(You'll be hearing more from Randy (and others) soon, but this is timely and important. I think all of us here at BOR agree that this type of language from a Democratic County Party chair is unacceptable. - promoted by Karl-Thomas Musselman)
The Democratic Party of Bexar County seems to always be in the news these days, much more than its counterpart. Granted you might expect the news to relate to the infamous shellacking Pres. Obama characterized after the 2010 election. Instead it's more about the administrative and management aspects of the party, primarily as it relates to it's chairman, Dan Ramos. So is there an end in sight to this mess? Maybe if you consider Ramos' latest meltdown after an interview with the San Antonio Current but with Ramos continuing a defiant hold on office, much like Col. Gaddafi of Libya, we could be in for a long summer.
In an interview with the San Antonio Current Ramos essentially slammed everyone except his little contingent of westside neighborhood activists. In quoted statements Ramos disparaged the LGBT community, specifically the Stonewall Democrats, and Blacks in profanity laced language. "I liken [Stonewall Democrats] to the Tea Party - the Tea Party and the f***ing Nazi Party - because they're 90 percent white, blue-eyed, and Anglo, and I don't give a s*** who knows that," said Ramos in the interview.
So far several have called for Ramos to step down, including state party chair Boyd Richie. Even with Richie's demands Ramos continues to remain defiant and refuses to relinquish the seat he was elected to in March of last year. In an article in the Express-News Richie's statement said "I will not dignify Mr. Ramos' most recent outburst by restating it, but I will make it clear that the bigoted attitudes he expressed are totally contrary to the beliefs and declarations of the Texas Democratic Party."
This is not the first time Ramos has gone contrary to the local party. Shortly after being elected Ramos decided to appoint people to empty precinct chair positions, essentially what would have led to stacking the deck on the CEC in his favor. I wrote about that situation last May and the issues I saw then. "It's really a time to see if Ramos has the leadership skills for this organization or wants to regress the organization. One action, simple as it may sound, will define his and the organization's future," I said back in May.
Now it looks like not only does Ramos not have the leadership skills to effectively manage the county organization, he seems bent on destroying it as quickly as he can. Several have looked at this lack of leadership and called for Ramos to step down including an editorial in today's Express-News, citing his language and attitudes associated with the SA Current article. "Those comments and his failure to retract them demonstrate his unsuitability to hold any position of leadership," said the editorial.
In a letter today to Bexar County Democrats Chairman Richie re-emphasized the state organization's commitment to help move the county organization forward and create a more meaningful dialogue. "Not only does spiteful and bigoted rhetoric have no place in the Democratic Party, it is in direct conflict with the core principles that define the Democratic Party," said Richie in the letter.
In a normal world Ramos' public comments would be grounds for termination by the organization. Those kind of hateful and spiteful actions would not be tolerated regardless of the organization's political leaning. It's just not who we are as Americans. Well maybe it is if you're a bigoted, racist extremist who really has no desire to constructively work with others. The problem is that Ramos doesn't seem to live in a normal world. He continually seems to be digging for a conspiracy to help substantiate his position.
This is a very dark time for Bexar County Democrats, the likes of which I have never seen in my 23 years in San Antonio. Never before have I seen such behavior and defiance to conventional wisdom by an individual. It is time for Dan Ramos to do the right thing and resign his post as chairman of the Bexar County Democratic Party. Only then can the county organization start working towards healing the wounds that remain and build a strong Democratic organization in San Antonio. |
