WA State convention

[tomveil]

Hey guys! Mixed news from the WA State Convention today. First the bad, the "Rules Commitee" changed the rules when they met last week so that our one pledged national delegate had to be "approved" by the McCain campaign. The rules fight was drawn out but we were shot down. The chair didn't seem too interested in making sure what the counts of the voting were before he ruled. It seemed that we were pretty well split down the middle, but there was never any ACTUAL counting, just rising votes.

The good! In our congressional district (3-WA), we got the unallocated delegates! Two Ron Paul delegates and two Ron Paul alternates were elected from our CD! I wish I had more info to pass along, but we just got done. Now it's time for a quick power nap before the rally tonight. I'll be back after with more information afterwords :)

Summary: LOTS AND LOTS of Ron Paul supporters. It was great to see everybody all gathered in one place. Imagine what St Paul will look like ;)

More to come later!

[MozoVote]

An impartial convention *can* be held with rising votes alone, if the chairman is competant and the tellers are fair. Ballot votes do take a long time to count, so I can understand some reticence.

But that sounds great you were 50/50. The Paulites will be the more motivated side to show up at state, from that group. You should have a majority from your district attending then. :)

[nate895]

An impartial convention *can* be held with rising votes alone, if the chairman is competant and the tellers are fair. Ballot votes do take a long time to count, so I can understand some reticence.

But that sounds great you were 50/50. The Paulites will be the more motivated side to show up at state, from that group. You should have a majority from your district attending then. :)

Standing in the back, it was clear that McCain had a slim majority without alternates seated (and probably with them seated). However the chairman, who is an utter failure as far as a chairman goes, called that McCain people had 2/3 majority, which was clearly not the case. Also, the Ron Paul booths got exiled into the backwaters of the convention. It was kind of fun, as far as the booths went.

One of our delegates almost got arrested, but he didn't after the cops realized that the accusation was outlandish (apparently one our coordinators was in on a plot, according to the accuser).

[DrSpock]

So far it is not sounding too bad.

In some districts we received no delegates and in others we did well. No numbers or video yet but hopefully soon.

[wgadget]

An impartial convention *can* be held with rising votes alone, if the chairman is competant and the tellers are fair. Ballot votes do take a long time to count, so I can understand some reticence.

But that sounds great you were 50/50. The Paulites will be the more motivated side to show up at state, from that group. You should have a majority from your district attending then. :)

I thought it WAS state.:confused:

[DrSpock]

I thought it WAS state.:confused:

It is.

[MozoVote]

OK, yeah I misunderstood the OP, since he mentioned how his district had performed.

[IPSecure]

...our one pledged national delegate had to be "approved" by the McCain campaign.

WTF

[jblosser]

Um... there's all kinds of things wrong with that.

RNC Rule 15:

"(2) Only persons eligible to vote who are deemed as a matter of public record to be Republicans pursuant to state law or, if voters are not enrolled by party, by Republican party rules of a state, shall participate in any primary election held for the purpose of electing delegates or alternate delegates to the national convention or in any Republican caucus, mass meeting, or mass convention held for the purpose of selecting delegates to the county, district, or state conventions, and only such legal and qualified voters shall be elected as delegates to county, district, and state conventions; provided, however, that in addition to the qualifications provided herein, the applicable Republican party rules of a state may prescribe additional qualifications not inconsistent with law, which additional qualifications shall be adopted before the first Tuesday in September in the year before the year in which the national convention is to be held and published in at least one (1) newspaper having a general circulation throughout the state, such publication to be at least ninety (90) days before such qualifications become effective."

Further, I haven't read the WA GOP Rules, but I'd be surprised if a Rules committee that met before the convention started is anything but a temporary committee, so anything they did should have needed to be approved by the full delegation.

[acroso]

bullshit as per normal

[DrSpock]

bullshit as per normal

Yes and no. We did not have the majority so we were unable to defeat some of these outright violations.

That being said, we should have some video soon (some brave souls broke the rules and filmed as much as they could). The story about someone almost being arrested has to do with just that, she refused to "surrender" her property and was escorted outside (as I have heard it).

We will know more soon. Let's see how it turns out.

[suzypotaka]

Um... there's all kinds of things wrong with that.

