The Republican Gazette welcomes Emails to the Editor and press releases. All submitted items must include the name and contact information for the author of the article, and all articles will only be published with the author's name included. Thank you for reading and participating in The Republican Gazette, another of West Virginia's most biased publications.
All opinions are those of The Republican Gazette and its editor, Gary Abernathy, except letters or commentary signed by others, and do not reflect the views of anyone else, including clients of Abernathy Strategies.
---
Having Fun
With Mojo
New signs are on the way, but use nice language!
Hey Kids! Mojo here! Much as I hate it, I'm finally giving in to all the whiners and giving them a chance to replace our wonderful "Open for Business" welcome signs! It won't be easy, but we're doing it, because we do things even when they're not easy! Oh, I could make it easy, I guess, and just slap "Wild, Wonderul" up there! But what fun would that be? So I came up with a plan that's a whole lot funner! First, log on and let me know if you even want a permanent slogan! If you say you don't, then I guess we'll keep the one we have now! But if you say you do, then we'll have you log on again and vote on which slogan you like the best! By the way, please make sure not to use inappropriate language when you submit your answers! Don't use bad words like "Heck," "Darn," "Frickin" or "Massey Energy!"
Gov finally cries 'uncle' on signage
Gov. Joe Manchin is finally ready to put his beloved "Open for Business" welcome signs out if their misery, but not without insisting that they served their purpose.
In announcing an online citizen participation contest to choose a new slogan, the governor said, “I felt it was important to use the welcome signs to truly kick-off our state’s new ‘Open for Business’ attitude so that not just our visitors, but our citizens, knew how seriously we took our commitment to economic development. While there is still work left to do, I am pleased to say that working with the Legislature we have made significant progress."
Manchin added that "our Open for Business message recently went global with its inclusion in the latest ‘Die Hard’ movie!”
The exclamation point included after that statement in the press release indicates the governor was extra excited about that fact, and while some may ridicule the notion that a brief glimpse of Mojo's sign in a
Til the end, though, Manchin claims it worked, and even got global attention
BAD SIGN LANGUAGE -- Governor Manchin was a proud papa when he unveiled his "Open for Business" signs in January 2006. This week, he finally gave in to public demand and announced the slogan will change.
movie would make any difference, they're wrong.
In fact the Republican Gazette is in possession of exclusive comment cards filled out by "Die Hard" preview audiences around the country. Here are some of the comments:
"I loved the movie, and Bruce Willis is really cool. But what I'll take away and remember forever is that beautiful West Virginia welcome sign." -- Holly Hoamaker, Los Angeles.
"I'm only disappointed that the West Virginia welcome sign wasn't given more to do." -- Ben Theredunthat, Chicago.
"This movie has changed my life forever. I was going to build my latest hotel in downtown Manhattan -- until I found out West Virginia is open for business. Flatwoods, here I come!" -- Donald Trump, New York City.
And don't cry for the old sign -- the R-G has learned that it's in negotiations for a three-picture deal with Miramax.
The only mystery left is why the governor is engaging in such a drawn out process to choose the slogan people really want, which is "Wild, Wonderful." Just another example of government waste.
Capehart's roll of dice on GOP convention so far successful
ROBIN CAPEHART
During his relatively brief stint as chairman of the West Virginia Republican Party, Robin Capehart made at least one bold move -- changing the way Republicans in West Virginia choose their presidential nominee.
The new GOP convention, set for February 5, 2008, is Capehart's brainchild, and it passed its first crucial step this week with flying colors -- participation by the presidential campaigns.
When Capehart presented his idea for a convention format in 2005, it was approved unanimously by the GOP state executive committee. But few really understood how the process would work and what it would mean for grassroots Republicans across the state.
One of the main purposes of choosing most GOP delegates to the national convention via a state convention format was to generate money for the state party. With ten entrants at $5,000 each, the party has already enjoyed a quick infusion of $50,000 cash. Much more convention-related money should soon follow -- from vendors, delegates, etc. -- and at the end of the day the party should be in the black.
But the convention plan contains several other benchmarks along the way to February 5, and the first was getting the campaigns to take part in the event. If only two or three campaigns had agreed to pony up the $5,000 entry fee -- or if
THIS IS NOT A JOKE -- The image at right is an actual screen shot from a reader who tried to fill out the online entry form to suggest a new West Virginia welcome slogan. When he wrote "Paid for by Massey Energy," he received the error message saying his suggestion "contains inappropriate language." Errors are being reported even by people try- ing to offer serious ideas.
none of the perceived frontrunners had jumped in -- the convention would have been doomed to failure almost before it got off the ground.
