CRNC

You've got to love young conservatives. Stick them in front of a computer and hilarity ensues. Whether it's gangsta raps about Ayn Rand, or this latest missive from the College Republican National Committee (emphasis mine):

From: Zach Howell, College Republicans
Date: Fri, Jun 19, 2009 at 1:49 PM
Subject: Closing STORM

One year and over 200,000 members later, I'm pleased to announce that STORM, the College Republican's social activism network has successfully served its purpose and has now been closed as scheduled.

STORM proved to be a successful utility to organize our membership, coordinate the Fall 2008 field program, and keep in communication with our 200,000 members.

You can rest assured that we'll continue to keep you in the loop on upcoming projects, as well as supply you with the tools you need to be an effective activist online and on campus.

In conjunction with the completion of STORM we surveyed nearly 2,000 College Republicans to better understand what drives YOU to connect online. Here's what you told us:

85% of survey respondents told us they're connected online at least four hours a day, with almost half saying they're “always” connected. For most, this includes using the Internet on a mobile device.

Almost 95% of College Republicans have accounts on Facebook, and a vast majority are active on multiple social networks. In addition, about three quarters of respondents spend at least one hour a day on social networking sites.

When asked what features you would like to see on a future College Republican network, the most popular responses included a job posting board, event sharing, integration with Facebook, and talking points on hot-button issues.

Thank you for your ongoing support.

Sincerely,

Zach Howell
National Chairman
College Republicans

Riiiiiiight. Their proprietary social network was so "successful" that they decided to dismantle it. Because after the 2008 election, there would never be any need to quickly and efficiently organize "200,000" College Republicans. I know conservatives are fond of declaring the End of History, I didn't realize there was also an End of Organizing as well.

Or maybe things didn't go "as scheduled." Maybe this is in response to the fact that the system cost upwards of $300,000 and never actually worked, eliciting ridicule from the rank and file College Republicans. Maybe it's because so few people used the system that they got punked trying to run a contest during the RNC. Or maybe it's because if the system actually worked and was sustainable, they wouldn't be able to funnel hundreds of thousands of dollars in welfare to conservative web development firms.

Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain. There's nothing to be alarmed about here folks, everything is proceeding according to plan. This is our regularly scheduled programming.

Conservatives have a lot of work to do if they want to climb out of their demographic hole. Something tells me that Millennials aren't going to want to be involved in an organization that lies to its membership.

Our schadenfreuderific week continues. Matt Browner Hamlin and Boing Boing contribute more to the Ashley Todd story. Here's Matt hitting the nail on the head:

That is, Ashley Todd is one of the College Republicans top 50 organizers in the entire country. One of fifty. The future of the College Republicans and the Republican Party on whole. She is one of the best they have. And she’s a serial liar who is facing criminal charges after making racist, hateful claims in the closing days of the presidential campaign.

Ashley Todd came to LITF08 with a history of doing phenomenally dishonest and dishonorable shit. No doubt this is a qualifying characteristic for the Atwater-Rove school of Republican operatives. It’s all she has, though, and it’s all the Republican Party has nowadays. If there is any fouler symptom of the rotting corpse of the Republican Party, I don’t know what it is.

Over at the Great Orange Satan, Kos picks up on some hilarity from the older, "young" Republicans (read: under 45):

The "Young Eagles" is open to anyone under the age of 45, which I suppose is "young" for John McCain's party. But beyond that cheap joke, note how (PDF) the GOP builds "the next generation of the Republican Party":

• A full year’s membership in the Young Eagles requires a $7,500 personal contribution per year. All benefits included.
• A half year’s membership in the Young Eagles requires a $3,750 person contribution per year. All benefits included. **Meeting fee may apply**
• On occasion, prospective members will have the opportunity to attend events based on a $1,500 meeting fee. This fee may be applied towards a full membership.

Can't afford it? Don't worry! Fleece your friends of $30,000 and you get the membership comp'd! Man, the differences are stark. While Democrats are busy building the next generation of Democrats, one small contribution at a time, Republicans are trying to squeeze "young" Republicans to the tune of $7,500. And if you can't afford that? Worry not! $1,500 will get you into individual events. Which is the party of elitists again?

