CRP hired the wrong guy to be COO. Plain and simple.
As many of you know the CRP has hired Bill Christiansen as the new temporary COO.
First, we hear Bill is an American, although I haven’t seen proof. Second, Bill is an accomplished political operative, former ED in Orange County and Arizona, a graduate of UCLA and of course his last gig was as the statewide coordinater for Victory ’06.
For those of you new to the Victory ’06 saga, it was the statewide arm of the CAGOP that spent massively on behalf of the Governor (I would argue and the evidence indicates at the expense of everyone else on the ticket.) See here, its just not me.
The Victory ’06 effort left part of the California Republican Party in massive debt. Over 4.5 million dollars and growing. (Those pesky interest charges). The ill-advised board approved $3 million dollar loan is due June 30th. The other 1 and half million of just plain mismanagement and overspending is still out there. (See a previous post here.)
The Governor and past Chairman Sundheim promised fundraisers to pay it off. The two planned fundraising events were consolidated in to one massive gala dinner in LA that raised about $150,000. Barely over one month’s interest payment! Even if the CRP gets ANOTHER loan extension or better yet forgiveness, there is still the other parts of the debt, with Victory ’08 just around the corner.
So unless Bill has a previous employer that was a magician, debt collector or shows an arrest record for loan sharking in the Dominican Republic, all the political skills in the world won’t save the party from mismanagement and overspending on behalf of a “Post-partisan” Governor who doesn’t care about the party, its principles or keeping his promises.
Under these circumstances, not sure there is a "right" guy for COO?
BTW the Governor’s California Recovery Team fundraising is doing just fine.