#ncgop: Holy mo-lee. Now, Tom Fetzer’s on the phone.
It’s amazing how many politicos we’ve all heard of are emphatically endorsing someone most of us have never heard of as the best possible choice for NCGOP chairman.
Now, it appears long-time poltical operative, former NCGOP chairman, former campaign consultant, and current lobbyist Tom Fetzer is jumping on the bandwagon to promote the candidacy of SOMEONE named Craig Collins as the next chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party. THIS robo-call featuring Fetzer hit phone lines all over the state this week.
Fetzer can be heard saying:
“I know what it takes to serve as an effective state party chairman and Craig Collins can do the job well. […] I had the honor of serving as state party chairman in 2010 when conservatives won a supermajority in the General Assembly.[…] Craig has rolled up his sleeves and worked hard for the party for a decade. […He’s] a life-long Republican who will we can count on to stand firm for our conservative values. […] I am supporting Craig Collins because I want Republicans to keep winning.”
First, Fetzer is taking credit for a “supermajority” that occurred AFTER he left. I appreciated his 2010 strategy as chairman to challenge EVERY Democrat office-holder. But seriously, in 2010, how much did you really need to do to smack down the Democrats?
This comes on the heels of a Collins endorsement letter circulated to NCGOP voting delegates by Gov. Pat McCrory.
Hassan Harnett and AJ Daoud appear to be the only other choices for chairman. Word is out there that more may magically appear from the convention floor.
Well, you folks attending the convention have two choices: (1) bow your heads and follow your orders to retain the establishment power structure, or (2) send a message to Raleigh that creates the kind of aftershocks not felt in Raleigh since Jerry Meek upset Gov. Mike Easley’s NC Democrat Party chairman choice Ed Turlington.
Red pill or blue pill. Choose wisely.
Whoa. The rinos really are running scared and stupid. Next they’ll have a guy who donated over $100,000 to the Clinton’s slush fund come and be the keynote speaker at the NCGOP convention.
Maybe I am off base but it is my own personal opinion that Fetzer used the party and his position of Chairman for his own personal gain. For one he started the trend again of chairman being paid (I had a conversation with him about this before he was elected this is not a new issue for me when concerning this years election) by the party again and then seems to have influence gained during this time to roll into his new job of his new lobbying firm
” former Republican Party Chairman Tom Fetzer, and a former staffer for U.S. Sen. Jesse Helms, Jimmy Broughton, all entered the ranks of influential lobbyists in 2012.” http://www.carolinapublicpress.org/20297/former-legislators-rank-among-north-carolinas-top-lobbyists
Again maybe I have it wrong but and if I do then I hope someone will give me a breath-mint for the bad taste his chairmanship left in my mouth. I would be happy if my view of the situation could be corrected
So when I look for a chairman I look for someone for first and foremost is loyal to Conservative Values and willing to stand up for them at all costs even if they get chastised by the media at every turn. Someone that will speak out on issues even when other republican elected officials are going astray
someone like
“Mecklenburg County commissioner Jim Puckett, a Republican who represents the Lake Norman area, criticized McCrory’s comments”
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article21019305.html#storylink=cpy
When people are pushing bad policy you have to fight to stop them and more so when they are on your own team I think you should push even harder to make sure they do the right thing cause it is our Reputations as Republicans that are at stake
I think it makes it hard to trust someone for the position of chairman when the people that they need to be able to hold accountable are in a huge line endorsing them.
We need a person that will put the parties values first and that will spend their term as Chairman looking for the party to gain and not themselves
To those who remember the Fetzer chairmanship, this endorsement should be a kiss of death to Collins. Fetzer trying to claim credit for the national 2010 GOP wave that elected our legislative majorities is just like Fetzer. That was a national revulsion to Obamacare, and had not the slightest thing to do with anything Fetzer did.
What Fetzer and Collins have in common is using controversial RINO consultant Dee Stewart to run their chairmanship campaigns. The party does NOT need another Dee Stewart puppet in that position.
Fetzer was the last minute replacement by the establishment for Woody White who withdrew from the chairman’s race. Fetzer’s claim to fame before that was that he was the failed political consultant who blew the Elilzabeth Dole Senate race in 2008. That was such a spectacular fail that Fetzer had to get out of the consulting business and try to find another paycheck. Was that a credential to be thrust into the GOP chairmanship?
