“Electoral Process Blocking and Tackling”
| “Electoral Process Blocking and Tackling” |
| Greetings everyone, Some folks in the conservative movement may forget that I was a Soldier, not a Sailor. Right now, I’m aboard the Young America’s Foundation (YAF) speakers cruise to New England and Canada. I’ve never been to Maine or Nova Scotia, and I’m looking forward to seeing the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Quebec City, and Montreal. History reminds us that during the early days of the American Revolution, our patriots launched a failed assault on Quebec. I am honored to be part of YAF’s bullpen of speakers, deployed to college and university campuses across America. YAF has been in existence since 1969 and continues to champion constitutional conservatism from the middle school and high school level all the way to universities—the very frontlines of protecting and preserving our Republic. And speaking of preservation, nothing is more critical to our Republic than safeguarding our electoral system. Confidence in that system has been shaken in recent election cycles. Anyone denying that either suffers from delusion—or is comfortable with questionable actions surrounding our elections, processes, and procedures. Now, y’all know I love college football. As a loyal Tennessee Volunteer and proud SEC fan, I know that football is about fundamentals—blocking and tackling. As Keith Jackson famously said, “Just as the sun rises in the east, so shall touchdowns follow good blocking and tackling.” Coach Vince Lombardi used that same metaphor to remind us: mastering the basics leads to success in any pursuit. That’s why, last Monday evening, the Dallas County Republican Party Executive Committee overwhelmingly voted to return to the basics for our March 2026 GOP primary election day: – Separate primary voting, returning to precinct-level polling locations. – Hand-marked, hand-counted paper ballots. Let me be clear: this decision applies only to the March 2026 Republican primary on election day. It does not apply to the November 2025 Texas constitutional amendments election, nor to the November 2026 general election. By law, the DCRP can only take this step for its own primary. Why make this change? Look no further than the November 2024 election cycle: – The ES&S electronic pollbook system crashed—later decertified by the Texas Secretary of State. – ES&S tabulators repeatedly failed Logic and Accuracy test – Ballot reconciliation fell outside the tolerance prescribed by Texas Election Code—yet the election was certified. Any one of these failures should concern us. All three in one election cycle is catastrophic. Some argue that “humans make errors” when counting ballots. As if machines don’t? We’ve seen errors, failures, and even deliberate tampering in electronic systems. Others ask, “Can ballots really be counted in time?” I ask: how often do we already wait days for results with machines? Returning to the fundamentals of precinct-level voting and hand-counted ballots will improve—not weaken—our process. Countywide voting was sold as “convenience,” but it created new problems and opened doors for fraud. Then came unsolicited mail-in ballots and discarded signature verification, all justified under COVID. Remember the Time magazine piece (April 14, 2020) by Eric Holder: “How Coronavirus Should Change US Elections for Good.” Or Rahm Emanuel’s mantra: “Never let a good crisis go to waste.” Yes, staffing will be a challenge—but also an opportunity. What better way to expose our high school seniors and college students to civics than by involving them directly in our elections? Lord knows the classroom isn’t doing the job. To learn more about what the Dallas County GOP is doing, visit: dallasgop.org/handcount This fight is bigger than Dallas County. We live in a county without a single Republican in elected leadership—that alone explains why the Left is nervous about moving away from machines. This is about bringing back the blocking and tackling of our American electoral process and restoring public confidence. And to those who say, “Colonel, this is too hard and bound to fail”… I say this: I’m glad you weren’t around 250 years ago when America took on the greatest military power in the world—or 190 years ago when a few Texans at Gonzales told the Mexican cavalry, “Come and Take It.” We are not the descendants of the weak and fearful. We rise to the occasion. The Dallas County GOP will rise to this occasion—and perhaps inspire a nation. Steadfast and Loyal, |
Steadfast and Loyal.
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