If you thought that ousting her predecessor was going to put any fear in the pure Republican heart of Debbie Brown, think again. The new chair of the Alaska Republican Party is holding her ground, sticking with her principles, shining a light into the dark crony-capitalism infested corners of the GOP.
“Dear Fellow Republican,” the email she sent this week begins. “Today, I took a major step toward changing our course. The Regional Finance Chair positions for each region have been vacated to allow for applicants to be considered from all qualified Republicans, and elections are being arranged for many of the Regional Representative positions which serve on the Executive Committee.”
In other words, she fired all of the regional finance committee directors. On that list are such big names as Tom Wright, chief-of-staff to House Speaker Mike Chenault, and party faithful Paulette Simpson. In the Capitol building, Wright’s known as the 41st member of the Alaska House, and is thought to be more powerful than many of the 40 others. And everyone knows you don’t mess with Simpson.
This latest salvo came after she had already fired nearly everyone on other committees, even the ones who were elected.
As GOP watchers know, the party has been in nuclear meltdown mode since the Ron Paulers met the Joe Millers and knew that it was much more than a hunch, that this group should somehow form a fomenting family that reviled things like the Law of the Sea Treaty, the gold standard, the federal reserve, the media, abortion, ObamaCare, Lisa Murkowski, the World Bank, Agenda 21, etc, etc. But the real animus—one to which even the United Nations is second–is reserved for the “old” guard Alaska GOP, including in it nearly everyone who toiled on their own time to raise money for the party.
So, they got rid of the old chair when the former chair Randy Ruedrich retired, they mustered strength to put in Russ Millette, who was ousted after it became clear that he couldn’t raise the necessary funds that it takes to support candidates.
Brown, formerly vice chair, is now the head. Those who ousted Millette thought that it would be a matter of time before Brown decided that she couldn’t handle the pressure and leave her position in the charge of what they consider the old-guard vice chair Paul Peter Goldberg. (Though there’s some dispute about whether or not he is “old guard.” According to Ruedrich, he first met him at the meeting where Goldberg was elected. But from all accounts, he’s smart and sensible and that’s good enough in some circles to put him in that camp.)
But Brown doesn’t appear to be leaving her position anytime soon. Sources say that she did leave the state to avoid another, upcoming, Republican Party meeting, which was likely not going to be kind to her.
Or she might have just gone on a vacation, Or she might be holed up with her brethren in some bunker, aiming darts at cutouts of Randy Ruedrich, Glenn Clary, Frank McQueary, Susan Rice, et al.
In any case, and just in case people though she was less than serious, she changed the locks on the doors of the Republican Party headquarters in Midtown Anchorage before she left.
Contact Amanda Coyne at Amandamcoyne@yahoo.com