And of course, Fetzer did need that paycheck, so he insisted on being the first GOP chairman to get a full time paycheck while there was also a full time party executive director. That hunger for a paycheck seems to be something Fetzer and Collins have in common.
As chairman, Fetzer grossly abused the Plan of Organization, most spectacularly when he intruded into a GOP congressional runoff in the 8th district to hold a press conference to attack the leading GOP candidate, a conservative with strong Tea Party ties, as ”unfit for office” and endorse the trailing candidate, using his title as state GOP chairman to do so. Fetzer apparently was convinced by his consultant buddies to do that.
The NCGOP does NOT need another Fetzer, and this is all the more reason that Collins has to be stopped. Daoud or Harnett are both light years better.
I have never met Collins, but there is an old saying that when you lie down with dogs you get fleas, and he is constantly lying down with dogs. This is just the latest one.
Fetzer was not even a credentialed, voting delegate at the convention that elected him. If that convention had been held anywhere other than his home town, he probably would not have become chair.
Thanks Raphael,
It is good to know that my recall of past happenings were not off base
Now we just have to try to keep history from repeating itself
Fetzer: Craig has rolled up his sleeves…..
Bad move, exposed the articulating hinged joints at elbow, strings attached at wrists. This puppet is a plant. Will The conventioneers get caught up in the chirade and advance the wooden boy?
The GOP is drowning, they just tossed an anvil in the drink to rescue it with this Collins puppet. Keep up the good work at making GOP irrelevant.
I don’t want Republicans to keep winning it’s too damaging to the country. I do want conservatives to keep advancing though. The two have little in common.
Republican is to conservative as Gang membership is to law abiding citizen.
So, a Republican is a gang member and a conservative is a law abiding citizen?
In reality, when it comes to winning having a conservative who can deliver a message that resonates is what wins elections. It is why moderate Gerald Ford lost to Jimmy Carter but conservative Ronald Reagan beat Jimmy Carter by a landslide. Running a Republican who is a pale imitation of the Democrats is a loser, as we saw with McCain and Romney.
It is also why the polls are showing that the Republicans in the 2016 race who have the most voters who say than cannot support them under any circumstances – both among all voters and among Republicans – are moderates Jeb Bush and Chris Christie.
Rules Smulezs. Who cares about following the rules when the people check their brains at the door and will mindlessly follow the empty suit at the podium. We can get anything we want and the people present will even cheer us on for screwing them. It’s great!
Oh the leaderships does care about rules, when they can be used to shut up the people at the bottom. Google up on the RNC national rules changes that passed in Tampa.
When I saw John Boehner say “The ayes have it” off a teleprompter, was when I seriously began asking myself how could I remain a member of such an organization.
The cool thing is we can show this video at convention and the conventioneers and voters will still vote for us to keep screwing them. Of course we don’t care about them. We tell them what we want to to keep the sheep quiet and they fall for it every time. They even cheer for us to keep screwing them. It’s great!
Take a look.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Auf1rehiA-4
Does this fellow named Craig Collins have enough substance to stand on his own two feet in this campaign? First he hides behind a consultant and then hides behind a parade of other people. Or is he just an empty suit who can be manipulated by others? And who is dumping all of this money into his campaign?
One of the other candidates is actually personally calling delegates. I wonder which works better, a robocall machine or a personal call?
I want to find out about candidates I may be voting for, NOT their surrogates. I want to hear what a candidate has to say, not what their consultant drafts for them to say.
To keep the record straight while I have had robo-calls I also did get a personal phone call from Collins. He knew I did not support him because he wants a salary from the party for the position. We had a chat and it was nice enough and I thanked him for reaching out but I feel he is more interested in the position for the salary. Take the salary away and I think he would go away
So for the record he is calling people and if you did not get a call yet maybe he just has not worked his way down the list
The party is using a loop hole in the plan of organization to be able to pay a chairman
ARTICLE VI – STATE ORGANIZATION
—–B. STATE CENTRAL COMMITTEE
———-2. Powers and Duties
—————-a. The State Central Committee shall have the power to appoint such Committees as it may deem
necessary for the proper conduct of Party affairs, to formulate fiscal policy, establish financial goals,
prepare a budget
==========
so this is what they used to set up a AD-HOC committee and to determine a salary for the chairman
===========
The state executive committee approves a budget for a lump sum salary line item in the budget but the state executive committee is not allowed to know the chairman’s salary under the current structure and leadership
===============================================
To solve the problem the plan of organization needs to be changed
===============================================
ARTICLE VI – STATE ORGANIZATION
A. ANNUAL CONVENTIONS
2. Election of Officers
In every odd-numbered year, the State Convention shall elect a State Chairman and a Vice-Chairman
who shall serve for a term of 2 years or until their successors are elected.
