Nothing Worth While is Easy

Last night I attended most of the LCRP Central Committee meeting to elect committee officers and a party chairman. As you may know, John Stainbrook was elected Party Chairman, and Meghan Gallagher was elected Central Committee Chairman. It is no secret that I was in the "Simpson camp" through the turmoil that has gone on in the last several months. So with that in mind, here are some observations of the meeting I made.

Numerous committee members - knowing an incredibly important, contested vote was occurring - showed up without ID. Some showed up to vote not realizing they had lost in the recent election, and were no longer committee members. And, one person showed up stating he was a central committee member "appointed" by John Stainbrook.

WOW -- if our party is represented by people who don't know enough to carry a photo ID when they drive, bike, ride or walk downtown for an important vote such as this, I worry for Republicans.

Once underway the meeting fell into a battle of spite between supporters for each side over reading of the roll, reading of absent members, and an attempt by the Stainbrook side to strike the rules and call for an open vote. This took HOURS - thus the title of this post.

Freedom and liberty are not easy or clean. Representative government is messy and, as most things worth a damn, difficult to achieve. But the vote last night was a crucial step to re-unification of the party and preparation for November, and worth the pains it caused.

We are at a unique time in NW Ohio. A time when a return to conservative values and a turn toward core Republican principles can and must occur in Lucas County. The economic reality has shined the light on the unrealistic expectations and incompetent actions of the Democratic party entrenched in Lucas County over the last decades. The LCRP must unify to this goal, abandon old ways and cynicism, and break all ties to the establishment - once thought to be a necessary evil endured for the limited success Republicans achieved.

It won't be easy -- But it will be worth it.

TAHL