About Rod D. Martin
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Politics & Economics
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Faith & Cultureby Rod D. Martin
November 17, 2006
Today, House Republicans thumpingly defeated the reform candidates for every leadership position in their caucus. John Boehner wiped up the floor with Mike Pence in the contest for Minority Leader with a margin of 168-27. Roy Blunt, considered by many to be more vulnerable (and a greater liability) than Boehner, crushed opponent John Shaddegg 137-57; while Adam Putnam, the most liberal in a three way race with Jack Kingston and Marsha Blackburn, won the third-ranking Republican Conference chairmanship.
The truth remains that on a voting-record basis, this is not a bad team. The problem is that voting record just isn’t the issue. First, this is the team that brought us the era of earmarks which swelled federal expenditures and shrank the Republican delegation on Nov. 7th. Second — and in some ways more importantly — the re-election of this gang greatly undercuts everyone’s ability to claim that electing a new Republican majority in two years would provide a different and better result.
That possibility isn’t beyond the pale by any means. Everyone involved promises serious reform, both a return to fiscal conservatism and a more general renewal of conservative principle. They probably mean it too: they know better than anyone how catastrophic their Election Day loss truly was.
But the confidence issue just won’t go away. This was the time for a House-cleaning. We didn’t get it. And barring some highly-visible Damascus Road experience on Boehner and Blunt’s part, that’s going to be very hard to explain.
For our part, we don’t intend to explain it: we mean to elect a whole host of new conservative members to replace the mostly-RINOs who just lost on the 7th. Putting some added conservative muscle on the GOP skeleton will change a lot very fast, as everyone learned in 1994 and as Nancy Pelosi is learning to her pain.
MoveOn has done wonders for a Democratic left-wing that deserves more say in its own party (and the fact that getting them that say has harmed them immeasurably in the broader public bothers us not a bit). It’s time we did the same for Republicans. America’s conservative majority is intact and growing. A truly conservative Republican leadership could lead America for generations, and usher in an era of true reform, security and unparalleled prosperity.
It’s time.
Rod is one of our nation’s leading minds. He’s smart, original, and very committed—a combination that one rarely finds.
Rod Martin and [former Howard Dean campaign manager] Joe Trippi are America’s two foremost experts on online politics.
Rod Martin is a Reaganite-Thatcherite conservative…[and] a man who has spent much of his life ministering to and working for the benefit of others. I know Rod as an advocate for freedom, a leader who understands the real changes we need in Washington, and who has the drive and ability to make those changes happen.
Rod Martin is the kind of dynamic leader who has the knowledge, ability and experience to lead us successfully into the 21st Century. His vision for America is compelling.
Rod Martin literally wrote the book on excellence. Humble yet brilliant, a man of love and compassion, with penetrating clarity he illuminates the world around us, and we are both stirred and enlightened.
Rod Martin is a born leader and an outstanding political mind. Anyone who takes him on is going to have a serious fight on their hands.
Rod Martin is a man of uncommon vision and character. Ever since I first worked alongside Rod in the early days of PayPal, I’ve been struck by his powerful vision for the future. Rod understands the intersection of technology, politics and culture in a way that few others do.
Rod Martin wears with uncommon grace an uncanny ability to link his vigorous faith to the practical challenges of both the business world and the political arena. Yet the respect he shows for others carries a warmth and modesty that are both too rare among those who are strong advocates of feisty positions.
America badly needs more leaders who really get the future. We need more Rod Martins.
Rod Martin is a modern day philosopher-statesman. He is a capitalist intellectual, a conservative iconoclast, a gentle adversary and a kind prophet. He inspires us towards a fresh national vision built upon the original founding principles.
Rod Martin is not only effective and efficient, but he is also perceptive, wise and gracious. He gets things done. He is a great friend and a great ally.
Rod is one of the sharpest, most gracious men I know, and one of the most gifted political thinkers today. His ability to analyze issues and communicate thoughtful insights on them have earned him the respect of people across the political spectrum.
I am proud to have been Rod Martin’s friend for a quarter century, and I can tell you that he is one of the finest men and most outstanding leaders in our church and in our country today. He has a knack for turning everything he touches to success.
Rod Martin is a cornucopian entrepreneur and eutropic thinker whose influence radiates through an array of companies, institutions, movements and churches. A renaissance American, he is also a prolific friend of freedom and faith around the globe.
If Rod Martin represents the next generation of leaders, America has nothing to worry about.
A leader and a servant, in public life and in private, Rod Martin strides at the top of his profession, and has nowhere to go but up. He is in the truest sense of the word ‘outstanding’.
Rod Martin is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished thought leaders today. He is a wonderful mentor, a humble role model, and a deep inspiration for the next generation of scientific innovators and entrepreneurs.
Rod’s achievements pale beside his character and his brilliance. He sees what others can’t. He leads when others won’t.
Rod Martin is one of America’s finest young minds.