HCRP Chair Candidates Answer HTPS Questions

Tea Party members should vote for me for two reasons–I want to rebuild
the credibility between our principles and our actions, between our activists
and voters and our elected officials and candidates, the loss of which I
believe drove many of the members into this movement; and I want to
include them in the grassroots of our party.
To accomplish the former, I intend to bring our party organization and
elected officials together to develop an aggressive policy agenda to promote
our principles in the 24 school districts and 34 cities in this county, as well
as in Austin and Washington. This agenda will be developed with the input of
our activists, including the members of the Tea Party. Then, I will work to
keep the lines of communication open between these groups so that we
support each other to implement this agenda.
To accomplish the latter, I want to listen to the members of the Tea Party
and find for them avenues for getting involved with the party in their own
way, so that the party becomes a networking facility for them to find how to
support candidates or the party. As an example of this type of effort, I
worked with members of HTPS last fall to identify the 156 priority precincts
where we needed to fill vacant chairs, and that effort help lead to precinct
training sessions and 181 new applicants filing and 70 new seats filled.

What are your plans for the party organization that would be of interest for our group?

The purpose of the party organization is to mobilize activists and voters to
vote for Republicans who will pursue our shared values. If at least 565,000
voters had voted for Republicans in Harris County in 2008, all but McCain
would have won. By 2012 we plan to identify, register, mobilize and get out
to vote at least 565,000 Republicans in this county. To do that, we plan to
be more inclusive by unifying the party around our shared values and
growing the party into every community; and we plan to bring modern
management, technology and fundraising operations to the party.
I also intend to build a metropolitan strategy that will work with other
adjacent counties to elect Republicans throughout the region and the state,
and to create a policy agenda with our candidates and elected officials that
uses our conservative principles to address chronic urban issues such as
crime, education and transportation. If we succeed in increasing our vote in
urban areas, we intend to share our blueprint with other metropolitan county
parties across the country, to make the party competitive in urban areas
nationally for the first time in half a century.

From Paul Simpson
Why should a Tea Party member vote for you in this primary?

A lifelong Republican and conservative volunteer activist since the
age of 13, I have fought all my life for limited government, fiscal
responsibility, and the Constitution. To carry on that fight, I have
worked in the Tea Party movement since early 2009, helping
organize rallies, moderating a town hall, and recruiting and
training Republican election judges and precinct chairs. The Tea
Party phenomenon shows the sleeping giant of American
conservatism has awoken.

My experience in grassroots political organizing and managing
volunteer organizations is unmatched in this race. An active
Republican precinct chair (volunteer) for twenty years, I have
also served as a district chair and (in the 1990s) legal counsel
and treasurer of the County Party (all volunteer positions). Before
then, I was state chair of the Louisiana Teen-Age Republicans;
president of the Rice University Young Republicans; and even had
a summer job in college for the Conservative Victory Fund
recruiting and mobilizing young people for conservative
congressional candidates in the Midwest. I have also chaired civic
organizations, including a Boy Scout Troop and a church council,
and was president of the Board of a school where I oversaw
operations that raised over five million dollars, acquired land, and
designed and built an award-winning school facility – almost all
through volunteer efforts.
Key to this contest is who can best do the job. Harris County
Republican Chair is not an entry-level position. My lifetime of
experience in mobilizing and leading political and volunteer
organizations is unique in this race.
What are your plans for the party organization that would be of interest for our group?
The Harris County Republican Party’s challenges will take time to
fix. The Party must act on three broad fronts:
-Recharge the Party organization with a focus on empowering
grassroots activists with practical tools and resources while
expanding the Republican Party across Harris County. This will
ensure a vibrant and growing Party to elect our candidates.

-Rejuvenate the Party’s message with our positive conservative
vision. This will motivate and attract voters to our cause.
-Revamp and broaden Party finances and fundraising. This will
help the Party remain independent, support new programs, and
elect its candidates.

From Jared Woodfill
Why should a Tea Party member vote for you in this primary?
I have spent my adult life fighting for conservative causes. During my tenure
as chairman, we have experienced 3 of 4 countywide sweeps. Together, we
have raised 7 million dollars for conservative cause (more than any previous
administration), instituted many unique outreach projects, and have
enhanced technology preparedness for our party activists. I want to build on
past successes and look forward to enabling and empowering Tea Party
activists who wish to have a hand in taking back America. If we are to
recapture the majority at all levels, we must get back to the conservative
principles that brought us to the majority. I look forward to working with Tea
Party patriots to achieve this goal.
What are your plans for the party organization that would be of interest for our group?
The life blood of The Harris County Republican Party is its grassroots
volunteers and conservative activists. The Harris County Republican Party
has many opportunities for conservatives to invest their time and abilities in
projects that will further the cause of conservatism in Harris County. We are
in the process of linking up our conservative activists with activities and
tasks that will interest them, and make best use of their talents, abilities,
and interests. We have need of volunteers for many areas, including
conservative blogging, teaching English as a second language, assisting with
Facebook, public speaking engagements, assisting candidates, assisting at
the polling places to ensure that votes are cast and recorded fairly, and
many other activities that will provide Tea Party activists with opportunities
to serve their county and country.