Did God change His mind Saturday afternoon — or was it just the ultimate worldly dictator, Governor Jim Justice, getting his way once again?
I have known freshman Kanawha County Republican Delegate Larry Pack for decades. During that time, I have accepted that he is a devout Christian, anchored in fundamental religious principles. I respect him for that, even if I don’t always agree with him.
Nearly all of Pack’s political advertising to win his House seat included some visual or stated reference to religion. I would be very disappointed to learn that my earlier respect for his sincerity was ill-placed.
I have trouble, then, buying the theory advanced by more than one fellow attendee at Saturday’s Winter Meeting of the state Republican Executive Committee.
Pack, you see, clearly voted for Conrad Lucas to be state chair on the first ballot Saturday. He switched to Mark Harris on the second.
The delegate is among those elected officials, mostly Republicans, who claim Divine guidance in their voting and handling of public issues.
Being a stout defender of the separation of church and state, I have a fundamental disagreement with those who let their religion dictate public policy.
But that’s an issue for another day.
Those critical of Pack’s switcheroo offer a theory that is tough for me to accept, nevertheless.
But if I refuse to accept it, I guess I have to admit God sent mixed signals Saturday. He apparently called Lucas’ number in the first huddle but switched to Harris in the second. I’m skeptical.
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A bit of background is required to understand this situation. Many, including Wood County Chair Robert Cornelius, accused Governor Jim Justice and his chief of staff, Brian Abraham, of using less than subtle tactics in relaying their support for Harris before Saturday’s meeting.
In fact, I heard from at least three legislators who were also voting members at Saturday’s meeting. They all said that the Governor’s office “threatened” them if they did not vote for Harris.
“Brian made it clear I wouldn’t get a bill passed or a project funded if I didn’t vote for Harris” one told me under assurance of anonymity for fear of retribution.
Although Pack never claimed he was approached by the governor nor Abraham, critics speculate that he was.
Those powering Saturday’s meeting subscribe to the total secrecy method of government. Prior to the session, they let it be known that committee members could vote anonymously. Pack, being also National Committeeman, surely knew that.
So, when the first balloting was done, the secretary did not record who voted for who. But when those votes were tallied, it was a 56-56 tie between Lucas and Harris.
Clearly, all in the room recognized that Pack had orally voted for Lucas, thus defying the governor. But the defiance quickly turned when votes were being recorded.
When it was pointed out that the by-laws require that the names voting be recorded, Lucas supporters say Pack had a sudden revelation. Or, possibly, a message from on high.
Therefore, on the second ballot with names and votes being recorded, Pack switched his vote to Harris.
The only “proof” of his vote, then, would show he obeyed Justice’s command. He seemingly remains in the Governor’s good graces.
A compelling theory.
But, as noted, not proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Hopefully, Pack will restore some lost confidence in him by being an independent thinking representative of the people.
Many will be watching to see.
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Personally, I would never advise an elected official to seek membership on a party committee to begin with. One can only make enemies — not friends.
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Lucas was first class in his campaign and in undeserved defeat.
He did only positive things during his prior tenure as chair to move the party forward, as well.
“I hope for the continued success of the Republican Party,” he told me after digesting the fiasco that was Saturday’s meeting.
The gang of Republicans convened Saturday do not deserve a top notch leader like Lucas as their chair.
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It must have been humiliating for Roman Stauffer, dubbed the interim Chair when Potter resigned, to concede defeat. After failing to secure Potter or Justice endorsements, Stauffer withdrew as a candidate for Chair himself Friday evening.
That, of course, cleared the way for Harris to prevail on the second ballot, 56-53. Stauffer would have gotten some votes to alter the outcome.
Stauffer campaigned hard for the permanent job the last few weeks but to no avail.
When push came to shove, Justice and Potter supported Harris and not their loyal puppy, Stauffer.
Stauffer, who wielded the same dictatorial powers during his brief ascent to power that Potter did during her reign, mostly sulked during the Saturday session.
