Yob vs. Anuzis, again: Bitter rivals in Mich. GOP do battle for Cruz, Paul

CORRECTION: This blog post was revised to reflect that Saul Anuzis was not a paid political operative for Sterling Corporation. 
In a message, Anuzis said: "I NEVER was a partner, shareholder or was paid any fees, commissions etc before, during or after my term as (party) Chairman…as related to the business Sterling did with the Michigan Republicans and related entities."
Anuzis' statement was confirmed by Steve Linder of Sterling Corporation.
Anuzis also added this:
"... My role with the (Ted) Cruz campaign is all volunteer. The Yobs (Chuck and John) are paid consultants to the (Rand Paul) Super PAC and vendors to the campaign."

*****

The appointment of longtime GOP strategist Chuck Yob as state co-chairman of the Rand Paul presidential campaign sets up the next round in Michigan’s nastiest ongoing political feud.
Saul Anuzis, leader of the Ted Cruz presidential bid in Michigan, will soon butt heads with his longtime adversaries – Yob and his son, John Yob, national political director of Paul’s super-PAC.

Chuck Yob

The bad blood between Anuzis, former state GOP chairman, and the Yobs dates back to a contentious race for state attorney general in 1998. But the bitter rivalry reached its peak when the Yobs successfully plotted in 2012 to remove Anuzis as Republican National Committeeman and replace him with former state representative Dave Agema.

In remarks aimed at John Yob and his Grand Rapid consulting firm, Strategic National, Anuzis said his orchestrated ouster represented a “cancer” within the state GOP.

Saul Anuzis

“There is a group of paid political consultants and related operatives who’s only goal and strategy is political drive-by shootings, character assassinations and scorch-earth politics that does NOT serve our party,” Anuzis wrote in his weekly newsletter.

Yob quickly fired back, blaming the former party chairman for the Republicans’ poor showing in the 2006 and 2008 Michigan elections. Anuzis had also put his name in the mix for national party chairman in 2009 and 2011 but gained minimal traction.

 

John Yob

"Saul's arrogance is unfortunate yet typical of him,” the younger Yob said in a 2012 email. “The fact that he calls our efforts a cancer proves that he is so arrogant that he thinks he literally is the GOP, and yes it is killing him politically.

“In reality, his leadership was terminal to our party and we lost EVERYTHING in 2006 and 2008 when he was chairman. Now that he is gone there will be much brighter days ahead.”

Standing by Agema
Though Agema later exposed himself as a bigoted, Muslim-bashing homophobe, the Yobs stood by him. Chuck Yob had faced a similar controversy, though his remarks were far less incendiary, more than a decade earlier.
When calls for Agema’s resignation from the national committee grew the loudest, in January 2014, Chuck Yob stepped in as Agema’s proxy at an RNC meeting.

The elder Yob, who was a longtime RNC member, played the role of political kingmaker in Michigan for decades. His work as a political operative led to key roles on the state and national stage for John Engler, John McCain and George W. Bush. In recent years, the Yobs have served as top strategists for Gov. Rick Snyder, Lt. Gov. Brian Calley and Attorney General Bill Schuette.   

Yet it was that ’98 AG’s race that led to considerable irritation – or worse – directed at Chuck Yob as many party leaders and strategists thought he made a monumental mistake.

That year was supposed to be the political coming-out for Scott Romney, Mitt’s brother, and it was assumed he would be the GOP nominee for the open AG seat being vacated by the “Eternal General,” Frank Kelley.

But the elder Yob had other ideas. He pushed the candidacy of a rather obscure west Michigan prosecutor, John Smietanka, and somehow managed to outmaneuver the Romney camp at the ’98 summer convention.

A Democratic star is born
While many prominent Democrats thought they had little chance of defeating Romney, Smietanka’s convention victory led to a win in November by another little-known government attorney, Democrat Jennifer Granholm of Wayne County.
Yob was subsequently blamed for another crushing loss for the GOP in the 2002 gubernatorial race won by Granholm.
"We might never have had a Jennifer Granholm," Anuzis said years later. "There was always high hopes for another Romney to do something in Michigan."

The intraparty feud also goes beyond elections and candidates to money – lots of it.  The Sterling Corporation, a Lansing-based political consulting firm, has competed for clients with the Yobs' organization for years.
As this rivalry for campaign cash and credibility grew in intensity, Fred Wszolek, a partner at the Sterling Corporation, told a reporter this: "Chuck Yob? Yeah, I don't know how to spell horse's patoot, but you could probably write that down."

It’s no wonder that Anuzis’ ouster from the RNC seat in 2012 was so sweet for the Yobs and so bitter for Anuzis and his allies.