Romney's "RNC Power Grab": What Really Happened

FreedomWorks ^ | August 29, 2012 | Dean Clancy

[Captain Peter Blood]

The RNC and the Republican Party do not like or want Conservatives.
The high point of Conservatism within the Republican Party was Reagan.
All you have to do is look at the sorry candidates and empty promises since then.
This party will not and does not want to change, it's for Big Government just like the Democrats.
I have heard this mantra that Conservatives can change and take over , etc., etc., Ad Nauseam and it never happens.
We got fooled by Bush and he had a so called Republican Congress and what did it do, Spend! Spend! Spend!!!
Conservatives are deluding themselves if they are thinking Romney is really going to change things. I do not see it.
Guess we will now see what will happen.
Romney can probably win if he keeps the focus on the economy and nothing else.

[Ancesthntr]

We expect Democrats to be top-down and high-handed -- centralization of power is their governing principle, after all. But coming from Republicans, high-handedness is deeply disappointing. Republican rhetoric has always emphasized decentralization and local control -- making policy from the bottom up. And until yesterday, the GOP was in fact a mostly bottom-up party. No longer.

This is 100% spot-on...and, as a result, very sad. I had long thought that the Republicans were different, but it is clear that the Party's leaders are no different in their purpose than those of the Dems - to ensure the continuity of their own power. None of this letting the peasants revolt stuff anymore.

Note that I am a solid Reagan conservative, not some Paulista. To me, conservative principles are correct, and we should proudly shout them from the rooftops. However, the Republican elites obviously not only don't share my views, they have disdain for them. I'd be very much for a big exodus of conservatives to a well-organized Conservative Party, but I know that such would only lead to a guaranteed Dem win. Maybe if we can convince reasonable Dems to also leave their party at the same time...so we'll have 4 parties.

[Jean2]

If this is true then the Republican party will definitely go the way of the Whig party. Good luck GOP celebrating your own funeral.

[Yashcheritsiy]

“Grassroots” , aka, - Paulers.

This is getting tiresome.

Frankly, the only thing tiresome here are idiots who try to defend these rules changes by appealing to the "Paulbots" bugaboo.

Anyone who actually reads the article, instead of just assuming they know that it's really about "Paulbots," ought to be mightily disturbed by the shenanigans that took place. And the author is right - these rules changes could be used at will to pretty much block out any Tea Party influence on the actual workings of the GOP. Paulbots or not, these rules changes are not about rectifying problems long overlooked - they are about shutting out anyone who doesn't walk the Romney/Rove/Barbour walk.

[Colonel_Flagg]

A lengthy post, but well worth reading.

"The new rules strongly suggest the insiders don’t think they need the grassroots to win in 2012 -- an astounding assumption, given the critical role grassroots voters played in the historic 2010 wave election."

Judging by the reaction of a lot of posters on this very website, they might be right. Conservatism in the Republican Party has entered the wilderness.

[duffee]

This is not propagandizing for the democrats, this is an accurate account of how the RNC is disenfranchising me and many other Conservatives who knock on doors, make phone calls, put up signs, give money, attend local party meetings, county and state conventions. A take over of the state party which will have effects on the direction of the Republican party and the ability of the Tea Party or Conservatives being able to be able to assert themselves in the Republican party.

[tsowellfan]

We Conservatives need to stop blaming others when we are defeated. We’re sounding like Obamanites.

If we cannot acknowledge our errors we’re doomed to repeat them.

In the end, there’s always the third party option next election.

I always put Conservatism first. Conservatism above Party. Battles we lose are our own fault. We must learn from those faults so we do not repeat them.

Lesson #1) NEVER run multiple conservatives against ONE Republican Establishment candidate and expect to have enough votes among the split votes to overcome and ultimately defeat the RINO.

Romney may have been “forced” to join the primary by the GOPe (my opinion is that it was Romney who desired the position)but we had a fair chance to beat him and we lost.

[Mozilla]

Yeah. Romney was going to win the 2012 nomination since he came second in the 2008 primary because the Republican Party was going to get him over the finish line of the primary no matter what. They pulled out all the stop to get Romney the nomination. First off they miscalculated the winner in Iowa which was Rick Santorum. They forced candidates off the ballot in Virginia. They attacked all conservatives who ran against Romney. And then came Florida. And now this charade at the convention. They want all conservatives out of the party by the looks of it. You do know that after the Paulbots were kicked out all that was left at the convention floor was 100% MittBots. Other than the speakers and invited guests.

[tsowellfan]

Who did we have representing us there? Do they hold any responsibility for this?

[Eva]

I am not defending the rule changes, I am just saying that the fight is over for now. Time to move on. We have a job to do, defeat Obama.

[HereInTheHeartland]

“The RNC gave him the big bucks and the rest is history.”

No. Better candidates didn’t come forth; and primary and caucus voters selected him over the other candidates.

Basic stuff here. No conspiracies or other underhanded things.
Why not focus instead on this question. “Why did better candidates not come forth to run this cycle?”

[Darksheare]

“BUT, not all of us are that stupid or blind.”

But there are enough people that are, and that’s the problem.

[cuban leaf]

This video will blow your mind:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKaXqoC4DjE

The republicans are not the good guys.

[FourtySeven]

For later consumption.

[Darksheare]

I know.

And the Mittbots keep insisting that if I don’t vote for their pre-chosen candidate, my lack of support for him is somehow a miraculous vote for someone else.

The Paulbots pulling crap at every primary didn’t help either, like we needed street theater and OWS supporters stinking up the already frustrating situation.

[cuban leaf]

I’m sorry my mind went this way but as I read this I found myself more and more reminded of Hitler’s rise to power in the party and finally the country.

Especially after seeing what happened in the video.

[Eva]

Yeah, they could be used to block any group that seeks to disrupt conventions.

The fight is over for now, the Paulers lost. I blame the Paulers for triggering this rule change because the Paulers hate the social conservtives as much as the hate the inside the beltway Republicans. If the Paulers succeed in taking over the GOP, the first people that they would kick out are the social conservatives.

Ron Paul gave it away with his hate-filled looks at Rick Santorum during the debates.

[Cyber Liberty]

So, which fringe candidate did Dean Clancy like? He sounds like a Paulistinian. Maybe he was a Huntsman man?

[KC Burke]

I agree this is a done deal but I think it is always important to have the history. It needs to be known who did what dirty tricks to hold out proper delegates and who the players were so that proper “rewards” can be distributed.

[bravedog]

They also wouldn't allow any other candidate to be nominated. For example, Paul never would have won, but he was nominated which would have put his name on the board and allowed him 15 minutes to speak. From NY Times:

Delegates from Nevada tried to nominate Mr. Paul from the floor, submitting petitions from their own state as well as Minnesota, Maine, Iowa, Oregon, Alaska and the Virgin Islands. That should have done the trick: Rules require signatures from just five states. But the party changed the rules on the spot. Henceforth, delegates must gather petitions from eight states.

If it could happen to Paul, it could also happen to Palin or any other conservative the GOPe doesn't want. We can never nominate a conservative candidate. It will always be who the GOPe selects.