Grand Old Partisan

Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I salute John Rhodes, born September 18th 1916. Calvin Coolidge was a childhood inspiration. His education was at Kansas State University and Harvard Law School. He served in the Army Air Force during WWII and later the Arizona Air National Guard. In 1952, while on the Board of Public Welfare, Rhodes became Arizona’s first Republican elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. This dedicated public servant won fourteen more terms. He was delegate at three GOP national conventions. The 1957, 1960, 1964 Civil Rights Acts and the 1965 Voting Rights Act received his vote. "God had a congressman in mind when He made John Rhodes. And he is just what the Founding Fathers had in mind when they designed the House of Representatives." Back to Basics for the Republican Party is my civil rights history of the GOP. To quote ...

Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I highlight the beginning of Abraham Lincoln’s campaign to win the Republican presidential nomination. After losing to Stephen Douglas for the Senate, he tended to his law practice and declined various speaking invitations. However, in September 1859, a request from the Ohio GOP to counter appearances there by Douglas was an opportunity too good to miss. The fifth and most important of his Buckeye State speeches took place in Cincinnati on the 17th. He received a hero’s welcome, with a torchlit parade to an outdoor downtown venue. The national press covered this event much more than the Lincoln-Douglas debates. Thinking ahead to the presidential election, Lincoln predicted, correctly, that northern and southern wings of the Democratic Party would not agree to support Douglas. He emphasized that, though constitutionally p...

Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I spotlight the funeral of a martyred Republican President. William McKinkey suffered two gunshot wounds on September 6th 1901 and died a week later. His remains were conveyed from Buffalo to Washington, DC From the train station to the White House, more than 100,000 people stood in the rain paying their respects. Evening of the 16th, the coffin lay in the East Room. All the next day, it was at the Capitol Rotunda for a state funeral and viewing. President McKinley was buried back home in Canton, Ohio on the 19th. Here are video clips of events . 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 Vid...

Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I appreciate Republican reverence for Judaism. September 16th 1897, President William McKinley laid the cornerstone for the Washington Hebrew Congregation, at Eighth & I Streets NW DC. His entire Cabinet attended, along with more than three thousand others, McKinley delivered congratulatory remarks. In 1955, the Congregation relocated to a new building away from downtown. President Dwight Eisenhower keynoted that event. 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 about this article. Here is an Instagram Video about this article. Here is a TikTok Video about this article. M...

Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I salute Asa Bushnell, born September 16th 1834. He started out clerking at a dry goods store. During the Civil War, this young Republican recruited a company of the 152nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry and enlisted as their captain. Union restored, Bushnell prospered manufacturing agricultural equipment. His company eventually merged with others to become International Harvester. He also headed a bank, a railroad and a gas utility. Bushnell cast an electoral vote in 1884. Following year, he chaired the state GOP and managed the gubernatorial campaign. In 1895, he won first of two terms as Governor. His administration strengthened labor and consumer protections. 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. ...

Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I appreciate Republican resistance to Democrat terrorism. September 15th 1874, President Ulysses Grant took action against the 'White League' – racist thugs who were trying to overthrow the Republican Governor of Louisiana. In a bloody battle, they had defeated police and state militia. Grant issued a presidential proclamation calling on the insurgents to disperse and calling on "all good citizens" to help uphold the law. He also sent five thousand federal soldiers, who then quashed the rebellion. 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 about this article. Here is a TikTok Video ...