The 2020 Republican Party of Texas Convention — In-Person and Virtual — and the Committee of Ten!
Trying to #OpenTexas Responsibly
The Republican Party of Texas (RPT) biennial convention is over. In the end, after planning for over two years, the democrat mayor broke his own word and shut it down on flimsy and exaggerated excuses. The Republicans had attempted to lead Texas and the Nation to show that a convention (and in a greater sense, business and life in general) could resume responsibly and safely.
As a prelude to the usually 8000+ attendee state convention, literally hundreds of smaller regional and county conventions had already been held responsibly in-person, with no perceptible increased wave of corona as had been caused by the protests and riots a few weeks prior.
I remain convinced to this day that had the convention continued in-person, there would have been no new wave of corona hitting Houston.
In-Person or Virtual?
My personal position about the Convention was ALWAYS that it should be in-person. Knowing that suitable precautions could be practiced to minimize the risk of contagion — by following the same guidelines used by other “essential” businesses— I favored in-person. When the nearly meaningless “case counts” rose after the large Houston marches, I remained steadfast in my resolve to safely meet in-person. Even the Harris County Health Department reported case counts, and more importantly, coronavirus fatalities, declined after the initial protest-related peak. I repeatedly voted for in-person on the State Republican Executive Committee (SREC). Even after the democrat Houston mayor unconstitutionally shut the convention itself down, I favored fighting back via the courts. Even as those lawsuits wound through the courts, I preferred starting the convention — via the Temporary Committees including the Rules Committee, the Platform and Resolutions Committee, and my Legislative Priorities Committee — on-site in-Houston in-person and on-time.
Even before the mayor and later the Supreme Court of Texas(SCoTx) ruled against us, the George R. Brown (GRB) convention center staff, alongside the Republican Party of Texas (RPT) staff and volunteers, had made arrangements for maximum social distancing, provision of masks and sanitizing stations, and most importantly, high-volume walk-through infra-red contactless temperature scanners so that no symptomatic person would even be permitted to enter the GRB building. These were prudent ways the in-person convention could go forward responsibly.
Monday morning started and the Texas Supreme Court had not yet ruled. The three committees met on-schedule in-person in Houston at the entrance to the GRB. Not being allowed entrance to the contracted meeting space rooms, (we later found out that there were 300 healthcare worker gestapo that were guarding GRB and looking forward to writing us citations), we recessed to suitable meeting rooms at the convention hotel, the Marriott Marquis across the street.
Marriott Marquis note
While the democrat mayor, the democrat county commissioners court, and the democrat-run health department workers did not welcome us, the Marriott Marquis staff were not only welcoming but glad we were there. We learned later that many of their staff had not worked since being furloughed in March. Our Republican convention attempting to show Texas and the nation that one could do business responsibly had the effect of providing their first paycheck in months and an extension of their medical benefits — something the democrats in charge of Harris county did nothing about.
Delegates would also have brought well in excess of $1,000,000 per day to the downtown business community — again something that went “poof” with the democrat mayor’s orders — orders he did NOT enforce or even try to enforce with a ten-times larger and destructive protest a few weeks earlier.
There were also a large number of subcontractors ranging from convention services to audio/video equipment to security to food vendors who were also prevented from doing business by the democrat cabal. All of these, like the friendly Marriott Marquis staff, had self-assessed and were moving forward voluntarily toward an in-person convention before the mayor intervened.
Legislative Priorities Committees
My remarks for this section are first person and related to the Texas Republican State Temporary and Permanent Legislative Priorities Committees. Each consisted of 31 Members plus the Chair representing all 31 Texas Senate Districts. I am certain, however, that some of my comments could be extended to the State Platform and Resolutions Committees and the State Rules Committees.
After opening, recessing, and reconvening, the Temporary Legislative Priorities Committee got to work before lunchtime. Standing rules for our committee were agreed to in order to guide our work — restricting ourselves somewhat like the Founders restricted the federal government.
