GOP Moving to Shut Out Grassroots at 2:00 p.m. Today

[johnaa]

http://www.redstate.com/2012/08/28/gop-rules-committee-rapidly-moving-to-shut-out-grassroots-at-200-...  

  snip-At 2:00 p.m. today in Tampa, the Republican National Committee, led by Team Romney, is moving to shut down conservative grassroots activists. I’ve been on the phone with several individuals involved in the fight who tell me that the fight is not over, it is only just starting      --

  Specifically, the media is reporting that the rules fight is over because Team Romney is abandoning Ben Ginsberg’s effort to allow candidates to control delegates. Under an initial proposal, delegates would, in effect, be chosen by the presumed nominee’s campaign and not based on votes in the states and delegate selection processes in the states.                            ----------

  That issue appears resolved, but several people I’ve spoken to this morning make clear that Team Romney and the RNC establishment are using that compromise as a red herring to distract from two major rules change proposals that would decimate Republican grassroots and prevent upstart political campaigns.         Reports that the floor fight threat is over might be designed to calm the grassroots and get them to ignore what is coming at 2 o’clock.                                 -----------

  The first rule to be proposed is one that would give the Republican National Committee the power to change rules between conventions with a three-quarters vote of the RNC. One source tells me, “With a Republican President, of course this is doable. Everybody will roll over if a President Romney asks them too. They’ll be able to get Ben Ginsberg’s proposal next year.”

  In other words, if Team Romney prevails in this rules change, they don’t have to worry about Ben Ginsberg not getting his way today on the delegate changes. They’ll be able to do it later when the press and grassroots are not watching.

  The second rules change would front load winner takes all primaries. Grassroots conservatives point to both Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum as reasons to stop this rule. Had there been front loaded winner takes all primaries, neither the Gingrich nor the Santorum campaigns would have been able to get any traction.

snip--The Rules Committee will meet at 2:00 p.m. today in Tampa to consider the rules changes. If they make it through the committee, delegates are telling me they promise a huge floor fight and there’s no guarantee Team Romney will get its way given the current make up of the delegates in Tampa.

  BTW RP is at the convention during that time.

[johnaa]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2012/08/28/ron-paul-supporters-gather-signatures-for-...     

   I see a third party forming.  The rule of the National Committees will fall sooner than later.

   snip--Grassroots Republican activists and Ron Paul supporters came up shy in their effort to beat back two major rule changes Tuesday at the Republican National Convention.               ----

  Amidst a contentious scene on the floor of the convention, House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) ruled that the committee rules had passed by a voice vote — despite loud protest from many in the arena                         ---

  Grassroots activists and Paul supporters were fighting against rules that would require states to allocate delegates according to the statewide vote and would allow the RNC to change its rules without a full convention vote. Both, they said, would dilute the influence of grassroots activists.                    ---

 snip-- In addition, the rules committee adopted another rule that would allow for the committee to changes its rules between conventions. Currently, a full convention vote is needed to change the rules.----

  snip-- Paul supporters and grassroots activists said Monday afternoon that they would fight both rules, arguing that they undercut the grassroots. In order to raise their objections on the floor, they needed to gather signatures from 25 percent of members of the rules committee, which they were feverishly doing after the formal rules committee meeting Tuesday.               ---

  “We’re going to fight it on the floor,” said Dudley Brown, a rules committee member and unpledged delegate from Colorado. “Everybody in this room knows — and (Oromney adviser John Sununu) clearly said — there are members whose phones are ringing off the hook.”

  Things got heated after the rules committee meeting. Brown even accused another rules committee member of grabbing documents seeking a floor fight from a woman passing them around and refusing to give them back.    “I don’t like men pushing around women,” Brown said.

  I'm surprised Dudley didn't smack him around.  He founded Gun Owners of America.