Dayhoff Westminster Soundtrack: 20061130 Doug Howard's Liberty Republican Club

Friday, December 01, 2006

20061130 Doug Howard's Liberty Republican Club

The Liberty Republican Club

November 30th, 2006

The other day, it was called to my attention that Doug Howard, who ran for commissioner in the last Carroll County election, is forming a new Republican Club – to be called The Liberty Republican Club.

Well, actually Mr. Howard was kind enough to e-mail me the press release pasted below.

Although Mr. Howard did not prevail in the last commissioner election, many felt that he was one of the bright spots in an otherwise, regrettable election campaign season, which, in the end turned-off many of the voters, as reflected by the fact that not as many voted in this election as did four years ago.

Collectively, elected officials in Carroll County have a lot of damage control on their hands for the next several years as anecdotally I was told by many folks that they were sick of all of them; as even the folks who did not conduct negative campaigning got tarred with the same brush.

Meanwhile, Mr. Howard is certainly conservative enough for Carroll County and well qualified, and most importantly, he remained positive and brought forth some good ideas.

One of the challenges of his candidacy was name-recognition and with the announcement of forming “The Liberty Republican Club,” it is hoped that he will increase his visibility…

The other conservative candidate who went over well was Dennis Beard and many hope that he will stay involved in the county also. He also stayed positive.

The “grocery store check out line” test indicated that many were not aware that Mr. Beard is a registered Democrat, until some of the more moderate Republicans in the county, who supported the transfer tax and were unpleasant towards the incumbent Delegation to Annapolis, started to actively campaign for him. Paradoxically there is a stream of thought that indicates that may have worked against him.

My view is that he got a late start and also had name recognition challenges. The more folks came to know him as a conservative and not one of the many uber-liberal candidates that the Carroll County Democratic Party has put up in the last ten years; the more folks liked him.

Ultimately the voters opted for the check and balance of electing a very conservative candidate, as represented by Mike Zimmer, to a seat in the commissioners’ office – understanding all the while that there will be many 2-to-1 votes on the third floor of the county office building the next four years..

For the most part it, only whispered in the county is that, incumbent Commissioner Perry Jones ran a lackluster campaign. And I say, only whispered, as many are uncomfortable with the idea of hurting the popular Commissioner Jones’ feelings…

The entire Delegation to Anapolis was re-elected in what was suggested to be billed as a referendum on many of the positions several members of the delegation took against the transfer tax and which commissioner district option to adopt.

As soon as the primary was over and the incumbents resoundingly prevailed, the idea of a “referendum on the incumbent delegation” sorta kinda faded into the sunset…

The fact that Carroll Countians re-elected two of the incumbent commissioners and the entire delegation speaks volumes that many folks are not troubled by checks and balances in the larger elected leadership pool of the three commissioners and the delegation; and did not buy into all the bizarre personal attacks on folks simply because they had differing points of view.

The idea of Code Home Rule was DOA in Carroll County as it appeared to be promulgated out of situational politics and persona animus as the folks who promoted it erred when they spend more time attacking the Delegation to Annapolis than promoting the positive merits of Code Home Rule.

Much of the acrimonious rift between the commissioners and the delegation as promoted in the local papers did not resonate with a great majority of Carroll Countians except for the collective desire for the folks who were doing all the rabble-rousing to spend that energy looking for positive consensus and stop all the bitter divisive politicking.

Anyway, Kelsey Volkmann, writing for the Baltimore Examiner carried a story about Mr. Howard starting a new club the other day: “Ex-commissioner candidate forms new Republican club.”

To the best of my knowledge, the Carroll County Times and the Baltimore Sun have not reported on this latest development in positive news about politics in Carroll County.

When Michelle Jefferson was in the beginning stages of forming the Central Carroll Republican Club, the Carroll County Times was all over it: “New Republican club forming in Carroll,” by Justin Palk, Times Staff Writer Thursday, November 04, 2004:

Members of Carroll County's GOP are in the early stages of forming a new Republican club for the county, according to the former head of the county's Republican Central Committee.

[…]

Members of Carroll County's GOP are in the early stages of forming a new Republican club for the county, according to the former head of the county's Republican Central Committee.

The new club, the Central Carroll Republican Club, is intended to be open to all county members as a place to have a free and open exchange of ideas, said Michelle Jefferson. Many of the details of the new organization have not been nailed down yet.

Flyers asking party members to provide input on the new club were circulated at the party's election returns watching party Tuesday night, she said.

Additionally, Mr. Palk wrote: “Carroll County already has an assortment of Republican clubs, including two Republican women's clubs - one countywide, the other in Taneytown - a West and a South Carroll Republican club and a Hispanic Republican Club, according to Jefferson's Web site…”

Many folks – and the Carroll County Times, seemed to have accepted the Central Carroll Republican Club as Ms. Jefferson giving the Carroll County Republican Central Committee, with which she had a highly public split, the finger.

I like the idea – as reported by Ms. Volkmann:

“The goal of the Liberty Republican Club is to encourage participation in politics year-round through trips to Washington, D.C., and scholarships, according to a statement from Howard.”

“Howard said in an interview that he wants the new club, which will include outgoing school board member and delegate candidate C. Scott Stone, to stoke excitement, especially among teenagers and 20-somethings, in a year when Republicans suffered losses throughout Maryland and the nation.”

Mr. Howard’s positive, uplifting and steady-as-you-go community leadership approach will go over well in Carroll County, although it is doubtful that he will get much press for it. Never-the-less, Carroll Countians have always liked grass-roots oriented candidates who excel at constituent service.

Mr. Howard’s press release reads:

Former Candidate Announces New Republican Club

News for Immediate Release

Former Candidate Announces New Republican Club

Sykesville business owner and former County Commissioner candidate, Doug Howard is pleased to announce that a group of Carroll County residents is forming a county-wide Republican Club in December. The Liberty Republican Club will have an organizing meeting on Tuesday, December 5th and will begin regular meetings in January.

The purpose of the Liberty Republican Club is to bring an effective, positive and fun approach to local and state politics. The club will focus on bringing together public service and community service, promoting a positive approach to government and politics, encouraging more people to participate (both as candidates and better informed voters) and promoting Republican values throughout Carroll County.

The Liberty Republican Club will meet monthly and will consist of a variety of working committees. Club activities will include sponsoring scholarships, coordinating events and trips and maintaining an open dialogue with elected and government officials.

It will be active in the community as well as in the political process.

Doug Howard hopes the Liberty Republican Club will attract both those that have been interested and active in politics as well as those that have not. According to Doug, “This club is a unique opportunity for the people of Carroll County to express their concerns, learn about the issues and make a difference. Democracy works best when more people are informed and involved.”

The December 5th organizing meeting is open to the public. It will be held at the BDG office located at 174 Klees Mill Road, Sykesville. There will be an open house from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM with the actual meeting starting at 6:30 PM.

For information, contact Doug Howard at dougforcarroll@aol.com or 443-538-4862.