Posted on 03/22/2013 2:57:56 PM PDT by Kazan
COLUMBUS, March 22, 2013 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The Republican Party of Ohio has appointed as its executive director a registered lobbyist actively campaigning to redefine marriage in the state, deepening the conflict between voters and the party elite. The move triggered swift backlash, as a coalition of 80 conservatives from across the state issued a letter warning party bosses they “will not support them” in the future.
The new GOP leader is Matt Borges, a lobbyist for Equality Ohio, the group pressing to overturn the state's constitutional amendment against same-sex “marriage.” He was hand-selected by retiring state GOP chairman Bob Bennett, who has led the party since 1988, and is seen as Bennett's heir apparent.
“With this letter we put the party bosses on notice that we reject their betrayal of the party platform and our conservative values,” said Tom Zawistowski, the executive director of the Portage County Tea Party. “We will not support them going forward but will instead support those who are true to our cause."
The letter represents the views of a broad coalition, “not just liberty group members and social conservative voters, but rank and file registered Republican voters,” it states.
"Some of our Republican officials seem hell-bent on alienating conservative voters and volunteers, which reduces voter turnout," said Lori Viars, Vice President of Warren County Right To Life, who also serves as Vice Chair of the Warren County Republican Party. “They ignore the GOP platform, choosing to put themselves outside the mainstream of our party base.”
That's bad politics in a bellwether state.
"Never have I been more concerned for the direction of our state and country – largely due to a failure in leadership,” said former State Representative Seth Morgan, who now heads the Conservative Coalition. “Why would the Republican leaders put themselves at odds with sound public policy and the platform of their own party?"
Governor John Kasich and every statewide elected official signed a letter supporting Borges. He also has the support of former Ohio secretary of state Ken Blackwell and former Ohio Right to Life leader Mike Gonidakis, now a Kasich appointee to the state medical board.
Click "like" if you want to defend true marriage.
Kasich said through a spokesperson that he still opposes redefining marriage and creating civil unions.
Borges faces troubles aside from his opposition to the Republican platform on marriage. His role as a lobbyist has raised eyebrows, given Kasich's strong denunciations of their wheeling and dealing influence.
Previous charges of unethical behavior are also an issue. In 2004, Borges pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of using his office to grant political favors to his boss, then-State Treasurer Joe Deters. Borges rebuffs the concerns, replying that he paid a $1,000 fine to have his record expunged.
Borges' selection comes as much of the Republican establishment seeks to change the party's stance on affirming marriage.
Jennifer Thieme, director of finance and advancement at The Ruth Institute, told LifeSiteNews.com that too few politicians are asking the most important question: what is marriage, and what is best for society?
“Those who favor redefining marriage seem to believe that marriage is nothing more than romantic feelings that the government incentivizes with tax breaks and federal benefits,” Thieme told LifeSiteNews. “The conservative view is that marriage is based on two things: the biological fact that sex between men and woman makes babies, and the social reality that children are entitled to their mothers and their fathers. This is an objective view of marriage, one that is also pre-political.”
“This view serves children best,” she said. “The other view serves adults best.”
Wow, this REALLY sounds like liberal infiltration.
Time to TAKE BACK the GOP, conservatives.
I cannot belief the process is so poorly organized that the voters can’t do anything about this. This man is a traitor, a slime, NOT a conservative. THROW. HIM. OUT!
According to this story:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2012/09/21/f-us-votes-battleground-ohio.html
Borges was the Executive Director last September...How did the pro-sodomite leader do in delivering Ohio for the Republicans? Oh, wait, HE FAILED.
Doubt that the GOP are the right vessel for Conservatives. Maybe it’s time to branch out and look for other outlets.
We do seem to have two parties that believe almost the same thing about everything except maybe taxes. Is that a good reason to go GOP? Seems that these two parties are trying to outdo each other in trying to bring America to the brink of disaster. Different speeds is not an option here.
It does seem that we have lost the war (from Conservatives viewpoint) so maybe it’s time to think bigger. We continue to lose with the GOP - they do have their own agenda after all...power and money! Not sure about a replacement but almost anything would be better at this point.
Really tired about hearing Boehner and team trying to continue the destruction of American values.
ATT. OHIO TEA PARTY!
Infiltrator.
Time to clean house. Ohio voters amended the state constitution to protect marriage between one man and one woman. Kasich needs to join the ranks of Ohio's unemployed. And by the looks of it, so do most of his cronies.
That’s why I stopped contributing to the GOP a long time ago.
What has become annoying is that, once you contribute to the Tea Party Patriots, you get bombarded with their mail on a weekly basis. And if that is not enough, you’ll be getting daily phonecalls from them to contribute even more.
The begging just doesn’t stop.
People need to accept this stuff isn’t infiltration. That happened long ago. The reality is that the GOP is gay friendly to the core. It is pro amnesty to the core and it is DEMOCRAT to the core. Folks, PLEASE. Ditch this fantasy that feet will be held to the fire. Not happening as there is no one to do it.
And accept that the GOP turned on you. Go through the grief stages. It’s normal. But get your collective heads together. Because reality isn’t interested in accommodating anything but itself.