RNC Rule 15:

"(2) Only persons eligible to vote who are deemed as a matter of public record to be Republicans pursuant to state law or, if voters are not enrolled by party, by Republican party rules of a state, shall participate in any primary election held for the purpose of electing delegates or alternate delegates to the national convention or in any Republican caucus, mass meeting, or mass convention held for the purpose of selecting delegates to the county, district, or state conventions, and only such legal and qualified voters shall be elected as delegates to county, district, and state conventions; provided, however, that in addition to the qualifications provided herein, the applicable Republican party rules of a state may prescribe additional qualifications not inconsistent with law, which additional qualifications shall be adopted before the first Tuesday in September in the year before the year in which the national convention is to be held and published in at least one (1) newspaper having a general circulation throughout the state, such publication to be at least ninety (90) days before such qualifications become effective."

Further, I haven't read the WA GOP Rules, but I'd be surprised if a Rules committee that met before the convention started is anything but a temporary committee, so anything they did should have needed to be approved by the full delegation.

=======================

hey jblosser...there is far more to it than that!!!

people....i'm telling u ...ya gotta read your state election codes!!!!...& i'm not too sure i'm willing to post what i found in mine here!!

[Jean]

I don't know what will happen at this convention but EVERY Ron Paul supporter has worked so hard and stood their ground. They have worked as a unit and I am so proud of them. We ARE Republicans and we are not going away! At this convention we have been stuck back in the corner and laughed at and we have held our heads high and done the best we could do to make our voices heard. And we have been heard! We had a great rally after the convention tonight. (The Irish dancers were a great treat!) So after some sleep we start again!

[pepperpete1]

=======================

hey jblosser...there is far more to it than that!!!

people....i'm telling u ...ya gotta read your state election codes!!!!...& i'm not too sure i'm willing to post what i found in mine here!!

I was all set to post exactly what jblosser had posted til I read theirs.

suzypotaka, why are you not sure whether you are willing to post what you found in yours?

I found this: The state committee of each major political party consists of one committeeman and one committeewoman from each county elected by the county central committee at its organization meeting. It must have a chair and vice-chair of opposite sexes. This committee shall meet during January of each odd-numbered year for the purpose of organization at a time and place designated by a notice mailed at least one week before the date of the meeting to all the newly elected state committeemen and committeewomen by the authorized officers of the retiring committee. At its organizational meeting it shall elect its chair and vice-chair, and such officers as its bylaws may provide, and adopt bylaws, rules, and regulations. It may:
(1) Call conventions at such time and place and under such circumstances and for such purposes as the call to convention designates. The manner, number, and procedure for selection of state convention delegates is subject to the committee's rules and regulations duly adopted;

(2) Provide for the election of delegates to national conventions;

(3) Fill vacancies on the ticket for any federal or state office to be voted on by the electors of more than one county;

(4) Provide for the nomination of presidential electors; and

(5) Perform all functions inherent in such an organization.

Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter, the committee may not adopt rules governing the conduct of the actual proceedings at a party state convention.

These do not conflict with the RNC rules and the state party is still in violation of the rules and challenges should be made for each and every state that has violated the RNC rules and their own party rules and sometimes their state's election laws.

[DrSpock]

Battle at Spokane II

By the end of day one at the Republican State Convention in Spokane, it became obvious through the stream of complaints from Ron Paul backers, that the Party Archs, the bosses who are in thrall to McCain, have scripted and planned every moment of this event to benefit their candidate.