And what does that buy you, besides feeding a dying husk of a formerly national party? Access. Ponying up the kind of money no "young" person really has (beyond the trust fund set) gets you to attend meetings with power players ("elected officials and policy experts"). How 1984. Is it any wonder why the world is passing the GOP by?

Dirty tricks and big bucks for "access" in a time of national crisis. Meanwhile, our youth groups are out there knocking on doors to get out the vote for the whole ballot. They're pushing back on bogus media claims, not making them. At the top o the ticket, Senator Obama is promoting service, sacrifice and working together to solve our problems. And he's doing it on the back of 3 million small-dollar donors. Is it any wonder youth are voting Democrats by a 2 - 1 margin?

By now you've all heard about Ashley Todd, the woman who told police that she was mugged for being a McCain supporter and wound up with a black eye and a "B" carved into her face. Apparently, that wasn't so much what happened:

On Friday, officials said they had found several "inconsistencies" in Todd's statements. She was brought back to police headquarters, where she finally confessed that she had made the entire story up.

"After a while, she just simply stated that she wanted to tell the truth," said Maurita Bryant, assistant chief for investigations.

Todd confessed to police that she was driving alone, looked in the mirror, saw her black eye and the B on her face, and didn't know how they got there. She assumed she could have done it herself, she said, and then she made up the story about the attacker.

When she saw the B, the first thing she thought of was "Barack," she told police.

Police suspect Todd's wounds were self-inflicted. She remained at police headquarters on Friday afternoon, and police were trying to determine whether she needed psychiatric evaluation.

"She hasn't really shown any obvious remorse," Kraus said. "She's certainly surprised that it snowballed to where it is today."

Turns our Ms. Todd was one of the much vaunted College Republican National Committee Field Reps. The CRNC is sacking her:

Ashley Todd is a CRNC field representative from Texas. The story yesterday was that Ashley had been attacked outside Pittsburgh and had a “B” carved into her face.

Now, Pittsburgh police say that Ashley confessed to making up the story and will face charges.

So what is the real story? What really happened to Ashley in Bloomfield, Pa?

Update II: The CRNC has contacted CR Nation to comment on the story.

Communications Director Ashley Barbera: “When Ms. Todd initially contacted us claiming to have been attacked our first reaction was obviously to be concerned for her safety. We are as upset as anyone to learn of her deceit. Ashley must take full responsibility for her actions.”

Executive Director Ethan Eilon: “We have terminated her effective today. Obviously, we had know idea she was making this story up.”

Talk about a black eye on your national field program . . .

I just received this email from the College Republican National Committe (via the STORM network - yeah, I'm still on the list).

Hey M. Joseph -

The deadline to register to vote is almost here for most states. If you've changed addresses since the last time you were registered, you need to re-register fast!

You can register now using this link, or by visiting your Secretary of State's web site.

Thanks,
Charlie Smith
National Chairman
College Republicans

P.S. If you've already registered, forward this on to 5 Republican friends.

Unsubscribe Message

The hilarious part is that, in the original email, the bolded text is a link that takes the reader to Rock the Vote's voter registration widget. On the tactical level, that's smart. Rock the Vote is sure to do at least some GOTV work this year, and that's free GOTV for the College Republicans.

From a communications standpoint, it's pure hilarity and sends all sorts of mixed messages. It wasn't more than three weeks ago that the College Republican National Committee was issuing ultimatums to Rock the Vote, and the non-partisan organization is typically a target for Republicans looking to suppress the youth vote.

I guess CRNC was against Rock the Vote before they were for it?

I thought I'd weigh-in on a public battle between B. Lee Drake of the College Democrats and the College Republican National Committee. Last week, Drake posted an op-ed accusing the CRNC of being nothing more than an ineffectual slush fund for the Republican Party:

I don't know about you, but there is a poverty hidden by the seven-figure sums of the CNR budget. Look around you on campus today, and you see students registering each other to vote in record numbers. Of all the groups doing this, the College Republicans of UNM have yet to participate. So long as the organization is treated as a slush fund, they rob themselves of the ability to gather younger recruits and participate in the growth of youth activism. Beyond what speakers or events that student groups host, our most important activity is undoubtedly registering students to vote in the rush to the Oct. 7 deadline. We've even established early voting in the SUB that will last from Oct. 18 to Nov. 1. But the College Republicans have long ago stepped out of that volunteerism and instead sold themselves out to campaign contribution leftovers.

