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Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2009 5:15 p.m.

Students sound off on Obama’s promise to end “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”

by Lauren French

President Barack Obama promised last Saturday night to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” but some activists on campus say he is merely rehashing past campaign vows and voiced frustrated with another promise to end the military policy without a timetable.

Speaking to an audience of nearly 3,000 people at a fundraising dinner for the Human Rights Campaign, a gay advocacy group, Obama said he would end the policy barring openly gay men and women from serving in the military, but gave no timeline for the policy reversal.

“I will end ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” Obama said. “That is my commitment to you.”

Openly gay students on campus say they are pleased the president acknowledged the discriminatory policy but say he still needs to fulfill campaign promises.

“This is by no means any great revelation,” sophomore Todd Belok said. “Only time will tell if he acts on his words.”

Belok was kicked out of GW’s Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps program last December after two fellow midshipmen saw him kiss another male at a party.

Read more…

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Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2009 11:13 a.m.

Joe Wilson, other congressmen chat with CRs

by Alex Byers

This post was written by Hatchet Reporter Kara Dunford.

Three U.S. congressmen joined members of the College Republicans as part of their Congressional Dinner Series in Mount Vernon’s Post Hall Tuesday night.

Congressmen Joe Wilson, R-S.C., Tom Price, R-Ga., and Jeff Fortenberry, R-Neb. were the CRs guests for the evening, and much of the discussion focused on the health care debate that has, Fortenberry said, “consumed so much of the nation’s energy.”

The discussion centered on the problems with the proposed public health care option, a choice the three Republicans called a “terrible idea.”

“There are significant reforms that need to be undertaken. If you do this by shifting the financing to a government-run system, you’re not necessarily going to reduce costs,” Fortenberry said. “You’re not necessarily going to improve the outcomes nor are you going to address any of the fundamental questions of providing innovation, preserving the best of what we have or strengthening the opportunity of affordability.”

Price stressed the need to return to “the principles” in the debate. Without focusing on the right principles, he said, the best reform for the nation will be impossible to reach.

“If you think about what your principles are for healthcare, you’ve got three.  Accessibility, affordability and quality,” he said. “I add three to those. I add responsiveness, innovation and choices.”

Price critiqued the public option, saying that government intervention will limit accessibility, overshoot costs, decrease quality and constrict choices.

“I would suggest to you that whatever principles you have, none of them are improved by the further intervention of the federal government. Not one,” he said. “When you’re talking about having a government option for health care, what are you asking the government to do? You’re asking the government to do something that violates every one of your principles.”

Wilson– who recently made headlines when he shouted “You lie!” during President Barack Obama’s address to a joint session of Congress – expressed his frustration about the lack of Republican involvement in the crafting of the health care bill.

“The bill was presented to us as 1,018 pages. The next day we began debate at 1,040 pages. It was absurd. That was our introduction to the bill,” he said. “Republicans were not included. [Democrats] really tried to wear us out.”

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Thursday, Sept. 10, 2009 3:49 p.m.

CRs to host Rep. Joe Wilson Oct. 6

by Amanda Dick

The GW College Republicans will host Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., who made headlines Wednesday night for his outburst during President Barack Obama’s speech, at Mount Vernon’s Post Hall on Oct. 6.

Wilson shouted, “You lie!” at Obama during his speech at a joint session of Congress about health care reform on Wednesday, a “breach of protocol” that drew criticism. Wilson issued an apology to Obama shortly after the speech, which the president accepted.

CR Communications Director Andrew Clark said Wilson will discuss health care reform and other big issues facing Congress on Oct. 6.

“Rep. Wilson’s outburst last night is proof of the heated passions lining up on both sides of the aisle on the health care debate. He has subsequently apologized appropriately, and we look forward to hearing his obviously energetic opinions on the subject of health care,” Clark said in an e-mail.

This event is part of the College Republicans Congressional Dinner Series, in which members of Congress will speak with students and discuss issues important to them in a panel-like format.

The College Republicans have previously interacted and established a relationship with Wilson during their 2007 campaign trip to Louisiana for Bobby Jindal’s gubernatorial campaign, Clark said.

The Wilson event is at 7 p.m. in Post Hall on the Mount Vernon campus. Doors for the will open at 6:30 pm. The event will be free and open to anyone who wishes to attend, but preference will be given to paid members of the College Republicans.

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Thursday, Sept. 3, 2009 6:52 p.m.

Jeb Bush to speak in the SMPA Oct. 21

by Amanda Dick

Jeb Bush, former Governor of Florida, will speak in the Jack Morton Auditorium on Oct. 21 for an event hosted by the College Republicans.

The CRs announced this event at their kickoff with Virginia candidate Bob McDonnell Wednesday night. Tickets are free and available to all students, but preference will be given to dues paying College Republicans members.

