From SD Searchlight:
State Republican Party Chairman Jim Eschenbaum expects 600 to 800 voting delegates at the convention, “possibly more.” Eschenbaum said the convention is far more representative of the average Republican voter “than it was before.” He became chairman in early 2025.
“The establishment can’t manipulate the elections anymore. That’s what their problem is,” he said, responding to criticism about the convention.
Um…. I hate to bring it up, but isn’t the guy who is in charge of the party (even a former 32-year Democrat as Eschenbaum is) actually “the establishment” now?
And if not, who is he leveling his criticism against? The Governor? Our federal delegation? Exactly who is “this establishment” supposed to be that he’s railing against?
The last good chairman was Dan Lederman.
2nd that!!! Can we get him back!
Can someone please define what “Establishment” means anymore?
If “establishment” is referring to that which was intentionally set up to fulfill a role, then Eschenbaum IS THE CURRENT ESTABLISHMENT. To be precise, he’s doing a callback to blame the previous “establishment,” now probably better named “Dark Swamp Of Rinos” or some such.
Let’s be clear. Eschenbaum is in power because his cult group flooded the zone at a crucial point and grabbed the seats of representation in ratios that were way out of whack with the general demographic makeup of the grassroots membership. A wingnut wevolution if you will.
This is more claiming of shining heroism to explain skulking sneakery, as usual from the MAGA side.
Doesn’t matter. Throw out words, MAGA eats them up without critical thinking.
Hahaha. This guy is a joke. Has he ever given anyone a lucid answer as to why he supported Barack Obama?
How about looking in the mirror? YOU and those who believe in big government and socialist “tax and spend” government are the Establishment. The same globalist big-business RINOs that have been in control since Nixon. Those who ignore constitutional limitations because it’s “inconvenient” to be responsible for yourselves. That’s the Establishment and that’s why your influence with the state party has been terminated.
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A thousand pardons, Mr. Nelson! I didn’t realize you were in charge of designating who was an acceptable Republican and who isn’t.
I mean, you kind of got your tail kicked in that primary, when 84% of all primary voting Republicans in District 24 voted for someone else.
Even the guy who just moved to the state not that long ago beat you by nearly 2-1. But you won the big prize! I mean really, congratulations on being self-anointed and self-designated as the Republican picker.
I’m sure you’ll do well with that.
I’m tired of the right wingers constantly criticizing “ the establishment” yet they continue to run for office time after time, Taffy Howard for example, doesn’t that make the part of the establishment?
Not surprised Eschenbaum is blathering about The Establishment. The anti-establishment fervor is right out of Obama’s playbook. Obama’s political rise was all about community organizing and “taking it to The Man.”
And then suddenly he was “The Man” and he didn’t know what he was supposed to do with it. So he said vacuous things like “people need to come together and find common ground.” Obama then went on to refusing to meet with the senate and House leadership and ruled by executive order, because bringing people together to find common ground didn’t work so well.
Anybody with an IQ above room temperature could tell Obama was in over his head.
Eschenbaum thought running a state party would be easy. He’s already failed at fundraising and communication.
His anti-establishment comment is a big red flag, indicating that he will probably have the convention adopt a resolution endorsing Doeden in the run-off primary, a big F-U to the sitting Governor and an offense to anybody who knows such an endorsement is poor form.
Nice riff on Obama, if self-serving and full of fantasy elements though. The remarks which you say were indicative of Obama making it up as he went along, were to me an indication that he understood that lasting policies needed to be reached in a bipartisan way. Obama wasn’t “anti establishment” in the ways that Eschenbaum seems to be; Obama understood the underlying racial tensions he faced, he ignored a lot of racist hatred aimed at him, his wife and family, and he reached for places to really make the country better for everyone in it.
Who did Obama run against? McCain in 08 and Mitt Romney in 2012. BOTH of these Republicans represented the best of the GOP old guard, were the best at progressive bipartisan leadership, and for their trouble they were turned into piñatas by Fox News, Rush and the far right radicals. Which of you didn’t blame JOHN BOEHNER for the lack of GOP power during those years? Boehner was MINORITY LEADER then – a minority can’t stop a majority, but all it took was Fox and Rush to focus everyone’s irrational anger at the wrong thing for their own power game. Trump iced the cake – he went scorched-earth on McCain and Romney and any hint of bipartisan government. He has burned the ability to engage in civil discourse, and the ability to speak the truth from the GOP.
Forget Obama, TRUMP WAS TOTALLY ANTI-ESTABLISHMENT and the deep damage he has done to the GOP and the tradition of a bipartisan Congress will never be repaired. We’ll have to build something new after his time in office, or limp along permanently in the wreckage he has left us.
Eschenbaum and the current SDGOP officers are our tokens of Trump’s affection for himself and MAGA’s glee in burning it all down too. Blaming Obama for any part of where we are now, is typical, tedious and not helpful.