Free Republic

Sen. John McCain's campaign is mounting a stealth effort to change Republican presidential nomination rules in California to allow independents to vote in the Feb. 5 primary, party and campaign officials in the state have told The Washington Times. The impact could be huge -- and potentially damaging to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, currently the most acceptable to traditional-values voters among the three top-tier Republican presidential candidates. "If California changes its delegate selection rules to allow independent voters to participate in the Republican primary, it would be very helpful for McCain and for Rudy Giuliani, who historically have done...

NORTH COUNTY -- After spending the last five years ending internal sniping and increasing the number of local office holders, San Diego County GOP chief Ron Nehring will now take that strategy statewide as chairman of the California Republican Party. "My focus will be on building the most sophisticated and advanced GOP party in the nation," the 36-year-old Nehring said Monday after being named chairman of the state political party on Sunday. "Being right with the best ideas is critical, but it's not enough to win. You have to match the best candidate with an equally powerful campaign organization." Nehring...

Ron Nehring, a conservative from San Diego County, was elected chairman of the California Republican Party Sunday at the close of its state convention in Sacramento. Nehring, who works with the national conservative activist Grover Norquist, succeeds chairman George "Duf" Sundheim, a Silicon Valley attorney, who was a close ally of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Tom Del Beccaro, a conservative attorney from Contra Costa County, was elected vice chairman. Two resolutions aimed at the new fees included in Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's plan for universal health care failed to get out of a committee because there was no quorum.

http://www.sdreader.com/php/cityshow.php?id=C072805B Ludicrous and Irresponsible Gossip By Scott Barnett After the Republican Party of San Diego County endorsed Steve Francis for mayor on June 13, it wasted little time in turning its endorsement into campaign action. As of election eve, public election filings showed that the local GOP had collected $158,000 from a small group of donors and spent it quickly. Expenditures for Francis were reported at $86,342, including $76,059 for mailers, $8595 for door hangers, and $1688 for precinct maps. Relying on a legal loophole that allows donors to ignore San Diego's campaign restrictions, local business leaders who had a...