The College Republicans rebutted with an op-ed by Ashley Barbera, in which she pointed out the paucity of funds available to College Democrats due to their status as an appendage of the DNC, and contrasted that to what the CRNC is able to accomplish with their larger budget.

I won't argue with the first part of Barbera's piece. I've written at length about how the College Democrats are financially disadvantaged by remaining within the DNC. And I don't think Drake is right in saying that the CRNC is a slush fund for the Republican Party. However, the College Republican's budget requires much closer scrutiny, as do Barbera's claims.

Barbera touts the CRNC's fundraising prowess, and notes that

Our money comes from a national network of 110,000 supporters, mostly small-dollar donors, who recognize the importance of reaching out to young voters.

According to Open Secrets, the College Republican National Committee has raised $4.7 million this cycle. Of that money, a full 73% - $3.2 million - went back into fundraising. What's going on here? Well looking into the expenditures it becomes clear:

2008 CRNC Budget by Expenditures

$3.2 million to Infocision Management, a Republican direct mail and telemarketing firm. The College Republicans aren't a slush fund, but they aren't a mega-funded super org either. They're an incredibly inefficient direct mail and telemarketing operation that spends 75 cents for every dollar it raises. And this money does not come, as Barbera suggests, from 110,000 small donors who "understand the need to reach out to young voters." As this article in the Seattle Times makes clear, the vast majority of donors who give to the CRNC have no idea they are giving money to the college Republicans. They are elderly men and women, tricked into giving by dishonest telemarketing and direct mail scams. In the last three electoral cycles, the number one employment category of individual donors to the CRNC is "retired."

Looking further into the CRNC's 2008 expenditures, almost 1/4 of a million dollars goes to consultants - almost as much as the $373k the organization paid to its employees. The College Republicans aren't a $4.8 million juggernaut of youth organizing. Once you take out the money spent on fundraising, they are a $1.2 million org that spends 1/5 of its budget padding the pockets of consultants.

I'm sure the rebuttal from the CRNC will be that this is still far better than the College Democrats, but comparing the College Democrats and College Republicans is like comparing apples and oranges. As Barberra herself states, CDA is an appendage of the DNC, while the CRNC is an independent 527, able to raise much greater sums of money on its own and operate independently of the Republican Party. As such, CRNC's closest analogue on the Democratic side of the aisle is the Young Democrats of America, also a 527 organization.

According to Open Secrets' analysis of YDA's expenditures for 2008, the group has raised far less money than CRNC, but the vast majority of YDA's expenditures go towards salaries and programs for young voter outreach. They spend only a fraction of their total budget on fundraising. In fact, even with a budget that is only a fraction of the CRNC's overall budget, YDA still manages to spend more money on their staff and programs than does the CRNC:

YDA 2008 Budget Expenditures:

Now, I'm not looking to do a full comparison between YDA and the CRNC in terms of program, though I suspect such a comparison will be equally favorable to YDA. Even College Republicans on the CRNC's own blog question their reports about the tens of thousands of new recruits and hundred thousand phone calls cited by Barbera.

Such criticisms from within the organization are also directed at STORM, the social action network/CRM (constituent relationship manager) developed by CRNC. STORM was another accomplishment touted by Barberra, though it is hard to see why. The network is a barren wasteland, used by almost no one; so much so that I was able to infiltrate the network and become one of the "STORM Top 40" - a group of top recruiters given free housing and credentials at the Republican National Convention. This took almost no effort on my part, and to this day, my STORM profile confirms that I only recruited 17 people into the network. Reports on the CRNC blog say that STORM cost between $250 and $300k. Friends in the CMS/CRM business assure me that this price is outrageous for what is essentially a glorified database and email program.

Taking a longer view of the CRNC vs YDA budget also produces some rather unfavorable trends for CRNC. Whereas the YDA budget is growing each year, and YDA always operates within their budget, the CRNC's budget has shrunk dramatically in the last four years. And - ironically for the party of "fiscal responsibility" - CRNC can't seem to operate within their means, racking up massive debt in 2004 and 2006.

CRNC Budgets by Cycle

So while Drake may have missed the mark with his op-ed against the College Republicans, Barbera's response wasn't much better. A closer look at CRNC unmasks the organization as a paper tiger with more bark than bite.