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The Red, White, Maize and Blue Review
September 2009
Fellow College Republicans,
On Monday, October 5th, the Executive Board accepted Gordon Chaffin's resignation as Chairman. Following several disagreements with the Board both parties felt that the pursuit of new leadership would be in the best interest of the club. The Board thanked Mr. Chaffin for his service and wished him the best of luck in the future.
As per the Constitution the two Vice Chairmen, Gregory Cairns and myself, will serve as Co-Chairs for the rest of the term. I know I speak for Greg as well when I say that we will serve the club to the best of our abilities. Rest assured that we will do all that we can to lead the club in the most professional manner possible. If you have questions regarding the change in leadership you're welcome to contact myself or come to any of our office hours, which are posted online. We have a number of exciting events coming up, starting with our Freshman Chair elections on the 14th, and the shooting range trip in November. We deeply appreciate the support we have seen thus far this year from you, and hope that we can continue to live up to your expectations.
Thanks you for your time,
Charles Bogren
Co-Chair
Recent News
My name is Brian Koziara and I am humbled and honored to serve you this year as Freshman Chair of the Michigan College Republicans. I have worked on various political campaigns for the past 5 years and am pleased to bring to the table a wealth of experience in grassroots activism. I am looking to study international relations here at Michigan but hope to eventually transition into domestic politics after gaining experience with foreign affairs.
I have an exciting vision for our organization and believe that this begins with the freshmen. With an unprecedented opportunity in the upcoming 2010 elections, it is essential that we as College Republicans work harder than ever before and coordinate more closely with like-minded candidates, causes, and organizations in order to ensure success in this crucial coming year. And as first-year students, the freshmen of our organization are the hands and feet of our group. Thank you for giving me an opportunity to lead you as freshmen in this endeavor; together we will do what it takes to ensure that conservative-minded candidates win next November. We can and will beat the Democrats at their own game and will successfully mobilize as we already are to ensure victory in 2010.
Campaigns
In recent campaign news, the 2010 Michigan Republican gubernatorial candidates are allowed to spend however much they want on the primary campaigns. Rick Snyder, who won the straw poll at the Mackinaw Conference last month, has put $340,000 towards the campaign, which
granted the freedom to the other candidates for unlimited spending. A recent poll conducted the last week in September showed Cox pulling ahead of the other candidates, with Hoekstra, Bouchard, and Snyder trailing (respectively). Cox easily beat out John Cherry 45% to 32%.
Potential candidates for Secretary of State include Paul Scott, Michelle McManus, Cameron Brown, Anne Norlander, and Judy Emmons.
Attorney General candidates are Mike Bishop, Bruce Patterson, and Bill Schuette. At the Mackinaw Conference, the Michigan Federation of College Republicans (MFCR) decided to endorse Schuette in the race.
The race is starting to heat up as candidates strategize their campaigns and hope to gain momentum leading up to the primaries. For more information, check out www.migop.org. -KM
Red-Letter Republicans
Former Gateway CEO Rick Snyder knows business. In fact, he has placed entrepreneurship, innovation, and technology at the center of his current gubernatorial campaign. A unique perspective on Michigan politics is not all the successful businessman has to offer; he has outlined ten ways to “Reinvent Michigan.” You may have had a chance to speak with Rick at the meet and greet on September 10th, but if not, a brief overview of his impressive career is essential.
Born and raised in Michigan, Rick was only 23 when he graduated from the University of Michigan having earned a Bachelor’s degree, an MBA, and a JD. He went on to become the COO of Gateway, Chairman and CEO of Ardesta , and founder of Avalon Investments, Inc.; all three focus on technology.
Rick also founded and served as the Chairman of Ann Arbor SPARK. SPARK is the economic development org for the Ann Arbor area. He currently serves on the boards of various organizations and private companies.
Aside from his myriad of accomplishments, why should you care about Rick Snyder? The answer is easy: Rick Snyder approaches Michigan’s government with a fresh and distinctive vision. A true Michigander, Rick feels passionately about saving his state, turning Michigan’s economy around, bringing jobs back to the state, and reforming ineffective government. After winning the straw poll at the Mackinac Republican Leadership Conference, who knows? Rick Snyder could be Jennifer Granholm’s successor in Lansing. To learn more about Rick visit his website: http://rickformichigan.com. -GP
Right Writing
ACORN Cracked: How Rotten this Nut?
They promote themselves as a “non-profit, non-partisan social justice organization.” With an annual budget over $100 million USD; more than 1200 neighborhood chapters in over 100 U.S. cities; and international ties in Argentina, Canada, India, Mexico and Peru, the roots of the ACORN tree are vast and tangled. Founded in 1970, the group operates innumerable entities including political lobbying groups, local charities, and the Acorn Housing Corporation. Activities focus on anti-housing discrimination practices, affordable housing and mortgage availability, and a variety of “issue campaigns” such as promoting urban school reform, “living wage” and minimum wage campaigns, and, of course, the infamous voter registration efforts. Over 38 years in operation the ACORN group has drawn livid criticism for its voter registration practices, but since the 2008 elections in particular, serious scrutiny has led to stern demands for federal and state investigations into the group’s operating practices. In mid-September the U.S. Senate voted 83-7 to halt housing and community grant funding to ACORN after the release of several “hidden camera” tapes revealing ACORN representatives offering free advice on how to evade taxes when two conservative young activists went “under cover” as a prostitute and pimp setting up a “brothel” business. Since 1994 ACORN has received more than $53 million in taxpayer funding and was slated to receive additional monies for planned housing and transportation programs. A week earlier the U.S. Census Bureau cut ties to ACCORN noting that more than 20 states had commenced investigations into 2008 campaign and election fraud allegations. Later that week a former ACORN employee, Gregory Hall, went public on Fox News telling Steve Doocy, “ACORN is the most corrupt group in the country.” While acknowledging that many ACORN employees begin their work with good intentions, Hall went on to cite first-hand knowledge of widespread group corruption in the collection of voter registrations. The political implications of cracking the ACORN nut are rather tricky for the Obama administration, as well as many other elected officials with ties to the organization or their funding mechanisms. Obama’s roots with the ACORN Tree go back to his pre-law days as a community organizer in Chicago when a high ranking ACORN leader, Madeleine Talbot, was so impressed with Obama’s work she invited him to become a trainer for the group. And then there was Obama’s work on the boards of the private Woods Fund and Joyce Foundation where he helped direct millions of dollars in grants to ACORN and similar groups. And then there was the time, as a practicing attorney, when Obama successfully sued on behalf of the ACORN organization defending and reinstating lax voter registration schemes. Apparently ACORN is beholden to President Obama on a number of fronts…and vice versa. A full scale investigation of ACORN however, offers President Obama an opportunity to implement his self-espoused “new era of non-partisanship and transparency” in the White House. But then again, having the support of the largest scale, most politically radical activist group in the country behind you at election time is incredibly convenient. (Hey, that $ 1.4 million dollar Nobel Prize would make a nice donation to some deserving non-profit, non-partisan social justice organization!)
For more fascinating facts about ACORN google: “ACORN’s Nutty Regime for Cities” by Sol Stern; Steven Malanga’s “Acorn Squash”; New York Times Editorial by Wall Street Journal columnist John Fund, “A Victory Against Voter Fraud”; Megyn Kelly’s video documentary interview with ACORN founder Wade Rathke. -GP