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Subscribe to RSSTAMPA, Fla. -- Republican leaders pushed through contentious changes to delegate rules over the objection of conservatives and supporters of Texas Rep. Ron Paul.
Loud boos erupted Tuesday on the floor of the Republican National Convention as RNC Chairman Reince Priebus and House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, ruled that a voice vote was sufficient to approve credentialing rules for delegates at future conventions.
Shannon Stapleton / Reuters
Delegates shout in protest over changes in Republican party rules that would restrict the impact of grassroots movements, before a vote to adopt the new rules during the second session of the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida, August 28, 2012.
Chants that sounded like "Seat them now!" did battle with chants of "U-S-A" from supportive delegates seeking to shout the protestors down.
The rules change essentially tightens party control over the manner in which delegates are allocated and bound to candidates.
A delegate rule change by RNC Chairman Reince Priebus and House Speaker John Boehner was approved despite the vocal objections of conservatives and supporters of Texas Rep. Ron Paul at the Republican National Convention.
The proposal prompted frustration from some supporters of Paul, whose campaign was able to appeal to the somewhat arcane rules of delegate allocation to win a majority of four states' delegations, despite having failed to win a single nominating contest.
Other conservatives -- including 2008 vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin -- had protested the move as a power play to shut out grassroots conservatives.
As Priebus and Boehner brought up the controversial rules change for a voice vote, supporters replied with loud "ayes," and almost equally vocal "noes."
When Boehner determined, in his capacity as the convention's permanent chairman, that the ayes had won it, cheers and boos mixed together in the convention hall.
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I'm a republican, but tell Boehner to go f$$$ himself, which he does normally.
Now this is your typical Halliburton worshiper, viewer of Faux News and acolyte of the 1% defending the rich and kicking the poor:
JD in SD becoming a Worker for Halliburton; 'Sure, I'll take that job polluting the towns drinking water for you Mr. Cheney..... Oh, it only lasts 6 months, no problem, vote for Mitt! The kids don't need water, hell we've got the whole Ice Cap melting, plenty of water! In the meantime, the kids can drink Mt. Dew.'
This is the MENtality we are dealing with in regards to the Retaliban Party. Ignorant people who are devoid of critical thinking skills and never did their homework.
I knew it was just a matter of time before the Pasty Old Guys Steamed Rolled Ron Paul and the Tea Baggers.
Romney and Clyde think they have got this all sewn up but they better not count their chickens before they're hatched...
Sounds like shoving the will of the few up the butt of the many. I think in 2016 they will find a 3rd party with some balls and possibly a flame thrower or two.
Soon the Republican brass will do away with those whole charade and just install the person they want, rather than continue to give people the illusion that they have a choice in who they vote for.
Looks like the GOP just shot itself in the balls........again.....
Willard has his wife and his mommy as his primary distaff surrogates. You could add Ann Coulter but she has an Adam's apple.
70down - Adam's apple remark made me laugh loud enough to startle the dog. ;)
For the first time in a while, I find myself agreeing with the left. I am a conservative that is disgusted with the actions of the RNC tonight. It is a shame that the supposed party of states rights are destroying those same rights so that some people will not be heard. In the words of Gomer Pyle, whom I associate with John Boehner, only Pyle was smarter, "SHAME, SHAME, SHAME..!!"
That is sad...and funny at the same time.
Johnson/Gray 2012
If Ron Paul really wanted the respect of the republicans he should have just managed his way to a quarter billion dollars held in tax havens by helping the "everyman" ship US manufacturing jobs overseas. Duh, that's who the republicans want!
It was tricks like this that drove me out of the Republican Party. When are they going to learn. What we need is a new Republican Party. Maybe Sarah or Ron will start one up. So Sarah and Ron, what do you say to that? How about a new Party called: New Republicans Party.
Now they want to stifle their own vote!! This is precious!! Their own people don't like Romney!! They do not want to show how much!!! The Republican party has stooped to many lows this year! This is just another one!
Romney and Clyde are about as charismatic as Nervous car salesmen during the Great Depression only this time it is the George W. Bush Great Recession.
Does absolute power corrupt?
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Absolutely !!!
