« Its about choices, but don’t make them choose…. | Home | Arizona convention »
CR Composition Corner: It’s not the critic who counts…
By punch bowl | April 22, 2008
A piece written by former California College Republican chairman Ryan Clumpner, responding to recent criticism of his leadership and the state of the California College Republican (CCR) Federation:
“It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by the dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions and spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who, at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly; so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory or defeat.”
- Theodore RooseveltI’m having a touch of CR withdrawal symptoms, so I decided to address the fellow who sent in the criticism posted yesterday.
The New Leadership:
I think this is the most important point to address because it deals with the future of CCR. The organization is at the end of a transition period. Nothing has made me more optimistic about the future of CCR than to see Cheyenne Steel lead a new generation of bright, enthusiastic, hardworking leaders that has emerged in the past few months. Cheyenne is the only LA Vice Chair I’ve known to charter new clubs in the LA Region since Michael Davidson was Chair. She is also largely responsible for making the last issue of Moxie turn a profit for the first time. She and the others have been brimming with new ideas. The most encouraging thing is that they are enthusiastic and committed to making CCR stronger.When we held elections on Sunday, one person requested a “debate period,” stating that he would like to voice his complaints about the candidates “for the record.” When I put the matter to a vote, a chorus of delegates voted that this kind of divisive grandstanding was out of place. Three disagreed. We went on to vote for the candidates as a block. Only one person dissented.
That kind of unity is rare within College Republicans and speaks to the strength of the new leaders.
The Convention:
Over 270 CRs attended. Given that it was an uncontested leadership election and there were not candidates whipping attendance, that’s a damn good turnout. It’s also the first convention to raise significantly more money than it spent, meaning that the new CCR leadership will start the year with a substantial amount of money in the bank. It was one of the most fun and well-organized conventions I’ve ever attended. Matthew Dobler and the entire Southern Region deserve a lot of credit, not a slap in the face by someone who did nothing but show up to hand out student business cards.Elections:
Last year I was criticized for being overly focused on CCR GOTV efforts in target races where the campaigns wanted to pay for all of our expenses. It was suggested by the critic below that we back off and leave clubs to just volunteer locally. I think that is a terrible way to approach elections, especially considering that our GOTV efforts are completely optional for clubs. Last spring we organized two GOTV efforts for a San Jose city council candidate in a seat targeted by the party. We walked her whole district twice. Unfortunately she did not win, but we did our part and to this day the Vice Chair of the state party thanks CRs for that effort every time he runs into them.That said, I have a newsflash: it was an election off-year. I didn’t get a single call or email requesting a CCR GOTV effort because there were no major races. We now have a June primary coming up, some major city races in San Diego, and a union-funded recall effort of a Republican State Senator.
As a few people commented, CRs are heavily involved in all of these races, in large part because our leadership has made a concerted effort to facilitate between campaigns and CRs. I’m told there are some plans in the works to do at least one big GOTV effort in June, so if people want more CCR election activity, they’re about to get it.
Ask any GOP official in California and they will tell you that CCR continues to be an invaluable asset to many campaigns.
STORM:
I really like Charlie Smith and was glad we got to hang out at the convention last weekend. Some people posted negative comments about STORM. I won’t. From what I know of it, I think STORM could be a great tool. It really depends on how it’s used by the CRNC. I firmly believe grassroots organizations should be bottom-up, not top-down. Umbrella groups like CCR and the CRNC should offer resources. CCR does not mandate clubs to do anything, and the CRNC should not either, and it doesn’t. I was not willing make one of my final actions to be pushing a new CRNC program on clubs. The new leaders of CCR are well aware of the program and can decide how they want to handle it themselves. I’m sure there are people who will disagree with that opinion. If they are in California, they are free to join and send their thoughts to the CCR leadership. If they are not, then it’s not really their business anyway.
