The Virginian-Pilot
©
RICHMOND
Add Gov. Bob McDonnell and Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling to the list of those asking the Virginia Republican Party to cancel plans to make voters pledge loyalty to the eventual nominee before voting in the March 6 presidential primary.
In a letter Thursday to state GOP Central Committee members, Bolling wrote that while he understands the rationale behind the loyalty oath, he fears it "may send the wrong message about our desire to grow our party and create an opportunity for more people to become involved in the party."
McDonnell made a similar appeal, calling the oath unenforceable and not "in the best interests of our party, or the commonwealth" because it could reduce primary participation. And the ACLU of Virginia added its own request, saying that if Republicans don't comply, the group is prepared to sue in federal court.
State law permits political parties to impose a loyalty pledge as a condition of voting in a presidential primary.
And Virginia Republicans were effectively given approval for a closed primary last week when the State Board of Elections granted the party's request to require voters to sign an oath at the polls.
Since then, the public outcry over that decision has prompted Virginia Republican Chairman Pat Mullins to call a special meeting of the state Central Committee for Jan. 21 to revisit the issue.
Preventing Democratic voters from meddling in party elections is a key reason Republicans have cited for holding a closed primary.
"I understand Republican leaders not wanting Democrats to make our decisions for us," Prince William County Republican Del. Bob Marshall said last week when he first objected to the pledge, "but a loyalty oath is not the way to address that circumstance."
While only two candidates - former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas - qualified for Virginia's Super Tuesday primary, Texas Gov. Rick Perry has sued to get on the ballot.
Joining Perry in that suit are several other Republican presidential hopefuls left off the ballot: former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum.
A Jan. 13 hearing has been scheduled on Perry's request for a preliminary injunction.
Julian Walker, 804-697-1564, julian.walker@pilotonline.com
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The absurdity is palpable
I still haven't figured out if the state believes this is truly legal. A citizen has a constitutional right to vote, and I don't believe anyone has the right to curtail or define that right in any way. If you're 18, you're entitled to go the poles and vote the way you want to, period. And some party apparatchik has no right to be in the booth with you.
The notion that they think they can do this is to me positively other worldly. Perhaps Orwellian would be more to the point. Am I awake? Is this the twilight zone?
Ridiculous
If they require me to sign a loyalty oath to be able to vote in the primary -- I am out of the Republican Party. I do not have a problem registering Republican to be able to vote in the primary. I do not have to be loyal to an individual because they are the final party choice. I am loyal to principle and I am Republican because for the most part the party principles are generally in line with mine. The individual does not have to be in line with me, so I reserve my right to shape the party without giving up my right to support the right person in the general election. There are times I have considered the final Democrat or the Independent a better choice. I do not support Santorum and I have concerns about Romney.
It's always interesting to see what kind of nonsense
Politicians will waste their time on.
They are like five year olds sitting at the dinner table, doing anything possible not to have to eat their peas.
I am pleased to observe that
I am pleased to observe that finally the clearly out-of-touch "leadership" of the Republican Party of Virginia surrendered to the overwhelming voter outrage over their ludicrous attempt to extort an "oath" to vote for a blank check on the upcoming Presidental ballot.
The GOP leadership in Virginia learned the worse from Nancy Pelosi - their lame "oath" is a classic example of the Pelosi doctorine employed to cram the ObamaCare bill down everyone's throat. Queen Nancy pronounced that Congress would have to vote to pass the Obamacare bill to see what was in it. The RPVA declared we'd have to take an oath to vote for whatever person ends up wearing with a GOP brand, if we want to express our input on who that should be.
Reid ...
This Queen Nancy business is typical of the hollowness of rightwing propaganda. The healthcare bill was massive with hundreds of moving parts at the time she made that one remark while tired and exasperated. But keep on repeating it if that is all you have got.
In the meantime, the benefits of "Obamacare" are beginning to take hold and, as feared by the GOP, as the reality of the reforms does not live up to the horrors depicted and people begin to enjoy its benefits it will become an even bigger plus for the President.
"learned the worse from Nancy Pelosi"
If there is a lineage, then she could have gotten it from previous republican oaths.
Wow
I never thought even you could stretch like that.
I agree, get rid of it
So...if I pledge support to Romney
but prefer Ron Paul...they'll track
me down and kick me out of the party.
This rule is a joke.
More beaurocracy decreases voter participation
More beaurocracy like signing pledges (that can't be enforced anyway) only decreases voter participation and increases voter anger who already feel like our policy makers and law makers are disconnected from most of us. When will average $40,000 dollars a year salary or less salary people going to get to represent THEIR economic peers. Why is that class warfare yet the reverse is not? What is the average income of a politician representing us anyway!
exactly
That's what they want.