Patriotic Conservatives Forced To Run As Independents By GOP Establishment In Williamson County [Op-Ed]
By Steve Hickey [Secretary of Williamson Families PAC] –
In an interview with video bloggers Diamond & Silk, Williamson County GOP Chair Cheryl Brown suggested that conservative candidates who were endorsed by Williamson Families PAC and forced to run as Independents were closet Democrats or RINOs.
As Secretary of the Williamson Families PAC in Williamson County, TN I feel compelled to enlighten Williamson County voters on the backstory of what Ms. Brown communicated in that interview.
Williamson Families PAC in Williamson County, TN is a Conservative PAC that grew out of a grassroots effort to lobby our school board last year. After being ignored by the school board following volumes of research regarding the county’s English Language Arts curriculum, Wit and Wisdom, and considerable engagement, we decided it was time to actively participate in the electoral process. We recruited, and extensively vetted, strong, patriotic, conservative servant-leaders willing to step into the electoral ring. Our PAC endorsed 19 conservatives this past March. All initially filed to run as Republicans.
We thought we had an ally in the county Republican party, but soon discovered a concerted effort to undercut our efforts. We learned there was a special committee formed within the county GOP to verify candidate credentials. This committee actively attempted to dissuade some of our candidates from running for office. We knew some of our candidates would not meet the technical threshold due to not having voted in certain primaries, but we believed they could sufficiently demonstrate their conservative leanings.
This avenue appeared to abruptly close and four re-filed as independents to ensure their ability to run and serve as conservative county representatives. These are not “undercover Democrats” or RINOs, as Cheryl Brown disingenuously intimated. These are all patriotic citizens who recognized a need to serve their community and have put themselves through a torturous process.
*** Click Here to Support Conservative Journalism in Tennessee. We can’t bring you great Editorials like this without your support!***
We strongly suspect there is a connection to wealthy and powerful business interests that are opposed to true conservative principles in favor of whatever will maximize their returns. That something is opposed to us because we seek to empower the citizens of Williamson County. We believe the county GOP has been extremely selective with how they enforce their bylaws.
Last Fall, Mary Kate Anderson Brown (an un-elected, non-voting member of the Williamson County Republican Party Board of Directors, and wife of appointed District 4 School Board Member who is a lobbyist and VP of State Government Relations for Pfizer) joked in a public forum about the ease with which workarounds for certain prospective candidates could be created.
Here is a video of Mary Kate Anderson Brown talking about work arounds for favored candidates without GOP bona fides (note: Cheryl Brown visible at 0:40): Candidate Vouching by the Establishment
We are not opposed to the Republican party. We are all lifelong GOP voters, but some have not participated in every primary election. Nevertheless, we are fighting for conservative principles and will continue to engage in the political process. I suspect that what we are encountering (grassroots groups being rebuffed by the establishment) is not unique.
Indeed! The Willaimson Families PAC has wiped the arrogant smile off the lips off the faces of the centrist/tepid conservative Chamber of Commerce shills that all too frequently populate the in-crowd of the Williamson County Republican Party. Conservatives please don’t robotically simply hit every name with an “R” next to it tomorrow in the Williamson County general election. Instead, vote for the following WF PAC endorsed INDEPENDENTS:
Dist 3 – Daniel Jordan, County Commission
Dist 5 – Evan Bledsoe, County Commission
Dist 6 – Debbie Pace, School Board
Dist 10 – Doc Holladay, School Board
Time to vote out these Turn coats.
You should have mentioned that one person running for School Board as a “Republican” was previously a Democrat candidate and is endorsed by 2 Leftist groups. In one case, there is a Black woman running as a Dem and the Leftists still endorsed him.
Are you referring to ultra-liberal Republican Eric Welsch running in District 10 who is endorsed by the leftists in Williamson Strong? INDEED! That’s why the election of Independent William “Doc” Holladay is so important to help bring sanity by to our government schools.
This B.S. inside the County RINO party, and other off-shoots of it, like RWWC, has been going on for a very long time. Those super-connected RINOs make sure THEIR choices are the ones who are nominated or the ones who are on the ballots. I know because I’ve been an officer in one of the above organizations. They just recycle the same people, exactly like the Demon-Fascists!! There is no difference. I am so grateful that we now have a very smart group of younger people paying attention and recognizing what a lot of us have known for a while and they are joining with us to do something!! GO MOMS FOR LIBERTY, WILLIAMSON FAMILIES, and TENNESSEE STANDS!!