Monmouth County Republican Party
As we all know by now, the Monmouth County Repbulican Party has instituted a candidate selection screening process for all those wishing to seek the party line in upcoming elections. While I support the idea of a screening process as a means to put forth only the best and most qualified candidates, I question the process of including incumbents who have clearly established themselves as elected officials within the Republican Party.
*To ask an incumbent to appear before a committee in order to establish their vision for the future of Monmouth County is a good idea.
*To ask an incumbent to appear before a committee to question them about issues that may have compromised their ability to win a future election is a good idea.
However, to ask an incumbent, who has been elected to office by the people, who has proven that he/she is competent and capable of perfoming the functions of their office and whom by all accounts have done a terrific job, to appear before a committee against others within the party who simply wish to challenge them for their seat is not a good idea.
I do not believe in the Republican Party self-imposing "term limits" on ourselves. If we have (as we do now) qualified, competent and hard working incumbents representing us as a people and a party, we should not look to remove them.
In the past, we have all heard the stories of those that never got their chance to run for higher office because of the incumbents that remained in office for 20 or 30 plus years. However, we need to take a serious look around and realize the impact that these individuals had on our county and our party. Monmouth County is consistently ranked as one of the best counties to live in the entire United States. We have County parks, golf courses, open space and many other wonderful opportunites right in our own back yard. Financially, Monmouth County has maintained a "AAA" bond rating, we operate with a surplus while many other counties right next door to us operate in the red. Monmouth County is consistently offering grants for open space, parks and many other improvements necessary for municipalities to maintain a higher quality of life standard.
The Monmouth County Republican Party is responsible for the tremendous quality of life that all of us have come to expect and enjoy. All of this starts with our elected officials, our incumbents, past and present.
*To ask an incumbent to appear before a committee in order to establish their vision for the future of Monmouth County is a good idea.
*To ask an incumbent to appear before a committee to question them about issues that may have compromised their ability to win a future election is a good idea.
However, to ask an incumbent, who has been elected to office by the people, who has proven that he/she is competent and capable of perfoming the functions of their office and whom by all accounts have done a terrific job, to appear before a committee against others within the party who simply wish to challenge them for their seat is not a good idea.
I do not believe in the Republican Party self-imposing "term limits" on ourselves. If we have (as we do now) qualified, competent and hard working incumbents representing us as a people and a party, we should not look to remove them.
In the past, we have all heard the stories of those that never got their chance to run for higher office because of the incumbents that remained in office for 20 or 30 plus years. However, we need to take a serious look around and realize the impact that these individuals had on our county and our party. Monmouth County is consistently ranked as one of the best counties to live in the entire United States. We have County parks, golf courses, open space and many other wonderful opportunites right in our own back yard. Financially, Monmouth County has maintained a "AAA" bond rating, we operate with a surplus while many other counties right next door to us operate in the red. Monmouth County is consistently offering grants for open space, parks and many other improvements necessary for municipalities to maintain a higher quality of life standard.
The Monmouth County Republican Party is responsible for the tremendous quality of life that all of us have come to expect and enjoy. All of this starts with our elected officials, our incumbents, past and present.
posted by Charles Cocuzza at 7:37 PM
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