Grand Old Partisan salutes DeWitt Clinton Littlejohn, born near Syracuse, February 7th 1818. He started out as a food merchant. Entry to politics was mayor of Oswego, then the legislature. Thanks to his leadership, the state Whig Party merged smoothly... Read more →
February 07, 2023
February 06, 2023
William Evarts, eminent Republican Statesman
Grand Old Partisan honors William Evarts, born in Boston, February 6th 1818. He attended Yale College and Harvard Law School. His legal career began as an Assistant U.S. Attorney. A prestigious Manhattan firm hired him when the Whig administration ended.... Read more →
February 05, 2023
the Reagan Tax Cuts
Grand Old Partisan values fiscal responsibility. February 5th 1981, in his first message to Congress, President Ronald Reagan called for a sharp reduction in federal income tax rates. Within months, he convinced enough congressional Democrats to join with Republicans to... Read more →
February 04, 2023
James Birney, anti-slavery Founder of the Liberty Party, forerunner of the GOP
Grand Old Partisan honors James Birney, born in Kentucky, February 4th, 1793. He studied law after graduating from Princeton. Age thirty-one, he emancipated slaves inherited from his father and declared himself an abolitionist. Risking his life, this man of courage... Read more →
February 03, 2023
Aaron Cragin (Republican) vs. Slavery Party (Democrat)
Grand Old Partisan honors Aaron Cragin, born February 3rd 1821. Entry to politics was the New Hampshire legislature. In 1854, this former Whig won election to the U.S. House of Representatives. When friends of freedom formed a Grand New Party... Read more →
February 02, 2023
Curtis Guild – Journalist, Colonel, Governor, Ambassador
Grand Old Partisan salutes Curtis Guild, born in Boston, February 2nd 1860. He published a business newspaper while rising up through the state militia. During the Spanish-American War, the competent colonel oversaw security at Havana. This co-founder of the Massachusetts... Read more →
February 01, 2023
President Lincoln signed the 13th Amendment
Grand Old Partisan spotlights the 13th Amendment. This momentous Republican achievement, to abolish slavery, was ratified on January 31st 1865. Following day, the GOP-controlled 38th Congress sent it to President Lincoln for his signature. He made sure to sign his... Read more →
January 31, 2023
Republicans made George Washington’s Birthday a Federal Holiday
Grand Old Partisan praises GOP patriotism. January 31st 1879, President Rutherford Hayes signed a bill making George Washington’s birthday – February 22nd – a federal holiday. The legislation had been introduced by Republican Senator Stephen Dorsey. At first, the holiday... Read more →
January 30, 2023
Nathaniel Banks, the first Republican Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives
Grand Old Partisan salutes Nathaniel Banks, born in Massachusetts, January 30th 1816. He started out as a child laborer for a textile mill. Rigorous study on his own made him a formidable debater. Banks started his political career in the... Read more →
January 29, 2023
Congressman George White and "the negroes' temporary farewell"
Grand Old Partisan highlights a classic denunciation of the Slavery Party. By 1901, Democrats had prevented nearly all African-Americans from voting in North Carolina. As a result, the state GOP was eradicated. George White, a former slave, was a Republican... Read more →
January 28, 2023
President Trump’s first Weekly Address
Grand Old Partisan recalls Donald Trump’s first presidential weekly address. January 28th 2017, he said: "My fellow Americans, one week ago our administration assumed the enormous responsibility, that you, the American people have placed in us. There is much work... Read more →
January 27, 2023
Julius Caesar Chappelle – "one of the early prominent African-American legislators"
Grand Old Partisan honors Julius Caesar Chappelle, born into slavery on a South Carolina plantation. Thirteen at Civil War’s end, he relocated to Boston in 1870. His start in politics was registering voters. Chappelle worked as a building superintendent at... Read more →
January 26, 2023
Cornelius Bliss – "an honored figure in the history of Republican politics"
Grand Old Partisan honors Cornelius Bliss, born January 26th 1833. This enterprising man worked his way up from junior clerk to senior partner of one of the nation’s largest wholesale businesses. His acumen while chairing the New York GOP helped... Read more →
January 25, 2023
Drayton Hale, courageous Virginian who voted for Abraham Lincoln
Grand Old Partisan salutes Drayton Smithton Hale, born in Russell County, Virginia, January 25th 1839. His claim to fame is being perhaps the only person in a southern state (other than the area that would become West Virginia) known to... Read more →
January 24, 2023
John Pickler, one of South Dakota's first two Congressmen
Grand Old Partisan salutes John Pickler, born January 24th 1844. During the Civil War, he served in the 3rd Iowa Cavalry, rising to major. His regiment fought in Arkansas and Mississippi. Union restored, Pickler studied law at the University of... Read more →
Substack link for Grand Old Partisan
My father, of blessed memory, wrote a book now available on Kindle:
Soldier Boy: a Memoir of Life and Death and Survival during WWII
e-mail to Michael Zak
Back to Basics for the Republican Party
- "We need to promote Back to Basics for the Republican Party to every single proud Republican!!!!"
