Following is a letter I have sent to Republican Precinct Committeemen and grassroots activists throughout Champaign County. I'm posting it here to reach a larger audience and to solicit ideas on how we may better run our local political organization. Thank you, in advance, for your input.
As you probably know by now, Steve Hartman has announced that he will not run for re-election as Chairman of the Champaign County Republican Central Committee. Our by-laws state that the certified (elected) Republican Precinct Committeemen will elect a County Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer following the March 21, 2006 primary election. I have expressed to Steve, as well as to many of our current and future precinct committeemen, elected officials and political leaders, my interest in running for Chairman. To many of you, this is probably no surprise. Others may still be wondering who I am. I welcome an opportunity to meet with you, and will be reaching out to each of our committeemen, over the coming months. In the interim, I wanted to provide you with some background on me and my ideas for the future of our party. If you have ideas or comments, please feel free to contact me at 352-7951 or jbarickman@jbar2.com.
Let me begin by giving you my personal background. I was raised on a farm in northern Livingston County, where I attended Woodland High School. Prior to graduating in 1993, I enlisted in the Illinois Army National Guard as an infantry soldier, and completed my basic and advanced training at Fort Benning, Georgia. While completing my National Guard service, I attended Illinois State University, graduating with a Bachelors Degree in Political Science. During my senior year, I was Student Body President. At the same time, I worked as a legislative intern for Congressman Thomas W. Ewing in Washington, D.C., as well as for then-Representative Bill Brady in Bloomington, Illinois. I was honorably discharged from the National Guard in 1998, having served six years.
After graduating Illinois State in 1998, I worked for Ernst & Young, LLP, as a management consultant in the technology and telecommunications industries. Following that, I joined a small, start-up company in Chicago that was eventually acquired by Dynegy, Inc. I was made manager before leaving Dynegy to enroll in the University of Illinois College of Law. During law school, I completed a legal internship with the Department of Justice’s Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Livingston County States Attorney’s Office. My most valuable experience, however, was two years as a Graduate Assistant to Governor Jim Edgar at the Institute of Government and Public Affairs. Following law school, I opened Bartell & Barickman, LLP, with Jason Bartell, my good friend and mentor, fellow farm boy, and practicing attorney from Rantoul.
With the help of many talented and energetic young professionals, we formed the Champaign County Young Republicans, of which I have been the Chairman for the past two years. The Young Republicans have made vast strides to re-energize the county organization, adopt a profession, business-like style, and develop into a local political force.
I’d like to be your County Chairman for several reasons. First and foremost, I believe in the Republican Party and what it stands for. I also believe that, with the right team in place, our local political organization can benefit from new energy and enhanced organization. I have many new ideas to bring to our political organization, and plan to share those with you in the coming weeks. I enjoy making difficult decisions and understand that it’s impossible for everyone to always agree on the outcome. However, I’ll approach each situation with honesty, integrity and an open mind, and plan to engage our political organization in the decision-making process. In the end, you’ll always know where I stand and why.
Outside of partisan issues, however, I believe it takes hard work to make government work. Politics, like law, is as honorable of a profession as one makes of it. I adhere to that maxim now and won’t ever forget it. Public service is at my core, not partisan grandstanding, and I believe good public service should be demanded of all our elected officials. I’ll reject the politics of nastiness, deception and selfishness, and, instead, will demand a sense of civility from all our actions as a local political organization. I’m very competitive, but realize we need to target our efforts on winnable elections. I don’t believe ideological battles are healthy, especially now, in our political organization. As such, I believe the Republican Party is a big tent that can accommodate many differing views and opinions.
By the end of Steve’s term, he will have left our County GOP organization in a much better situation than it started. However, there’s still much to do. Ken Mehlman, Chairman of the Republican National Committee, said, “If you can’t measure it, it’s not worth doing.” My initial ideas are to focus on five areas and identify tangible (measurable) objectives within each area. Those areas are: research and technology, outreach, precinct organization, communications, and finance/fundraising. For example, we need to develop a budget that accounts for our real estate (property taxes, rent/mortgage payments, utilities, etc.), additional overhead costs (events, stationary, mailings, etc.), and candidate funds (county board candidates, etc.). Once we know what funds are required to fulfill our administrative costs and political objectives, we need to develop and execute a plan to raise those funds. I’d also like to implement an advisory board and/or formalized finance committee. I’m not walking into this with an open checkbook. In fact, I’ll expect that EVERYONE becomes a financial contributor to our party, no matter how small the amount. Our precinct committeemen will be expected to participate in our grassroots efforts, and they will be rewarded for their efforts by being involved in the decision-making process and receiving discounts to events (or special access with honored guests to our county).
These are only a sample of the ideas I have. Of course, I’d be glad to discuss these more with you when we talk.
Most importantly, though, I need your input. I recognize that an organization cannot be led by one person. Between today and the GOP officer elections (following the March 21 Primary), I’d like to speak with each precinct committeeman and local, grassroots activist, and obtain your input as to how to structure our organization…what areas to focus on…how we can do things differently…what needs to change (or stay the same)…what you think works (and doesn’t work). In the end, I hope to use your ideas to present a comprehensive strategic plan for our county prior to the election for Chairman. I hope you have input to the plan and, if you buy into it, support my candidacy. Everyone needs to play a role, and I’ll work with you on identifying the best political minds in Champaign County, and recruiting them to help lead our efforts.
Best regards,
Jason A. Barickman
