Saulius "Saul" Anuzis (born March 6, 1959) is an American elected official from the U.S. State of Michigan, he is currently serving as National Chairman for the "Save American Jobs Project" on the American Solutions team. Saul was the former Chair of the Michigan Republican Party and was also a candidate for Chair of the Republican National Committee in 2009.
Early life
Anuzis was born in the U.S.A. to Lithuanian immigrants, Ceslovas and Elena Anuzis. He attended Bishop Borgess High School and later studied Economics at the University of Michigan–Dearborn campus. His senior year he was elected President of the Student Government and also was one of the founders and first Chairman of the UM-D College Republican club on campus. His parents and paternal grandparents, Ignas and Elena Anuzis, received the Righteous Among the Nations award from Israel's national Holocaust memorial, Yad Vashem, for helping three young girls escape from a Jewish ghetto and make their way from Lithuania to Estonia during World War II. One of those girls, now grown, nominated them for the award. Anuzis is married to Lina (née Alksninis) and they have four sons, Matas, Tadas, Vytis, and Marius.
Politics
In 1980, Anuzis was elected as the youngest delegate to the Republican National Convention held in Detroit. After attending President Reagan's first inaugural he was elected Third Vice Chair of the MRSC. Anuzis also served six years as a member of the MRSC and two terms as a Congressional District Chairman.
Anuzis managed Dick Posthumus' first State Senate race in 1982 and then worked closely with Posthumus throughout his career in Michigan politics, including running his unsuccessful bid for governor in 2002. During that time, Anuzis worked for the House Republican Campaign Committee, the Senate Republican Campaign Committee, and as Chief of Staff to then Majority Leader Posthumus.
In 1990, Anuzis took a break from politics to focus on his family and business interests. He and partner Bruce Yuille founded Coast to Coast Telecommunications that year. They later sold that business in 2000/1 when Anuzis and Yuille then co-founded Quick Connect USA.
Republican State Chair
On February 5, 2005, Anuzis was elected Chairman of the Michigan Republican State Committee (MRSC). Despite heavy statewide election losses for Republicans in 2006, Saul was re-elected to a second term as Chairman with a unanimous vote at the Republican State Convention on February 10, 2007 in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
2006
In August, 2006, Anuzis took a dig at Michigan's 13th District State Senate candidate Andy Levin, son of Sandy Levin a Democratic U.S. Representative of Michigan by welcoming the former AFL-CIO official to Michigan after living for years in Washington D.C. Anuzis pointed out that Levin just recently purchased a home in Bloomfield Hills after using his father's Royal Oak address to establish residency before the filing deadline. Saul showed up with a welcome basket, complete with maps of the senate district, samples of Michigan products, a box of crackers, and other choice items.
"I want to be the first to welcome Andy to Michigan," said Anuzis. "He's been gone a long time so I included a map of the district to make sure he doesn't get lost. I wouldn't want him confusing Woodward Avenue with Pennsylvania Avenue or the Clinton River with Hillary Clinton."
The Republican candidate for the 13th District State Senate, John Pappageorge, defeated Levin in the 2006 elections. [1]
2007
On May 16, 2007 Anuzis called for banning U.S. Representative Ron Paul from further Republican primary debates after the congressman made a comment on blowback from US foreign policy and 9/11. Anuzis later clarified that he wanted to narrow the field to give more time to more likely candidates, as six minutes of speaking time per candidate in each debate was not enough for meaningful, intelligent dialogue.[1]
RNC Chairman Race
On November 13, 2008 Anuzis officially announced that he is running for Chairman of the Republican National Committee.[2]
RNC Chairman Vote
Source: CQPolitics [3], and Poll Pundit [4]
| Candidate | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 5 | Round 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Steele | 46 | 48 | 51 | 60 | 79 | 91 |
| Katon Dawson | 28 | 29 | 34 | 62 | 69 | 77 |
| Saul Anuzis | 22 | 24 | 24 | 31 | 20 | Withdrew |
| Ken Blackwell | 20 | 19 | 15 | 15 | Withdrew | |
| Mike Duncan | 52 | 48 | 44 | Withdrew |
- Candidate won that Round of voting
- Candidate withdrew
- Candidate won RNC Chairmanship
2009
- Anuzis promotes use of the term "fascist" to describe the policies of Barack Obama. “We’ve so overused the word ‘socialism’ that it no longer has the negative connotation it had 20 years ago, or even 10 years ago,” Anuzis told the New York Times. “Fascism — everybody still thinks that’s a bad thing.” [[2]]
Personal life
Anuzis is a former member of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. He was also a Gubernatorial Appointee to the Michigan Jobs Commission and the Michigan Export Development Authority. He is a Scout Master of local Boy Scout Troop 100 (comprising Lithuanian scouts), and is actively involved in several Lithuanian-American organizations and serves on several non-profit boards. He currently serves as Honorary Consul to Michigan for the Republic of Lithuania. Anuzis and his family reside in Eaton County.
References
- ^ | RNC Debate Petition... getting lost in the rhetoric
- ^ | Anuzis jumps into RNC chair race (MSNBC)
- ^ CQ Politics (January 30, 2009). "Republican Choose Michael Steele as Party Chairman".
- ^ PollPundit.com (January 30, 3009). "RNC Chairman Vote: Live Coverage".
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