The Republican Party of Texas (RPT) has long had its fights at the state convention about who will lead the Party going forward. In the past, all types of conservatives have been welcome to join in the fight to beat the Democrats and keep Texas Red. In keeping with that approach, when the Libertarians came into the Party through Ron Paul’s Presidential Campaign, they were welcomed to join the effort to fight Democrats. Only with this group, something was different. Their interest wasn’t in fighting the Democrats, but rather was vested in the opportunistic use of the Republican Party.
The warning should have been clear when they accidentally included the 2014 State Convention Platform Chair in an email chain, which included “since the Libertarian Party is a lost cause, we should join the Republican Party and take it over.” That way they could use its resources and ballot box name acceptance to elect Libertarian candidates running as Republicans. And so, the battle began as they implemented the tactics of Saul Alinsky outlined in his book “Rules for Radicals.” Tactics which include: 1) If you push a negative hard and deep enough it will break through into its counter side, 2) Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it, and 3) Ridicule is man’s most potent weapon. And they have followed his beliefs that “the end justifies almost any means” and “truth … is relative and changing.” Unfortunately, many good conservative candidates on the receiving end of these relentless attacks can attest to the brutality of their use. And honesty in the minds of the Libertarian activists? What does honesty have to do with anything when the goal is to win? In keeping with Alinsky’s tactics, if something negative can’t be found, make something up!
The most recent statewide director of Ron Paul’s campaign ran and was elected to the State Republican Executive Committee (SREC) along with several other Libertarians. They proceeded to get themselves and their followers placed on the 2016 State Convention Rules Committee. They knew that the Rules Committee’s report is almost never changed on the floor of the state convention. And so, the most dramatic change was made to Rule 44, which was modified to allow the RPT to attack any elected official in the primary that was censored by majority vote of the state convention or 2/3 vote of the SREC. The Democrats have to be dancing in the streets over how the Libertarians have done something they could never accomplish- tear the mighty Republican Party to pieces.
Also, at the 2016 Convention, they were able to get their followers elected to the SREC by which they proceeded to elect Libertarian backer James Dickey, State Chair when the former chair resigned for personal reasons. Dickey won by one vote by misleading the SREC at the previous night’s candidate forum (James Dickey Dismissal of Republican Party of Texas Officers ).
The pattern of the Libertarians in Texas has been to take over successful, conservative organizations and use them to attack Republicans. The mode of operation has always been the same: recruit candidates regardless of qualifications, who will do what they tell them, then viciously attack the incumbent Republican using whatever means necessary, lying about the opponent as required. This article is pretty accurate in its description of the Libertarians’ efforts in Texas: Beilue: Empower Texans – It’s like a season of ‘House of Cards’. Hopefully, the 2018 Convention delegates will put a stop to the destruction of the RPT before it’s too late.
The personal views of Janet Jackson are from her Party experience, having served on the SREC from 2010 – 2016 and as President of the Texas Republican County Chairmen’s Associations for 2016 – 2018 and are not on behalf of any organization mentioned herein.