Subcommittees then got to work. The Committee of the Whole (CotW) had received about 400 proposed legislative priorities and RPT rules only permit eight! The subcommittees did a combination of hearing many in-person testifiers who, like us, had come to the in-person, in-Houston start of the convention. The subcommittees’ second task was to whittle down the massive initial list, that came to us from grassroots Senate District and County Conventions across the state, to something more manageable.
The subcommittees work completed and left us with about 40 or so proposed legislative priorities still “in-play”.
All three Temporary convention committees soldiered on for three long days in-person and in-Houston, even after the nine-Republican SCoTx ruled 7–1–1 against the RPT. Dozens of hours of testimony by passionate and articulate grassroots advocates occurred safely, in-person, and at their own expense. In the Legislative Priorities committee alone, over 23 hours of public testimony was taken over the three very long days. More than ample time was used — perhaps more than ever in the past — for those who chose to show up for the in-person committees. This is, historically, the time when most testimony occurs and the testifiers have the most influence on the final committee report.
By Wednesday, the SREC, having had no choice after the terrible SCoTx ruling, formally moved the main general convention (starting Thursday) to be virtual. On short notice a truly remarkable effort to make this work as well as possible under what can only be described as difficult circumstances took place by a very dedicated staff, volunteers, and vendors directed by RPT.
The temporary committee, with a deadline of midnight to complete their work (to provide a Report of the State Temporary Legislative Priorities Committee to the Thursday delegates), continued in-person Wednesday. In our case, we temporarily recessed about 2:00 pm so our members could drive back to their districts all over the state in time for their local Senate District (SD) caucus meetings on Thursday. Our El Paso Members had about an eleven hour drive!
We then reconvened virtually at around 7:00 pm. Those still on the road participated and voted via their cell phone until they got “home”.
Midnight and Lagniappe
Work continued late into the night Wednesday, with rewording, paring down, and overall statesmanship behavior continuing to the end. Though I somehow missed looking at the clock when we finally ended, the Temporary committee had successfully pared down the 400 to a mere 15, with five more added as important additional issues we termed “lagniappe”. Interested readers will find the full Report of the Temporary Legislative Priorities committee here.
The way current RPT rules work, our committee was tasked with sending 15 proposed legislative priorities to our delegates for voting. The top 8 based on grassroots delegate voting would become the RPT priorities for the next legislative session. Based on a precedent from two years ago, the committee included the five extra potential priorities for presentation to the Members’ respective SD caucuses.
Best Laid Plans
Due to digital problems and prioritizing what was most important for the convention to accomplish first, the convention schedule was rearranged, requiring flexibility on the part of committee members and delegates alike! As virtual technology continued to have problems, the convention was put on hold until Saturday morning to give staff and vendors time to remedy the issues.
Legislative Priorities Members used the convention-on-pause time to continue to get feedback from their constituents based on the Temporary Report.
The SD caucuses were held. One of the tasks for the SD caucuses is to hear the Temporary Committees’ reports and elect members of the Permanent committees. Usually the temporary members, who have done the work all week, are elected as the permanent members. However, in some cases where the temporary member has not represented their caucus well, they may be replaced.
The Permanent committees then met Sunday morning early. Based on constituent feedback, our LP committee worked four more rapid-fire and emotionally charged hours refining language and voting on the final 15 priorities to present to the delegates. With its work finished, the Permanent State Legislative Priorities Committee adjourned.
Everything was streamed online and openly transparent throughout. There were no secret “executive sessions”.
Once the Report of the Permanent State Legislative Priorities Committee was ready, (click here), it was time to present to the entire, now online virtual general session with well over 4000 delegates in virtual attendance. Via “Zoom”, the Permanent Committee’s work was presented to the delegates. Debate and proposed amendments, one of which passed (relating to protecting the Alamo) proceeded.
