Grand Old Partisan

Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I honor Jerome Chaffee, born in upstate New York, April 17th 1825. He moved to Michigan, then Missouri, then Kansas, before settling in Colorado just before the Civil War. He was one of the first residents of Denver. Mining investments made him a wealthy man. In 1861, Chaffee was elected, as a Republican, to the opening session of the territorial legislature and served as its speaker. In 1870, he won first of two terms as congressional delegate. Six year later, Colorado was admitted to the Union and the state's three electoral votes gave GOP nominee Rutherford Hayes a one-vote margin of victory. The first state legislative session elected him a U.S. Senator. He later served as state party chairman. His daughter married Ulysses Grant Jr. Chaffee County is named for him. Back to Basics for the Republican Party  is my civil rights history of the GOP. To quote the boo...

Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I commemorate the Wheeler Compromise. For months, the Louisiana state government had been deadlocked. Both political parties claimed the governorship and majorities in the legislature. April 16th 1875, Democrats accepted a settlement proposed by Republican Congressman William Wheeler. Alas, eleven African-American Republican legislators were unseated, giving the Slavery Party control of the state house. Fortunately, the state senate would be under Emancipation Party control. Democrats also agreed that the Republican Governor could remain in office.  Wheeler went on to be the next Vice President of the United States, during the Rutherford Hayes administration. 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 th...

Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I honor Clarence Clark, born in upstate New York, April 16th 1851. He studied law at the University of Iowa, then relocated to Wyoming and became a county prosecutor. His political career as delegate for the 1888 Republican National Convention and the 1889 territorial constitutional convention. Upon statehood in 1890, Clark won first of two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. Fortune smiled when the legislature elected him a U.S. Senator. He also attended four more GOP national conventions. Clark remained in the Senate until 1917. It was noted that he "deserves the applause of every citizen of Wyoming." 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...

Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I spotlight the first public memorial to Abraham Lincoln. April 15th 1868, a marble image of the  Great Emancipator  was unveiled in Washington, DC. It stands at the old City Hall building, now the Court of Appeals. The sculptor knew him. Lot Flannery had been present at the Ford’s Theater tragedy. His work was noted to be "most spirited" and "an excellent likeness." Originally atop a pedestal, the statue was removed during the Woodrow Wilson administration. At the request of President Warren Harding, the GOP-controlled 67th Congress passed a law authorizing its return, this time on a shorter base. 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 infor...

Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I highlight the 1872 Colored Men’s National Convention. Alonzo Ransier, Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina, said their purpose was "to consider ways and means necessary to the conservation of the material and political interests of the colored people of our country." The event took place at Mechanics Hall in New Orleans. In his keynote address on April 14th, Frederick Douglass spoke for the ages: "The Republican Party is the ship, all else is the sea." Delegates passed this resolution unanimously: "Owing our political emancipation in this country to Republican legislation, to which all other parties and political shades of opinion were unjustly and bitterly opposed, we would be blind to our prospects and false to our best interests did we identify ourselves with any other organization." Back to Basics for the Republican...

Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I admire the  Robert A. Taft Memorial and Carillon . This monument, featuring a statue and bell tower, is near the U.S Capitol. It honors the beloved Ohio Senator known as 'Mr. Republican'. An inscription: "This Memorial to Robert A. Taft, presented by the people to the Congress of the United States, stands as a tribute to the honesty, indomitable courage, and high principles of free government symbolized by his life." Construction had been authorized by congressional resolution and funded by donations from the American people. The dedication ceremony took place on April 14th 1959. After opening remarks by President Dwight Eisenhower, Vice President Richard Nixon accepted the monument in the name of Congress. In the keynote address, former President Herbert Hoover said: "What does matter is that the essential ...