Bachmann names “grass-roots” team in SC

This came in today. Seems odd that she’d be announcing organizational stuff like this so late, but campaigns are like that. They have their own timing and rhythm. I suspect that part of her reason in putting together this extensive list now is to tell everyone that she is, too, in the running for SC.

I don’t know most of these folks, but the ones I do know — Kelly Payne, Ray Moore, Louise Geddings and (by reputation) Lee Bright — paint a recognizable portrait of the segment of the GOP that is still backing her. And of course, my Pub Politics friend Wesley Donehue is working with her:

Michele Bachmann Announces South Carolina Grassroots Team
Leaders to form the state’s strongest “Get Out The Vote” machine

Columbia, S.C. – Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann today announced the team of grassroots leaders who will propel her campaign to victory in South Carolina. This announcement leaves little doubt that the Bachmann campaign has the most organized ground game in the Palmetto State.

Led by campaign chairman Lee Bright, campaign director Sheri Few, four paid field staff and senior advisors Ron Thomas and Wesley Donehue, the team of 33 county chairmen join the previously announced 56 Tea Party leaders and other new grassroots leaders to form the state’s strongest “Get Out The Vote” machine. The grassroots county chairmen consists of five S.C. Republican Party executive committeemen, former GOP county chairmen, and local GOP officers and executive committee members.

“Grassroots activists across the state are tired of Washington insiders, flip-floppers and fake conservatives,” State Sen. Lee Bright said. “Michele Bachmann is the consistent conservative we need as President of the United States and we’ve built the best political machine in South Carolina to get her to the White House.”

Upstate Chairman State Rep. Bill Chumley said, “Our network is ready to catch the momentum Michele will receive from a big showing in Iowa.  Our team is energized, active and enthusiastic. They’re not going let some Washington insider win in the nation’s most conservative state.”

Fifth District Chairman and State Rep. Ralph Norman said, “This race isn’t going to be won by who has the most money — it’s going to be won by the most organized team of passionate conservatives who are putting in hours of sweat equity for their candidate. We have the hardest working team in South Carolina and we intend to work hard for a win for Michele Bachmann.”

“We are excited to announce South Carolina’s most organized and energetic grassroots network,” Bachmann said. These are hardworking conservatives who are ready to return our country back to prosperity.  They’re working around the clock to ensure that a consistent conservative wins the nation’s first-in-the-south presidential primary. I’m honored to have them on our team.”

The Bachmann for President South Carolina Grassroots Team includes the following County Chairmen and grassroots leaders:

Abbeville

Vinnie Maxwell – Chairman

Aiken

Susan Swanson – Chairman
Erin Ashley – Grassroots Coordinator
Eric Brown
Marilyn Ericson
Executive Committeewoman Diane Giddings
Spencer Grothier
Jerry & Philomena Guerin
Leslie Hutto
Walter King
Douglas Noel
Debbie Osmundsen

Allendale

Shushanna Koontz – Chairman

Anderson

Henry Jordan – Chairman
Kristine Caufield
Marvin Collier – TEA Coalition
Jonathon Hill – TEA Coalition

Bamberg

Ryan Koontz – Chairman

Barnwell

Clifton Baker – Chairman

Beaufort

Lauren Martel – Co-Chairman
Sharon Nelson – Co-Chairman
Shelia Morgan – TEA Coalition
Tom Morgan – TEA Coalition
Tom Russo – TEA Coalition

Berkeley

Executive Committeeman Joshua Finn – Chairman
Gerald Addison – TEA Coalition
Linda Addison – TEA Coalition
Raye Chapman – TEA Coalition

Charleston

Charles Steinert – Chairman
Daniel Bostic
Jeff Diemier – TEA Coalition
Lynda Fry – TEA Coalition
Robert Fry – TEA Coalition
Maurice Isaac
Tyler Jones
Jacqueline Mckool
Steve Rapchick – TEA Coalition
Cathy Tyler

Cherokee
Fred Keller – Co-Chairman
John Neel – Co-Chairman
Will Cobb

Chester

Dena Espinoza – Chairman
Don Murphy

Chesterfield

Zachery Michael – Chairman
Joe & Doris Foch

Clarendon

Third District Vice Chairman Marie Dukes – Chairman

Dorchester

Ken Uthe – Chairman
Jerry Wolf

Florence

Nancy Elaime Kelly – Chairman

Greenville

Stephen Brown – Chairman
Dean Allen – TEA Coalition
Greg Ashe
Steve Bomar
Javan Micah Browder – TEA Coalition
Theodore Drinkhahn
Paul Fallavollita
Levi Fox
Shane Franks
Braden Hal
Jim Hargett – TEA Coalition
Samuel Harms
Representative Gloria Haskins
Matt Holmes
Virginia Jelley – TEA Coalition
Austin Jones – TEA Coalition
Bobby Jones
Dawn Lennon
Dorine Lennon
Nate Leupp – Grassroots Coordinator
Charles Lewis
Rick Moesser – TEA Coalition
Scott Napier – TEA Coalition
Gwen Neighbors
Gill Robison
Sean & Toni Sharp

Greenwood

John Sparks – Chairman

Horry

Cris Panos – Chairman
Carlene Carmen
Linda McHugh – Grassroots Coordinator
Leo O’Brien
Cheryl Savage – TEA Coalition
Dennis Stancoven

Kershaw

Executive Committeeman Shelby Price – Chairman
Sally & Jack Burdin
Jim Morris
Christie Thompson
Republican Women’s Treasurer Mary Young

Lancaster

Executive Committeeman Donnie Jones – Chairman
Indian Land Republican Club Comm Chairman Steven Coley – Grassroots Coordinator

