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GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) The Guilford County Republican Party has a day and a time for when it will vote on the person it wants to fill the District 3 seat on the Guilford County Board of Education in time for Septembers meeting and confirmed the spot is open to any resident of District 3 who wants to be considered.

That process may or may not include the Republican currently in the seat, Bill Goebel, whom the GC GOP doesnt think should have the job because he wasnt chosen by the party committee to fill the remainder of the term vacated when Pat Tillman was elected to the Guilford County Board of Commissioners.

An email distributed by the party on Friday confirmed what Chair Chris Meadows had told WGHP that the party would have a new vote about filling the seat and is inviting any district resident who wants to apply to send an email and it set Aug. 30 as the day and time for that vote. Meadows said the meeting would be limited to party members only.

This follows the North Carolina General Assemblys approval last week of Senate Bill 9, which includes language requiring the seat to be vacated by Goebel immediately after a new nominee is chosen by the partys executive committee, which is what GOP officials have argued all along.

The party, in its email, suggests that once the committee makes its recommendation to the Superintendent of Guilford County Schools in accordance with the law, that individual shall take the oath of office at the next regular meeting of the Board. The Board has no vote or voice in the matter.

A squabble that began in December, when the board turned down the partys original nominee, former teacher Michael Logan, ended April 4 with Goebel, who also volunteered, being seated. This process included another bill, House Bill 88, in which the school districts lawyer found a loophole that allowed Goebel to get the position.

A spokesperson for the school district referred questions about where the board stands on this issue to Jill Wilson, the boards attorney, who didnt respond immediately to an email seeking comment. Neither did Board Chair Deena Hayes.

Goebel, who last week launched his candidacy for the full-term seat in the 2024 election cycle, has not said if he will participate in next weeks selection, although he mentioned that the party had censured him following his appointment.

Goebel was in a meeting on Monday morning and unavailable to answer questions. He had said last week that our position is there is no vacancy to fill.

In the email, the GC GOP said that its leaders think the party all along has been compliant with the law but chose to work through the legislative process initiated by Rep. Jon Hardister (R-Guilford) and Senate Leader Phil Berger (R-Rockingham), whose district includes some of the same area as District 3, over objections from Democrats in the Guilford County delegation rather than cost the taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars with a possible lawsuit against a public board.

As the Chairman of the Guilford County Republican Party, I find the actions of the Board Democrats and the illegally appointed representative repugnant, Meadows said in a statement. Not only did the Board Chair and other Board members slander Mr. Michael Logan, a 25-year, beloved GCS teacher, they disrespected the two Republican Board members Ms. Crissy Pratt and Ms. Linda Welborn, undermined the NC General Assembly, and disenfranchised the citizens in District 3 for months.

The Guilford County Republican Party, as a dignified assembly, will not tolerate pernicious schemes and illegal backroom deals.

Logan served some 27 years as an automotive instructor at Southern Guilford High School and retired to fulfill the requirement that a teacher cant be seated on the board of education.

But since December the board had rejected Logan in four party-line votes because the six Democrats objected to some of Logans public statements. In a letter to the News & Recordearlier this year, Hayes had asked that the GOP put forward candidates who had not engaged in racially prejudiced writing, who seek to embody the values a board of education member should hold and who have expressed an interest in representing District 3.

Welborn, Pratt and Logan have sued the party is soliciting donations to cover their legal expenses because they feel that Hayes, the Democrats on the board and Goebel violated the states open meetings law through a series of communications that led to the process even though Goebel is an avowed Republican and fiscal conservative.

Their suit names as individuals Goebel and those six Democrats Khem Irby, Bettye Jenkins, Deborah Napper, Allen Sherouse, T. Dianne Bellamy Small and Hayes and the Guilford County School Board at large.

Welborn has not responded to emails asking about the status of that suit a Guilford County Superior Court judge is considering the school boards motion to dismiss and Meadows has told WGHP that he thought it was moving forward.

We are assisting in the fundraising for the plaintiffs but are not a party to the lawsuit, Meadows said last week. This lawsuit is about the violations of the NC Open Meetings law. It will move forward, as far as Im aware. I have not heard that they are dropping it.

Meadows also indicated he didnt expect the school board to be suing the GC GOP about this issue. Any legal action would be directed at the General Assembly, he said. The Guilford GOP did not pass this law.