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Nice Start GOP... show the world you can cram "your way" down even your own people's throats. How dare you claim to represent the will of the people.
Welcome to the land of the Democrats, Paulites. Seriously, Dems have been doing this stuff to purge their old left since '72. Now maybe some of you will wake the heck up. You can't use a corrupt system's rulebook to change it. If you get close, they just change the rules some more. Both parties do this, which tells you something. These parties work for corporate power and the uber wealthy. BOTH of them. I watched my old party (the Ds) do this all throughout the oughts with Naders threat. They sued to disenfranchise, to restrict ballot access. For all their squacking, they ar eno different than the right when it comes to restricting democracy to anyone that doesn't agree with them. Same as the GOP.
For the rest of us, not hypnotized by those damnable letters, we have to work a lot harder to get ship turned around.
I don't know who is worse, boehner (aptly named, since he is a bonehead) or nancy pelosi, the airhead mascot. boehner can't help being the prostitute he is. he is lower than cow manure, and the dems have crushed him for the past three years. that boy should just go home and america would be much better off.
The Republican party like the Democrat party is made up of various interest groups. The Republicans are a mixture of traditional conservatives (think I want to keep my stuff), NeoCons (think I want to change the world in our image), nationalists (think I love America and hate everyone else), the religious right (think, no, don't think, believe), and libertarians (think I want to do it my way, but you can do it your way too.) The only bond that these groups have is a general hatred of liberal dems, socialists, communists, and tree huggers. Seems to work reasonably well though considering the lack of any real cohesive beliefs.
"The proposal prompted frustration from some supporters of Paul, whose campaign was able to appeal to the somewhat arcane rules of delegate allocation to win a majority of four states' delegations, despite having failed to win a single nominating contest."
So the unpopular tools were able to figure out some bullcrap red tape way to get more delegates than their loser candidate who never won 1 state, deserves.
The Plutocracy must uproot any residual Democracy.
This rule change thing does not make me very happy. I think I will let them know that I will not be as generous with my campaign contributions in the future. It is a power grab meant to limit the voices of grass roots organizers. If it quacks like a duck, it probably is a duck.
We knew that the Repugnican party opposed the Democratic Party. Now, we know that they oppose Democratic principles as well.
The party of big government (the GOP) has used a moment of fascism to avoid discussing issues that they don't want heard.
They don't want America, in prime time, to hear that a large portion of the "big tent" has extended to people that Reagan would have rejected: racists, isolationists, mysogenists, and militia members bent on destroying the Republic in the name of defending (or even rescuing) it.
Ron Paul shouldn't have a majority of any state's delegates, so the rule change is a good one. He lost every state, there should be no crooked way that he ends up with 4 state's delegates.
Not that it matters for nomination purposes...that was decided in April.
Ron Paul won a plurality of delegates in five states. In those states no one had a majority. In accordance to (formerly) existing rules, that entitled him to those delegates and a 15 minute speaking spot at the convention.
But instead of having his 500ish delegates, the Republicans in charge (at the request of Gov. Romney) changed the rules. The Republicans in charge deliberately engaged in voter supression through disenfranchisement by changing the rules at the last minute.
Sound familiar? It should. Think "voter ID."
Ron Paul shouldn't have a plurality of delegates in any state...he never got the most votes in any state.
The old coot has no shot of even coming in 3rd, so this whole hubbub is all for not. I have a feeling that RonPaultrash will attempt to concoct an illogical conspiracy theory whereby them not getting the majority of delegates in these 4 states where RP lost...somehow means they "woulda won the whole thing" hahhahahahahah.
Oh these RP filth.
Everyone that stands behind this convention better be careful what they wish for,,, they may get IT....!!!!!!
Time for Ron Paul fans to vote for obama, because they sure aren't going to vote for losers like boehner, romney and the other cheating weasels.
alex - Ron Paul is to Barack Obama as Liberty is to Socialism.
So the Republicans in charge changed the rules and engaged in "voter supression" of a minority of their party through "disenfranchisement." How is this surprising considering recent GOP controlled states activities?
They can't even run a convention, and yet, they want the reigns of the country back. Not with MY VOTE. No way, No how. I wont get fooled again.
Now where did I put my magic underwear?.....