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Alex, What is YOUR Plan?
- Filed under: Arshinkoff / Coughlin
- Date: Mar 19,2008
In a rare event, the current head of the Summit County GOP Alex Arshinkoff sat down for a press conference last Tuesday. Arshinkoff said he doesn't believe the votes are there to overthrow him and says he "won't lose sleep anymore" over the challenge. For Alex to sit around and talk to reporters, he either has to be very confident he has the numbers to win or very nervous he does not. There is no in between here. It is one or the other.
This line from the Beacon piece was my favorite: "If every Republican would win with my leave, I'd resign tomorrow," Arshinkoff said. Sure. Somehow I doubt that someone who spends over $300,000 of party money to keep their job would leave so willingly. But anyways.
I want to know how Alex Arshinkoff plans on turning around the fortunes of the GOP. Blaming Jennifer Brunner, Pete Kostoff, Wayne Jones, Kevin Coughlin, me, Roetzel and Andress, voter registration numbers, etc. is not going to help Republicans start winning again here. It just isn't. We get it, Alex: everyone is against you. Kevin Coughlin and his New Summit Republicans do have a plan. It is on their website. As an emailer commented to me yesterday, Alex sounds more like Obama right now than anyone else.
The Summit County GOP is crumbling. Starting with the loss of the Prosecutor’s office in 2000, the Juvenile Court in 2002, nothing in 2004, losing everything in 2006, every year lately has been terrible for the local Republican team. Not only have we* failed to pick up any political office of significance, but we can't hold what we once had. Summit County Republicans are losing, and losing very frequently. It is alarming. At one time, the party under Arshinkoff was thriving. Not now. It is way past time for new blood. When more time, energy, and money is spent trying to keep your job as opposed to actually getting party members elected, there really shouldn't be a debate on the issue.
It is not out of line to ask how someone who has presided over a major losing streak plans to turn things around. I sure haven't seen anything. Have you?
*In the days following the controversy here at The Point over my initial article on Alex, someone very close to me called the Summit County GOP HQ to complain. The lady on the phone said, and this is a direct quote, "Ben Keeler is a bad Republican." Really. I have spent countless hours over the years writing, volunteering, and donating my money to the Republican Party. But the official word from the powers that be is that I am not a good Republican. Needless to say, I was not happy when I heard that. And I am sure after this post I am definitely not a good Republican anymore.
14 Responses for "Alex, What is YOUR Plan?"
Ben, if you are a "bad" Republican, than so am I…
It is always a bad thing when leaders make decisions based on what is good for themselves rather than the organization.
Alex says, "um demonize my enemies and bully people"
Actually she first said "we do not think he is a good Republican". Later when I asked he if I had hed had her correctly she said she did not say he was a bad Republican. When I asked her what the difference was between being a bad Republican and not being a good Republican as she insisted she had said she had no answer.
If any of his little toddies(sp?) would like to challenge my statement I wil be happy to do it face to face.
Good article Ben.
No one else made Arshinkoff set up a company and have local candidates hire that company to do it's political work.
No one else made Arshinkoff become a lobbyist for major donors.
No one else made Arshinkoff lease a Cadillac Escalade SUV with the party's money.
No one else forces Arshinkoff to eat three meals a day courtesy of the party.
No one else made Arshinkoff threaten and intimidate public officials, judges, and Board of Elections employees.
No one else made Arshinkoff squander the party he once built up for his personal greed.
He did that all himself. Not Coughlin, not Brunner, or any Democrat, or any "bad" Republican. All Alex.
He runs the party like an organized crime outfit. And he's got no interest in changing that.
The new chairman of the Summit County Republican Party, when s/he is elected, needs to have a term limit asssociated with his/her contract, as follows: "Except fot the president of the United States of Amrrica, the term in elected public office shall not exceed a combined total of ten years for any person," (T. Coyne, 6/19/98).
