Six weeks ago the California Republican Convention met to among other things debate rules changes pertaining to the endorsement process since passage of Proposition 14.

The media was relentless. Headlines featured words like “tension’ and “clash”. My favorite came from the lefty blog Calbuzz that asked “Will the Stalinistas strike a blow for authoritarianism?”

All this centered around the fight between two proposals that would let either the state board decide endorsements or a caucus of state and local central committee members. Both plans contained exceptions that specifically protected incumbents. Insiders choosing is the worst possible way to get the candidates we need and don’t get me started on incumbent protection. Ultimately, I wrote an alternative plan supported by Congressman Tom McClintock that rejected both approaches and would lead to pre-primary mail in balloting by Republicans was adopted. (The chairman is announcing something soon, so I won’t steal his thunder or hair gel on this one.) So … Read More