With the passage of SB 9, the GCRP Executive Committee will ensure that the lawful Republican nominee will be seated at the next Board meeting, Meadows said in the release.

Link:
Guilford County Republicans set a date to make their choice for District 3 seat on the school board again - WGHP FOX8 Greensboro

Dive Brief:

The legislative proposal likely has no chance of passing politically divided Congress, but it does signal some Republicans position on the Education Department.

The rightwing has argued the federal government should play a minimal role in education policy and accused the Biden administration of overreach, including through his signature proposals like student loan forgiveness.

Education decisions should instead fall to local and state authorities, as well as parents, the bill sponsors said.

Parents should play a central role in their childrens education, not the federal government, Rep. Mary Miller of Illinois said in a statement. I am proud to stand with House Republicans in their effort to hold the Biden Department of Education accountable to parents and taxpayers.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a GOP contender for the 2024 presidential election, has pledged to abolish the Education Department, along with several other federal agencies.

The Education Department has struggled with staffing in recent years. Department employees fled under the Trump administration, leaving the agency struggling as it tries to fulfill major policy goals.

The Education Department's Federal Student Aid office, for instance, is under immense strain as it carries out regulatory changes, rolls out a new Free Application for Federal Student Aid Form, and restarts payments for student loan borrowers.

Continued here:
House Republicans' bill would freeze Education Department hiring - K-12 Dive

COLUMBUS, Ohio Ohio Republicans are divided on the effort to legalize marijuana for recreational use in the state.

Just because they belong to the same party doesn't mean they have to agree on everything which is exactly what is happening right now with weed.

Recreational marijuana may become legal this November and many Ohio Republicans aren't happy about it.

"It would be a mistake," Governor Mike DeWine said.

He has always been anti-recreational weed. He opposes the ballot issue that would legalize marijuana for adults 21 and up. If passed, Ohioans could also grow up to six marijuana plants. In addition, the proposal would impose a 10% tax at the point of sale for each transaction.

RELATED: Recreational marijuana makes Ohio's Nov. ballot, joining abortion rights amendment

"This product has been developed and its potency is significantly higher than it was years ago," DeWine said. "It's not your grandfather's marijuana or your grandmother's marijuana."

Legalization will only tell kids that drugs are okay, the governor added.

"Even though they might not be able to use it until they're 18 or 21... the message you're sending to a 13-year-old is, 'well, look, it's legal'" he said. "That is reinforced every time the 13-year-old is in the car with mom or dad and they go by a shop at least in Denver with a little green man."

RELATED: Advocates say budding careers will grow if Ohio legalizes marijuana this November

Not everyone in his party feels the same. Statehouse reporter Morgan Trau tried to ask the governor a few times about this.

"I dont speak for them and they dont speak for me," DeWine said, cutting Trau's question off.

Republican state Rep. Jamie Callender (R-Concord) has put forward legislation to legalize adult use. His bill is very similar to the current ballot proposal, which he supports.

"Cannabis has some very legitimate uses, whether it's pain relief, whether it's an alternative to alcohol," Callender said. "I don't know that we have any business legislating or certainly making criminal."

He responded to the governor that marijuana may be more potent, but it's actually safer now.

"Any cannabis that would be sold in any form would be tested in a pharmaceutical quality lab," Callender added. "And in Mike DeWine's grandfather's day that was not the case."

Callender isnt the only supporter either; other GOP lawmakers like Ron Ferguson (R-Wintersville) support legalization. The approval isn't limited to state politics.

"Congressman Joyce plans to vote yes and thinks its important that all Ohioans make their voices heard in November," a spokesperson for Congressman Dave Joyce (R-OH) said.

Callender is concerned that even if it passes, Ohioans still won't get recreational marijuana.

"There are a number of legislators who have publicly commented that they will block marijuana in any way they can and that could possibly mean overturning the will of the voters," he said.

This is a bad idea, he said.

"I think that would be politically ill-advised especially after Issue 1 just failed so strongly for the legislature to override the clear will of the people," the lawmaker added.

Callender was one of the few Republicans who opposed the unpopular Issue 1 when it was going through the House process to get on the ballot. The Northeast Ohio Republican is also one of the most moderate, which makes sense given his Cleveland-area constituents. He often opposes the most controversial bills, like one restricting healthcare for transgender youth that also banned trans kids from playing middle and high school sports.