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Meetings of party executive committees should be open to the public. That does not mean Republican Executive Committee meetings should be open exclusively to Republicans, either. If a Democrat wants to attend a GOP meeting (I have no idea why a Democrat would want to thus punish himself or herself), he or she should be able to do so.
I stand firmly with the public’s right to know. As I’ve mentioned here before, Democrats have no issue with transparency. During the time that Lucas served as state GOP Chair, there were a few draconian party officials who favored secrecy but Lucas always overruled them.
Then along came Melody Potter. During her reign as state Republican head, the Chinese government looked like a model of openness and transparency. The doors were locked; the mouths were silenced.
What Republicans have to hide is a bit of a mystery. But that’s how their leaders want it. And it’s wrong.
These Republicans hold fast to their theory that they’re a “private” organization. If they want to truly be “private” they should refrain from placing names on PUBLIC ballots.
Their leaders maintain that they are not subject to the state Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
Even if they aren’t, what are they hiding? Why not comply with open meetings out of a spirit of transparency? What’s the big secret?
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I’ll assure one and all, as I have in the past, that Democrats are transparent. Neither Nick Casey, Larry Puccio nor Belinda Biafore would ever dream of hiding the public’s business.
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It’s interesting if the governor and/or his chief threatened legislators with no cooperation in light of the fact that both House Speaker Roger Hanshaw and Senate President Craig Blair were openly supporting Lucas.
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Cornelius, the elected Wood Chair, wanted to be a candidate for state chair. But because of his public spat with Potter and Justice, he was denied entrance to Saturday’s meeting.
National Committeewoman Beth Bloch refused to intervene on Cornelius’ behalf and Stauffer could not be found when Cornelius’ tried to check in.
Party by-laws require a candidate to be present in order to run. Thus; he was blocked by the party dictators.
That’s especially interesting since the disagreements between Cornelius and the state party are still pending in court.
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The natives — and lobbyists — are getting restless regarding the Covid regulations they see as barring most folks from the capitol with the legislature in session.
“Bars and restaurants are at 100% capacity but the WV Capitol is at 0% capacity. This isn’t by accident, this has been orchestrated to keep the public out and from being informed. Schools are open and all the kids are back in the classroom but you can’t come to the capitol,” Randolph County Democrat Delegate Cody Hansbrough Thompson said.
It’s not exactly zero that visit the capitol these days but Justice’s self-justified “orders” do make it more difficult for most.
A majority (82) of House members signed a letter written by Cabell Republican Delegate Evan Worrell asking Justice to modify the rules for openness.
Cabell Democrat State Senator Mike Woeffel echoed those sentiments in comments to me last week.
Generally, the rules require visitors to have an appointment with someone inside the capitol to gain admittance. Covid protocol must be followed.
Some gregarious legislators complain of missing the routine visits from the public and lobbyists to their capitol offices.
There are others who would be happy if they never had to interact with the public again.
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The feud between Justice and U.S. Senator Joe Manchin is real although the governor seems most determined to keep it going.
Nothing is gained, really, by the arguments and name-calling. Those who think it’s simple political theatre forget that Justice dismissed the Senator’s wife, Gayle, from her state job a few years back.
Manchin clearly saw that as a personal insult. Earlier, the Senator put his political prestige on the line by supporting Justice for governor in 2016. He was then a Democrat and Manchin felt betrayed when Justice became a Republican a few months later.
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Although the Stauffer-led GOP has ignored my FOIA attempts to see the tapes of interviews for the delegate spot filled by Josh Booth in Wayne County, I do have a written list of the questions that were asked.
Sufficient witnesses confirm that Booth answered “no” when asked if he had ever supported a Democrat candidate for office. That seems at odds with Justice financial reports from 2016, when the governor was a Democrat running for governor.
Those reports say Booth contributed to Justice’s Democrat campaign.
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One last question: why did National Committeewoman Bloch videotape the Wayne Delegate interviews if nobody is ever permitted to see them?
Ron Gregory is a regular political columnist who covers politics for lootpress.com. Contact him at 304-533-5185 or ronjgregory@gmail.com.