A Thank You message from Chairman Ted Haney

Our election night Victory Party wasn’t a victory for McCain, but it certainly was for Bay County Republicans. The hard work and extensive organization that produced hundreds of enthusiastic volunteers gave us a solid win in Bay County , in spite of a highly funded and well organized Democratic Party presence for the first time in many years. You responded to the leadership of Melissa and Jimmy, our McCain-Palin Co-chairs in magnificent fashion. Teresa was our whirling dervish that was everywhere at all times, pumping up the troops and checking off her lists. Glen and Alice were our go-to folks at HQ, along with a bunch of others who gave their time and enthusiasm to help out. I won’t try to name all the names, because there were so many helping I’d certainly miss someone. It was a team effort, and the team pulled it off. We were just shy of our 70% goal (less than 1%) and exceeded our goal of 52,000 votes for the ticket by 4,000. You’ve done a terrific job and you can be proud of your efforts and the results..

We’ll have our regular Board meeting this coming Monday night at HQ at 6:00 PM. All of you are welcome to attend as we plan the agenda for our final meeting of this year (November 27) prior to the election on December 1. I think I’ve made you all aware that I don’t intend to seek the office of Chair of the REC for the next term. My goals when I announced for the office two years ago were to bring us together by overcoming past differences, pursuing common goals of electing local and state Republicans, and supporting our National ticket. You gave me the honor of allowing me to represent you, and I owe you all a great deal for that privilege. I can’t say “mission accomplished”, but we’ve progressed, and it’s time for someone else to lead the REC.

The battle’s lost, but the war’s just beginning. That’s trite, but I think it is a war, a war of world views. I believe most of our citizens accept the Christian world view, but we’ve not been very diligent in explaining or supporting it. The view that Senator Obama has may be called many things, but it’s not Christian (by my standards) and it’s certainly not based on freedom or free enterprise. Let’s take back our Country, not for power, but to restore it as the America that God has blessed in the past and seek His blessings once again.

Ted