Bush is “very successful and popular. He is successful at taking Republican ideas and turning them into solid economic growth,” said Andrew Clark, the CR’s communications director.

Some political commentators have speculated about a possible presidential run in 2012 for Bush, the son of former U.S. President George Bush and brother of former U.S. president George W. Bush.

“This is one of the reasons he’ll be so well received [as a speaker],” Clark said. “There’s a lot of speculation about him running for president, and it’s kept him in headlines.”

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Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2009 9:30 p.m.

McDonnell’s graduate thesis shakes up Va. gubernatorial race

by The GW Hatchet

Hatchet Reporter Kara Dunford wrote this report.

Days before he is set to speak at the GW College Republican’s kickoff event, Virginia gubernatorial candidate Robert McDonnell’s 20-year-old graduate thesis sparked a controversy in the race to Richmond last weekend.

News of the thesis, entitled “The Republican Party’s Vision for the Family: The Compelling Issue of the Decade,” was first reported on Sunday by The Washington Post.  The thesis offers deeply conservative views on women in the workplace, homosexuals and religion in schools.

The CRs host McDonnell tomorrow night, but Communications Director Andrew Clark said he does not believe the news of the thesis will impact McDonnell’s appearance.

“[McDonnell] will be speaking to an audience of largely college students who understand that views are constantly changing and evolving.  We wouldn’t want something we say or write now to impact us in a race twenty, thirty or forty years in the future.”

Clark, who is also a Hatchet columnist pointed out it is not uncommon for views to change, citing a senior thesis Hillary Clinton wrote while she was a student at Wellesley College.

McDonnell fought back against the news of the thesis on Sunday night, saying his views have changed since his graduate school days.

Clark added he does not think the news of the thesis will be detrimental to McDonnell’s campaign, but rather believes it may have a positive outcome for McDonnell.

“I think it will actually help McDonnell,” he said. “In his campaign, he has focused on jobs and economic growth, something Virginians want to hear about.  It is Creigh Deeds who continues to bring up social issues, in an attempt to hide behind his weak position on jobs and economic issues, the critical issues of this campaign.”

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Monday, Aug. 17, 2009 1:31 p.m.

College Republicans will host Robert McDonnell at fall kickoff event

by Amanda Dick

The GW College Republicans will host Robert McDonnell, the Republican candidate for governor of Virginia, at their fall semester kickoff event, the organization announced Monday.

McDonnell will speak Sept. 2 at the Marvin Center. Doors for the event will open at 6:30 p.m. The event is open to all GW students, faculty and media who would like to attend. No tickets are required.

President Barack Obama won Virginia in the 2008 election, but McDonnell has gained considerable momentum for the state’s gubernatorial election this November. The most recent Washington Post poll of registered voters in Virginia had McDonnell leading the race, garnering 47 percent of the vote to Democrat Creigh Deeds’ 40 percent.

Obama was the first [edit: Democratic] presidential candidate in more than four decades to win Virginia.

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Thursday, Jan. 29, 2009 1:53 p.m.

YAF crosses defaced in MC, College Democrat takes responsibility

by Nat Grossman

This post was written by Hatchet Staff Writer Gabriella Schwarz.

Courtesy GW College Republicans.

Courtesy GW College Republicans.

A number of crosses used by the Young America’s Foundation during an anti-abortion event last week were defaced and left in a Marvin Center office, and a member of the College Democrats has taken responsibility.

Members of the College Republicans found the crosses on Monday evening scattered around the office they share with the College Democrats. One was pinned upside down on a bulletin board and draped with a condom, another featured a drawing of Jesus along with the words “pwned” and “lol,” and others were emblazoned with words like “Darwin” and “Amelia West,” the vice president of the CDs.

A CD statement Thursday morning said a member of their organization had stepped forward and apologized for the vandalism. The perpetrator was not named.

Courtesy GW College Republicans

“We respect and welcome individuals from all religious backgrounds, and we extend our sincerest apology to those who were offended by the actions of one of our members,” the release said. CD leaders declined to comment further.

YAF President Rob Lockwood said the incident has been reported to the University Police Department, and the crosses are now in the department’s custody.

The College Republicans also addressed the incident in a news release.

“The College Republicans are outraged by the desecration of Christian symbols that occurred in our shared office with the College Democrats,” the release stated.

College Republicans Chairman Brand Kroeger said he appreciated the College Democrats’ response.

“The leadership of the College Democrats has been very apologetic during our conversations and we look forward to resolving this situation,” he said.

Updated at 5 p.m.: University Spokesperson Tracy Schario said the student responsible has been identified by the University and will face disciplinary action under the Code of Student Conduct. UPD is investigating the incident further.

In a statement, University President Steven Knapp condemned the student’s actions.