The Agenda for Summit County is needed to elect persons to public office from Summit County and it must include the following:
(1) We shall abide by state of Ohio law as practiced by every other county in Ohio with respect to the election of three (3) county commissioners. We shall not be governed within the county by one person, a so-called Excecutive, a person appointed for all practcal purposes, and one being manipulated currently;
(2) "There shall be no taxation without representation," (T. Coyne, 10/10/03). City income taxes cannot be collected from people to whom to accounting is made, and from whom no vote is allowed as such a practice is not American;
(3) We shall abide by the rulings of the State of Ohio Supreme Court which has held on at least three (3) seperate occasions that taxation of real estate for educational purposes is unconstitutional, and we MUST declare: "No government for governmental unit shall impose a tax of any sort on the primary residential property of any citizen of Summit County," (T. Coyne, 6/13/03).
Alex has presided over the decline and fall from grace of a once great city. We can restore it quickly, but only with qualified people at the helm!
Respectfully,
Tom Coyne
Great points by Ben and the NSR commenter. A true leader needs to take responsibility for the success or failures of his/her company or organization. All we get from Alex are excuses.
Don't worry Ben… You are in good company by being a "bad Republican". Summit County has a ton of really great "bad Republicans" who just want their party back.
Well I guess that I am one of those bad apples as well! What really irked me was when they knew that my allegence was not totally behind Alex they ran a booth worker against me with the same old pile of horse manure line that I was not running for re-election and then when I tried to get that person to withdraw they gave another good one, "he's bringing down the party". Well guess what folks? I won re-election and none of Alexes TOADIES who won election is going to matter because Alex, Oh ALEX! Your comin down buddy! We are tired of YOUR losing streak and it don't matter if you got Fink or not we are going to put in a new chair who will know what they are doing pal, and your days with that credit card on my nickle are numbered along with that caddy. All we want to do is make a better community folks, what more can we ask?
When I talked to a person had Alex had listing him as a supporter the person was surprised he was on the letter. He agreed to run as precinct person not because he has any great allegiance to Alex because he is a Republican that wanted to help. He was surprised that he was on the the mailers supporting
Alex but felt that it was wrong to start a fight in a Pres. election year. Which leads me to my question. How often does the party elect the precient captians? Hopefully it is not every 4 years during the Pres. election because that is a great argument for whomevever is in charge and wanting to retain their positon.
Thanks for the comments everyone. More on the way regarding this subject.
Loosk like there are a lot of bad Republicans who read The Point.
This entire matter of Alex and the old guard republicans in Summit County has become a sad state of affairs. Alex lost me when he didn't put anyone up against the Mayor in the last election cycle. He's just not allowed to decide that I shouldn't have anyone to vote for. As I've said before, I cherish my right to vote as an American even more than I support my republican party loyalties. Anyone who thinks he has the right to take that away from anyone in any party as Alex did with us needs to get out of the way and do it quickly – what Alex dosen't realize most of all is this time we're not going away – if we don't get him out this time we'll keep after him again and again until he does leave – we have to do this – it's our obligation to try to change this status quo in Summit County so we can move on to bringing in new ideas and new candidates and really do something good for this County as republicans. Alex will have to spend more time and money fighting battles against us from now on – not that it would do anything but now give him another cheap excuse for putting up more losing tickets,- he'll say it's our fault. But we have nothing to lose and everything to gain….We need to remind him that we are going to keep coming after him over and over again until something changes…whatever that is ….and maybe, just maybe, if he were a good republican, for the sake of all "good" republicans in Summit County he'll see that his stepping aside would be that best thing for the Party.
But regardless – Alex needs to constantly be reminded that however things turn out in '08 these New Summit Republicans are never going to let up next year and the year after and the year after until he makes a move. Out the back door for good.
If Alex is confident he has won and won't lose any more sleep about it, why did I receive a letter in the mail signed by him begging to be support him at the upcoming meeting of the Central Committee? Why did I revceive a letter from a former BOE elections employee complaining about losing her job, paid for by Pavloff, Alex's point man for keeping his job? The simple truth is he is scared and he is lobbying Central Committee members to keep his job.
Sorry should have checked my typing before posting:
If Alex is confident he has won and won't lose any more sleep about it, why did I receive a letter in the mail signed by him begging me to support him at the upcoming meeting of the Central Committee? Why did I revceive a letter from a former BOE elections employee complaining about losing her job, paid for by Pavloff, Alex's point man for keeping his job? The simple truth is he is scared and he is lobbying Central Committee members to keep his job.
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