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DeVos starts fresh, familiar position
by Kate Medema
Staff Writer
FILE PHOTO
Betsy DeVos is congratulated by delegates after being introduced as the new chair for the Michigan Republican Party Saturday, Jan. 25, 2003, at the GOP convention, in GR.
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An experienced voice in the Republican Party is making a comeback, hoping to mimic national congressional patterns and fire up Michigan politics.
After a two-year hiatus, Calvin alum Betsy DeVos recently won the position of Michigan Republican Party Chairman.
“There were a couple of people that were planning on running, but within one week of my indication that I was running, they dropped out of the race,” DeVos said.
Media coverage has focused on Michigan’s first female Democratic governor, Jennifer Granholm.
As chairman, an unopposed DeVos may take her post quietly, but her propensity to succeed and her highly-principled tenacity will maintain Michigan’s competitive bipartisanship.
In fact, DeVos feels that having a firm opposing voice will be a catalyst for party unity.
“There was good evidence of the vitality of our party when we won a lot more races this year," DeVos said.
"Without having a Republican governor in office, it is a very different dynamic. We will be providing counterpoints to the things that Granholm proposes and facilitate a common voice."
Perhaps DeVos’ interest in being the state figurehead for Republicans is derived from a fragmented party that caused her to resign in 2000. Dissention also arose when former Gov. John Engler refused to support her proposal for a school voucher plan.
“It is clear I have never been a rubber stamp,” said DeVos in 2000. “I have been a fighter for the grassroots, and following is admittedly not my strong suit.”
The voucher issue kept DeVos from running for chairman before the November elections.
In fact, it wasn’t until Republican gubernatorial candidate Dick Posthumus lost that DeVos decided to return to her former post.
“When it was clear he wasn’t going to win, a friend approached me and suggested I take a shot at it again. I felt it was a good opportunity to take the experience I had before and put it to work,” said DeVos.
DeVos has also been a strong voice for the Republican party on a national level.
As an advocate for President George W. Bush even before he became president of the United States, she accompanied him to a 90-minute debate in 2000 which was held in the Fine Arts Center at Calvin. Her strong support for the president spurs her toward a major goal during her two-year term.
“We’re going to win Michigan for President Bush,” she said.
“It’s been 14 long years since we’ve delivered Michigan’s electoral votes to a Republican presidential nominee. We will get it done in two years from now and carry the state for the president.”
Another focus of DeVos’ term will be attending to the party’s financial stability.
Suggesting that Granholm will fail to put Michigan back on solid financial ground, DeVos plans on implementing a number of different strategies to strengthen the economic situation within the party.
“With an energized grassroots, a successful fundraising operation and sound fiscal management, Michigan Republicans will not only carry the state for President Bush but add to our House majority,” DeVos said.
As chairman, the primary responsibilities of building party unity and financial strength are fundamental to the success of the party as a whole.
Calvin Professor James Penning said DeVos recognizes this connection as imperative.
“The office of Chairman can be as important or unimportant as DeVos makes it," Penning said.
"She has a lot going for her being a financial supporter of the party and having done an excellent job up to 2000."
As a leader, DeVos has an extensive track record of serving on a number of party levels. She was the Republican delegate to the National Convention from 1988-2000 and has been what Penning calls a “foot soldier for the party” since 1982, acting as a local precinct delegate to the smallest division of electoral units in the government.
These delegates take the active role of a neighborhood informant, going door-to-door and passing along party information.
“Our primary responsibility is to be the resource of our candidates, whether they are running for state or local office," DeVos said. "We need to be the glue that holds all of the individual efforts together."
This time around, DeVos plans to address current financial concerns within the party through fundraising spawned by both personal contributions and local events.
As far as fundraising goes, “Now is a good opportunity to try new things,” she said.
DeVos will be replacing Rusty Hills, the candidate that Engler chose to succeed her at the time of her previous resignation. Hills did not plan on seeking another two-year term.
Although vouchers will not be her first priority in 2003, DeVos still believes that the issue of changing Michigan’s constitution will somehow have to be a subsequent step in the future.
She told the Macomb Daily, “There are a lot more states that are more progressive than Michigan, but I think we can accomplish our goals,” DeVos said. “We still need to fix our schools, empower our parents with real choices and guarantee equal opportunity for quality education.”
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