Lee

Rebecca Shadwell – Chairman
Hank Shadwell – TEA Coalition

Lexington

Preston Baines – Chairman
Joe Mac & Annie Bates
Steve & Lisa Cunningham – Grassroots Coordinator
Pat & Lu Donlon
Ashleigh Milam
Linda Panis
James Rizzuti
Leo Senn – TEA Coalition
Ross Snell – TEA Coalition
Helen Watson – TEA Coalition
Helen Watson

Marion

Lisa Cunningham – TEA Coalition

Marlboro

Peter Robyn – Chairman

Newberry

Arnold Queen – Chairman
Mark Hockman

Oconee

Codi Butts – Chairman

Orangeburg

Harold Blitch – Chairman

Pickens

Kyle Porter – Chairman

Richland

County GOP Secretary Kelly Payne – Chairman
Lee Adams
Steve & Gail Eisenecker
Jim Fry
A.L. & Louise Geddings – TEA Coalition
Matt Gottlieb – Grassroots Coordinator
Jan Horvath
Debra Langley Kennedy – Grassroots Coordinator
Republican Women President Deb Marks
Ray Moore
Jo Ann Narewski
Jim & Geri Sampson
Brandon Sandusky
Bruce Snell
Zan Tyler
Glenn Wilson – TEA Coalition
Justina Wilson – TEA Coalition

Spartanburg

Representative Lee Bright
Representative Bill Chumley
Executive Committeeman Doug Cobb – Co-Chairman
Nicole Cobb – Co-Chairman
Celia Anderson – TEA Coalition
Linda Clark-Reel
Stan Crenshaw – Grassroots Coordinator
Loretta Gilchrist – TEA Coalition
Paul Huber – TEA Coalition
Christina Jeffrey – TEA Coalition
Cibby Krell – TEA Coalition
Grace Lecara
Ramona Ludvik – TEA Coalition
Robert Ludvik – TEA Coalition
Tony Mormando
Harry & Carol Musselman
Beverly Owensby – TEA Coalition
Dorothy Powell
Sara Romney – TEA Coalition
Barron Young

Sumter

Executive Committeeman Ashby Rhame – Chairman
Shirley O’Quinn – Grassroots Coordinator
Nancy Pugh – Grassroots Coordinator

Union

Nora Lewis – Chairman
Robert Bailes – TEA Coalition
Harold & Nora Lewis – TEA Coalition

York

S.C. Representative Ralph Norman
Executive Committeeman Mark Palmer – Chairman
Ron Case – Grassroots Coordinator
JoAnna DiPastena – Grassroots Coordinator
Deidre Mazzoni

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12 thoughts on “Bachmann names “grass-roots” team in SC”

  6. martin

    Corey H, that was great! Bet there is a similar story for almost all of the “grassroots coordinators”…and, wow, I was thinking they were probably out of state operatives brought in to organize the locals. What a dummy I am!

    That also kind of explains how someone with a very public love life… could end up as a campaign leader.

  7. Brad

    Martin, I did some editing on your comment. If you don’t like it, let me know and I’ll just take the whole thing down.

    Purely subjective judgment on my part. The bit I left out offended my vestigial sense of chivalry.

  8. martin

    Actually, I partially agree and almost sent you something right after the post to do away with the “description”, which was more appropriate for FITSNEWS, though not obscene.

    I see no reason why the name was edited. That highly public person’s on and off high profile relationship, which has included law enforcement complaints, has been published in various media.

    However, since you have a relationship with the person where each of you give free press to the other, I understand your reluctance to offend.

  9. Brad

    You’ve almost put your finger on it there, Martin…

    The fact is that I DO know this person, which means she actually IS a person to me — not an abstraction to be a butt of jokes or ironic dismissals. And the fact that I DO know this person makes me want to treat her as a person, as though she were standing in front of me and I were saying these things to her face.

    Thinking of people that way is the very best way to assure a degree of civility.

    Here’s an anecdote that may help to explain this.

    Sometime in the Spring of 2009, shortly after I was cashiered from the paper, I was crossing the USC campus when I ran into ex-Gov. Dick Riley, one of the most cordial and kind gentlemen I’ve ever met.

    We exchanged various pleasantries — how are you coming along, etc. — when he brought up something out of the blue. He said that on my old blog that I’d had at the paper, sometime long before, I had made mention of him in a post, and subsequently (probably long after I’d posted it, and back when I wasn’t moderating comments), someone had referred to him, completely gratuitously, with an extremely rude and crude term.

    He said to me, mildly and with no hint of accusation, that he thought he did not deserve to be called that.

    Very embarrassed, I said I didn’t think he deserved to be called that, either, and told him I would deal with it. So I went right away back to that blog and, still having the password to get into the dashboard area, deleted the comment.

    Because I had the power to. Because it was up to me.

    So I try, but do not always succeed, in moderating my blog so that I could conceivably justify allowing the comment if challenged, face to face, by the party being referred to.

    I don’t always succeed, because I try to err on the side of allowing comments rather than disallowing them, and certainly many, many comments are not what I would say myself.

    But it’s a very humanizing rule of thumb that I think serves pretty well.

  10. Ralph Hightower

    Just remember that Automated Dialed Announcement Devices (ADAD) made before 8 AM and after 7PM are illegal in South Carolina.

    The way I read the Code of Laws, politicians are not exempt!

    @Kathryn,
    Your interpretation on the law?

    http://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t16c017.php
    SECTION 16-17-446. Regulation of automatically dialed announcing device (ADAD).

    I’ve reported a few politicians; two Wilsons: one Joe, another an AG candidate, Alan, I think both called using robo-dialers after 7 PM.

  11. `Kathryn Fenner

    My reading is even more restrictive than yours, Ralph. Adad calls are prohibited any time unless under an exception, and the only one that might apply (and if it did, then the time restrictions kick in) is the one where you invited it somehow.

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