It was the spring of 2006, and I was surfing the Net at the University of Louisville's library when I first sighted the online advertisement: "Now accepting applications for fall 2006 College Republican National Committee (CRNC) Field Representatives. Click here for more information." Without delay, I clicked the ad.
At that time, I was a self-proclaimed, dyed-in-the-wool Republican – a bona fide gun-toting, flag-waving, God-fearing Conservative who wanted nothing more than for the government to stay out of my business and my pocketbook. I still am all of these things –well, except for the fervent Republican part. I truly believed this Field Representative position would be the perfect opportunity for me to, as the CRNC slogan urges, "make a difference".
It was only a matter of days after submitting my application that I was contacted by Lindy Dinkladge, the CRNC National Field Director at the time. She asked me a couple generic questions, such as, "How do you feel about taxes?" and "What do you think about Saddam Hussein?" I assured her that I wasn't fond of either and, without further ado, I was hired.
That August, I boarded a plane to Washington, DC to embark on my training as a CRNC Field Representative. I spent the weeks learning how to create, as Chairman Paul Gourley described it, a "mass base youth effort." By the end of training, I was pumped up and raring to go. In my native Kentucky accent, I let everyone know that, "I'ma gonna recruit me some College Republicans, y'all!"
I was deployed to the state of Michigan to spend the fall semester attempting to win the hearts and minds of Michigan 20-somethings over to the Republican cause. In the year of 2006, Michigan was particularly politically vivacious. In addition to the federal elections occurring across the nation, Michigan had a highly contested gubernatorial race taking place as well.
I wasted no time hitting the grind. Within weeks, I had hauled my twenty-dollar Wal-Mart special fold-up recruitment table and College Republican sign-up sheet to over twelve Michigan campuses and had already recruited hundreds of new students. I was "rockin' and rollin'".
My relationship with the GOP couldn't possibly have been better. I was still young – and still very much in love. Little did I know that my puppy love, along with my naivete, would soon be eradicated.
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