The General Assembly is able to repeal a ballot proposal when the issue is an initiated statute. This differs from the abortion proposal, which is a constitutional amendment.

This means that lawmakers are technically able to repeal the proposal the day after it passes.

When asking Senate President Matt Huffman, avidly anti-marijuana, his team said it was too early to tell, and to let November happen first.

"Those are just not good things that we need to see in the state of Ohio," DeWine said.

GOP Divide

Despite having a dominant supermajority, Ohio Republicans don't or rather can't use it.

The House GOP is completely divided due to the speakership "coup" that happened in Jan. Twenty-two Republicans (known "affectionately" by the other faction as the "Blue 22") voted for state Rep. Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) for speaker, while the majority of Republicans voted for state Rep. Derek Merrin (R-Monclova). Stephens, still a conservative, is more moderate than Merrin.

The anti-Stephens faction has been relentless in fighting Stephens at every opportunity. Stephens has had to rely on Democrats, the majority of the lawmakers who voted for him as speaker, to get his work done like passing the House rules. The budget was bipartisan, with Finance Chairman Jay Edwards (R-Nelsonville) working closely with state Rep. Bride Rose Sweeney (D-Cleveland).

The latest drama is with the effort to repeal scandal-ridden, taxpayer-funded subsidies for coal plants.

RELATED: Ohio Statehouse drama continues as lawmakers attempt to repeal scandal-ridden coal plant subsidies

Other recent GOP divides include:

Follow WEWS statehouse reporter Morgan Trau on Twitter and Facebook.

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Ohio Republicans split on Nov. marijuana legalization and could ... - News 5 Cleveland WEWS

Next year Nevada Democratic U.S. Rep. Susie Lee will try to do something no Nevadan has ever done: Win the states 3rd Congressional District for a fourth time.

Republican Jon Porter, the first person to win election to the seat in 2002 after the district was created following the 2000 Census, was reelected twice, but was denied a fourth term when he was defeated by Democrat Dina Titus in 2008.

Two years later in 2010, the year of the Tea Party and dramatic Democratic congressional losses nationwide, Titus was defeated by Republican Joe Heck, who would serve three terms before leaving the seat to lose a U.S. Senate race to Catherine Cortez Masto in 2016.

That same year, Jacky Rosen was plucked from relative political obscurity by Harry Reid and the Reid machine, and won seat Heck left open by defeating Republican opponent Danny Tarkanian.

Two years later, in 2018, the Reid machine again turned to Rosen, this time to challenge successfully Republican Dean Heller for the U.S. Senate.

And that same year, the Reid machine tapped Susie Lee to fill Rosens shoes in CD3. The Republican opponent was once again Tarkanian, who lost to Lee by a bigger margin than he had lost to Rosen.

Lee has since dispatched Republican challengers Dan Rodimer, in 2020, and April Becker, in 2022.

Monday, Republican Assemblywoman Heidi Kasama Nevada Realtor of the Year, 2015, according to her bio on the states legislative website announced she will run in the Republican primary for the chance to challenge Lee in the general election in 2024. She joins Drew Johnson, a policy researcher and advocate on the professional right, and Elizabeth Helgelien, who, then known as Elizabeth Halseth, served a portion of a single term in the state Senate before resigning in 2012. Steven London has also filed with the Federal Election Commission as a candidate in CD3.

Between the two of them, Porter and Heck won six of the first seven elections for the CD3 seat, and some of those by very comfortable margins over the Democratic opposition. Even during those years, however, relatively close voter registration numbers prompted both parties to perennially view CD3 as a swing district, and both parties have continued to view the district as competitive.

But between Rosen and Lee, Democrats have won it four times in a row, ever since Heck relinquished the seat to run for Senate in 2016. State legislative Democrats redrew the district following the 2020 census to make it more Democratic, a move that many including Democratic Rep. Dina Titus considered rash at the time, as it also rendered Tituss traditionally safe first congressional district much more competitive.

As it turned out, the Democratic redistricting gambit paid off in 2022, as Lee, Titus, and Democratic Rep. Steven Horsford all won reelection. Democrats hope the redistricting pays off yet again next year, while Republicans hope they can keep Lee from being the first person to win CD3 four times.

