Chip Saltsman Conference Call

Following is a rough transcript of a blogger call with former Huckabee campaign manager and current candidate to be chair of the Republican National Committee, Chip Saltsman.

(At the beginning of the call, Chip was chatting with the others on the call and referred to them as a “faithful band of brothers” … I took exception with that reference and found out that Chip had been to my blog, because he said “hey, I like the snow you’ve got going on your blog”). OK, now to the important stuff …

Chip: Today we officially announced our campaign for the RNC chair at the state capitol in Tennessee, with Bill Frist and Ron Ramsey in attendance. (Chip was the chair of the republican party in Tennessee.). We proved again and again in Tennessee that we can stand against opposition and win, and we will do that nationally. In 2002, Sen. Frist asked me to come to Washington DC to help with midterm elections.

Had a great time on the Huckabee campaign. It was an honor and a priviledge to work with Mike Huckabee. After the campaign, I came back to Nashville and settled back into my job in venture capital, then the RNC chair position came up. I’ve been to 12 states in the last 2 weeks, and will be heading out again in the next couple of days.

Opened up for discussion:

Matt Lewis (Townhall.com): are you a pilot and that will help you meet more members?

Chip: I have a small, 4 seater plane and that does help me get to more states in less time.

Robert Bluey (Bluey Blog): You have endorsed the “rebuild the party” platform. Why do you think that’s important?

Chip: I love that so many people have gotten involved in such an important issue. Technology is giving us a way to win in new ways – it is much more than how many emails a campaign has. We need to grow two-way communicating … living breathing communities online. That’s what blogs do everyday. We have to use new tools, such as Houdini (which Obama used). We have to be careful as a party not to focus on catching up, we need to focus on leap-frogging ahead into the next generation tools (not just doing what Obama has already done).

Jason Tolbert (Tolbert Report): You’re trying to appeal to the votes of about 168 people, so what role do the people play in this election?

Chip: The grassroots have to let these folks know what we are looking for in the next chairman and in the new republican party. You may not have a vote, but you have a voice that is crucial. Of course I would love everyone to be behind me, but more important that they get involved in growing the republican party.

Kevin Tracy: On the topic of winning against incumbent democrats, who do you think is vulnerable in 2010?

Chip: There’s a mindset in Washington that you don’t run against democrat leadership, but I don’t agree with that. The leadership needs to know that we are going to put forth strong, viable candidates in every election. It is important to run against democratic leadership, whoever they are.

(The Examiner?) Your ties to Mike Huckabee …. people are looking at the RNC chair candidates as if they are there just to hawk their candidate. How do you address that?

Chip: First, I was proud to work for Mike Huckabee for 13 months – it’s part of my resume, but it doesn’t define me politically. I’m not sure if you look at my history that you’d think I was a Huckabee guy … more would probably associate me with Bill Frist or Lamar Alexander. Initially, the complete focus is not on 2012, but on the 2010 and taking back seats in the Congress and at the state levels. The only politician I agree with 100% of the time, is me.

Truman: How’s the best way to handle illegal immigration issue as a party?

Chip: Secure the borders, period. We are a country of laws, and we must enforce those laws. If we have any illegal immigration policy that does not follow those two principles, we’ll go nowhere. It’s important to be able to have a civil discussion about these issues with all sides.

Matt Lewis: What’s your take on the Politico article about the south being big in the RNC race?

Chip: Well, I hate to tell you Matt, but I don’t agree with it. We have to compete in every election. The south is more of a press driven issue.

Rob Bluey: What’s your stance on the auto bailout?

Chip: I couldn’t have been more proud of Bob Corker and he how handled the Q & A with the big three. I think this is one of those issues that is simple for the GOP – we shouldn’t be in the business of bailing out companies. It is not on the list of what the federal government should be doing. I’m hoping the republican colleagues will stand up and vote no.

Kerry (OneMom): How do we reach the folks that will be voting for the chair position?

Chip: every state has three votes )state party chair and two national committee members), go to the GOP website, and click on your state to get contact information for your state’s votes. (The vote will be at the winter meeting, January 28 – 30, 2009 in Washington DC).

Alex (Politico); what is Sen. Frist doing for your campaign?

Chip: He’s been very supportive and will be making calls in the future.

I missed the last two questions on the call. Chip did mention that as Chair, he will be working on candidate recruitment for more than just Washington, also at state levels, even mayors. For more information about Chip and his campaign, please visit ChipSaltsman.com

OneMom