- "Every precinct committeeman, every candidate and every teacher with a Republican affiliation should read this book and pass it on to another."
- "Michael Zak takes a novel approach to the culture wars by boldly boasting the historical record of the Republican Party. Rather then sheepishly bow to the Democrat's ongoing myths (and frequently, outright lies) about the GOP, he brings the history and heroes of the Republican Party into the fray."
- “Why is it that we Republicans are so easily outmaneuvered by Democrats?
Why do Republicans so readily fight among themselves?
Why is it so difficult for Republicans to advance their policy agenda?
Here's why."
Back to Basics for the Republican Party - “The past is the cause of the present, and the present will be the cause of the future. All these are links in the endless chain stretching from the finite to the infinite.”
Abraham Lincoln - “The Founding Fathers knew a government can't control the economy without controlling people. And they knew when a government sets out to do that, it must use force and coercion to achieve its purpose. So we have come to a time for choosing.”
Ronald Reagan
Speech Raves
- "Your words at the Lincoln Day dinner were truly inspiring. Thank you so much for your dedicated work and contributions to our Party."
- "Your book is outstanding, and it's nice to have the information come alive during your presentation. You are at once informative and motivating. We've got to get back to basics -- as you say."
- "Thank you for speaking at the luncheon. I've already received many favorable comments. You're absolutely right that the Republican leadership should know our party's history."
- "Thanks for all that you do for the Republican Party and our Nation."
- “Your speech was great and just what some of us depressed Republicans needed. The GOP has taken its eye off of the major issue: freedom v. socialism. You spoke to the core of that issue.”
- “Thank you so much for speaking at the state convention. We received wonderful feedback from everyone in attendance. Everyone was impressed with the depth and breadth of your knowledge, as well as your clear speaking style and sense of humor. You made an outstanding presentation, and we are deeply grateful to you for your efforts.”
- “You have a great vision and hope for the Party, and I think you are embarking on important work.”
- “Thank you so much for speaking at our event. You are offering a tremendous service not only to Republicans, but also to the United States and the world.”
grand_old_partisan@hotmail.com
I am offering the solution to a problem most Republicans don't know they have -- that they can be outmaneuvered and thrown on the defensive endlessly, on nearly any issue, because they accept as true Democrat lies about the Republican Party. To correct that misperception and to help the Republican Party get 'back to basics' is why I'm a man on a mission.
A few years ago, after one of my speeches, a man told me "Do you know what your problem is? You're too far ahead of your time!" My efforts to show Republicans how they would benefit from celebrating the heritage of our Grand Old Party have been arduous, but if this were easy someone else would have already done it.