NEEDS TO BE CHANGED adding —VOLUNTEER— in two places TO READ
2. Election of Officers
In every odd-numbered year, the State Convention shall elect a —VOLUNTEER— State Chairman and a —VOLUNTEER— Vice-Chairman
who shall serve for a term of 2 years or until their successors are elected.
==========================
this would go a long way to solve the parties problem with the position of Chairman
Actually, what is needed is an Executive Committee majority with the ‘nads to refuse to pass a budget until it got all the details it needed.
“Nads” I like this word more people should use it..
So I used my Nads at the last Executive Committee meeting in December 2014 to make a motion to get the Salary budget line split to reflect salaries of hired workers and elected workers. a vote was taken and Thanks for my fellow members of the committee they voted me down.
I have a few reasons in my head to why this happened?
1. I am not a very good communicator and they did not understand what I was asking
2.even if I communicated everything perfectly
a- they did not care
b – they were offended that I would challenge the chairman on this matter
c- they did not want to get in a debate they just wanted to go home
so I give my fellow board members the benefit of the doubt and I am trying to be better communicator and educate people better on this issue
so this is why I will be trying to make the proposed plan of organization change at the convention and let my fellow delegates a chance to vote this change in and send a message that the grassroot workers of this party wants a GRASSROOT Chairman for our leader and not just another paid politician
and if I leave the convention not winning this issue at least I will be able to say I tried which will be more then most people just sitting in their chairs clapping at the speeches but I hope I can gain enough support that NC GOP will never again have a paid Chairman
Delegate Z. We agree.
SAR
My above comment is specific to the Tampa
smack down.
SAR
A shoe in.Collins and Justice have received the endorsements of U.S. Senator Richard Burr, U.S. Senator Thom Tillis, Governor Pat McCrory, Lt. Governor Dan Forest and U.S. Congressman Patrick McHenry, the Chief Deputy Majority Whip of the U.S. House. Additionally, State Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger, State House Speaker Tim Moore and NCGOP State Chairman Claude Pope endorsed Collins and Justice.Get on board the train is leaving the station.
Art confirms what was already known. Give Art a treat. The corrupt business as usual establishment wants the two business as usual potted plants to don the worthless titles. It’s an I do you, you do me political orgy amongst a small circle of friends.
Remember everybody that works at a bank is a Vice President from teller line on up, But they’re controlled by someone else they have no decision making authority. Thus the case in this NCGOP scam and political circle jerk.
I agree. It’s all just noise from the rabble / back benchers. The establishment will gets it’s pick in place again and walk away with all your convention fees. Thankee! See ‘ya next year! It threatens too many consultants’ meal tickets to upset the status quo.
so are you saying that I am just wasting my money going to the convention to try to elect the best person for the party. Dang my hotel room is not refundable and the NCGOP already has my money do you think they will give it back.
Just gotta be real, Patrick. Yes, I think the convention is a waste of time and money. I quit the party after volunteering for several years and realizing what a feckless and insular organization it has become.
Someday the GOP will be like A.M. radio. People know it exists, but don’t really care what it does.
Well if all the good people leave the party and do not fight for conservative change in leadership then we by the sake of doing nothing let the liberals win and no one will be left to fight evil
Don’t be discouraged Patrick. For the first time in a long time, this races for Chair and Vice Chair have some good candidates as well as the usual, odious “Governor’s choice”.
