Chaos erupted in Jackson County Missouri Republican Central Committee as RINOs Admonished and then Silenced New Grassroots Committee Members
Jackson County, Missouri is the second largest county in Missouri and consists of over 600 square miles of land and over 717,000 in population. It is the most populated county in the Kansas City area.
In September 2022, a group of newly elected Grassroots conservatives joyfully met for their first meeting to elect a chairperson of the Jackson County Missouri Republican Central Committee. Several people campaigned for the chair position, but one, in particular, stood out, Mark Anthony Jones who conveyed to the committee he was determined to get the county back on the right track, help with the schools and support the new committee members and candidates find their way through the labyrinth of the whole political spectrum. Jones was elected GOP chairperson.
Only a month went by when one of the committee members found that several Establishment Republicans, including Senator Mike Cierpiot from Jackson County, voted to fund Planned Parenthood. Because of this proposed funding of Planned Parenthood, Missouri’s “Right-to-Life,” who had previously endorsed these Republicans, pulled their endorsement.
Then in short order, a new entity arose, one without any prior history of pro-life presence, but named “Missouri-Pro-Life” quickly endorsed those Establishment Republicans that lost their previous endorsement from Missouri’s “Right-to-Life.”
The Gateway Pundit addressed this issue in an article dated August 26, 2022.
At the October 2022 Jackson County Republican Central Committee meeting, 58% of the committee members, in support of Missouri-Right-to-Life endorsement removal, voted to also un-endorse Senator Cierpiot. After the vote and in anger with the committee, Chairman Jones abruptly closed the meeting and left the room. On the committee’s website, there was no indication showing the majority of the committee members’ decision to remove Cierpiot’s endorsement. Months later, at a budget meeting, Jones was asked why the committee’s website had no mention of Cierpiot’s un-endorsement and Jones replied, he felt the committee was wrong and said he made the decision to not let the committee’s motion be recognized.
From October 2022 through this last meeting in February of the New Year, the situation with the committee and Jones went from bad to worse.
In January 2023, three Missouri legislative bills were introduced, two of the bills were sponsored by Jackson County Establishment Republicans. All these bills appear to be designed to diminish Missouri’s Grassroots base.
1. Senate Bill 16, would create weighted average voting in the Jackson County Central Committee with the apparent goal to disenfranchise those committee members from the more conservative rural districts while benefiting those Republicans living in more densely populated districts, where liberal ideology is more generally accepted.
The Gateway Pundit addressed this issue in an article dated on January 23, 2023.
2. Joint House Bill 31, if passed, would remove one of the historic pillars of the Republican platform. This bill’s purpose appears to be to fracture the Republican base forcing the more conservative members to accept a more liberal ideology or leave the party. Fracturing the Republican base, by default, gives the Democrats more power.
3. House Bill 781 calls for the Missouri state voters, who now have the option to affiliate with a specific political party, to totally remove the party affiliation option, making things easier for future candidates, ideologically aligned with one party, to “switch” parties, obfuscating an individual’s historic party affiliation and essentially making the road easier for a Democrat to run as a Republican.
Many of the Jackson County Central Committee members wanted to censure these individuals, but Jones refused any such action and actually accused concerned committee members of personally attacking him.
On January 22, 2023, at a committee budget meeting, Jones fumed against the committee for not supporting the Establishment Republicans. Jones blamed the members for the dire financial straits of the committee. He felt the committee was not making enough of an effort to fundraise. Based upon Jones’s negative position against a number of committee members, one committee member commented “When members of our own party are advancing policy that is in more accord with Democrats than Republicans, they have forsaken the oath they took to faithfully represent us who voted for them.”
Jones’ disregard for committee member only increased the growing frustration that had been brewing for months. The committee members started to communicate with each other. Their goal was to have, at the February meeting, a full dialogue of the incomprehensible disregard of the Republican platform and Jones’ complete refusal to allow even a discussion.
When the February 27, 2023, Jackson County Central Committee meeting came around, Jones – who did not wish for an open dialog on this issue and, in order to have total control of the meeting, first had a vote to close the meeting at 8:30 pm. The majority of the committee voted against ending the meeting at 8:30 pm because, the last meeting agenda item, was the discussion NOT to abandon an important pillar of the Republican platform. The committee wanted sufficient time to allow for this discussion.
Chairman Jones, then proceeded to stall the meeting with a lengthy diatribe on the “State of the County Address” where Jones alternately praised various entities outside the committee and then admonished the committee. Jones indicated his extreme disappointment with the committee, then turned around and asked for donations. Jones said the committee members were not sufficiently fundraising or recruiting new members.
Jones started to cry, then told the committee this past month he was only able to earn $1,000 for himself. He then proceeded to inform the committee he received a speeding ticket, told the committee he knows many wanted him to step down, but he was not going to do so. After his extended criticism on the failures of the committee members, he gave the committee several minutes to read the committee’s concerns related to the unwanted change to the Republican platform and then permitted two minutes for discussion. After the two minutes were up, Jones removed the microphone from the speaker and turned the meeting over to another individual who read a long letter about the committee not having any authority to admonish elected officials. Once this long letter was read, Chairman Jones BANGED his gavel and closed the meeting. Most of the committee members were shocked and dismayed at Jones’ behavior and his complete disregard for the majority of the committee.
In summary, Jones did not allow committee members to comment and contribute to the political process. He admonished and berated the committee members. Jones and his Executive Board members conspired and forced the meeting into a dictatorial pre-arranged and executed closing – all planned to marginalize and silence the Grassroots committee members.
Chairman Jones’ total contempt for the new Grassroot committee members is endemic of the Establishment Republican’s disdain of Grassroots conservatives. Democrats are running as Republicans because it is their only way to win and then they get upset when conservatives call them out on their idiotic proposals. It’s time for individuals like Jones to resign their positions in the GOP.
