GO RIGHT – GO BIG ● Blog Post #117

WANTED: NEW CONSERVATIVE LEADERS—

NO EXPERIENCE NECESSARY

Post #117

                                                                                                              June 17, 2025

Radical Marxists/socialists/Democrats marched this past weekend under the banner of “No Kings,” a protest against President Trump, and a rejection of principles that have defined our Republic.  They don’t just oppose one man; they oppose American values.

While Democrats organize, fundraise, and mobilize, too many conservatives are still waiting for someone else to lead.  That’s a mistake.  If we’re going to save our country, our Constitution, and Western Civilization itself, it won’t be because of a political party or one leader; it will be because of individuals like you who step up, speak out, take action, and lead.

Below is a memo I wrote two years ago and updated today.  It’s more relevant today than ever.  Read it and share it.

The Left is already on the field.

Are you?

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When I went to New York City in 1961 to run Young Americans for Freedom (YAF), conservatives’ number one need then was the same as it is today.

Leaders!

Unfortunately, today the left has far more national leaders than we conservatives.

Why?

A major reason is conservatives have been looking for leaders in the wrong place—the Republican Party.  Wrong.

You will not find them within the Republican Party!

Of course, we have some good constitutional limited-government Republicans in public office, including 20 or so in the U.S. House of Representatives, a few in the U.S. Senate, and a few Governors, as well as many more on radio, TV, the Internet, and some who run nonprofits.

But being a well-known, popular, principled, articulate conservative is not the same as being an effective conservative leader.

Leaders have courage, present a vision, inspire, strategize, organize, attend meetings, and call meetings.  Leaders design and implement ideas, plans, and activities that change the direction of events.  Leaders are bold and are risk-takers.

An example of a highly effective national leader is Newt Gingrich.

When Newt was elected to the U.S. House in 1978, he was not thought to be a conservative.  He was known as an active supporter of Nelson Rockefeller.

But Newt had a very important redeeming quality that few national Republicans had at that time or today—he was a fierce partisan.  Each day Newt would think—what 2-3-4 things can I do today to defeat Democrats and elect Republicans?

After being in Congress a few weeks, Newt went to the Republican leaders in the House of Representatives and asked—who was in charge of making Republicans a majority?

The response Newt got was something like— “Majority? Republican control of Congress? What are you talking about?...”  Newt’s reply was, “So no one’s in charge? Okay, I’ll be in charge.”

And in 1994, 16 years later, Newt led conservatives to Republican control of the U.S. Congress.

During those 16 years Newt presented a vision (Republicans can be and will be the majority party) organized, called, attended, and led thousands of meetings.  About 70 of those meetings were at my home in McLean, Virginia on Wednesday evenings in the early 1980s with about 12-15 young members of Congress (Bob Walker, Vin Weber, Hal Daub, etc.) and national conservative leaders, including Paul Weyrich, Ed Feulner, Howard Phillips, Morton Blackwell, Ron Godwin (head of the Moral Majority), etc.

To the extent any conservative activity could be called Hillary Clinton’s “Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy” it would have been those meetings of conservative leaders at my home in the 1970s-1980s.

We spent two hours each Wednesday morning with 7-8 national conservative leaders and two-and-a-half to three hours each Wednesday evening with the same leaders from breakfast, now joined by 6 or 7 young Republican Congressmen, discussing, strategizing, and planning how to defeat Democrats and bring conservatives to power.

That’s what leaders do.

Next week I’ll continue to tell you how YOU can be a much-needed leader.