A very poor choice of words given the topic.
I`ll ask Tom about this but the letter in question is supported by the group I attend, http://www.portagecountyteaparty.com
It saddens me to see what the Repubs are doing to Conservatism. I don’t think we (conservatives) should leave the Repub Party, I think the fake conservatives should be forced out. That will take quite a bit of doing, but it must be done, for the sake of our children and country.
Mitt Romney ran pro-choice TV ads in Ohio, and lost the state, and now this.
Is the GOPe trying to turn Ohio, use it as a rino wedge against conservatism?
I live in Ohio and I am very very sorry.
Had high hopes for Kasich. I am slowly losing those -
Way to go Ohio!
CONSERVATIVE LEADERS REJECT CURRENT DIRECTION OF STATE REPUBLICAN PARTY
Columbus, Ohio – A statewide coalition of social and fiscal conservative leaders in Ohio today announced a rejection of the current direction of the state Republican leadership.
While signers of this statement put emphases on different policies, all the signers believe that Ohio is best served with limited government and low taxation, affirm the definition of marriage as one man and one woman as specified in Ohio’s Constitution, stand for the right to life for unborn children, and believe that the State Republican Party Chairman should reflect and fight for these values.
In recent months, Ohio has seen Governor John Kasich propose a “tax shift” unfairly targeting certain landowners and creating a drag on energy exploration, recommend the expansion of a failing Medicaid program, and propose an increasing budget.
Senator Rob Portman has reversed course, defying one of the key planks of the Republican Party Platform to take a position in support of same-sex marriage. This dismisses the views of roughly 3.3 million Ohioans who in 2004 voted for a Constitutional Amendment defining marriage as one man and one woman.
Finally, this week, the elected statewide Republican officials declared their support for Matt Borges to replace Bob Bennett as Ohio Republican Party Chairman. Dismissing other potential candidates for the chairman’s position, these statewide Republican officials endorsed Borges, a man who plead guilty to a misdemeanor for improper use of public office in a bribery investigation and served as a lobbyist for the liberal homosexual activist group, Equality Ohio.
This statement of rejection is not personal – the individuals above have reasons and explanations for their actions. Nor is this statement designed to elicit a specific response. This statement is merely to inform the public that we have not moved on these issues important to our fellow Buckeyes and we will not accept this leadership which is inconsistent with the principles of the Republican Party.
Tom Zawistowski, President of the We the People Convention and Executive Director of the Portage County TEA Party, said, “The leaders of the Republican Party in Ohio have chosen to separate themselves and the party from the wishes and values of their support base. Not just liberty group members and social conservative voters, but rank and file registered Republican voters who overwhelmingly voted for the Ohio Healthcare Amendment. With this letter we put the party bosses on notice that we reject their betrayal of the party platform and our conservative values. We will not support them going forward but will instead support those who are true to our cause.”
“With sadness I put my name on this statement,” said Seth Morgan, former State Representative and Conservative Coalition Leader. “Never have I been more concerned for the direction of our state and country – largely due to a failure in leadership. Why would our Republican leaders put themselves at odds with sound public policy and the platform of their own party?”
“Some of our Republican officials seem hell-bent on alienating conservative voters and volunteers, which reduces voter turnout. They ignore the GOP platform, choosing to put themselves outside the mainstream of our party base,” said Lori Viars, Vice President of Warren County Right To Life, who also serves as Vice Chair of the Warren County Republican Party.
The signers below call on like-minded conservative Ohioans to organize and prepare for the challenges we and our neighbors are facing.
The initial signers below are represented in their personal / individual capacities. Titles and organization are listed for identification purposes only.
Seth Morgan, Former State Representative and Conservative Coalition Leader
Tom Zawistowski, President, We the People Convention; Executive Director, Portage County
TEA Party
Lori Viars, Vice President, Warren County Right To Life
Bobbi Radeck, State Director, Concerned Women for America
Linda Harvey, Radio Host and President, Mission America
Don Birdsall, President, Dayton TEA Party
Joseph Platt, Esq., Board Member, Family First
Andrew Pappas, Leader, Anderson Tea Party
Pastor Andy Douglas, Director, Christians for Constitutional Awareness
Linda Reidelbach, Former State Representative; Delaware County Republican Central Committee member
Tom Brinkman, Jr., Former State Representative; Chairman of C.O.A.S.T. (Coalition Opposed To Additional Spending & Taxes)
Mark Stevenson, Founder, Ohioans For Educational Freedom
Sue Hardenbergh, Hamilton Co. Republican Central Committee Member
John McAvoy, Board of Directors, NW Ohio Conservative Coalition
Janet (Folger) Porter, President, Faith2Action; Former Republican State Central Committee Member
Ryan Bolyard, Wayne County, Ohio; President, Hillsdale College Republicans Paula Bolyard, Doylestown, Ohio; Conservative Blogger
Roseann Siderits, Board Member, Family First
For Immediate Release March 21, 2013
Contact:
Seth Morgan (937) 371-9032 Tom Zawistowski (330) 592-1848 Lori Viars (513) 403-9288
After the last presidential election, I had decided the GOP was longer for me
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