As the chairman of the Republican National Committee, Edward W. Gillespie was at the helm of the party in its glory days, when the Republicans trounced the opposition in 2004 and retained both the presidency and Congress.
 The advice from state GOP Chair Ed Gillespie? Republicans should scrub out the dirty officials and pork projects to regain the party’s "birthright." |
It ain’t like it used to be. Gillespie has felt firsthand the lows of 2006 as a political consultant and spokesman for George Allen; he now serves as chairman of the Virginia Republican Party (www.vagop.com). On January 31, he spoke at UVA’s Miller Center about what happened in 2006 and where the future lies for the GOP.
“In politics, nothing is as good or bad as it seems,” he stated, then addressed 10 house seats that were lost on the part of wrongdoing by what he called S.T.P. candidates: “stalkers, thieves and perverts.” Acknowledging that Iraq was a factor, Gillespie also pointed to what he termed “brand destruction” on the Republican side. “We allowed voters to perceive that we were not being serious and good stewards of the money, somewhat symbolized by the bridge to nowhere,” he said, invoking the pork project of Alaska Senator Ted Stevens. “We gave up our birthright as a party in some ways.”
Although he admitted that President Bush had been a drag on Republican candidates, Gillespie also defended the head of his party. “I think history will show he was a great president who made the right decisions at critical times.”
Gillespie’s solutions for recent party woes were as pat as his defense of the commander-in-chief. Slipping into election mode, Gillespie advocated the extension of “No Child Left Behind” legislation to high schools and called for a balanced budget within five years. Even the latter statement failed to provoke incredulity from the elderly audience. The amiable crowd eagerly listened, laughing in appreciation of his asides. “I love Howard Dean and hope he’s chairman of the Democratic Party for a long time,” Gillespie said. Guffaws and cackles poured forth.
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