Complaints:
a) The Bosses would not allow physical counting of the ballots.
b) Ballots were observed thrown in wastebaskets and on the floor.
c) Speakers chosen by the Bosses spoke of "their candidate" McCain as the only candidate in the race, as if Ron Paul did not exist. Demands for equal time were denied. Early in the morning one Boss-supplied speaker began to prattle about how "our Republican candidate John McCain, the presumptive winner, etc... would do so and so when he got into the White House..." an immediate, very loud set of Booing began which turned into a now familiar chant, "Ron Paul, Ron Paul, Ron Paul!!"
d) Printed ballots with no opposition candidates allowed! Straight out of Stalin's play book. I acquired a copy of one such ballot. When people began to write in Mickey Mouse and Josef Stalin as opposition they were told that no matter whom they wrote in, it would still count as a vote for the pre-printed candidate.
e) All of the delegates were told in very plain terms that if they did not turn off their personal video cameras, the cameras would be confiscated! And if people made a fuss over their cameras being stolen they would be forcefully ejected from the Convention Center.
f) The chairman who ran the proceedings from the podium constantly conferred with a Robert's Rules of Order guru. The chairman's power to override objections, rule statements inadmissible, to literally control who said what to a maximum extent assured the Bosses that no fundamental Paul rules or momentum would be allowed.
g) I was denied press credentials. I e-mailed my press application to the Republican Party office in Bellevue, WA on time. The next day I was sent an e-mail telling me that "Your organization does not meet our criteria."
My organizations were two, a Web based magazine which hosts news and commentary from all sectors called "Nolan Chart LLC" and The Whatcom Independent, not exactly known as a radical rag. I sent an e-mail back asking where I could read "the criteria" but of course got no response. Later after coming to Spokane standing on the Convention floor the first day I complained to Jeremy Doitch, an RP sub boss that there was no moral reason to exclude me from the Convention. He told me rather coldly, "This matter is closed. You are to leave this Convention Hall, the entire building which the RP has rented. If you don't leave immediately a police officer will escort you." Then these warm humans representing the RP turned on their heels and walked away.

Within this totalitarian atmosphere Ron Paul backers managed to still get delegates elected to go to Minneapolis for the RP National Convention. As of the end of Saturday the regions that had huge Paul majorities elected Paul delegates. Whatcom County which sent 31 out of 39 County pro Paul delegates to this Spokane convention is in Congressional District Two. There was a major allegation of cheating to get McCain backers in as delegates from Skagit County. Despite a fistful of evidence demonstrating fraud in that county, the Bosses refused to hear the complaints and a slate of McCain delegates was added into the mix and virtually NO Paul delegates were elected from CD Two.

Summed up, the Ron Paul backers had a mixed bag of complaints and claims of small victories, depending on which CD they were in. Paul backers from Spokane and Clark counties did well so they were claiming victories. Bellingham Paul backers were very unhappy.

At least it wasn't a total loss.

[DrSpock]

The McCain supporters have walked out of the convention.

Here we go again. :rolleyes:

[Rangeley]

The McCain supporters have walked out of the convention.

Here we go again. :rolleyes:
For real? Is there an article about it, or are you there in person?

[DrSpock]

For real? Is there an article about it, or are you there in person?

My girlfriend is there. She just called me. Not to worry though, we have established a quorum.

[Rangeley]

Hmm... this could get interesting then.

[DrSpock]

Hmm... this could get interesting then.

Very much so. It seems this walkout was staged by our local GOP Chairman and I was told we have a recording of it.

[Rangeley]

Do you know why though? Havent they already elected delegates?

[DrSpock]

They were down to voting on the platform resolutions and they were losing. I'm afraid I don't have much more than that at the moment.

[wgadget]

DrSpock DrSpock is online now
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The McCain supporters have walked out of the convention.

Here we go again.
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[wgadget]

DrSpock DrSpock is online now
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They were down to voting on the platform resolutions and they were losing. I'm afraid I don't have much more than that at the moment.
__________________________________________________ ________________________________
Curious, how often you humans manage to obtain that which you do not want.

[kirkblitz]

fuck um, if we have a quorum it doesnt matter then :D

[PatriotOne]

Is that a quote from spock today? Got a link?

[wgadget]

Look for the WA convention thread nearby.

[Rangeley]

http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?t=140648&page=3

Yes, its from today. They walked out, apperantly, during the platform process but the process continues. Thats all we know.

[PatriotOne]

Never mind. I found the conversation:

http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?p=1487707#post1487707

[PatriotOne]

http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?t=140648&page=3

Yes, its from today. They walked out, apperantly, during the platform process but the process continues. Thats all we know.

Thanks. Look like there are a couple threads about it.

[DrSpock]

Yes. National Delegates have been chosen and the convention had moved on to the platform resolutions. At that point the McCain supporters saw they were losing and staged a walkout.

Our people have been able to reestablish a quorum and are attempting to finish voting on the platform but it seems that some of the party officials are trying to stall.

No word beyond that except that some of our people have been removed by the police.

