I spent the weekend of January 29-31 at the Ocean Shores Convention Center attending the first annual Roanoke Conference; A gathering of Republicans. For a first time event, I was favorable impressed with every aspect of the proceedings.
There is no doubt that Republicans are motivated following the surprising success of candidates in New Jersey, Virginia and most notably in the Massachusetts Senatorial election with the victory of Scott Brown. Whether the enthusiasm is attributed to dissatisfaction of voters from the entrenched Democratic non-leadership or the quality of the Republican candidates is yet to be determined. The important thing is that local Republicans now have something to be excited about. The Roanoke Conference is a good tool to bring together valuable election campaign resources with enthusiastic candidates and supporters with the common purpose of winning elections in the fall.
The Roanoke Conference is modeled after the Dorchester Conference held in Oregon for the past eight or nine years. We have to give those Oregonians credit for continuously holding their gatherings during some pretty dark years for Republicans in that state.
Widening the expanse of the party tent to include people of many persuasions that do have differences but similar core principles is critical to the party establishing credibility with Conservatives and moderates to elect capable candidates that can govern well if given the opportunity.
Dino Rossi’s presence made the event credible. Former Senator Slade Gorton was frosting on the cake. Having both of them in attendance put a shine on a great event.
I came home from this conference excited about the prospects for Republicans. Not just because of the move away from the Democrats, but because the attendees agreed that when the Republicans had their chance they blew it. The attendees seemed determined to elect candidates with a different agenda this time around.
I remember when Republicans took over the Congress following the ’94 elections, I speculated then about whether our long years in the minority had taught us how to be better leaders. Sadly, it became clear early on that “pay back” was a high priority for many Republicans rather than leading with humility. If we are lucky enough to have another chance, I hope we can do better than we did then.
I was also encouraged by the Tea Party activists. Even though they were critical of leadership on both sides of the aisle, they formed up with Republicans because we share core values. It is unfortunate that it took such devastation to our country to arouse the sleeping giant, but now that it is, we need to harness the enthusiasm for a positive outcome.
When I ran for Snohomish County Council in 2009, my campaign focused on creating private sector jobs, supporting small businesses, protecting property rights, limiting the growth of government, balancing the interests of the people with the environment and responsibly managing tax dollars. Even though I lost that election by a slim margin, I correctly identified what the issues in the election should have been. I suspect that if that election were to take place in 2010, the outcome might be different.
The mood of the country was changing in the last half of 2009. If I were to challenge Hans Dunshee in the House of Representatives campaigning on the same issues, could I compete favorably?
As our country struggles to get through this recession, everyone agrees that without jobs there is no recovery. The Democrats cling to the idea that government jobs are the same as private sector jobs. We all know that couldn’t be further from the truth. Public jobs may be cushy, but they don’t produce a value. Private sector businesses that manufacture a product create the family wage jobs that are the backbone of our economy. Incentives for those jobs are key!
What is holding back the creation of private sector jobs? A lack of credit! If the President really wants to get the economy moving again, he just needs to make credit available to businesses again. Not off the wall risky credit, but business lines of credit that will allow existing businesses to get back to work.
A tax credit for a job created doesn’t compare to jobs created from a line of credit.
No Loss for Words
Roanoke Conference
by Steve DanaI spent the weekend of January 29-31 at the Ocean Shores Convention Center attending the first annual Roanoke Conference; A gathering of Republicans. For a first time event, I was favorable impressed with every aspect of the proceedings.
There is no doubt that Republicans are motivated following the surprising success of candidates in New Jersey, Virginia and most notably in the Massachusetts Senatorial election with the victory of Scott Brown. Whether the enthusiasm is attributed to dissatisfaction of voters from the entrenched Democratic non-leadership or the quality of the Republican candidates is yet to be determined. The important thing is that local Republicans now have something to be excited about. The Roanoke Conference is a good tool to bring together valuable election campaign resources with enthusiastic candidates and supporters with the common purpose of winning elections in the fall.
The Roanoke Conference is modeled after the Dorchester Conference held in Oregon for the past eight or nine years. We have to give those Oregonians credit for continuously holding their gatherings during some pretty dark years for Republicans in that state.
Widening the expanse of the party tent to include people of many persuasions that do have differences but similar core principles is critical to the party establishing credibility with Conservatives and moderates to elect capable candidates that can govern well if given the opportunity.
Dino Rossi’s presence made the event credible. Former Senator Slade Gorton was frosting on the cake. Having both of them in attendance put a shine on a great event.
I came home from this conference excited about the prospects for Republicans. Not just because of the move away from the Democrats, but because the attendees agreed that when the Republicans had their chance they blew it. The attendees seemed determined to elect candidates with a different agenda this time around.
I remember when Republicans took over the Congress following the ’94 elections, I speculated then about whether our long years in the minority had taught us how to be better leaders. Sadly, it became clear early on that “pay back” was a high priority for many Republicans rather than leading with humility. If we are lucky enough to have another chance, I hope we can do better than we did then.
I was also encouraged by the Tea Party activists. Even though they were critical of leadership on both sides of the aisle, they formed up with Republicans because we share core values. It is unfortunate that it took such devastation to our country to arouse the sleeping giant, but now that it is, we need to harness the enthusiasm for a positive outcome.
When I ran for Snohomish County Council in 2009, my campaign focused on creating private sector jobs, supporting small businesses, protecting property rights, limiting the growth of government, balancing the interests of the people with the environment and responsibly managing tax dollars. Even though I lost that election by a slim margin, I correctly identified what the issues in the election should have been. I suspect that if that election were to take place in 2010, the outcome might be different.
The mood of the country was changing in the last half of 2009. If I were to challenge Hans Dunshee in the House of Representatives campaigning on the same issues, could I compete favorably?
As our country struggles to get through this recession, everyone agrees that without jobs there is no recovery. The Democrats cling to the idea that government jobs are the same as private sector jobs. We all know that couldn’t be further from the truth. Public jobs may be cushy, but they don’t produce a value. Private sector businesses that manufacture a product create the family wage jobs that are the backbone of our economy. Incentives for those jobs are key!
What is holding back the creation of private sector jobs? A lack of credit! If the President really wants to get the economy moving again, he just needs to make credit available to businesses again. Not off the wall risky credit, but business lines of credit that will allow existing businesses to get back to work.
A tax credit for a job created doesn’t compare to jobs created from a line of credit.
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