Rules Change Sparks Grassroots Boos at GOP Convention

[DefiantSix]

Rules Change Sparks Grassroots Boos at GOP Convention
 by Michelle Goldberg | Aug 29, 2012 4:45 AM EDT

When loud booing broke out on the Republican National Convention floor in Tampa on Tuesday, it wasn’t just coming from die-hard Ron Paul supporters. An obscure change to party rules exposed a larger rift between Mitt Romney’s Republican establishment and the GOP grassroots. “Our party is a grassroots party and not a top-down party,” says Julianne Thompson, a Romney delegate and Georgia state coordinator for Tea Party Patriots. “Both of these rules undermine the very nature and the spirit of our party.” Republican officials from Nevada called it a “Marxist-style power grab.” Writing on Facebook, Sarah Palin called it “a direct attack on grassroots activists by the GOP establishment, and it must be rejected.” This was probably not the way the Romney team wanted the convention to begin.

The controversy is rooted in the battle between Romney and Paul, who still has plenty of devoted fans in Tampa. Because of quirks in the way delegates are chosen, Paulites were able, through their superior organization, to dominate the selection process in several states that Paul didn’t win, including Maine and Minnesota. There’s been a protracted fight over seating these delegates—on Tuesday, after the party stripped Paul of half of his 20 delegates from Maine, part of that delegation walked out.

In an effort to get more control over the delegate-selection process in the future, Romney’s people overstepped in a way that infuriated many conventiongoers who are otherwise supporting him. Yesterday, the Republican National Committee proposed a new rule that would allow the party’s nominee to overrule state conventions and choose his or her own delegates. This, many feared, would turn delegate slots into perks for insiders and donors, and further shut activists out of the process. The reaction was livid. In a widely circulated open letter to the Republican National Committee, Thompson wrote, “The audacity of creating a firestorm when there is an opportunity for unity and peace that is needed to win back the Senate and take back the White House is irresponsible and I seriously question the motives of those behind this attempt.”

In the end, the party decided to compromise, adopting a measure that simply binds delegates to vote for the candidate they were chosen to vote for. But it adopted a second rule, Rule 12, allowing the party to change its regulations between conventions. Many at the RNC suspect that the party will use this rule to institute new delegate-selection procedures when the convention is over. When House Speaker John Boehner held a voice vote on the floor over Rule 12, there seemed to be as many “nays” as “ayes,” but Boehner declared, “The ayes have it.” That’s when the booing started.

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And people wonder why I despise the RNC like I do... 

Rush was talking about this on his show yesterday.  One of the methods the RNC used to drive this change through was to remove "activist" delegates from the Rules Committee after the Monday night vote didn't come down the way the RINOs wanted it to.

[BigTex]

The republicans taking control of the republican party? NO WAY! I dont know why they wont let the RINO liberaltarians cause all the trouble they want and not respond at all.

[DefiantSix]

The republicans taking control of the republican party? NO WAY! I dont know why they wont let the RINO liberaltarians cause all the trouble they want and not respond at all.

WTH??

The country-club RINOs like McCain, Graham and Bohner may think that the Republican party is "their" party, and they don't have to pay attention to those TEA Party types which make it so hard for them to rub elbows with their Dhimmi'Rat buddies, but the majority of funding donations are from those grass roots TEA party types, the Republican "base" are those conservative, Tea Party activist types, and if they think that they can silence the voice of those activist TEA Party types without severe ramifications to both of those, then they're even stupider than the Dhimmi'Rats whose cocks they suck.

[BigTex]

WTH??

The country-club RINOs like McCain, Graham and Bohner may think that the Republican party is "their" party, and they don't have to pay attention to those TEA Party types which make it so hard for them to rub elbows with their Dhimmi'Rat buddies, but the majority of funding donations are from those grass roots TEA party types, the Republican "base" are those conservative, Tea Party activist types, and if they think that they can silence the voice of those activist TEA Party types without severe ramifications to both of those, then they're even stupider than the Dhimmi'Rats whose cocks they suck.

Im not sure how making VOTES count more than caucus maneuvering is silencing people. It is giving power to the voice of the people to nominate who they choose, not who knows how to manipulate roberts rules the best.

[thundley4]

Yesterday, the Republican National Committee proposed a new rule that would allow the party’s nominee to overrule state conventions and choose his or her own delegates.

I really do not understand this. Romney is not the official nominee until he accepts the offer later today and the offer wan't even tendered until the vote yesterday.

[txradioguy]

I listened yesterday to Mark Levin interview Morton Blackwell from Tampa about this mess.  The one thing Mark noted and Morton agreed with is that this was NOT (the grassroots opposition) something started by the Ronulans as the media is reporting...to make this appear like it was only the kook fringe that were booing.

This was the TEA Party upset that they were being squeezed out.

What I thought was funny was that even while the booing was going on...John Boehner was declaring the passage of the rules changes as "unanimous".

[DefiantSix]

I listened yesterday to Mark Levin interview Morton Blackwell from Tampa about this mess.  The one thing Mark noted and Morton agreed with is that this was NOT (the grassroots opposition) something started by the Ronulans as the media is reporting...to make this appear like it was only the kook fringe that were booing.

This was the TEA Party upset that they were being squeezed out.

What I thought was funny was that even while the booing was going on...John Boehner was declaring the passage of the rules changes as "unanimous".

Exactly what Limbaugh was saying Tuesday or Wednesday morning, when the RNC was busy orchestrating this mess.

[obumazombie]

Circular firing squad.