I'll let you know more as I find out.

[OptionsTrader]

Thansk for the update Mr. Spock.

[Rangeley]

You mentioned that the walkout was filmed, but do you know if more is being filmed?

[wgadget]

OMG...The fuzz.:eek:

[pinkmandy]

We need to find a way to get them to walk out of the national convention. ;)

[DrSpock]

You mentioned that the walkout was filmed, but do you know if more is being filmed?

At some point during the convention, I assume when they started cheating, they decided that any video recording devices would be confiscated. The recording that is being done is on the "down low" and I haven't seen any of it yet so I can't vouch for the quality.

I know we have some video. I just don't know how much was picked up in the video.

[PatriotOne]

No word beyond that except that some of our people have been removed by the police.



Do you know why?

[OptionsTrader]

At some point during the convention, I assume when they started cheating, they decided that any video recording devices would be confiscated. The recording that is being done is on the "down low" and I haven't seen any of it yet so I can't vouch for the quality.

I know we have some video. I just don't know how much was picked up in the video.

Are you at the convention on a wireless device?

[gerryb]

I hope this means we got the national delegates

[DrSpock]

Do you know why?

No idea.





Are you at the convention on a wireless device?

No, my girlfriend is at the convention. She's been keeping me informed of the goings on.

[DrSpock]

I hope this means we got the national delegates

We did get some. I don't know the numbers yet but we did well in some CD's.

[JustBcuz]

I hope this means we got the national delegates

If they've got a quorum they can undo all the work from earlier and start over.
:D:D:D

[fr33domfightr]

The media seem to love things that are sensational. Video of this infighting might get aired. It might actually be good for TV viewers to see the party is made up of true conservatives as well.

FF

[defe07]

We did get some. I don't know the numbers yet but we did well in some CD's.

If I recall correctly, Spokane was a gem for us during the local conventions. Hmm... just wondering if we may have swept any Congressional District or not but I hope our numbers are respectable. :D

[DrSpock]

If I recall correctly, Spokane was a gem for us during the local conventions. Hmm... just wondering if we may have swept any Congressional District or not but I hope our numbers are respectable. :D

I know we did really well in district 3 (Spokane is 5 and I have no clue).

[Rangeley]

http://www.spokesmanreview.com/elections/2008/blog/?postID=5591

McCain got 33, Paul 4, and Huckabee 3. He picked up 2 from CD5, 2 from CD3, McCain swept the rest of the 14 CD delegates, and got 19 which were pledged from the primary. Huckabee got the other 3 from the primary.

[american.swan]

Yes. National Delegates have been chosen and the convention had moved on to the platform resolutions. At that point the McCain supporters saw they were losing and staged a walkout.

Our people have been able to reestablish a quorum and are attempting to finish voting on the platform but it seems that some of the party officials are trying to stall.

No word beyond that except that some of our people have been removed by the police.

I'll let you know more as I find out.

So let me get this straight, Nevada walked out BEFORE the national delegates were voted on. Washington walked out AFTER the national delegates were voted on but BEFORE the resolutions finished??????

[american.swan]

I know we did really well in district 3 (Spokane is 5 and I have no clue).

Tell your girl friend to motion to redo the delegate votes!!!!

[fr33domfightr]

DrSpock,

Those platform positions are WA State only, right?

What were they? Specifics if possible.

Thanks,
FF

[Rangeley]

So let me get this straight, Nevada walked out BEFORE the national delegates were voted on. Washington walked out AFTER the national delegates were voted on but BEFORE the resolutions finished??????
Yes, before the platform voting was finished, because they were losing.

[rich34]

But if the delegates have already been selected then does it matter if they vote on the resolutions or not?

[Rangeley]

As far as delegates go? No. But setting the party platform is pretty significant in itself.

[DrSpock]

DrSpock,

Those platform positions are WA State only, right?

What were they? Specifics if possible.

Thanks,
FF

They were platforms changes that would have gone to national.

I wasn't on that committee but I'll attempt to find out.

[DrSpock]

Alright. The convention has been adjourned.

When the McCain people realized we had a quorum they came back and voted to adjourn and so the platform issues were not resolved.

I assume that will be dealt with by the McCain campaign. :rolleyes:

We did get some delegates, still no numbers on that though.

