Saul Anuzis speech to 08 CPAC: "Grassroots to Convervatives: We've Got Your Back"

Chairman Saul Anuzis
Conservative Political Action Conference
Washington, DC
Provided by Michigan Republican Party
February 8, 2008

“Grass Roots to Conservatives:
We’ve Got Your Back”

I bring greetings from Michigan, the state where the Republican Party first nominated our greatest conservative president, Ronald Reagan and produced America’s leading conservative mind, Russell Kirk, who gave American conservatism an identity and a genealogy and helped spark the postwar conservative movement.

I remember the 1980 Republican convention like it was yesterday.

Reagan’s acceptance speech was fantastic. Do you remember how he ended the speech? After noting it wasn’t part of his prepared text, Reagan looked out over the delegates and spoke from his heart to millions of Americans. He said:

“Can we doubt that only a Divine Providence placed this land, this island of freedom, here as a refuge for all those people in the world who yearn to breathe freely: Jews and Christians enduring persecution behind the Iron Curtain, the boat people of Southeast Asia, of Cuba and Haiti, the victims of drought and famine in Africa, the freedom fighters of Afghanistan and our own countrymen held in savage captivity.

“I'll confess that I've been a little afraid to suggest what I'm going to suggest -- I'm more afraid not to -- that we begin our crusade joined together in a moment of silent prayer. [PAUSE…]God bless America.”

Reagan’s words first changed a nation. They then changed the world.

Reagan certainly inspired me and my family.

My family emigrated here from Lithuania. I didn’t learn to speak English until I was about 6 or 7.

My father worked the line at General Motors in Detroit for 32 years as a skilled tradesman. He was in the UAW; I was a Teamster. In 1980, I was loading trucks to help pay my way through college. I was trying to figure out what I believed in… What I was willing to fight for.

Reagan gave us just what we needed – a rock solid vision for a better America and a better world.

Now, nearly 30 years later, it is an honor to join so many conservative activists, gathered here in Washington. In fact, isn’t it funny, to most conservatives, Washington is the enemy, yet everybody wants to come here, at least to CPAC!

But seriously, when conservatives get elected and get comfy in the halls of power here in our nation’s capital, some lose their way. Some forget who sent them here and why.

Some begin to believe that somehow “Washington knows best.” Some commit the cardinal sin of forgetting the values and principles of the conservative grass roots who did the hard work of actually getting them elected.

Well, I’m here with a simple message – the grass roots are watching, the grass roots are listening, and the grass roots will be voting. And I can assure you of this: The grass roots will not be forgetting their values and principles when it comes time to vote.

And we will hold you accountable – not just in November, BUT IN EVERY ELECTION!

I think that when historians look back on this election campaign, they may pinpoint one week last September as a turning point. That was the week John McCain visited Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina on his “No Surrender Tour.”

What a great message. No backing down. No matter the odds. No matter the viciousness of the enemy. No matter the efforts of some in Washington to legislate defeat.

And I give Senator McCain credit – this is a man who risked his life for our country in Vietnam and put his political life on the line over Iraq and the War on Terror.

This is a man who says what he believes and believes what he says and will not back down.

For him, surrender is NOT AN OPTION!

This fall, that’s the message we need to take to the American people.
No surrender to our enemies!
No surrender to defending the dignity of every human life!
No surrender on securing the border!
No surrender on conservative judges!
No surrender on slashing porkbarrel spending!
And NO surrender on CUTTING TAXES.

To the candidates who run with this message and this philosophy, I make this promise from the conservative grass roots of the Republican Party: “We’ve got your back.”

Let me cut right to the chase.

Electing the next Republican president won’t be simply about moving moderates into the Republican column. It will be about moving conservatives of every stripe – or no stripe at all – to vote for our nominee.

That’s what Reagan did, and that’s what we can do if Republicans rebuild our party as the champion of limited government and a strong defense, lower taxes and less regulation, more freedom and maximum opportunity.

These principles are nonnegotiable.

There will be NO surrender!

Over the past couple of days, the pundits have been debating whether the campaign for the Republican nomination is now a three man race, a two man contest or a one man show to win the hearts and minds of all Republicans and America.

Well, as usual, the pundits miss the point.

This is a race to 50 percent plus one on Election Day this fall. And give or take a few million votes, that means the winner on November 4th will have to win the hearts and minds of about 65 million Americans.

My job is to help win about two-and-half million votes in Michigan.

Sadly, it might even be less than that, if still more unemployed workers and families flee our state to escape the burden of higher taxes and the Democratic disaster called Governor Jennifer Granholm.

Remember just a few years ago when Michigan’s Governor Granholm was the darling of the Democratic Party? Her supporters wanted to change the U.S. Constitution to let foreign born citizens run for president.

You don’t hear much about those ambitions anymore, but you do hear about Granholm escaping Michigan to join a “new” Clinton administration in Washington.

