MNGOP Chairman Pat Shortridge Statement Regarding Growth & Opportunity Project
St. Paul –Republican Party of Minnesota Chairman Pat Shortridge issued the following statement regarding the release of the RNC’s Growth and Opportunity Project recommendations today:
“The Growth and Opportunity Project’s recommendations represent an important step in learning from our mistakes and moving the Party forward. Chairman Priebus showed real leadership in looking at everything, not glossing over problems or leaving sacred cows in place.
“Having participated in the process and offered some candid advice, I’m particularly glad to see that the report focuses on strengthening state Republican parties. It just doesn’t make sense for the RNC to focus on 10 ‘battleground’ states every four years while ignoring the other 40. I’m pleased to see that this failed approach will be jettisoned as the Party seeks to win votes among more people in more places.
“Finally, we have to make sure that we don't confuse tools and tactics with fundamentals. We can get all the technical aspects right, but if we keep trying to beat something with nothing, we’ll keep losing.
“The report spends quite a bit of time focusing on our most important problem, which I can boil down to this: We have to explain in personal terms how our ideas and solutions will make people's lives better – easier for them to get a job, keep their money, educate their kids, afford health care, buy a house, save for retirement –in all the things that really matter most.
“We have better ideas and better solutions than the Democrats. The problem is, too many voters like Republican ideas, they just don’t like Republicans. That’s a problem we can and must fix in order to win elections and solve the serious problems facing Minnesota and America.”
St. Paul –Republican Party of Minnesota Chairman Pat Shortridge issued the following statement regarding the release of the RNC’s Growth and Opportunity Project recommendations today:
“The Growth and Opportunity Project’s recommendations represent an important step in learning from our mistakes and moving the Party forward. Chairman Priebus showed real leadership in looking at everything, not glossing over problems or leaving sacred cows in place.
“Having participated in the process and offered some candid advice, I’m particularly glad to see that the report focuses on strengthening state Republican parties. It just doesn’t make sense for the RNC to focus on 10 ‘battleground’ states every four years while ignoring the other 40. I’m pleased to see that this failed approach will be jettisoned as the Party seeks to win votes among more people in more places.
“Finally, we have to make sure that we don't confuse tools and tactics with fundamentals. We can get all the technical aspects right, but if we keep trying to beat something with nothing, we’ll keep losing.
“The report spends quite a bit of time focusing on our most important problem, which I can boil down to this: We have to explain in personal terms how our ideas and solutions will make people's lives better – easier for them to get a job, keep their money, educate their kids, afford health care, buy a house, save for retirement –in all the things that really matter most.
“We have better ideas and better solutions than the Democrats. The problem is, too many voters like Republican ideas, they just don’t like Republicans. That’s a problem we can and must fix in order to win elections and solve the serious problems facing Minnesota and America.”