The Delegates Choice
At the end of the debate, delegates were presented with a multiple-choice selection of the 15 final proposed priorities. They were instructed that while the intent was for them to choose eight, they were permitted under the rules to pick any number they chose to, including all 15 if desired.
The voting was completed. The grassroots delegates made the final choices. The top eight vote-getters become the formal RPT legislative priorities. Preliminary results are shown below, but these are preliminary.
Note that ALL FIFTEEN items, and many more, remain important to grassroots. Some non-RPT grassroots groups have already announced support for one or more that are not in the top eight. Some special interest groups will of course continue to advocate for their particular issues, whether on the list of 15, the list of 20 or not even on anyone’s list.
Subject to verification and vote “weighting” the preliminary results that were available minutes after the voting closed are shown below.
General Session Controversy
During the general session where the approval of the Legislative Priorities took place, a motion was made (out of order in this author’s opinion) that called for a “Committee of Ten” to examine ways the rest of the convention business could be completed at a later time and make recommendations to the party Chair.
In what some consider a sham and chaotic vote, ten activists were “elected”. I was one of those ten. Two who were in the top ten declined to serve, so the next two became members as well.
The general session ended so the second SD caucuses could take place. Almost immediately after results of the second SD caucuses were announced to another general session of the full convention and confirmed on Monday afternoon, the convention abruptly ended.
Left unfinished were two items:
- The approval of the Permanent Rules Committee Report (here), and
- The approval of the Permanent Platform and Resolutions Committee Report (here).
All other business had been completed, including as mentioned, the similar Permanent Legislative Priorities Report.
Committee of Ten (COT)
The Committee of Ten convened via Zoom and telephone at 1:00 p.m. Saturday, 7/25/2020. I was completely devoted to the in-person in-Houston convention up to and even after we started the convention with the Temporary committees on Monday morning (at this writing nearly two weeks earlier). I and others were hoping the Republican Texas Supreme Court would rule in our favor. But it was not to be.
But now that nearly all convention business has been accomplished, we cannot go backwards. We cannot undo what was done by the democrat mayor violating our First Amendment freedoms of political free speech and of peaceful assembly.
The goal and our full focus now is NOVEMBER and re-electing President Trump and keeping Texas “red”. The precedent has been set by the Republican National Committee (RNC) after their cancelation of some of the Republican National (Presidential nominating) Convention.
I understand the frustration of some, but the larger goal must now take center stage for all of us. We must turn our attention toward re-electing President Trump and keeping Texas as republican as possible.
All time and resources of the RPT, candidates, Republican clubs, donors, activists and volunteers need to be laser-focused on the November 3 election. On November 4 nothing else will have mattered.
What passed out of the COT on a 6–3 vote after 3 1/2 hours of debate is not what anyone wanted three weeks ago. However, the facts changed since then. It does, however, solve some immediate problems in an efficient manner. The COT plan (here) preserves all of the hard work already spent by delegates both online and in-person. It directs the SREC to not amend the reports, but to simply approve them, just as the convention would have done in person unless amended by the delegates.
The COT plan also preserves the delegates ability to vote on the individual components of the platform “plank by plank” via a proven electronic survey system.
Included in the COT plan is also the ability of convention delegates to vote on two minority reports — one on the platform side and one on the rules side.
Last, the COT plan is our best solution, all things considered, after ten dedicated, knowledgable activists discussed for 3 1/2 hours today. The recommendations to newly elected Chair West are just that. Recommendations.
Please support and unite behind Chair West and the rest of those interested in the most important battle — preserving the American Ideal of Freedom! Focus on the current most important target — NOVEMBER 3!
Thank you.
Mark S. Ramsey, P.E.
[note: Mr. Ramsey served eight years on the SREC until term-limited out, during which time he also chaired the 2018 RPT State Convention Platform and Resolutions Committee and the 2020 RPT State Convention Legislative Priorities Committee.]
