March 2015 Newsletter
We had such a fabulous meeting in February; getting to hear from all four men who want to lead the Republican Party of Texas was enlightening. The differences were clear. I can only hope that the SREC will make the right choice and if they don’t, that the delegates at convention will do better.
As each of them answered, I kept listening for answers that would meld into my idea of a great leader. If the election cycles of the last few years have taught me anything, it is that we have to carefully choose our leaders if we are to thrive as a Republican Party.
Since the onset of the current Presidency, the American psyche has devolved into an ambiguous sense of panic; a fear that we are losing our American values and way of life. The Democrats continue to push the tired old buttons that our party is rich, white and old. That we don’t care about women, children, the poor or the mentally ill. I don’t know that these old clichés are as powerful as they once were yet they persist. Even in Texas.
However, these clichés do have an impact on generations younger than Baby Boomers. For these generations, and the future of the Republican Party of Texas, we have to be able to show that we are the true party of the people – all the people – and that there is value for membership in our party. We need true leaders for that to happen.
We need an RPT leader who understands that we are not actually a red state; we are a state where mostly red voters have turned out at the polls. It’s not the same and ignoring that fact is to risk our own future.
We need an RPT leader who understands that he has a special duty to be dynamic and open. One who understands that our party is big enough and strong enough to welcome people who do not agree with every single detail of the party platform. And still be staunch, true Republicans. If we are really lucky, we will get an RPT leader who is brave enough to insist on a platform document that our elected leaders can run to instead of away from.
We need an RPT leader who understands that the Democrat brand is tarnishing and if we are to maintain a leadership position we must stop campaigning on what is wrong with the other guy, and start campaigning on what we will do. We need a leader that will nurture candidates who will be able to govern as well as they campaign.
Too many voters, especially those younger than Baby Boomers, view voting for a Democrat as voting for potential trouble and voting for Republicans as voting for the “same old, same old”. We need a visionary leader that will help to rebrand our party as the party that will lead Texas into a better, brighter future for all of her citizens, especially those from whom we receive nothing.
I wish him luck, and great success. To our outgoing Chair, Steve Munisteri – I thank you. You left a legacy that I hope our next Chair will build upon.
I hope to see each of you at our Springtime CHAT – details are in this newsletter – it should be relaxing fun and a great way to introduce your friends to our club.