From Saul Alinsky Rules for Radicals: In the beginning, the organizer’s first job is to create the issues or problems.
The mudslinging in the race for the Sixth Congressional District Chair has gotten extremely nasty as of late, with bizarre allegations being made about potential conflict of interest charges against Scott Sayre for having hired Cynthia Dunbar as a consultant for his factory in Buena Vista. Mr. Sayre’s opponent, Jennifer Brown, has called on Mr. Sayre to resign because he hired Mrs. Dunbar to work for him.
First off, there is no law that I’m aware of saying that one person cannot hire another person for a job. For the record, even though I am the head of the Shenandoah County Tea Party (or was till recently) does that mean I am barred from having hired former DC councilman Harold Brazil to be a lawyer on my behalf? I hardly think so. And for the record, Sayre Enterprises only hired Mrs. Dunbar before she was running for Congress – not after she was. If Sayre Enterprises knew or did not know she was running for Congress or considering doing so was immaterial.
Second, Mr. Sayre has also hired other people, including Craig Storrs, to work for Sayre Enterprises. Mr. Storrs, who worked for Sayre Inc in 2017, has endorsed Jennifer Brown. Does that mean that Mr. Sayre committed a conflict of interest by hiring Mr. Storrs as well? I don’t think so. Mr. Sayre likely hired Mr. Storrs because Mr. Storrs had a talent which Sayre Enterprises needed. And Craig Storrs has the right to endorse Jennifer Brown if he sees fit. And Jennifer Brown has the right to use that endorsement. So it seems to me that if we are going to hold Jennifer Brown to the same rules that we are going to hold Scott Sayre to, then Jennifer Brown should rebuff Mr. Storrs’ endorsement because it is tainted.
See where I’m going here – this whole thing should be a joke – but it’s being played all over social media because the Old Guard of the Sixth District GOP has nothing else to offer.
Third, the fact is that Sayre has NOT endorsed anyone for Congress – and even if he had – so what? Scott Sayre has the right to endorse anyone he wants for Congress – but he has not. He has however said some very nice things about Elliott Pope and Mike Desjadon – both of whom are running for the same seat that Cynthia Dunbar and Ben Cline and Chaz Haywood and several others are running for. I am the 6th Magisterial District Chair of the Shenandoah County GOP. I endorsed Ed Gillespie for Governor in 2017. My position is not as prestigious as Scott Sayre’s but it is a recognized position in the Sixth Congressional District GOP. Oddly enough, Jennifer Brown supporters like Roger Jarrell and never minded when I endorsed Ed Gillespie for Governor and worked on his behalf during the primary. I was allowed to do so, because everyone understood this was a private endorsement – NOT A SHENANDOAH COUNTY GOP OR STRASBURG GOP ENDORSEMENT. And there is a huge difference – one that people who support Jennifer Brown either are too blind or too stupid to understand. And didn’t Roger Jarrell, who refers to himself as Jennifer Brown’s fiancée, endorse Ed Gillespie while he was head of the Rockbridge/Lexington GOP? If you go down the list of endorsements for Ed Gillespie, you’ll see several people who have also endorsed Jennifer Brown. Including members of the current RPV State Central Committee. So shouldn’t Ms. Brown, in all fairness, require that Nancy Dye not endorse anyone or that Ms. Dye step down from her position on SCC? Of course not – because Ms. Dye is endorsing Jennifer Brown as a person, not on behalf of the SCC.
Sounds to me like the members of Team Brown are behind in the delegate count. Certainly too many members of Team Jennifer and the Sixth District Old Guard have learned from Saul Alinsky and are doing everything they can do to divide the party when we need unity the most.