Sorry Charlie. Activate Blog:
The criticism of the lack of posts on the Activate site since January is fair. We made a concerted and organized effort to get club leaders posting on the site. There was a month when the site was averaging over 200 unique hits a day. Not bad. For whatever reason, interest has waned in the past few months. It is a resource that is there, waiting to be taken advantage of and I hope that as the election season revitalizes CRs, the site will take off again. Maybe if the individual who took the time to send in the statement posted yesterday had posted on Activate more than once, it would have helped keep it rolling.Other Items:
We continued the tradition of the Reagan Leadership Retreat and trained a new generation of CR leaders at an all expense-paid weekend at the Reagan Library.The last issue of Moxie was the first ever to turn a significant profit.
Over 100 CRs attended the state party convention in February, a record for the past few years.
CRs were recently profiled in the San Francisco Chronicle because of the visible strength of our grassroots activism.
Correction:
I only took one quarter off from school during my two terms as Executive Director. While I have only taken once class since January, it is correct to say that I have been busy outside of CCR. Since February I have been managing a campaign. When I called around and told people that it was time for me to move on, the current leaders immediately started stepping up. No doubt, there were a few bumps in the road, but I think the energy everyone saw at the convention speaks to the success of the past year and the strength of CCR going into the 2008 election cycle.A word of advice to the critic (and everyone):
While CCR may not be perfect, it continues to be a vital and active movement that a lot of people care very deeply about. If that were not the case, you wouldn’t waste your time standing up in from of all those people and trying to convince them to go a different direction. Be careful how you level your criticisms. Remember that all of us want CCR to thrive.The easiest way to gain credibility within the organization is to put in more than you take out. Make a list of all the things you’ve gained from CCR. If you are thoughtful, I know it will be long. You gain something from CCR every time you list “College Republican…” on your resume, or make a new friend, or get a free drink, or learn some skill, or hear a great speaker. Then list the ways you give back. Exclude all titles or attempted titles. You are giving back every time you bring new people to an event, train a new leader, start a new club, provide a resource to other clubs, raise money or spend your own money on something for CRs, etc.
I recently had a conversation with one of people you allied yourself with last year. The club she led did not re-charter this year. They haven’t met in months and she doesn’t even have a membership list. This was a club that I personally started, recruited members for, pumped money into, advised, etc. In a few short months she undid all that work because she decided it had nothing more to give her.
Other people sense that mentality and it is why you voted alone. I know you give back. I’m just saying that there are many people who put in a lot more, and they would be willing to listen to you if they thought your motives were grounded in the organization, not yourself.
Giving Back:
Finally, I feel a tremendous debt of gratitude toward the CR movement for all friends, memories, battle scars, and opportunities it has given me over the past five years. For all those who did not hear me speak about this at the convention, I will soon be unveiling a new project of mine to give back to CCR a small token of the appreciation that myself and hundreds of other alumni feel toward the organization. Coming soon…
Topics: CR gossip, CR Composition Corner |
April 22nd, 2008 at 11:18 pm
It is easy for someone to sit back and attack other and not come forward and stand behind their comments , but a true leader stands behind what he does and how he feels. That is exactly what Ryan has done.
I have spoken with several CRs from around California who are excited for the year to come and are ready to build on the success of last year.
The California College Republicans are not broken, rather, embarking on a bright future.
April 23rd, 2008 at 9:45 am
The blog should enable a feature in which people must sign in (with their real names) to make comments. Then and only then will we really have feedback with substance.
April 23rd, 2008 at 6:41 pm
I honestly feel that the world is a better place since Ryan has said those words.
Oh, oh… making a profit on Moxie = sweet. Making a profit on a state convention with that many hotel bills = mind blowing. Exhibitor booths? Advertising?
April 23rd, 2008 at 11:40 pm
Why is that mind blowing? raising enough money to help pay for hotel rooms for clubs traveling long distances and being able to put money back in to the organization. That is what all conventions should strive to do.