Paths diverge when it comes to politics, loyalty

Paul Bedinghaus and Louis Kwall stood in exactly the same place one night eight years ago, each man arguing to a room full of volunteers that he should lead Pinellas County's powerful Republican Party organization.

Last week I saw both men in opposite settings, and it seems to me their different paths say a lot about politics, democracy and loyalty.

On Monday might, Bedinghaus arrived at Clearwater Central Catholic High School and presided over the Pinellas Republican Executive Committee, the main local party organization. He led the group in rallying for Republican candidates, the same role he has played for eight straight years as the Republican chairman. Now, Bedinghaus not only serves as Pinellas chairman, but he has become statewide GOP treasurer and is considered a possible candidate for state chairman.

And then on Tuesday night I saw Kwall, the former Republican chairman whom Bedinghaus beat back in 1994. On Tuesday, Kwall arrived at the Feather Sound Country Club. The occasion was a fundraiser with a suggested $500 contribution for Bill McBride -- repeat, Bill McBride -- Democratic candidate for governor.

So who is more loyal? Read on.

Bedinghaus is a loyal Republican, it would be hard for anyone to argue otherwise. But some would say loyal to a fault.

When he ran in 1994, Bedinghaus was an upstart. A certified public accountant, he tried to defeat Kwall at a time when he was just 30 years old and president of the St. Petersburg Young Republicans. And he did.

Bedinghaus, now 38, was strongly associated with the party's right wing, an association he says was overblown. For some in the party, the impression persists. But County Commissioner John Morroni, a moderate Republican, says Bedinghaus has proved his loyalty to the whole party. Morroni prevailed over Bedinghaus and other candidates in a 1992 legislative primary, but once Morroni became the nominee, "he supported me that night, he's a team player and he's been with me ever since."

Bedinghaus also has worked hard to meet with African-American voters and other ethnic minorities, urging them to become active in the GOP. He says he strongly believes the party needs diversity to prosper.

But when it comes to party loyalty, the defining moment for Bedinghaus came in the County Commission race of 1998. On the the Republican side stood Tom McKeon, whose campaign so alienated the Republican establishment that two Republican commissioners and three former GOP chairmen endorsed the Democrat.

The Democrat, incidentally, was Calvin Harris, who at the time was the only African-American commissioner. Bedinghaus himself admires Harris enough that he has encouraged him to join the Republican Party.

But in that race, Bedinghaus held firm. He remained solidly behind the Republican other Republicans shunned, and even removed a picture from the headquarters wall of one of the commissioners who endorsed the Democrat.

And Kwall? He endorsed Harris then, and supports McBride over Jeb Bush now. Kwall, 59, said he simply trusts McBride more to do what's right for Florida.

"Blind loyalty to a political party is foolish," Kwall said. "And I realize that there are many people who disagree with me, but that's life." That's not aimed at Bedinghaus, Kwall said. "I respect Paul in that he's willing to stand up for the things he believes in. . . . We actually probably agree on a lot of things."

Probably so. Kwall's support of a Democrat will certainly rankle many Republicans, and Bedinghaus certainly will go on rankling Democrats.

But he remains in the process, still fighting, still speaking out. And that's a kind of loyalty, too. Political differences are not the problem in our system, but the essence of it.

Saw this on a bumper sticker the other day:

IF WE DON'T VOTE

WILL THEY ALL GO AWAY?

I love the humor, but here's my thought: Half of us already don't vote. Have half the politicians gone away?

-- You can reach Curtis Krueger at (727) 893-8232 or at krueger@sptimes.com.

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