Endorsement in the 6th

I have met the 4 candidates a few times. The two that have been on the top of my list are two people that I believe are real while you talk to them. Phil Krinkie and Jay Esmay. I like both of them as people and could work on either of their campaigns without any internal conflict. The difference at this point for me is Jay's commitment to his word...as I have witnessed directly. I believe all 4 candidates can carry various parts of the GOP platform well, I believe that 3 candidates carry the conservative platform well and I believe that 2 of them, Krinkie and Esmay, have more of the necessary intangibles to win.

I have made my decision on who to support. Jay Esmay, I stand with you.

I agree with much of his platform. While I disagree strongly with some of his positions as articulated at the GOP Forum in November, those positions are a small percentage of the whole platform. Even with those that I disagree I have to admit his ideas for reform are creative and have a purpose. His ideas for term limits moved me from anti-term limits to his position.

Since we first interviewed all 5 candidates in August, wait, I take that back. Rewind even further.

When I first heard all 5 candidates speak at the BPOU convention back in April of 2005 I wondered if he could win. He was very rough around the edges and seemed to lack a certain necessary tact or respect for the quality of his opponents. The talk amongst the delegates was just that.

In August and September when we interviewed him I noticed a maturing of Jay as a candidate, but I still wondered if it could be fast enough to be credible as a candidate.

The November Forum proved me wrong. Jay Esmay has been a very fast study of being a credible candidate, a strong candidate and a candidate with integrity. By November he had matured beyond token candidate. He is formidable (or formidible, I do not care).


Electability and intellectual consistency are among these. Straight answers are a big factor to me and I believe to the average voter as well. That was one of the reasons Ventura did so well in 1998...straight answers. If you want examples of straight answers versus qualified answers go read the November GOP Forum recap.

Up until this past Sunday I could not decide between Jay and Phil. The fact that Jay stuck out his commitment to our show this past Sunday told me that he is willing to reach directly to all of the voters now. He spoke with any of the patrons at JP's Grille & Bar (which grew as the event drew on). I watched him move not just to hold his commitment to the event but a desire to reach anyone...not just "delegates"...who by the way, may not even be delegates after next Tuesday.

How impacting was Jay's presence? Many people were asking me for more information about him. People wanted to know how to support him.

All of this from this past Sunday are part of the intangibles that I believe will make the difference in the race for the endorsement. Great candidate, great platform and willing to meet not only with the delegates but all of the voters.