There is a large rally going on right now so we can expect some video of that as well as some of what occurred inside the convention.

All in all it wasn't the worst case we've had but it wasn't great either.

Our local GOP chairman is in deep right now for the walkout. Even the old guard are angry. One of them even threatened that the chair would lose his seat for his actions.

[No1ButPaul08]

Alright. The convention has been adjourned.

When the McCain people realized we had a quorum they came back and voted to adjourn and so the platform issues were not resolved.

I assume that will be dealt with by the McCain campaign. :rolleyes:

We did get some delegates, still no numbers on that though.

There is a large rally going on right now so we can expect some video of that as well as some of what occurred inside the convention.

All in all it wasn't the worst case we've had but it wasn't great either.

Our local GOP chairman is in deep right now for the walkout. Even the old guard are angry. One of them even threatened that the chair would lose his seat for his actions.

How did the McCain camp have the numbers to adjourn if we had the numbers for a quorum? Did we try to keep them from adjourning so we could vote on the platform?

[Rangeley]

And how were we able to vote through platform amendments, yet not able to prevent an adjournment from passing?

Were that many people taken out by the police or something?

[DrSpock]

How did the McCain camp have the numbers to adjourn if we had the numbers for a quorum? Did we try to keep them from adjourning so we could vote on the platform?

We needed more than 2/3 to extend the convention and I assume that some of the fence sitters voted with us in regards to the platform.

[kirkblitz]

http://www.spokesmanreview.com/elections/2008/blog/?postID=5591

McCain got 33, Paul 4, and Huckabee 3. He picked up 2 from CD5, 2 from CD3, McCain swept the rest of the 14 CD delegates, and got 19 which were pledged from the primary. Huckabee got the other 3 from the primary.

is that correct? that was posted friday night.

[DrSpock]

is that correct? that was posted friday night.

Based upon what I heard those numbers don't look right but I still haven't received confirmation of any numbers so who knows.

[Rangeley]

is that correct? that was posted friday night.
I am fairly sure. The district delegates were on Friday, and the rest were bound to the results of the primary and only needed to be confirmed. Barring a rule change, which does not appear to have occurred, thats how it would have gone down. I could be wrong though, thats just based off what that article said. I suppose its safe to wait for confirmation from people who attended.

We do know that in the very least, we got those 4, though.

[DrSpock]

Some initial video.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZNAR6qKIKos

[BKom]

I know we did really well in district 3 (Spokane is 5 and I have no clue).

If they've walked out and you still have a quorum, all you need is a 2/3 vote and you can undo the delegate elections and get more delegates. Seriously, if you have a quorum and you think you're at 2/3, you should definitely do this.

Brian Kominsky
Clark County NV Coordinator
Ron Paul 2008

[DrSpock]

Some initial video.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZNAR6qKIKos

Part II

http://youtube.com/watch?v=yt5ONN75wT0

[Rangeley]

That guy got shut down bad at the end of video 2...

[Rangeley]

Looks like this guy was blogging the whole thing:
http://www.spokesmanreview.com/elections/2008/blog/

Its too bad we didnt find it earlier.

So heres what seems to have happened. Voting on resolutions began, and McCain people attempted to adjourn the convention about an hour early. The motion failed, but McCain people began filing out just the same. A quorum was called, and they had enough for it - so resolutions continued. In this brief time, they managed to pass a resolution saying that there must be a declaration of war in order to go to war.

Following this, the quorum was challenged by remaining McCain people, taking up a whole chunk of time as people were counted yet again to determine it. During this extended time, McCain people returned to the room. This pushed them past the 5:00 limit, thus they needed a 2/3 vote to extend discussion as long as necessary. The vote ended up being 462-452 to extend it, so it was not enough, though its pretty notable that it was a majority still.

So, the convention was adjourned.

[Jean]

I am just so proud of you all!

[kirkblitz]

fucked again!

[DrSpock]

fucked again!

In the end, yes, it seems that way.


See ya next year.

[tomveil]

Looks like this guy was blogging the whole thing:
http://www.spokesmanreview.com/elections/2008/blog/

Its too bad we didnt find it earlier.

