The following letter was sent by Rep. Jack Kingston (R.-Ga.) to his House Republican colleagues announcing his run for Republican Conference chairman.
November 9, 2006
Dear Republican Colleague:
I'm writing to ask for your support for my candidacy as Chairman of the Republican Conference. As a freshman I served in the minority and have an idea of what lies ahead. My unwavering goal is to win back the majority through a strong platform of new ideas, great communications, and team politics.
Winning Back The Majority
We must be aggressive with our agenda and idealistic in vision. We need to reclaim our culture as the party of new ideas. Last year I distributed a proposal called the American Renewal Project. The idea was to develop an agenda which all Republicans could support; similar to the Contract with America. As a freshman I saw how the Contract helped us obtain the majority and recently I've seen how we're hurt by not having a unifying platform. In the 24 hour news cycle, stories about casualties in Iraq and congressional scandals will nationalize elections no matter where you live and a unified platform and vision can overcome these challenges.
Communication
Messaging is everyone's job. Over the years I've learned that the biggest mistake conservatives make is not showing up. I have developed strong press ties from print to radio to television to the internet. In fact my office had one of the first successful blogs in the Congress. I will work with each of your offices to assist your press outreach effort with innovative ideas and new opportunities. As Theme Team chairman I've held weekly meetings to help us hone our message; with guests ranging from Vice President Cheney to Cabinet Secretaries, from columnists like George Will to authors like Tom Friedman. In the last year we gave 345 one minutes with 76% of those being on message. It is not enough to be right; we also need to be able to tell a convincing story about why we are right and why we deserve to govern.
Team Politics
Long before I became your Conference Vice Chairman I have helped the team by helping across the street. I've served on all the dinner committees and in June 2005, I chaired the President's dinner - raising over $14 million. This year alone I have contributed over $600,000 to the NRCC and our candidates.
I would greatly appreciate your support and input. I look forward to talking to you and making this the best term of our careers and the first term of the new Republican majority!
Sincerely,
Jack Kingston
Member of Congress
