Founded in 1991, the Republican Liberty Caucus works to advance the principles of limited government, free markets and individual liberty within the Republican Party.

Clubby GOP Conventions Should Not Choose Candidates for Voters

By Aaron - May 27, 2010 at 12:35 PM
Filed under GOP Party , News , Opinion , States , Wisconsin

I have been objecting loudly to the GOP nominating processes in various states for many years now.

In short: the Republican Party Establishment has swooped into competitive Republican Party primaries (election contests that VOTERS should decide) to coronate certain candidates and exclude candidates they do not prefer.

This practice began during the Bush Administration, as far as I can tell. It’s a disgusting process and is truly politics as its worst.

Here is an article in which I criticize the Wisconsin Republican Party for nominating two candidates — one for Governor and another for U.S. Senate — at its Convention on Saturday despite the fact that one other candidate is running in each of these races. Enjoy!

The views expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect official positions of the RLC.
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2 Comments to “Clubby GOP Conventions Should Not Choose Candidates for Voters”

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  1. Christina Jeffrey said:
    On May 28th, 2010 at 5:22 am

    Aaron is right, but the clubby interference in primaries is just part of the whole clubby nature of politics today. Frankly, the use of the word “clubby” is kind, because it sounds almost grown-up. The actual behavior of political operatives, and especially legislators, is reminiscent of middle school.

    The breakdown of manners you see in a state that prides itself on good manners, that is, in my state of South Carolina is a good example. Witness the treatment of gubernatorial candidate Nikki Haley as a case in point.

    I am grateful for grownups, like the Republican Liberty Caucus which endorsed me yesterday.

  2. Steve said:
    On May 28th, 2010 at 8:58 am

    These things can also work in our favor. When we have a motivated group, we can knock out establishment candidates at conventions. Look what happened in Utah. If we can get our people to show up (and I know, sometimes that’s like pulling teeth) then RLC + Campaign for Liberty + tea party people can hold the majority at most conventions. There’s a huge disconnect between the party leaders and the party activists. The activists are truly sheeple, led along by fear, ignorance, or misplaced loyalty. But if you give them an alternative at convention, they’ll go for it. Its the casual primary voters that choose from amongst the Romneys and McCains they’re presented on Fox News.