So heres what seems to have happened. Voting on resolutions began, and McCain people attempted to adjourn the convention about an hour early. The motion failed, but McCain people began filing out just the same. A quorum was called, and they had enough for it - so resolutions continued. In this brief time, they managed to pass a resolution saying that there must be a declaration of war in order to go to war.

Following this, the quorum was challenged by remaining McCain people, taking up a whole chunk of time as people were counted yet again to determine it. During this extended time, McCain people returned to the room. This pushed them past the 5:00 limit, thus they needed a 2/3 vote to extend discussion as long as necessary. The vote ended up being 462-452 to extend it, so it was not enough, though its pretty notable that it was a majority still.

So, the convention was adjourned.

Just a few more details about this situation as I can recall them (Sorry it was a 6 hour drive home)

The McCain camp did not want to discuss any part of the platform. They voted against discussing every plank, even ones that their own people wanted to discuss. The McCain camp was holding signs and such, which I would guess will be standard operating procedure from here on out.

During lunch, leadership from both parties made an agreement to stop with the signs and allow people to vote their conciense. Amazingly, the parts of the platform that we WERE able to discuss, there was a lot of agreement! Things were going pretty well, we were voting almost in unity on a lot of the platform. (The platform of our state was intentionally left as overarching principles and not specific issues, since we knew it was going to be about 50/50)

Then, the fireworks REALLY started when we got to resolutions. Times are approximate, but close. (5 pm is the end of our convention)

3:30 - We get to the resolutions. We have a suggested "Do Pass" and a suggested "Do Not Pass" packets.

3:31 - We move to discuss the "Do Not Pass" before the "Do Pass" packet. Lots of the stuff we want to talk about is in this packet. (Real ID, The War, Fed Reserve, etc)

3:35 - The motion fails.

3:45 - We move that we accept the "Do Pass" packet in total so we can get to the "Do Not Pass" packet.

3:50 - Motion passes.

3:55 - A McCain supporter moves to adjorn. The motion fails.

4:00 - The McCain people begin to leave.

4:01 - A McCain supporters questions the quorum. We begin to start counting the people in the room.

4:02-4:50: While counting, we talk amongst ourselves. We do the wave! (Yes, we do the wave!) We sing the national anthem!

4:50 - We establish that indeed we do have a quorum and can continue. We pass a "declare war" resolution and move to extend the convention time until all buisness can be completed.

4:51 - Guess those McCain people decided to hang around after all, as they start to file back into the room.

4:56 - A McCain supporter makes a motion to read the quorum stats by county and leg. district. The chair rules that the overall stats are sufficent.

4:59 - The supporter then appeals the decision of the chair. The vote to appeal is upheld. The supporter then asks for a roll call (physical counting) of the appeal.

5:30 - The appeal is easily upheld. But the McCain people have been able to stall long enough to get all their people back into the room.

5:31 - It's now time to vote on the motion made to extend convention time. Since we need to suspend the rules to extend time, a 2/3 majority is needed. This will be done via roll call voting.

6:15 - We do not have the 2/3 required to keep the convention going. The McCain camp all cheers, having successfully stalled their way to a "victory" on the resolutions.

So I guess we "lost", but we were able to open the eyes of a LOT of "3rd party" (Huckabee, Romney, etc) delegates to exactly what was going on. We've got videos of this that will probably be coming out in the next day or so. In my opinion it was the dumbest thing that they could have done. Resolutions mean very little in the overall scheme of things (imo the politicians will ignore them anyway). They made themselves look REALLY bad (especially after the quorum was established and they call came running back in). To be fair, there were a decent number of McCain supporters who did NOT leave and were upset at what was going on. I made sure to thank as many of them as I could find while we were trying to establish the quorum.

In actually, this is a very good ending of the convention for us. We've got yet more proof that the GOP is playing dirty, and the more evidence of that the better.

[pepperpete1]

Just a few more details about this situation as I can recall them (Sorry it was a 6 hour drive home)

The McCain camp did not want to discuss any part of the platform. They voted against discussing every plank, even ones that their own people wanted to discuss. The McCain camp was holding signs and such, which I would guess will be standard operating procedure from here on out.

