FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 14, 2016
CONTACT: J.P. Duffy or Alice Chao

Family Research Council Action Announces Coalition to Ensure Adoption of a Conservative Republican Party Platform

WASHINGTON, DC - FRC Action, the legislative arm of Family Research Council, today announced the formation of a coalition designed to ensure the Republican Party's platform remains a solidly conservative document.

FRC Action will be joined in Cleveland by Concerned Women for America, LAC, March for Life, and a consortium of Eagle Forum representatives along with platform delegates including Len Munsil (Arizona); Carolyn McLarty (Oklahoma); and David Barton (Texas).

FRC Action President Tony Perkins, who will again be serving on the platform committee as a delegate from Louisiana said, "I am confident that given the statements and actions of RNC officials, combined with skilled conservative delegates, advanced planning, and on the ground support will ensure that the GOP once again drafts and adopts a document built upon the conservative principles that helps draw a sharp contrast between the nation's two major parties."

Perkins said that while he expects the party to remain committed to the core values of life, marriage and family and religious freedom, the platform does need to be updated to reflect changes over the past four years. "The current RNC leadership has done a great job working to ensure conservative principles are protected," said Tony Perkins. "There may be some areas of the platform that will need to be updated to address problems created by the Obama administration over the past four years -- for instance, by calling for an end to the Department of Education to address the ever expanding intrusion of the federal government into local education. We look forward to working with the delegates to pass a strong conservative platform showing a contrast with the Democratic Party's extremist positions that have led to the moral and economic decline of the last 8 years," concluded Perkins.

Platform delegate Carolyn McLarty noted, "It is very encouraging to know that there will be platform committee delegates who represent several independent conservative organizations coming with the shared goal to preserve the Republican Party's conservative platform." She continued, "Input from these committee members will be very helpful to positively influence the debate and votes on several major issues," concluded McLarty.

The organizations in the coalition will have a strong policy presence in Cleveland to assist and advise delegates who are coalition members on a variety of public policy matters and platform committee procedures. Platform committee delegate David Barton added, "Currently, 42 percent of the nation identifies as Republican, but 54 percent of the U. S. Senate is Republican, 57 percent of the U. S. House, 62 percent of state governors, and 68 percent of state legislative chambers. Republicans perform so well because Americans are drawn to our principles. There are those who would like to see us weaken or abandon key principles, especially in social and moral areas, but as a delegate on the platform committee, I will work to ensure that we retain and strengthen our position on those principles," concluded Barton.

"Political parties are formed around ideas, and those ideas are contained in the party platform," said platform delegate Len Munsil. "I'm looking forward to working with this coalition of fellow delegates to ensure the platform remains a conservative document, reflecting constitutional principles, the values of our party and the ideas that have made America the most free, most prosperous and most virtuous nation in history," concluded Musil.

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