A lot of County Chairs are fed up with “business as usual” and are looking for new leadership. Some of them, like Michelle Nix, are actually stepping up. Incidentally and thus far, she’s the only County Chair in either race.
well I really hope when I make a motion to amend the Plan of Organization to make sure we have a Volunteer Chairman and a Volunteer Vice-Chair. I hope there will be enough people to second my motion to get it a vote and hope the everyone will look to the delegates beside them and say this is good and we need to vote yes
if I end up the laughing stock of the convention I am fine with that I am trying to make positive change in a party that I joined when I was 18
Justice is no longer running, she backed out in mid-April. Michele Nix, Chairwoman of Lenoir County announced before Justice dropped out. Marcus Kindley, perpetual candidate from Guilford County announced at the NCFRW right after AJ Daoud announced for Chairman, probably trying to make the impression they were running together. Then John Lewis, former 8th District Chairman announced. Now there’s talk of another candidate from Wake County who will run too.
we should vote in a election process like Last Comic Standing the TV show did with a contest challenging the other contestant by saying I am more funny then ____ blank
so we can draw straws to see who gets to go first and say ” I Know I can get more votes then _________” at least this would make the rounds of voting exciting and might get a better result with head to head voting for who is going to be the head of the party
Those endorsements may mean something in a general election when the opponent is a Democrat, but much less so in an intra-party contest, and among grassroots party activists and conservatives some of them pay even be toxic.
Let us start with one you conveniently skip over but is the biggest rogue elephant in the room, and that is Dee Stewart. Stewart has been more involved in the campaign of Collins and now Lewis than all of those you do mention put together, and Dee Stewart is extremely toxic with grassroots Republicans and conservatives. Stewart, a RINO consultant has worked hard against conservative candidates and conservative policy within the party for years, and now he has branched out to working for non-Republican liberal groups to work against GOP policy. No thinking conservative or grass roots Republican would ever support a candidate backed by Dee Stewart.
Then there is Patrick McHenry, longtime ally of Stewart going back to College Republicans. McHenry is part of the John Boehner leadership team in Congress, and Boehner is toxic with grassroots Republicans. The polling just before Boehner ran again for Speaker showed that 60% of Republican voters did not trust him and wanted him replaced, while only 18% wanted to keep him Speaker. McHenry, and with him Collins have grabbed hold of the short end of the stick on that one. McHenry also was one of the Republicans who voted to fund Obama’s executive amnesty for illegal aliens, which again makes him toxic with conservatives and the grassroots.
Then there is Richard Burr, who three GOP Congressional District organizations in NC have voted to censure for his liberal votes in the past two years, one by overwhelming vote of its convention and two by uananimous vote of their executive committees. Burr is not exactly beloved by the grassroots, especially when over the past couple of years he arrogantly ignores it when conservative constituents melt the phone lines to try to get him to vote conservative but he votes liberal instead. Further, Burr was one of the ”Shameful Seven” Senators who funded the very worst, most dishonest, most vicious and most race baiting dirty tricks against conservative Chris McDaniel in the Mississippi Senate primary runoff last year. Burr’s funding that vicious anti-conservative campaign in Mississippi will give many conservatives pause to even vote for him if he is the general election nominee, and as to his endorsements, well they are toxic.
Then there is Tillis, who as Speaker conducted a war against conservative legislators, using redistricting to take out two and recruiting primary challengers to several others, as well as unsuccessfully trying to recruit even more primary challengers. The wife of liberal vice chairman candidate John Lewis worked in the campaign of one of the liberals that Tillis recruited to run against one incumbent conservative legislator. A Tillis endorsement for a party position is toxic to conservatives who remember his War on Conservatives within the party.
Tom Fetzer? He is another Stewart flunky, and as chairman abused his position to violate the Plan of Organization to hold a press conference as state GOP chairman to endorse the establishment-backed second place candidate in the 8th Congressional District 2010 runoff and call the conservative frontrunner, who had strong Tea Party ties ”unfit for office”. No grassroots GOP activists or conservatives want any part of Fetzer or any candidate he endorses.
Governor McCrory’s endorsement is mildly positive but does not do much to balance the toxic nature of the above endorsements. If McCrory had staffed his administration largely with party activists ahd loyalists like Governors Holshouser and Martin did, instead of largly ignoring party activists and loyalists, then his endorsement would have carried greater weight.
I think Raphael should be nominated for Chairman but I will only support a Volunteer Chairman so I hope you are OK with that
Again for the record, I am not ticketing with any Vice Chairman Candidates. I was shocked to see Kindley at that meeting, more surprised at his announcement.
Blessings all.
so is the Daoud Crowd looking for a Salary if the Crowd wins the Chairmanship