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Alexander Hamilton Bullock, from Anti-Slavery Activist to Republican Governor of Massachusetts

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Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I laud Alexander Hamilton Bullock, born in Massachusetts, March 2nd 1816. After studying at Amherst College and Harvard Law School, the energetic Whig was mayor of Worcester, state legislator, industrialist and newspaper publisher. Bullock co-founded an organization that financed anti-slavery settlement of Kansas. He was speaker of the state house during the Civil War, focusing on military recruitment and supply. Union restored, grateful voters elected Bulloch to first of three terms as Governor. His priorities were women’s suffrage, railroad construction and labor reform. Preferring to focus on the insurance business, he declined an offer from President Rutherford Hayes to be Ambassador to Britain. Back to Basics for the Republican Party  is my civil rights history of the GOP. To quote the book: "The more we Republicans know about the history of our party, t...
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Julia Chang Bloch, the first Asian-American Ambassador

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Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I honor Julia Chang Bloch, born in China, March 2nd 1942. She emigrated with her family to the United States at age nine, naturalizing at age twenty. A bachelor's degree from University of California, Berkeley was followed by a master's degree from Harvard University. Her career began with two years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Malaysia, followed by four years at Peace Corps headquarters. Next came six years at the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Nutrition and Human Needs. She was a deputy director at the U.S. International Communications Agency and an assistant administrator at the Agency for International Development. In 1989, President George H. Bush named her Ambassador to Nepal. She volunteered for the 2008 Republican presidential campaign. Back to Basics for the Republican Party  is my civil rights history of the GOP. To quote the book: "The more we Republ...
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Ronald Reagan inducted into the Department of Labor’s Hall of Honor

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Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I note the Trump administration’s appreciation for working Americans. March 1st 2018, the U.S. Department of Labor inducted Ronald Reagan into its Hall of Honor. Labor Secretary Alex Acosta declared: "As President of the Screen Actors Guild, Ronald Reagan remains the only President of the United States to have led a major union. As President of the United States, he returned a sense of economic optimism to our nation that resulted in the creation of millions of jobs for the American people." Elaine Chao, Transportation Secretary and former Labor Secretary, observed: "More than three decades before he was elected President of the United States, Ronald Reagan was elected President of the Screen Actors Guild and proved he had what it takes to make a difference. He served seven terms as SAG President, becoming one of the most consequential union leaders in the tele...
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Benjamin Franklin Conley, from Georgia Unionist to Republican Governor

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Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I honor Benjamin Franklin Conley, born March 1st 1815. He prospered in business after relocating from New Jersey to Georgia at age fifteen. Twelve years he was Augusta city councilman, then mayor from 1857 to 1859. Conley opposed secession and during the Civil War refused to support the Confederacy. This resolute Republican was elected to the 1867 constitutional convention, followed by the state senate. Having been named senate president, he became Governor for two months when the incumbent resigned. President Ulysses Grant appointed him postmaster of Atlanta. Back to Basics for the Republican Party  is my civil rights history of the GOP. To quote the book: "The more we Republicans know about the history of our party, the more Democrats will worry about the future of theirs. For more information, see  www.grandoldpartisan.com .  Here is a  YouTube Video ...
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Republicans gave Washington, DC its Union Station

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Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I admire Union Station in Washington, DC. February 28th 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt signed into law authorization for the city's various railroads to unify their tracks within a central station. It was to be "monumental in character" and constructed in the Swampoodle neighborhood near the Capitol Building. Thanks to leadership by Republican Senator James McMillan, the GOP-controlled 57th Congress passed the bill, despite strong Democrat opposition. Financing would be provided by bond sales. Service began in 1907, and facilities were completed the following year. Back to Basics for the Republican Party  is my civil rights history of the GOP. To quote the book: "The more we Republicans know about the history of our party, the more Democrats will worry about the future of theirs. For more information, see  www...
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saluting Kenneth Wherry, forceful Nebraska Republican Senator

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Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I salute Kenneth Wherry, born in Nebraska, February 28th 1892. After attending the state university and Harvard Business School, he served in the Navy Flying Corps during WWI. Returning home, this go-getter was salesman and rancher and undertaker and attorney. Wherry entered politics as town councilman, then mayor, then state senator. He later chaired the state GOP. In 1942, he won election to the U.S. Senate and rose to Minority Leader. General Eisenhower invited him to witness evidence of Nazi atrocities. Wherry denounced "creeping socialism" of the Truman administration. Cancer struck him down partway through his second term. He was eulogized as "a valiant fighter for the American way of life." Back to Basics for the Republican Party  is my civil rights history of the GOP. To quote the book: "The more we Republicans know abo...
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one of the most important photographs in American history

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Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I spotlight one of the most important photographs in American history. Abraham Lincoln claimed it helped make him President. Page 34 of  Back to Basics for the Republican Party   explains: "Contention for the Republican presidential nomination already underway, Lincoln traveled to New York City, February 27th 1860, to deliver a major address at the Cooper Union. Calmly, logically and convincingly, he demolished the Democrat position on slavery by outlining the history of the crisis from the very origins of the country." Earlier that day, Lincoln had visited a photography studio. There, the renowned Mathew Brady made a classic portrait that would be published throughout the country. It depicted the relatively unknown lawyer as the wise and dignified statesman he truly was. The column symbolized strength and the books, knowledge. Back to Basics for the Rep...
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