“Such actions are unacceptable and utterly incompatible with the spirit of mutual respect that is essential to the life of an academic community,” he said.

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Friday, Nov. 21, 2008 5:57 p.m.

College Republicans travel to Georgia to campaign

by Emily Cahn

A handful of College Republicans will give up three days of their Thanksgiving break and travel to Georgia next Friday to campaign for Republican Sen. Saxby Chambliss.

The trip’s expenses–including travel, housing and food–are being paid for by the Republican National Committee said Brandon Hines, public relations director for the CRs. The trip is an attempt to save the seat after the Senate election was forced into runoff between Chambiss and the Democratic challenger, Jim Martin, after neither candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote.

Jake Wolfe, treasurer of the CRs, said it has been difficult to recruit GW Republicans to go to Georgia due to the timing. At the latest count, only five students have agreed to go on the free trip.

“I have had a lot of trouble recruiting people to try and give up their Thanksgiving break,” Wolfe said. “They would also be missing Monday and Tuesday of classes as well and it’s the last week of classes.”

Going to Georgia is one of many campaigning trips that members of the CRs have participated in this semester including trips to VA, Penn., Ohio, and Fla., however Wolfe said this trip is especially important.

“Speaking as a Republican, we just lost Alaska giving the Democrats 58 seats if you include Joe Lieberman and Bernie Sanders who are Independents,” said Wolfe. “And then with Minnesota, if Republicans end up losing that than 59 seats not counting Georgia. If we lost Georgia as well that would give Democrats 60 seats and the ability to end any filibuster that the Republicans tried to initiate.”

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Thursday, Nov. 13, 2008 3:39 a.m.

CDs and CRs spend more than $10,000 on programming

by Emily Cahn

Both the College Democrats and College Republicans spent more than $10,000 on programming during the run-up to last week’s historic presidential election, according to records released by the Student Association.

Student organization financial records became available to the public after the SA passed a bill aiming to increase transparency in the financial process earlier this year. While both organizations utilized the SA co-sponsorship account, a large majority of their funds came from outside sources.

Brand Kroeger, chairman of the CRs said his organization received thousands of dollars in donations from organizations like the Institute for Politics and Democracy and the alumni house.

“In addition to that we have, outside of the Student Association, raised about $10,000,” said Kroeger, a senior.

Troy Timmer, finance director of the CDs, said his organization spend $14,000 on programming this semester, with a majority of those funds coming from the organization’s revenue account.

Both organizations, however, utilized the SA co-sponsorship fund in their programming.

According to financial documents, the CDs received $1,500 in co-sponsorships in addition to their $10,000 initial allocation. The CRs received $9,000 in co-sponsorships in addition to their $10,000 initial allocation.

The financial documents attribute the large difference in co-sponsorship amounts to the CR’s event with Former Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott.

Even though the elections are over, both organizations said they plan on scheduling more programming throughout the rest of the year.

“It has been our overall strategy to have enough money at the end of the semester to put on great programming equal to or better than what we have already done so far,” Timmer said.

He added, “We are currently planning a way to celebrate the election results in our successful efforts in getting a big turnout in the Senate and our campaign efforts in the House. So we will hopefully have some type of programming celebrating relating to that.”

Timmer also said the CDs will play a large role in planning the Inaugural Ball.

While McCain did not win the election, Kroeger said the CRs are also going to hold events relating to Inauguration Day.

“I sit on the Inaugural Ball Committee and the College Republicans are playing a roll,” Kroeger said. “We are planning on decorating a room at the ball. In addition to that we are probably going to do a farewell event for George W. Bush on January 20th when he flies away from the White House.”

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Saturday, Oct. 25, 2008 9:24 p.m.

Braving the rain for McCain

by Nat Grossman

This post was written by Jonathan Ewing

WILKES-BARRE, Pa. (Oct. 25) – This overcast Saturday morning began over hotel coffee and talk of strong rain in the forecast.

“The rain doesn’t stop John McCain. It doesn’t stop the Republican party, and it’s not going to stop us from winning the state,” said junior Connor Walsh.

The coalition of GW and Georgetown College Republicans then returned to the Luzerne County GOP Headquarters at around 9:30am to remind just over 1200 registered Republicans and Independents to get to the polls on Nov. 4.

“They love their volunteers too much to send us out in to the rain and get pneumonia,” senior Cielo Villasenor said. “ But if they wanted us to, we would probably do it.”

And they did. Four vans set out with teams of four and five to knock on doors under the cover of umbrellas.

The rest of the evening was spent back on the phones, using accents and pseudonyms such as Albert Gore and Stephen Trachtenberg for comic relief while reciting a script. It’s estimated the College Republicans made a weekend total of 6000 calls.

Tomorrow morning will again be split between the “call bank” and doing last-minute canvassing for John McCain and Chris Hackett before heading home.

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