Smith breaks down Idaho’s GOP convention

The Idaho Republican Party Convention adjourned Saturday afternoon in Moscow without covering many planned items.

The Idaho GOP planed to choose a new party platform, and party chairman. Instead, the party spent the three day convention arguing over procedures and hardly completing what was on the agenda. The Credential Committee spent several hours voting to unseat more than 130 delegates.

Bryan Smith, a former tea party candidate for congress, has a very different view of the convention. Smith was recently elected chairman of the Idaho Republican Party’s 7th District.

While the Washington Post called it a “total fiasco,” and the Huffington Post called it “rock bottom,” Smith said the Credential Committee just enforced its own rules at the convention.

“We walk away stronger knowing that when we send delegates to a convention, if the rules haven’t been followed, the Republican Party is responsible and will police its own,” said Smith. “I think that’s a good thing.”

Smith went on to say the party is in good shape heading into November’s general elections.

“Look, there are a lot of people in the press, in the democratic party and other places throughout the state that would love to relish in the idea of the demise of the Republican Party,” said Smith. “The way the convention was conducted and the amount of conservatives that showed up in Moscow show’s that the Republican Party is vibrant, it’s thriving, it’s doing well. We’re the party of debate, we’re discussing issues that are important to people.”

Rep. Raul Labrador was the convention’s chairman. The convention’s negative attention, comes in the midst of Labrador’s run at house majority Leader.

While the delegates didn’t pick a new chairman, Smith says Labrador still did his job as the conventions leader.

“The leadership actually showed leadership by letting the delegates make up their own mind,” said Smith.

Smith said Labrador made sure the delegates knew that adjourning Saturday meant current leadership would remain unchanged.

“I kind of feel like people did vote on that, knowing that if we did adjourn that we would have the same leaders in place, and people could have voted not to adjourn” said Smith. “Overwhelmingly, the vote was to adjourn, accept the leaders that we had and move forward.”

Today, Labrador sent a letter to his colleagues in the House asking for their vote as majority leader.