With ten campaigns participating, including all the poll leaders, the convention is not only off to a good start, it's in fact poised to become a major event on the national political calendar.
The coming benchmarks for success are all based on grassroots participation. All 55 counties must do their jobs in generating delegates to the state convention. The state convention must see a turnout that reflects broad-based participation from all corners of the state.
But the entry of ten presidential campaigns should be the start of a snowball that builds larger and larger as it rolls on down the hill. If West Virginia Republicans don't get excited about participating in this process, it's difficult to think of anything that would motivate them.
And if it turns out to be an unqualified success -- financially and democratically -- at the end of the day, Capehart will be remembered as the architect of an historic decision that will pay dividends for the WVGOP for years to come.
The Address Confidentiality Program (ACP) bill, which passed unanimously during the recent special session of the legislature, was signed into law today. The ACP is designed to help victims of domestic violence do business with government agencies and other entities without disclosing their home addresses, which reveal their location to those who may want to cause them harm.
“The Address Confidentiality Program is common sense legislation aimed at protecting victims of domestic violence when doing every day business in the state,” Secretary of State Betty Ireland said. “I am happy we could work with the legislature and the governor to pass this important piece of legislation.”
The ACP bill was first passed by the legislature during its 2007 Regular Session, but had to be vetoed due to a title flaw in the bill.
Secretary Ireland announced today that her staff will get to work immediately on drafting the rules for administering the program. “My staff has been in contact with other states which have implemented similar programs,” Secretary Ireland said. “We are reviewing their administrative procedures as a guide in the development of our own.”
Secretary Ireland is committed to bringing to the table those parties interested in the ACP to assist in the design of the administrative procedures. “We’ve done this in the past and will continue to do so,” Secretary Ireland said. “Getting the input of the interested parties has always resulted in a better product, in my experience.”
“If because of this law we save one life, it’s worth it,” Secretary Ireland said.
TO: GARY ABERNATHY
FROM: WEST VIRGINIA FAMILY FOUNDATION INC.
RE: JOHN UNGER
Dear Mr. Abernathy:
I read the story in the Republican Gazette regarding our organization’s endorsement of Senator John Unger in the 2006 General Election. Aside from the fact your paper is a Republican newspaper and our organization is non-partisan, you apparently do not understand our endorsement process.
First, let me say that Senator Unger is not everything we would like to see in a candidate, however, he completed our 2006 Family Values Questionnaire and stated he would support a marriage amendment in West Virginia defining this institution as only "between one-man and one woman". We currently have such a bill which we have introduced in the past two legislative sessions, and if passed by the legislature, would also ban civil unions and domestic partner benefits. Additionally, Senator Unger also has a consistent voting record against gambling, while his Republican counterpart, Jerry Mays, was unwilling to commit to us on his questionnaire responses his position on gambling expansion. While there is some leeway on the questionnaire responses, gambling is not one of them. Had candidate Jerry Mays responded correctly on question # 4 and # 6 dealing with table game and casino gambling, he would have been looked at more favorably.
We basically take a person at their word and hold them accountable to what they have stated and signed off on in their questionnaire responses. We also compare their questionnaire responses to their actual voting record if they are an incumbent legislator. This process is why we were able to endorse the following candidates through our Political Action Committee in the 2006 General Election:
WV State Senate-12 Republicans and 1 Democrat.
House of Delegates-72 Republicans and 6 Democrats
We used the same process for all candidates and if an incumbent legislator breaks his word on his responses to our questionnaire, then we will hold him accountable before his constituency. There is no other process that I am aware of which brings about more fairness in the endorsement process. In addition, our organization has taken much criticism as being a "Republican clone" due to the high number of Republican endorsements we have made both in the 2006 election and in times past. My reply to these folks is the same to which I would tell you or anyone else...."COMPLETE THE QUESTIONNAIRE FAVORABLY OR YOU WON’T BE ENDORSED!
As with any incumbent legislator we have endorsed, we will start to regret endorsing Senator John Unger when he breaks his word by voting for or against legislation which contradicts his questionnaire responses.
In conclusion, Republican candidates fared very well in receiving our endorsement in the 2006 election and the endorsement ratio demonstrates this fact. If there is a lesson to be learned it would be that the WV State Republican Party needs to make sure their candidates are socially conservative and are willing to respond favorably to our questionnaire even if a candidate is in a district where it is not politically correct to do so.