During lunch, leadership from both parties made an agreement to stop with the signs and allow people to vote their conciense. Amazingly, the parts of the platform that we WERE able to discuss, there was a lot of agreement! Things were going pretty well, we were voting almost in unity on a lot of the platform. (The platform of our state was intentionally left as overarching principles and not specific issues, since we knew it was going to be about 50/50)

Then, the fireworks REALLY started when we got to resolutions. Times are approximate, but close. (5 pm is the end of our convention)

3:30 - We get to the resolutions. We have a suggested "Do Pass" and a suggested "Do Not Pass" packets.

3:31 - We move to discuss the "Do Not Pass" before the "Do Pass" packet. Lots of the stuff we want to talk about is in this packet. (Real ID, The War, Fed Reserve, etc)

3:35 - The motion fails.

3:45 - We move that we accept the "Do Pass" packet in total so we can get to the "Do Not Pass" packet.

3:50 - Motion passes.

3:55 - A McCain supporter moves to adjorn. The motion fails.

4:00 - The McCain people begin to leave.

4:01 - A McCain supporters questions the quorum. We begin to start counting the people in the room.

4:02-4:50: While counting, we talk amongst ourselves. We do the wave! (Yes, we do the wave!) We sing the national anthem!

4:50 - We establish that indeed we do have a quorum and can continue. We pass a "declare war" resolution and move to extend the convention time until all buisness can be completed.

4:51 - Guess those McCain people decided to hang around after all, as they start to file back into the room.

4:56 - A McCain supporter makes a motion to read the quorum stats by county and leg. district. The chair rules that the overall stats are sufficent.

4:59 - The supporter then appeals the decision of the chair. The vote to appeal is upheld. The supporter then asks for a roll call (physical counting) of the appeal.

5:30 - The appeal is easily upheld. But the McCain people have been able to stall long enough to get all their people back into the room.

5:31 - It's now time to vote on the motion made to extend convention time. Since we need to suspend the rules to extend time, a 2/3 majority is needed. This will be done via roll call voting.

6:15 - We do not have the 2/3 required to keep the convention going. The McCain camp all cheers, having successfully stalled their way to a "victory" on the resolutions.

So I guess we "lost", but we were able to open the eyes of a LOT of "3rd party" (Huckabee, Romney, etc) delegates to exactly what was going on. We've got videos of this that will probably be coming out in the next day or so. In my opinion it was the dumbest thing that they could have done. Resolutions mean very little in the overall scheme of things (imo the politicians will ignore them anyway). They made themselves look REALLY bad (especially after the quorum was established and they call came running back in). To be fair, there were a decent number of McCain supporters who did NOT leave and were upset at what was going on. I made sure to thank as many of them as I could find while we were trying to establish the quorum.

In actually, this is a very good ending of the convention for us. We've got yet more proof that the GOP is playing dirty, and the more evidence of that the better.

This proof of all the rule breaking as stated above will not mean squat unless someone challenges them through the proper channels.

[JK/SEA]

[/COLOR]

This proof of all the rule breaking as stated above will not mean squat unless someone challenges them through the proper channels.


stay tuned. that is all. at ease.

[tomveil]

stay tuned. that is all. at ease.

;)

[speciallyblend]

Hey guys! Mixed news from the WA State Convention today. First the bad, the "Rules Commitee" changed the rules when they met last week so that our one pledged national delegate had to be "approved" by the McCain campaign. The rules fight was drawn out but we were shot down. The chair didn't seem too interested in making sure what the counts of the voting were before he ruled. It seemed that we were pretty well split down the middle, but there was never any ACTUAL counting, just rising votes.

The good! In our congressional district (3-WA), we got the unallocated delegates! Two Ron Paul delegates and two Ron Paul alternates were elected from our CD! I wish I had more info to pass along, but we just got done. Now it's time for a quick power nap before the rally tonight. I'll be back after with more information afterwords :)

Summary: LOTS AND LOTS of Ron Paul supporters. It was great to see everybody all gathered in one place. Imagine what St Paul will look like ;)

More to come later!



Ron Paul Supporters are the BEST AMERICAN PATRIOTS IN OUR COUNTRY. I THANK EVERYONE, GROUP POWER HUG, this is just the beginning....

[jblosser]

Was it a state party rule that you needed 2/3 to suspend the rules to go longer? I believe that should only be a majority under default RONR; there's no protection of a minority involved in adjourning at a particular time.