From our Tea Leaf filled email bag -- (Emphasis Added)
Dear Republican County Chairman,Though the Tea Party Patriots do not endorse candidates, we do and will continue doing our best to educate our members and the general public -- which is why the above lies cannot go unanswered.
Having served as a County Chairman in two very different county's in my life time, it never ceases to amaze me on how some folks ego's can cloud their judgment.
Rarely in politics have I come across a candidate who is at once so openly disdainful of our party and our process, yet still brazen enough to ask for your support. Seth Morgan is currently trying to have it both ways with you, and I thought you should know the truth about this young man.
Recently, we needed to fill a void on the statewide ticket left when Mary Taylor decided to join John Kasich’s campaign and not seek re-election. You may recall that I immediately sent you an email requesting your consideration of Dave Yost for that spot. Dave had been all over Ohio during the previous year, and had built a statewide network that was truly impressive. Dave’s been in my county, and undoubtedly in many of yours. He is a former County Auditor, and is ready to fill Mary’s shoes right away. Polling has already shown that voters want an Auditor to be Auditor, which neither Seth Morgan, nor David Pepper is or has ever been.
I for one, not even knowing Seth Morgan's interest at the time, did reach out to Dave and ask him if he, given his Auditor background, would consider running for State Auditor. Given the importance of this office and with his proven track record, he would give us the best opportunity to retain it. I along with others I am sure, suggested for him to consider it, knowing he would be the one who would have to make that decision. My decision to urge you to consider Dave’s candidacy was decried by Seth’s campaign as a “backroom deal” and he accused Dave of “bending to political pressure” when he made his decision to step up and bring his considerable skills to the Auditor’s race. But Seth saw fit to judge my decision as political expediency –even though he does not know me. His campaign’s barrage of negative attacks on the party and our traditions and processes did not end there.
About two weeks ago, the Ohio Republican State Central Committee met in Columbus to consider an endorsement in this race. Dave Yost won the endorsement easily, joining the other slate of endorsed candidates we had already chosen to win back Ohio for us in 2010. Seth Morgan’s name was not placed into nomination by anyone on the Committee.
Seth had spent several days leading up to the meeting, apparently asking his small group of vocal supporters to call and harass voting members. Many were told they would draw challengers for their seats when their re-elections came up. They were bombarded with scripted emails and angry phone calls from individuals accusing them of playing old politics and calling them “RINOs” among other things.
Instead of vying for the nomination and respecting our party, Seth created a spectacle outside of party headquarters with people holding signs, yelling at committee members as they walked into the building, and chanting angry slogans – all for the media to see – based on fallacies about our party and our chairman, assumed to be true by Seth. One Committee member was physically threatened by a misguided individual who was sent to Columbus.
The whole thing was shameful, orchestrated by a guy who thought attacking them would scare them into supporting his candidacy. They are volunteers, elected by the members of their party in their districts – and I for one, don't respond well to threats or scare tactics when doing what I believe to be best for my party.
Now Seth has sent around the email below, asking you at the county level to consider supporting his candidacy. For one, he’s asking you to ignore the State Central Committee, who has already endorsed, in another attempt to divide allegiances and draw attention to himself.
He’s also asking you to pay no attention to the pitiful tactics he’s already employed when criticizing party leaders, many who are volunteer's like you and me, following their conscience and doing their jobs on behalf of a well qualified candidate who has out-worked Seth.
Seth may in fact have a future in our party, but he has a lot to learn about working with and for people. I suggest, that as a newly elected official, he work harder at doing the job of which people in his district elected him to do. I’ll be happy to explain to Seth that the reason he will not receive the support of this chairman at this time is not because I believe in “waiting your turn” as Seth again assumes to be the case – but because he needs to learn to respect the GOP and it's elected leaders, before he can expect to earn our support. I hope you’ll join me in delivering this message to him.
Sincerely,
Kent Moore
Belmont County Chairman
The peaceful protest at the ORP HQ against the personal vendetta's over good politics and political musical chairs being played by the lemon-like leadership in the ORP & the State Central Committee in the State Auditor & Attorney General race was NOT orchestrated by the Morgan campaign, it was -- in the truest sense -- a grass roots effort by a majority of the Tea Parties, 9.12 groups and other conservative groups throughout OH.
On a side note.... I have also been informed that in his interview with the City Club of Cleveland, ORP Chairman Kevin DeWine described this protest as a small handful of angry protesters that has been blown out of proportion. Oh Really?!?
Shocked that anyone would dare challenge the entitlement mindset of the ORP and their process, just like some of the Democrats did in our visits with them, the goose-stepping goons of the OH GOP even called the police on the Tea Partiers that came to visit.
(Click here for an accurate overview of the disgusting backroom politics behind the OH GOP endorsement in the State Auditor race. )
Patriots.... it is clear from the above email and the previous comments of Columbiana County Chairman Dave Johnson that -- "the Tea Parties & 9.12 Groups are nothing without the GOP" -- it is the Ohio Republican Party, under the lemon-like leadership of Chairman Kevin DeWine and the current State Central Committee, that they still don't get it and a message must be delivered to them!
This message should reflect their leadership! Join us in sending Leadership Lemons to ORP Chairman Kevin DeWine & the ORP State Central Committee...
I have a question.
ReplyDeleteIf you don't like the "backroom deals", why don't you run for the central committee yourself? It's not that hard.
Hi Greyhawk,
ReplyDeleteI have your answer.... I was.
I was on the Republican Party of Cuyahoga County for about 8-9 years. The Tea Party Patriots ask that none of the coordinators be on any party committee.... so I gladly stepped down.
For the time I was on the RPCC a small handful of us fought tooth and nail to try and stop the backroom deals and social club demeanor that is routinely seen in all 88 county parties, (D & R).
We are now educating our members of what these committees are and that it is because of the bs that goes on in these meetings that they are always left to vote for the lesser of two evils on election day.
It is only in the county Central/Executive and State Central Committee for both parties that the fight needs to start if any changes are going to be made.
Now my turn to ask you a question....
From the tone of your comment it appears you do like the "backroom deals" that are taking place -- would that be correct?