See the original post:
Republicans line up to deprive Lee of a 4th term - Nevada Current

By Victor Reklaitis

Democrats largely close ranks behind Joe Biden for 2024, but Marianne Williamson and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. are challenging the president

The 2024 Republican presidential field stands at a dozen relatively well-known contenders, having grown crowded in June as five candidates officially announced their White House runs.

Former U.S. Rep. Will Hurd of Texas entered the race on June 22, following Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, who launched his bid on June 14.

In early June, former Vice President Mike Pence, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and current North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum all formally kicked off their campaigns.

Meanwhile, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said in May that he won't be on the presidential campaign trail in 2023 because of elections for his state's legislature in November, but he appears to have left the door open for a 2024 White House run.

In the latest polls of Republican primary voters, former President Donald Trump has a big lead, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis a distant second.

Below is MarketWatch's list of Republican presidential contenders and the status of their candidacies.

The first official debate of the GOP presidential primary is slated to be held in Milwaukee on Wednesday night. The party's White House hopefuls will to try to chip away at Trump's big advantage in their race, even as the frontrunner himself said he'll skip the debate.

Read more:Non-Trump Republican presidential candidates to try for 'breakout moment' in this week's debate

And see:Republican presidential debate: What time it starts, how to watch and more

The second debate is scheduled to take place Sept. 27 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California, and the Republican Party has raised the qualification bar for that event.

Trump has grabbed the spotlight throughout August thanks to his widely followed indictments in Washington, D.C., and Georgia's Fulton County in election-interference cases tied to his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential race's result. He has denied wrongdoing and argued the charges are politically motivated, as he did with his spring indictments in a hush-money case and a classified-documents case.

Related:Trump's PAC has spent $40 million on legal fees so far this year

And see: How DeSantis is leading Trump in cash on hand, even as the former president dominates in polls

On the Democratic side, President Joe Biden officially launched his re-election campaign in April, even as most Americans don't approve of his performance. The president has been talking up the strong job market and his legislative record.

In addition to the relatively high-profile names on the list above, there are some lesser-known GOP presidential hopefuls as well, such as Aaron Day, who is known in part for his 2016 run against former Sen. Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, a fellow Republican; Perry Johnson, a former gubernatorial candidate in Michigan; Steve Laffey, a former mayor of Cranston, R.I.; and former Montana Secretary of State Corey Stapleton.

A number of other Republican politicians have been talked about as potential 2024 contenders but have not said they are running. That group includes Texas Gov. Greg Abbott; John Bolton, a former national-security adviser and former ambassador to the United Nations; and former Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, who has run an ad in New Hampshire, a key state.

Among the prominent Republicans who have said they're not seeking their party's presidential nomination in 2024 are Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu.

From MarketWatch's archives (September 2022): In a conversation with MarketWatch, Vivek Ramaswamy says companies should 'leave politics to the politicians'

Democrats are largely closing ranks behind Biden, although author and activist Marianne Williamson has said she's seeking the party's nomination again and vigorously defended her decision to challenge the president in an extensive question-and-answer session with MarketWatch. Antivaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is also mounting a long-shot challenge to Biden and held a kickoff event for his campaign in April. And Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota has said he's being urged to consider a White House run.

Among third-party candidacies, Cornel West, a former Ivy League professor now at Union Theological Seminary, has announced that he's a presidential candidate for the People's Party and that he's seeking the Green Party's nomination. In addition, a group called No Labels has been considering a "unity ticket" for 2024, saying that a rematch between Biden and Trump would be "the sequel that no one asked for," but a Politico report said the group would not submit a third-party challenger if DeSantis becomes the Republican nominee.

Now read:Nikki Haley says 'no Republican president will have the ability to ban abortion nationwide'

And see: Biden's age is figuring 'prominently' in the 2024 White House race -- but here's what the pundits could be getting wrong

Plus:Billionaire investor Bill Ackman says JPMorgan's Jamie Dimon should run for president

MarketWatch's Robert Schroeder contributed to this article.

-Victor Reklaitis

This content was created by MarketWatch, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. MarketWatch is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

08-21-23 1611ET

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Here are the Republicans running for president in 2024, as their first ... - Morningstar