Pick a team

As nearly everyone seems to be aware of now, Tennessee's Republican State Executive Committee will be meeting this weekend and discussion of closing the primaries and conventions will come up. Let me add my two cents. I'm all for it. As a Republican in Democrat controlled (for now) Davidson County I completely understand the strategy of cross-party voting. It's all I could do for too many years since Republicans didn't have candidates available.

I think Rod Williams has a strong point when he states that open primaries enable the dominant party to stay dominant. A foundational Republican value is that competition gives us a better and cheaper product. We should support that in our political process also. Look at the Dems this last gubernatorial race...Ned Ray's son didn't have any competition and so we didn't really have a contest. I'm not saying Haslam won't be a good governor, I'm saying that iron sharpens iron and he (and we) might have benefited from a more vigorous battle.

I also understand that each party doesn't pay for these primaries and so there's some who object saying that if taxpayers are paying for these, they should have the freedom to come and go as they please. I'm not a fan of government supporting any political party but it seems a reasonable public service. Much more reasonable than say...oh, another convention center, free parking for green cars or public 'art' of dubious value.

And while, I'm rocking the boat, let's go ahead and make it a bit easier to start a party and get your name on the ballot (that taxpayers are paying for). Having spent a good bit of 2009 fighting to keep the DCRP a Republican (socially AND fiscally conservative) entity I'm also wary of interlopers who, because our system is designed to keep small parties off the ballot, decided to usurp our party as a way around the archaic rules. Too many brand spanking new 'Republicans' showed up at our convention. We had no effective device for ferreting them out and having Republican control over our own convention. Make it easier for them to get their own party started. 

I'll end with what I told the interlopers over and over again, pick a team and stick with it. Don't "join" a team with the express purpose of changing it or manipulating it. The Republican SEC needs to give us a way to bring an end to that very tactic. It's the right thing to do.

TN GOP SEC member Mark Winslow has the actual resolution here. Take a few minutes to read it. Leave Mark a note of support there and then encourage your SEC member to vote for this. resolution.