The Alabama Republican Party Executive Committee on Saturday held their annual Summer Meeting in Cullman the morning before the Trump rally, which was sponsored by the Alabama Republican Party.
John Wahl is the chairman of the Alabama Republican Party.
“I want to thank you all for what you do for freedom,” Wahl told the assembled 456 members of the executive committee. “Not only do you not get paid, but you pay to serve. You are the most overworked and underpaid people in the party. I appreciate all that you do.”
“It is very important that the party stand for your values,” Wahl said. “The Republican Party is nothing without the values that we stand for.”
Wahl accused congressional Democrats of hypocrisy.
“They want to take away your guns, but they are protected by guns,” Wahl said. “They tell us that we should defund the police but which police department do they increase the funding for? The capital Police.”
“They tell us that walls on the southern border don’t work; but they put walls around the Capitol,” Wahl continued. “The ruling class, let’s call them what they are – the socialists, believe that they needs guns, police, and walls, but that you don’t.”
“The state party is going to raise money here and we are going to get boots on the ground in swing states around the country in order to take control of the House of Representatives and the Senate,” Wahl said. “We have raised or have commitments of over $1.1 million. That is a staggering amount.”
Wahl explained that the money will be used for Project Restore America.
Wahl said that the state party is working “to build bridges with our legislature.”
Alabama Republican Party Treasurer Sally Bryant said that the ALGOP had $353 thousand in their federal account, $378 thousand in the state account, and $15,000 in the building fund.”
None of that includes the $1,168,202 raised for the Restore America effort.
Joan Reynolds heads the Alabama Strike Force, which travels to other states to knock on doors and ask voters to elect Republicans.
“John and I have been working on putting Alabamians on the ground in Project Restore America,” Reynolds said, “We are excited that the campaign will help us retake the Congress. We are hopeful that they will put this in motion in all the red states.”
“We are not finished” fundraising, Reynolds said. “We will continue to build on this.”
Alabama Republican Party General Counsel Greg Cooke said: “We have no lawsuits.”
“The future is redistricting,” Cooke explained. “It is in the news. It will be in the news even more moving forward, Keep your eyes on this.”
Cooke announced that this is his last meeting as general counsel. He is running for the open Alabama Supreme Court Associate Justice seat held by Mike Bolin, who is retiring at the end of his current term.
The executive committee did put in place a bylaws change that would establish compensation for the chairman.
“I am not looking for a salary, but it is important that we have the ability,” Wahl said. “I would consider not a salary but a bonus of some type for time served.”
The executive committee also passed a controversial bylaws change limiting the executive committee from bringing up resolutions that the resolutions committee rejected.
State Rep. Andrew Sorrell, R-Muscle Shoals, is the chairman of the bylaws committee.
The executive committee passed a number of resolutions.
The Critical Race Theory resolution combined three submitted resolutions into one with the agreement of the three sponsors.
“As a member of the Alabama Republican Party Executive Committee, I am sponsoring a resolution for the executive committee to call on the Legislature to pass a law banning the teaching of critical race theory and any of its tenants in Alabama Public Schools,” Alabama Republican Executive Committee member former state Rep. Perry O. Hooper Jr. said in a statement. “The resolution will also call on the state and local schools boards to immediately stop any attempt to teach critical race theory in the 2021-22 school year.”
The state board of education had already passed its resolution prior to the summer meeting. They were praised for their action, but the executive committee is asking the state Legislature to codify into law.
The executive committee also called on the legislature to: “Reform Alabama’s broken guardianship and conservatorship reform.” The committee cited the examples of a Golden Flake heiress and pop singer Britney Spears as examples.
The committee also passed a resolution strongly opposing any actions taken by the University of North Alabama for comments made on social media by the SGA president there.
The executive committee passed a resolution condemning big tech censorship on platforms like Facebook and Twitter.
They also passed a resolution urging the Legislature to pass legislation to improve voter integrity by strengthening penalties against those who illegal harvest ballots.
National Committee Woman Barbara Drummond warned: “America faces a corrupt Democrat party who wants to tear down this country.”
“Elections are won and lost at the local election level,” Drummond said. “Day in and day out our members work tirelessly for the good of the country.”
“We have no choice, but to be successful,” Drummond concluded.
National Committeeman Paul Reynolds lamented, “After the Georgia election we cannot depend on the Senate, we cannot depend on the House of Representatives, we cannot depend on the Supreme Court because they are so irregular in what they do so what is holding this country together? It is the red states. If you see Steve Marshall give him a big pat on the back for the things that he has started with other red state attorney generals.
“Until we get past the elections in 2022, we don’t have anything to fight with,” Reynolds said. “There are two red states leading the way, Alabama is not one of them; but they are Texas and Florida.”
Reynolds said that Project Restore America is designed, “To help every district in the United States where we might be able to squeeze out a Republican victory in some way.”
Reynolds said that RNC is committed to, “Gaining control of the House, the Senate, and the White House and once we get not giving it up.”
John Wahl said that he is committed to “Make what we learned about minority outreach part of Restore Alabama.”
“I want to thank our past chairmen and party leadership,” Wahl said. “What we are doing today and what we are doing with Restore America is because of the ground work that past leadership has done.”
Wahl praised newly elected state Rep. Kenneth Paschal, R-Pelham,
“He is the first African American elected as a Republican to the state legislature since 1882,” Wahl said. “He has joined the party as a minority outreach coordinator.”
Alabama Republican Party Executive Committee member former state school board member Betty Peters (R) introduced a resolution from the floor opposing mandatory COVID-19 vaccination of children under the age of 19 without parental consent. That resolution passed.
