If only he had turned out this way...

Friday, June 09, 2006

Why the Party Needs Puharic

"I'm not a 'Western Monmouth' guy, or a 'Two Rivers' guy, or a 'Southern Shore' guy. I want to represent the Monmouth County wing of the Monmouth County Republican Party." -Adam Puharic, Candidate for Monmouth County, NJ Republican Chairman, from PoliticsNJ.com.

Leadership is vital to the success of any organization, business, political party, government entity, etc. Without leadership an organization tends to fracture or even dissolve. In Monmouth County NJ, the Republican party will decide on Tuesday, June 13, who their new leader will be.

There are some critical skills that stand above the rest when selecting a new chairman. These three skills are: (1) ability to unite the party, (2) fundraising ability, and (3) ability to put party before self.

First, the new Monmouth County Republican Chairman should be a person who not only wants to unite the Party, but is capable of uniting the party. The Party is currently fractured and needs effective leadership to facilitate unity through effective leadership and communication.

Second, the new chairman must be a proven fundraiser who can raise money effectively and ethically. Raising 10 million dollars means nothing if the money was acquired illegally. This last year hasn't exactly been a banner year for Republicans and ethics. Republicanism and sound ethical judgment should always coincide. Otherwise, the party will have disgraced itself, the Founding Fathers and the American people.

Third, and probably the rarest characteristic in any politically ambitious person, is the necessity of a chairman to put the Party before self. An effective chairman deflects positive press to candidates and to the Party, and is willing to take responsibility for the decisions of the Party in the public spotlight. A chairmen should live by Reagan's 11th commandment to "never slander a fellow Republican in public." Only a chairman willing to put the Party's interest above his/her own can truly wield leadership of the Party.

The aforementioned abilities are critical to picking the next chairman of the Monmouth County Republican Party. The party must put faith in their new chairman, but more importantly, the new chairman should be a person of strong faith. A smart man once said that "Faith is the only known antidote for failure." It would be comforting to have a chairman that represented, "the Monmouth County Wing of the Monmouth County Republican Party," instead of a portion of it.

Adam Puharic has throughout his career demonstrated all three abilities mentioned in the analysis above. He has brought differing minds together at the table. He is a man of strong faith and the highest ethical standards. He has raised over $750,000 with non-profits. Adam Puharic has demonstrated the ability to put the team before himself.

May the Republican County Committee pick the best Republican to lead them into the next election and the future.

Posted by Brett Palat at 10:10 AM

UPDATE 4/23/07

I was going to follow this post with an analysis of where Puharic has gone off track. However, DaTruthSquad beat me to it.