William Jay Smith, patriotic Union Army Colonel and Tennessee Republican Congressman

Grand Old Partisan celebrates more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. Today, I salute William Jay Smith, born September 24th 1823. Immigrating from England as a child, he apprenticed to be a printer. Settling in Tennessee, this patriotic youth volunteered for the army during the Mexican war.

Smith farmed near Memphis. Outbreak of civil war, he enlisted with the Union Army as colonel of the 6th (U.S.) Tennessee Cavalry. His regiment battled locally and in Mississippi.

Peace restored, Smith served in a constitutional convention and in both houses of the legislature. He was delegate at two Republican National Conventions. November 1868, he won a term in the U.S. House of Representatives. Among the GOP initiatives receiving his vote were the Judiciary Act and the [anti-] Ku Klux Klan Act. President Ulysses Grant named him port surveyor of Memphis.

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. 

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Michael Zak is author of Back to Basics for the Republican Party, a history of GOP civil rights achievement.


Each day, his YouTube videos and TikTok videos and Rumble videos and Grand Old Partisan blog celebrate more than seventeen decades of Republican heroes and heroics. And, see Speech Raves for audience feedback from his presentations in thirty-one states.

Clarence Thomas cited Back to Basics for the Republican Party in a Supreme Court decision.

"This is the most amazing book about politics that I have ever read. The Overview should be required reading for anyone with even a minor interest in government. The remainder is an enthralling history lesson that I will never forget. For years, we have all been misled about the true nature of the GOP. This is the real deal! Read it and be proud!"

"Your book is a national treasure. I'm always recommending it."

"Michael Zak wrote the definitive history of the GOP."

"Back to Basics for the Republican Party is the most significant contribution to the Republican Party in the last twenty years apart from Ronald Reagan."

"Back to Basics for the Republican Party is more important to our party now than ever before."

and

"one of the best books I ever read"


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