For La Plata County Republicans, the biennial party caucus held the first week of March on even-numbered years is the time to water and grow grassroots political engagement.
Republicans from across 33 precincts in La Plata County gathered at predesignated caucus locations throughout the city and the county.
They were there to select precinct committee persons, delegates to the county assembly scheduled for Wednesday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds, and write resolutions for the state Colorado Republican Party’s consideration.
Attendance was small at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 4031 in Durango on Thursday night, but big ideas were shared.
Lew Webb, candidate for Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District, kicked the evening off after La Plata County Republican Central Committee Chair Dave Peters briefed everyone about the caucus.
Webb laid himself bare, calling himself “an open book” and inviting party members to call or text him with their questions about his politics.
“You can ask me whatever you want to ask about myself or about my thoughts or ideas and intentions. And I will tell yah,” he said. “You might not like the answer, but I’m going to tell you the truth anyway because that’s just who I am.”
He said people have stopped engaging with politics at the county, state and federal levels and that needs to change.
One caucus participant sternly asked Webb to layout the role of the federal government.
Webb said the federal government’s role is to “provide an environment where the people can prosper.”
But it isn't the government’s job to provide for the people directly, he said.
He said the preamble to the U.S. Constitution says “establish justice, ensure domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defense … and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.”
“The one I skipped, it’s not ‘ensure, provide, secure, form, establish.’ It’s about the general welfare. And the word is ‘promote.’ ‘Promote’ is an entirely different word than any of the other words used in that preamble,” he said.
He said if the federal government has the means to assist citizens after it has satisfied other obligations, then it can try to do so.
“For the federal government, the job is to provide an environment where people can be successful, can be safe, can choose to pursue the American dream. But there’s no guarantee of the American dream,” he said.
Peters reinforced how much every vote counts, reminding caucus participants that races can be decided by 10 votes or fewer.
“It is important if you want to get the right person on the ballots,” he said.
In an interview with The Durango Herald, Peters said precinct committee persons are people who are ready to activate prospective voters by talking to neighbors and disseminating news about upcoming legislative items and other topics.
Delegates are chosen for their judgment of candidates, and depending on one’s ambitions, they can try to advance to the state level and even the Republican National Convention.
“If you really want to get engaged on who gets on the ticket, that's why you become a delegate,” Peters said.
Twenty-year-old Mason Mull said the caucus is his first time participating in any election, and he wants to bring his views and values to the Republican Party while encouraging other young people to get engaged.
He said he butts heads with core Republican Party values. He takes a “pro choice” stance on abortion. He is a Christian, but he doesn’t support imposing anyone’s religious values over everyone.
“I'm more of a progressive conservative, if that makes sense,” he said. “And I feel like most people in my demographic would shy away from politics. And if I want people in my demographic to be heard, and for things to match our beliefs and not feel so polarizing, we need to get involved.”
He said he became a precinct committee person for the La Plata County Republican Party to do just that, and he is also the treasurer for the Young Republicans of Colorado.
cburney@durangoherald.com
