Having served as Treasurer of the State Republican Party from 1999-2001, I know a little something about the way the Party was run then, and run now.  During my term, the Party Board of Directors and Chairman had the authority and responsibility to make decisions and implement policy for the benefit of building the Party organization in the State.  The Party had leverage against Presidential and Gubernatorial nominees and was at the table in a significant way, on all matters including finance and operations.  There was an interdependent relationship, and although it resulted often in friction and negotiation, it was a process that served the Party well for decades

When then Chairman John McGraw, and Executive Director Jon Fleischman actually had the audacity to stand up to the Bush campaign and California legislative leaders during the 2000 cycle, right or wrong, some conservative members of the Party Board led a coup attempt against McGraw and Fleischman, and I am proud to say I had a big role in putting down that uprising (some of those coup leaders are still around today).  Their efforts were misguided and led to the "reformed Party" we see in operation today.

As a result of the Bush drubbing in 2000, State Party members needed a place to put their anger, and incoming chairman Shawn Steel saw the handwriting on the wall.  So he and others agreed to support "reforms" in the Party structure.  The State Central Committee then affirmed the new Party governance.  This had the effect of giving away control of the Party to whatever person or entity could raise money during a given cycle.  

Statewide campaigns are now in de facto control of the Party operations, and the Party takes its orders from the Presidential and Gubernatorial campaign nominees.  This is the system that Duf Sundheim inherited and had to operate in.  It was a system created by Gerry Parksy and agreed to by conservatives in hope of a better outcome in Statewide elections.  It hasn’t worked.

Republicans have not gained one legislative seat since the reforms, have actually lost Congressional seats, and have seen no success with Statewide candidates other than for a Governor running well to the left of the Party platform.  "Reforms" were enacted to "cure" the GOP’s competitiveness problem when in fact our problem in California is 100% demographic in nature – something we cannot control.

So, now we have a debt, and a handshake commitment from the Governor help.  I take the Governor at his word.  But he has no responsibility in the matter should the debt not be repaid.  The sole responsibility is that of the Party’s Board – which had no real choice in the matter in the first place.  Due to the reforms, they had to "go along" with the Governor.  

I look at this current crop of Board candidates and wonder why they even bother.  Although I think Ron Nehring will do amazing things with political processes and organization, when it comes to raising money, he’s got to sit back and wait – and he’ll always have his hand out.  In 2008 the process will start all over again with our Presidential nominee.  The Board has been reduced to a rubber stamp – for fear of being defunded.

It’s time for the Party governance structure to go back to the way it was before.  Titles and responsibility without authority might look good on a resume, but are essentially meaningless under today’s way of doing business.  Until we do the hard work to raise money apart from telemarketing and direct mail, we’ll always be dependent on others – and the cycle will continue until the Party becomes completely irrelevant – nothing but one giant money laundering organization.

This entry was posted on Saturday, February 3rd, 2007 at 12:00 am and is filed under Blog Posts.