As the mother of the biggest tax hike in Michigan history, Granholm will certainly fit right in with the tax raising plans of the Democrats. Bonded in what I have called “holy taximony,” Clinton and Granholm share the belief that bigger government and higher taxes will erase Michigan's single-state recession or the highest-in-the-nation unemployment.

Yes, you heard that right, a single state recession, and the highest-in-the-nation unemployment.

So what did the Democrats in Michigan do to try and turn this dismal economic situation around?

What steps did the Democrats take to create more jobs and create more opportunities so our young people won’t have to leave the state in search of jobs?

What steps did the Democrats take in Michigan that might be an indication of what Democrats would do in Washington if a Democrat becomes President?

They raised taxes one-point-three billion dollars.

Last year, Governor Granholm and her Democratic economic wizards in the state legislature rammed a one-point-three billion dollar tax increase down the throats of Michigan’s taxpayers late last year.

Virtually every Republican opposed the tax increase.

Virtually every Democrat supported it.

Virtually every Republican supported reforming government to cut wasteful and unnecessary spending.

Virtually every Democrat opposed reform.

And when Governor Granholm threatened to shut down government, Republicans stood up to oppose such an irresponsible and unnecessary step designed to scare the people of Michigan.

So we went on the air with a radio spot, taking our message to the people.

I want to play this radio spot for you because I want conservatives to know that the coming tax fight we are going to have in Washington has already been underway in Michigan. I want conservatives to know that we are only going to win this coming tax showdown in Washington if we are willing to stand up and fight.

Let’s play it…we called it “Showdown”:

[play Showdown]

Legislators felt the heat.

Several Democrats even refused to cast a vote at all. Then it got ugly.
State House members were actually held hostage, kept in session for seven straight days and seven nights, not able to sleep or touch base with their constituents.

Rumors began to circulate that certain legislators were being “bought off” by special interests working with the Governor.

And in the end, Governor Granholm got her way, despite the fact that 70 percent of Michigan voters said to cut spending and reform government first.

So we went back on the air to reinforce that message.

Here the next ad we called “We Told You So”:

[play Told You]

And then we sealed the deal with the people of Michigan with this final spot.

[play Soap Opera]

Today, the Governor is singing a different tune, saying she’ll never raise taxes again, because, in her words, “it’s just too hard.”

And despite plans by the Democratic Speaker of the House to raise the state gas tax, Granholm said:
"I think raising the gas tax now is impossible, because people are hurting."

Now, with recall campaigns sprouting statewide, the Governor called for a “cease fire” to foster bipartisanship in the legislature.

Trouble is, the Democrats have done all the shooting, putting even more holes in Michigan’s troubled economy with their partisan bickering.

And the voters are figuring out that for the governor, “bipartisan” is just a code word for spend more and tax more.

What has happened in Michigan is surely a foretaste of the coming tax fight here in Washington. And note these lessons.

If you stand with the taxpayer.

If you stand with the grassroots.

If you are prepared to explain again and again that lower taxes creates more jobs and more opportunities, then you can win the argument about taxes with the voters.

But it won’t be easy. You will even get some pushback like we did from your own side for being too vocal in the fight against tax increases. Apparently, some Republican politicians don’t want to hear from the grass roots.

They are happy when we write checks, make phone calls and put up signs, knock on doors, deliver their literature, but then we’re apparently supposed to go away and keep our opinions to ourselves, while they govern in our name.

Well let’s just say, not in Michigan. Not on my watch. In Michigan, we will speak out and speak up for the conservative grass roots. And we will push the tax fight with all the voters, no matter the heat some members of our own party may feel.

Everywhere I go in Michigan, our grass roots are telling me that we need to return the focus to our Conservative principles and LOWER taxes.

This past summer in Michigan, this choice was made abundantly clear.
Democrats will raise taxes, and have. Republicans will cut them.

This fall we Republicans need to make this choice equally as clear for the entire nation. It is how we will put a swing state like Michigan in play. And it doesn’t matter if Senator Obama is their candidate or Senator Clinton.

Listen to what Senator Obama said on Super Tuesday… “Our time has come. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.”

What Obama is really telling us, is give me the credit card, I’ll pay you back for waiting patiently all these years.

Like Senator Clinton, Obama has a big-government solution to every problem and the tax hikes to pay for them.

And you think Charlie Rangel has big tax increases in mind? Just wait for Barack Obama.

Apparently, when Barack Obama declares “yes, we can” there are three more words that remain unspoken – “yes, we can -- raise your taxes.”

As conservatives, our mission must be to stand up together and speak with one voice to say…

“NO…YOU…WON’T!!”

Senator Obama may speak eloquently about the American people’s desire for change, but it was Ronald Reagan and conservatives who first changed the culture in Washington.

And we can do it again.

Remember,
- when conservatives put more money in mom and dad’s paycheck...
- when conservatives promote and defend the culture of life…
- when conservatives inspire America to be that shining city on a hill...

And when conservatives candidates stand together on values and principles, be assured that the grass roots will support you.

Because as I’ve said, WE’VE GOT YOUR BACK!