If I had to give you just one word that describes the reason why I decided to run for Treasurer of the Republican Party of Florida it would be: DEDICATION.
I have been volunteering, working, and donating to Republican campaigns and causes in Florida for 33 years. Ever since I was a teenager growing up in Northeast Florida I have found time to be a part of GOP campaigns. I remember when the Republican Party could not win statewide races. When being a Republican meant there was no Primary for you to vote in. My first vote for President of the United States of America was for Ronald Reagan. I joined my local county Republican Executive Committee when I was 19 years old and learned the importance of phone banking, stuffing envelopes, and getting out the vote.
But all has not been good in recent years.
The grassroots has had little or no influence in the affairs of the Party until just recently when a corrupt State Chairman and an overly opportunist Governor were shown the door by grassroots voters and people who fought for the integrity of the Party.
Aside from dedication, I have the experience to serve as Treasurer: 21 years as a practicing attorney, former CEO of a Company with 120 employees, managing partner at my law firm, and Treasurer of my office condominium association. But I choose the word DEDICATION over EXPERIENCE, because the problems of party leadership have been primarily a lack of dedication the the core principles of the GOP and its main focus: Electing Republicans.
Instead, our Party has had individuals in positions of responsibility that have no dedication to the Party’s core principles. The only dedication is to themselves and their personal ambitions.
When I ran for State Committeeman of my county in 2008, my campaign slogan was “Let’s Get The GOP Back on Track!” I used that slogan because I felt the GOP had lost its way in the State and also on the National scene. In a 3-way race I won with 55% of the vote and ran 30 points ahead of the candidate backed by the State Chairman. Then, as now, the grassroots understood who should run their Party i.e. a person from the grassroots.
We are Party of principled Conservatives. Our new United States Senator Marco Rubio said it right: “The Republican Party has been given a second chance.”
The word DEDICATION is my touchstone because it means FOCUS. Those who don’t have focus miss the entire rationale for our involvement in politics: to make a better America. The Treasurer’s job is a volunteer position. I have been volunteering for the Republican causes for three decades and will continue to do so.
For the past year, I have served as the Chairman of the Republican Party of Florida’s Ethics Committee where we drafted a Code of Ethics for party leaders. I hope to take that experience into the position of Treasurer if I am given the responsibility by the voters on the State Executive Committee.
Those of us who have long volunteered for the Conservative movement I believe have the most dedication to the core mission of the Republican Party. We understand what the fight is all about. It’s not about our personal resume or careers, it’s about electing those who share our beliefs.
This DEDICATION equips us for job of precinct committeeman/woman, state committee member, county chairman….even Treasurer because we know what the mission of the Republican Party is and we believe that one person can make a difference in America.
So as I set out this weekend for Orlando and the Annual Meeting of the Republican Party of Florida I will be thinking of Ronald Reagan’s words “In America, our best days are always ahead of us….”
God Bless
