Mark Willis, one of the 10 national delegates from Maine who were stripped of their credentials by the Credentials Committee at the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida, has announced he is running for the chairmanship of the Republican National Committee. Willis, who is Maine’s national committeeman, told The New American he currently has the backing of two state delegations and needs one more state delegation to have his name placed in nomination at the RNC’s 2013 Winter Meeting in Charlotte, North Carolina, January 23 to 26.
Willis believes the grassroots of the Republican Party have been damaged by too much centralization of power. He wants the 2012 rules change that was adopted by a controversial voice vote declared null and void. He believes the chair of the convention was wrong in not conducting a roll call vote as requested by a number of delegates.
When interviewed by The New American, Willis was asked his opinion of the different means of coercion that were used by party leaders to force delegates to the 2012 Republican National Convention to vote for presidential candidates of the party leaders’ choosing. Willis said: “Under my chairmanship, I’d never ask anyone to sign a loyalty oath to any particular candidate. I believe that is absurd.”
Willis acknowledges the primary responsibilities of RNC chairman have typically been managing costs and soliciting donations, but he believes the Republican Party’s current problems go deeper. Willis believes he can unite the party by working with the strong advocates of adherence to the U.S. Constitution, many of whom were alienated by establishment Republicans during the 2012 presidential caucuses.
Many of Willis’ positions can be found at the website: http://stepdownnow.com/
