Pro-Gun Buckeye State conservative Ken Blackwell wants to chair Republican National Committee

Former Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell, a good friend to Buckeye Firearms Association and to Ohio gun owners, has officially declared his candidacy for the chairman's post at the Republican National Committee (RNC).

Blackwell, a former endorsee of this political action committee who sits on the NRA Board of Directors, has sent a letter to RNC members seeking their vote.

According to The Hannah Report, Blackwell's letter, posted on his website at www.blackwell2009.com, calls for a remaking of the Republican Party "by returning to our core philosophy (limited government, traditional values and a strong defense), reaching voters more
effectively (by better utilization of technology, targeting and voter identification, and turnout), and reorganizing the RNC
itself (spending smarter, replacing staff and consultants, and modernizing our fundraising infrastructure)."

Attacking his rivals for the job, he said the other candidates have not offered new ideas for changing the party, but
instead "have basically proposed continuing the status quo with a few cosmetic changes."

Blackwell said he will be proposing an "RNC Conservative Resurgence Plan" which he called a "dramatic overhaul of the
way the RNC does business."

"For far too long," he said, "the Republican National Committee has been run by consultants rather than by the members.

"I will be utilizing the experience of the folks who win elections in the states, rather than just the consultants in D.C. who get paid regardless of whether we win or lose."

While he called micro-targeting a great new technology, Blackwell said he fears Republicans have relied on it too much
for the party's get-out-the-vote efforts and instead needs to rely on "old fashioned" voter identification.

To improve voter registration, he suggested hiring coordinators to work with churches across the country to register
members of congregations, building "vibrant" college Republican chapters on every major university campus that will in
turn register young people to join the Republican Party, and hiring teams of workers to go door-to-door in targeted
neighborhoods to register voters.

The election for the chairmanship will be held among the 168-member RNC in January.