim emphasized that the group - California Republicans Aligned for Tomorrow or CRAFT - does not have an ideological agenda other than to elect Republicans.
The New Majority is natural fit for such an effort. The group has focused on being a voice of moderation in the party, emphasizing diversity and practicality. It downplays social issues like abortion and gun-control, which can energize the GOP base but scare off middle-of-the road voters.
Sundheim said his group will not be making donations to candidates, nor will it be running independent expenditure campaigns. Rather, it will be talking to potential candidates, and encouraging those it thinks have a chance. It will pay for surveys and focus groups. It will make sure potential candidates know where to turn for help in terms of consultants and fundraisers. It will sponsor candidate seminars, and take other steps to make sure strong candidates know what they're doing.
Read the rest of the story over at the Orange County Register, here.
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Mr. Ayer registered as a Republican to be electable in an interim election with no incumbents. He did...
Never forget:
Politics is the art of the possible.
Wait a minute? You do realize that an elected official is to represent their constituents, right? All of them? And there has to be a time to set aside the very far right and very left ideologies that keep us from going forward in any meaningful fashion?
When politicians hold on to their views that represents just a tiny minority of their district they’ve failed as politicians.
The majority of voters are middle of the road and could care less about party affiliation, they just want someone to get the job done, period.
Bloggers especially represent the far sides of the spectrum and I sincerely believe that the nasty partisan name calling, irrational stands and inability to be flexible is why the political process turns off so many Americans.
The compromise should happen AFTER candidates are in office and are trying to hammer out public policy.
Republicans will strongly advocate on behalf of Republican values. Democrats will strongly advocate on behalf of Democrat values. The resulting compromise will typically fall somewhere near the middle, depending on the composition of the legislative body and the demographics of their constituents.
If Republicans compromise their core values BEFORE an election and only support centrist Republican candidates, then the resulting compromises made with Democrats on public policy will be left of center.
The only way the Sundheim's strategy makes sense is if the Democrats were also willing to only support viable, center-left candidates. I have seen little if any evidence of the Democrats moving to the right. Why then would Republicans want to move to the left?
This strategy is exactly the opposite of what the Republicans should be doing! The Lincoln Club's strategy of not supporting Republican candidates who set aside Republican values is much better.
Check out www.spiritof94.org!
They have the right idea.
We cannot even compromise when we don't have a seat at the table. We need to get Republicans elected to office first before we even think about how "pure" they are.
I'm sorry but a perfect candidate, CRA standard, is not going to get elected in this state.
Tom McClintock is someone we in the right look to, which is why he cannot win statewide office in California.
In theory, of course they should compromise once in office but that does not happen in Orange County. Every seat here is safe for Republicans and they don't have to do a damn thing to keep their seats. They are not challenged nor are they at all compromising in the Senate or Assembly.
They just don't have to be and Republicans take their power for granted. Maybe that will change one day.
I encourage you to stick to your guns and your values no matter the electoral cost: Sealing the border, driving gays back into the closet, and "shrinking the government until you can drown it in the bathtub." And at the end, when you have only one elected official left standing, that will be a sign that you are doing the brave, pure, correct thing. "And the world will be better for this: That one man, scorned and covered with scars, still strove with his last ounce of courage... TO REACH THE UNREACHABLE STAR!!!
Vern, I encourage you to stick to your pro abortion and pro gay agenda ONLY to go against Bible teachings...... SURE WAY to reach that WARM place!
This is exactly what our Party needs - talented candidates versus seasoned party bureaucrats who see elections as "their turn." That's not to say such candidates cannot espouse core conservative principles. I'm all for it.