Jennifer Nassour Mass GOP Chair under Fire - image Boston Herald
The Massachusetts Republican Party will elect a Chairperson on Thursday, January 6th, at the Newton, MA Marriott. The current chair, Jennifer Nassour, will be challenged by William McCarthy, a Republican State Committeeman.. Mr. McCarthy called for the removal of Nassour as Chairperson at a meeting held in November immediately following the mid-term elections. Mr. McCarthy cited the lack of attention and support to the majority of Republican races outside of the Governor’s race by the State GOP as reason for Nassour’s ouster as Chairperson. There was no vote taken at that time. (WBUR).
Ms. Nassour, considered a moderate or “RINO” (Republican in name only) by the more Conservative Republicans in Massachusetts, has held the Chair since 2009. In the past election, there were over 200 Republican candidates for State and Federal offices, with Republicans picking up a gain of12 seats in the State Legislature – period, but a pick-up at the very least.
William McCarthy, hails from the Western (Worcester) section of the Commonwealth, where there is an active and growing Tea Party presence. Those members are extremely focused on grassroots development, and played a large part in the victory of Senator Scott Brown in the January 19th special election, with little or no visible input or support from a variety of local or State GOP Committees until the final week of the elections. It was the energy carried over from the Brown election that the State Party failed to capitalize on, including efforts to recruit new members to the Republican ranks. McCarthy, who sources indicate was part of the Massachusetts Huckabee for President 2008 Committee, would have bucked the State GOP trend to support former Governor Mitt Romney.
Additionally, his willingness to acknowledge and support the growing Tea Party in the Commonwealth will put him in good stead, depending upon the number of delegates who are like-minded this Thursday. One might wonder how the Tea Party fares in Massachusetts, of all States, however a link to a partial list of active Tea Party groups at www.teapartypartriots.orgshows the growing interest in the fiscal conservative movement. It is this movement that has attracted not only disenfranchised Massachusetts Republicans, but Democrats, Libertarians and Unenrolleds as well over the past two years. Many of the Republican Congressional Candidates in 2010 were either members of or affiliated with the Tea Party movement, a fact not lost on those who failed to receive any support from the State GOP.
Playing “Devil’s Advocate” for a moment, Ms. Nassour came to the job of State Chair with a monumental task of attempting to solidify the “country club” Republican City and Town Committee’s (word most often associated: dysfunctional). In addition, with less than a year into her tenure, she was expected to pull off a major win across the board based on “a climate”, yet with no discernable grass roots support outside of the Tea Party movements which felt disenfranchised from the State GOP - the collision of the two schools of thought (Ms. Nassour appears to embrace a more moderate, inclusive philosophy, which makes it difficult for those who are conservative to tell the difference between a moderate Massachusetts Republican and a Massachusetts Democrat.) is at the crux of the challenge. Additionally, the false logic that a Conservative is simply not electable in Massachusetts, while more moderate, specifically socially moderate Republicans stand a chance, is cleanly the issue at hand.
Nevertheless, this Thursday, with almost Machiavellian secrecy, and no news coverage outside of the Boston Herald, the Worcester Telegram and Gazette (Bill McCarthy’s Home Town Paper), and one or two blogs, either Jennifer Nassour will remain as Chair or one Bill McCarthy will be the new Mass GOP Chair. Although there is no mention of the Chair’s election on the official Mass. GOP Website there is a list of local State Committee Persons, who one might contact if one feels they may prefer one candidate over the other. The list is available at www.massgop.com/site/c8hJHTLKMFKqKWe/b.5817745/k.6AF3/State_Committee_Members.htm. This is part of the problem the Mass. GOP (and one could also note the secret society of the Massachusetts Democrats), has in recruitment, which may be why the Commonwealth is overwhelming “unenrolled”.
Regardless of who is elected to the State GOP Chair, that individual continues to face the daunting task of putting a solid grassroots program in place (and possibly working with the Tea Party activists in order to get his accomplished), holding town and city committees accountable for meeting and holding recruitment events, (that do not exclusively involve cocktail parties and golf games), rather get a message out to the many disenfranchised democrats and independents who would be willing converts, and finally, recruiting Republican’s to run, either first time, Tea Party, Log Cabin, or what have you, in order to ensure there is a body for every race in 2012.
One has to ask, is either one of the candidates up to this task? Baby steps are fine, however, the road to success in a politically progressive state is not going to paved with a slew of backyard barbeque's, rather with a loud, rambunctious, in the trenches and in one’s face, fiscally conservative message of less government. In other words, whoever is elected to the Chair should embrace all aspects of the party (Big Tent Theory) in order to move forward with the speed necessary to get the candidates in place for 2012. All Congressional Offices, (9 now) will be up for reelection, there is simply no reason why Massachusetts cannot send a Republican to Congress, and send Scott Brown back to the Senate. The organization needs to be tight, and that requires attention to details right down to the precinct poll watchers who will ensure a get out the vote to rival the 13 hour push by the Democrats in the waning hours of the 2010 midterms, a move that gave them all 10 congressional seats and the Governor’s office. Rome was not built in a day, but the Mass. GOP Chair must be able to accomplish a similar feat, or be challenged for not doing so.
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