- Upcoming events
- Officer Elections
- Fundraising
- Website and Blog
1.) Our next Republican Study Group will be Tuesday, April 24th at 6:00pm at our headquarters at 900 Central Avenue in Fort Dodge. The Study Group is meeting where we can get together to discuss and brainstorm what we want to do as a county party in the future. All Republicans are welcome to join us. Ken and Jane Rasch have been very kind in providing popcorn for our last two meetings. Thank you Ken and Jane!
Our next regular business meeting will be Tuesday, May 8th, at 7:00pm also at the headquarters.
Our annual Chili Feed Fundraiser is right now scheduled for the October 21st at the KennedyPark shelter in Fort Dodge. Ken Rasch will be back with his famous homemade chili. Details are still being worked out, and we will send out details as they become known.
2.) Officer elections were held during our regular business meeting on April 10th. Winning reelection were Mike Bradley as Chair and Tina Kastendieck as Vice-Chair. Marilyn Raine and Lee Wieland will serve as our secretaries. Andy Swanson was elected as Treasurer, and Larry Brobst was elected as our Voter Vault coordinator. Congratulations to everyone, and thank you to everyone who attended and voted.
3.) The Central Committee is working to increase our funds so we can do more voter outreach and continue to build our county organization. We are creating a Century Club for people who have donated $100. One of the benefits of becoming a century club member is that you will be eligible to attend private candidate meet-and-greets we can organize, and free admission to Webster County Republican events. We will also have a $20 level and a $10 student level. We are continuing to work on a fundraising letter to be sent out to Republicans in the county that will also update them on our recent and future activities.
4.) We are working on updating, and hopefully revamping our website at http://www.webcorep.com./ Visit back often, and please let us know if you have any comments or suggestions. We also started an official Webster County Republicans blog at webcorep.blogspot.com. If you would be interested in becoming an author on the blog, let Andy Swanson (andy@webcorep.com) know, and he’ll get you hooked up.
Thought for the Month
People all across the state are growing frustrated with what is occurring in the state legislature this session. It is not only Republicans, but also Democrats and Independents. People are angry about the Democrats bowing down to the unions by working to get “Fair Share” to the governor’s desk and gut Iowa’s Right to Work law. Union membership nationally is 12%, and this is just a way to increase their funds. If you don’t think this will hurt the economy, just consider the following. Countless numbers of business looking at setting up in the state have put their plans on hold because they do not want to operate in a state where Right to Work is in jeopardy. Who knows just what this delay has done to the Iowa economy, let alone what can happen if the House Republicans loose this fight.
Neither are people happy about the cigarette hike. This tax hits a lot of people who are in the lower income levels, but it also goes farther. If Democrats are willing to raise taxes on cigarettes, citing that it will help people stop smoking, what will be next on the tax block? Obesity is a health risk, so will we see bans of trans-fats? Might we see taxes on fast food, or even on every pound you are overweight? Alcohol has health risks, so will taxes on alcohol go up? With the current fuss about global warming, will the Iowa Democrats push to tax us for our carbon output—for the sake of the environment? If Democrats think that government is more capable about making your decisions than you are, where will they stop?
The spending of this years legislature is pleasing many either. Democrats plan on a 10% spending increase over last year, and another 10% next year. This is after Auditor Dave Vaudt has repeatedly warned that Iowa is heading towards fiscal crises. Rep. Chris Rants wrote in his post on the Krusty Konservative blog:
I probably shouldn’t care. After all, Democrats lost their majority when they caused a fiscal crisis. I should probably just sit back and watch the train wreck unfold. Go ahead and jack up taxes again, or make across the board spending cuts. That is what you’ll have to do, because there is no way revenues are keeping pace. Did your caucus discuss the Revenue Estimate Conference report?
I probably shouldn’t care, but I do. Between your anti-business legislative agenda; like prevailing wage and gutting Iowa’s Right To Work Law, and the fiscal disaster you are creating, you are going to ruin this state’s economy. Considering our position in the global marketplace, it will take years to recover – time we don’t have.
I probably shouldn’t care, but I do. Your impending budget disaster will be great politics for me. But frankly, I don’t want to be involved in the painful measures it will take to clean it up. I’d rather help you avoid the disaster now.
-http://krustykonservative.blogspot.com/2007/04/dear-democrats.html#links
We took it pretty hard in 2006. But now it’s time to pick ourselves up off the ground, dust ourselves off, and get back into the fray. We’re being given the ammunition, lets not be afraid to use it. Write those letters to the editor, talk to your friends and family and remind people about what our representatives are doing and voting for in the statehouse.
As Red Green always says, “Keep your stick on the ice. We’re all in this together.”
