Hello Friends and Fellow Patriots!

With the 4th of July upon us I am reminded about what our Founder's went thru to give us our freedoms. We have fallen a long way in our short history - from selflessness to selfishness in most any and everything in our society. Also, at this critical and pivotal moment in our history, there is little to no stewardship of power. The Republican Party leadership has mirrored this trend. I believe we are well past the time to take stock of where the Republican Party is now heading.

Is Conservatism for our party simply a buzz word to get temporary votes from a block of voters only to throw the ideas and commitments over the side once elected? Is the Republican Party "Democrat light?" I believe the main problem is not that the Democrats are so good at winning, but rather it is that the Republicans are not willing to advocate for their own platform and are embarrassed by it!

If Conservatism is simply a tool to get elected and not a governing philosophy, then all credibility to govern is lost for our party. I believe our party is failing because it doesn't stand for conservative values anymore. This starts and ends with committed and principled, conservative leadership.

Leadership in the political sphere matters. Either we are being led in a conservative direction or we aren't. Instead of conserving and being prudent, in our lives and government, we have become a consuming nation that no longer has any concept of conserving anything.

Without Conservative leaders, there will not be any advocacy for Conservative values from the Republican leadership. As a consequence, we will not be prepared to take the strides needed in this battle for freedom and limited government in our nation.

Therefore, as a party, we must renew our commitment to Conservatism. There must be permanent and continuous efforts to change the party leadership and also to restore Conservatism as the center of the Republican platform. I believe forging a more conservative Republican Party will require a multi-cycle effort by dedicated activists. These efforts cannot simply spring up in the moments just before convention. In short, changing the party into a conservative juggernaut will require a praying army, continuous resources, dedicated activists, thoughtful preparation and zealous efforts by those who are committed to Conservatism as a governing philosophy. Nothing less will do. This must be a permanent effort, year in and year out, by those who love liberty.

The Republican Party, in terms of its credibility, is bankrupt. It is bankrupt from its advocacy for big government expansion, increased taxes, massive debt expansions, and taking liberty and freedom from the citizens. We have just seen our republican officials pass increases in hunting, fishing, ORV licenses, and garbage fees! There is already a party that raises taxes and expands government and it's called the democrat party. The Republican Party leadership refuses to take a stand for anything, let alone what is right and just. Our leadership has lacked that "selfless quality" that was a hallmark of our Founding Fathers. I am struck more and more by how great our Founders were and how significant the sacrifices were that they made for liberty and freedom for us all. The Republican Party, along with America, is at a crossroads. Either the party is going to be "of big government," or it will be the party "of the Constitution, limited government, lowering taxes, and personal responsibility." Which party is it now and which will it become, is up to the people in the base of the party and the sacrifices they are willing to make for freedom.

Recently, as many of you are aware, I was involved in an effort to retake the leadership of the Michigan Republican Party. I felt the Lord leading me to run for this position and to take on the established authority in the party. Most people are not aware that for nearly the party's entire existence the leadership has been virtually unopposed in its control and this control has been in the hands of more moderate factions of the party. This has led to a party that is out of touch with the base and out of touch with the country's desperate need for true "servant leadership." In 5 short weeks we came within 32 votes of taking the party leadership. I believe the convention election had less to do with me and was really about moving God back into the center of the discussion. Without a doubt in my mind, it will take the moving of God to restore our country to the path of greatness.

The conclusion of the convention resulted in an amazing opportunity for me to simply pray for unity. That may sound small but I truly believe our struggle for freedom is not against flesh and blood, but rather it is a spiritual battle. I had just lost the election and had gone thru this very humbling and exhausting process. It was incredibly difficult for me to be undone personally before the convention crowd. But I believe even more today that the Lord had allowed this all to happen simply to show the contrast between what the Bible describes as "servant leadership" and the "self serving leadership" that our party leadership has come to represent. Praying at the close of the convention in February was all I could really do at that moment because I was overwhelmed with how inadequate I am, and quite frankly we all are, to solve the problems of a lack of servant leadership in every area of our society. I had at that moment, no ability to speak about a unified party that is really at odds with itself. It is in those moments that the only real thing that one can do is pray. I believe to turn the party and the nation back to Conservatism will take truly submitted and humbled leadership. This cannot be an effort to simply restore the Republican Party, but rather it must be an effort to restore The Republic of the United States!

I believe, for our party to be successful, we need to be the party of the Founder's ideals and principles. God created us each with the capacity for self determination and the ability to choose Him or to reject Him. Our government should offer us no less liberty and no less freedom to choose our own self direction. Big government programs, initiated by republicans or democrats, have never been the solution to solving the problems that ail our country or our people.

Servant leadership is what is sorely lacking in nearly every level in our nation.

Real leadership is not about "being in charge" or "being served." We are in desperately short supply of those who will take up the cause of liberty and freedom and do it in a sacrificial way. Real leadership must be humble, servant oriented, and committed to the cause of leading in the right direction, with both words and actions. Leadership is not about titles but rather about both sacrificing and serving.

I am now even more convinced that the party leadership can and should be taken over by those who hold fast to Conservatism as a governing philosophy. It is not enough for leadership to see Conservatism as a tag line to win a certain segment of the population, only to jettison the ideas as soon as the election has passed. Can we really expect moderate leadership to protect the Republican brand and advance a conservative platform that they don't believe in? If the Republican Party is to thrive and to be a part of the solution to the problems of our country, it will have to be a strong and vocal voice for Conservatism.

We need bold conservative leadership that is willing to fight to protect the brand of the party and to advance a conservative platform. This must happen both in election cycles and out.

Some believe that the party exists only to get "R's" elected and that it is not their job to expect anything out of them once they are elected. Maybe I am crazy but I completely disagree. I believe it is absolutely critical to have party leaders, at every level, that are willing to advocate for a more conservative party platform. I also believe we need leaders who will work zealously to protect the brand. When elected officials from the Republican Party fight to advance "big government programs and crony capitalism," the leadership of the party should not be afraid to call them out for doing it. When Republican "politicians" advance big government programs, it hurts the brand of the party and future voters are turned away from our party by this in congruency and hypocrisy.

To save the Republic, we must fight to return our party to being the party with the answers for what is necessary to lead the nation back to prosperity! There is just no way around it, if we want to see our nation back on the right track, we will have to fight within the leadership of the Republican Party to transform the party into a conservative juggernaut!

Your fellow patriot in the cause of liberty and freedom! May the Lord bless and keep you, and your family!

Todd Courser