Great news!
In an article entitled Infighting by county GOP likely not over by By Tad Walch of the Deseret Morning News, “the Utah County Republican Party reversed course and agreed to give all candidates the e-mail addresses of delegates to the county convention.”
The article appeared on the front page of the Utah Valley section of the Saturday, April 5, 2008 paper.
What a testament to the power of social media, the democratization of information via the Internet, and the call for transparency. Decisions like this can go a long ways in restoring people’s faith in the Party, I believe.
I commend the Utah County Republican Party Leadership for this decision.
Kip:
Great work on putting the pressure on Monnahan, Bramble, Bramble, and Cluff to make right what wasn’t right for the first 10 days of the campaign.
But when party leaders wipe out that many days of the challengers’ campaign, should they really get off scot-free?
Instead of “commending” them for doing the right thing only when nuclear arms are pointed their way, why not punish them for interfering in fair process in the first place?
Last time I checked, they don’t not arrest a shoplifter if he offers to go back in the store and put that iPod back on the rack.
We ought to apply the same principle with people who steal elections — only the penalties should be 1000 times more severe for the obvious reason that the impact of a stolen election is way more than 1000 times more severe than the impact of a stolen iPod.
Mike,
Thanks for your comment. Here’s why I commend the Utah County Republican Party Leadership:
1. I sought the reversal of a decision in order to bring compliance with the rules. That was my primary concern–adhering to the rules.
2. I have no personal experience with any of the people you mention to cause me to seek their punishment. If the electorate wants anyone punished, it will see to it at the ballot box.
3. I completely agree the challengers are disadvantaged by the loss of “the first 10 days of the campaign.” I am confident I was not the only one seeking this decision’s reversal–in fact, some of the candidates went into the public record regarding their efforts. I would hope all of the candidates who were impacted by the delay would come forward with their experiences and interactions with the Party Leadership. This is the type of transparency the Party needs that will helpe the Party be more “by the people and of the people.”
I’m just one guy, Mike. I can only do what I did and will do moving forward. As my “About” page states: “I am not a politician… I have a wife, a family, a cat, a dog, a day job and a mortgage.” I work on this serially while trying to balance the demands of life.
So, being a firm believer in the adage that “just because you can’t fix everything doesn’t mean you shouldn’t fix one thing,” I will focus on redress of rules and principles. My life and professional experience has taught me that keeping the discussion issues-based brings about real change. Attacking individuals usually just marginalizes the attacker’s ability to participate in the dialogue.
We the people of who are in the Party have to work to reform the Party by the book, and with full-disclosure of the facts.
I choose not to make this personal.
Kip