Among my speech topics are Reconciling the Tea Party and the GOP; Barack Obama, the Worst President Ever; Socialism, the new Slavery; Appreciating the Heritage of our Grand Old Party; Returning to the Founding Principles of the United States; The Women’s Rights Achievements of our Grand Old Party; Abraham Lincoln, Republican; Frederick Douglass, Republican; Martin Luther King and the Republican Civil Rights Legacy.
event photos
- Michael Zak is a popular speaker to conservative organizations around the nation -- thirty states so far. His message is that Republicans would benefit tremendously from appreciating the heritage of our Grand Old Party.
Book Reviews
- "Your book is a national treasure.I'm always recommending it to people."
- "Thank you, Michael!!! Every person who calls himself a Republican, and every person who just wants to know the truth. should know your book!!!"
- "If you're a Republican and love history, this book by my friend Michael Zak is a must read. And if you happen to be looking for a Lincoln/Reagan Day dinner speaker, I highly recommend him."
- great information on our rich heritage"Get a copy of Michael Zak's book, Back to Basics for the Republican Party"
- "I recommend Back to Basics for the Republican Party to everyone who wants to be educated on the true history of the GOP and America!!!!
- Phenomenal historyAnyone who liked the Lincoln movie will love this book. This book is perhaps the best kept secret in all political and history books in America. It is something every politico should read. It puts things into historical perspective like few other books I've read. It challenges conventional through thorough documented history. This is a must read for any student of American history and political science. One regret is that I read the book more than a decade after it was published. It truly is something you feel you missed out on. It is also a book that leaves you wanting to learn more about certain individuals such as Thaddeus Stevens. It's an incredible body of work."
- "Thank you for writing your book. I am two chapters into it, and find it fascinating and motivating. This may be a very significant contribution to the rise of the GOP in the coming years."
- "I am a believer in pro-free market and pro-constitutional rights who recently purchased your book Back to Basics for the Republican Party and have not been able to put it down. It is simply amazing you composed a book in 2003 that hits home on the most serious of topics we face today. I completely agree that we must educate and focus on the original plan as laid out by the founders of our party if we are ever to move forward in a positive direction."
- Praise from Alaska"I purchased your book at our Juneau, Alaska Republican Women's Luncheon last month principally because the title intrigued me. I just finished it, reading the last chapter three times. I wanted to burn the wisdom presented into my brain. Thank you again for all your hard work to research and write your book. Thank you for all you are doing to educate Americans on the incredible truth of the founding of our great country.""Thank you for doing all the research to write this book. As a History/American Studies major, I THOUGHT I knew the difference between Republicans and Democrats, the roles of Lincoln and Stevens and Sumner and Reagan, and the history of our country from the revolutionary war through the civil war. Boy, was I soooo wrong."
- Read it and MEMORIZE it!"My copy is dog-eared with notes and underlined parts. “Back to Basics for the Republican Party has been tremendously helpful setting mis-educated Democrats straight on history!"
- It's a fantatic buy!“Back to Basics for the Republican Party is very informative and gives you an insight into the history of the party from the early days to the modern day presidencies of Ronald Reagan and George Bush Sr. What the author has done is provide a balanced view, giving the reader a fascinating 150-year journey of the Republicans. This book is a REAL political page turner which will open minds to a wealth of knowledge and history which most are not even aware of.
- “Back to Basics for the Republican Party is the most significant contribution to the Republican Party in the last twenty years apart from Ronald Reagan.”
- “This is the most amazing book about politics that I have ever read. The Overview should be required reading for anyone with even a minor interest in government. The remainder is an enthralling history lesson that I will never forget. For years, we have all been misled about the true nature of the GOP. This is the real deal! Read it and be proud!”
- “Back to Basics for the Republican Party is more important to our party now than ever before.”
- "one of the best books I ever read"
- “Your book, Back to Basics for the Republican Party, is most timely during this 2010 pre-election period. It is a message that needs to be emphasized to all grassroots activists. From the precinct, county, district and national levels your respected views need to be heard and read on how to take back our country.”
- from the first page: “Democrats control most of the media, but they also write most of the history books, thereby controlling what even Republican activists think they know about our Party's glorious heritage.”