by John Gonzales
Contributing Writer
In light of the standoff between former Republic of Texas Ambassador Richard McLaren and the Texas Department of Public Safety in Fort Davis, one member of the republic was quick to distance himself from McLaren's followers and other splinter groups.
"It's not a move that was made by the Republic. It was a move made by Richard McLaren," said David Sanders, District 2 Chief Constable of the Republic of Texas.
District 2 encompasses the Odessa/San Angelo/Wichita Falls area. For now, the Republic of Texas has a provisional government with eight districts. Sanders' district is made up of 52 counties with district officers including a judge, a defense forces commander and a director of judicial affairs.
The standoff began April 27 when members of McLaren's group took two Fort Davis residents hostage and demanded the release of jailed Republic of Texas members. Since the standoff began, Sanders and other members of the Republic of Texas have worked feverishly to answer for the actions of McLaren.
"All we're doing right now is we're just telling people that what Mr. McLaren does as a citizen is just that - which is not the actions of the republic and we do not condone those actions," he said.
In an effort to bring the various factions back together, the Republic of Texas held an open summit meeting Sunday in Kilgore. All members of the varying factions were invited along with citizens of both the state of Texas and the Republic of Texas.
Sanders said the meeting was an effort to bring all the factions together, despite their previous actions. He added that he is not worried about the negative publicity the Republic of Texas may be receiving.
"(The splinter groups have) been pretty much considered a joke, even throughout the media. Nobody's taken them serious whatsoever," Sanders said.
With the exception of certain jurisdictional issues, Sanders said he is pleased with how the state is handling the issue.
"I haven't seen one problem yet with how they're handling it," he said.
According to the Republic of Texas' website, McLaren was impeached by their government on March 22.
Sanders said McLaren threatened acts of war and spoke of violence against the United States and the state of Texas in interviews. Although these splinter groups may call themselves the Republic of Texas, they are not associated with the Republic of Texas anymore and are considered followers of McLaren's splinter group, Sanders said.
Reports of a state of war declared by the Republic of Texas on the state of Texas were also made by McLaren. The movement to establish Texas as an independent nation began through the research of McLaren, according to the group's website, "Republic is Reborn."
In the July 17, 1996, issue of The Daily Cougar, Don Varnell, Secretary of Plans, Powers, Constitution and Convention, responded to questions about a lawsuit filed by the Texas State Attorney General Dan Morales regarding the Republic's filing of false liens on privately owned and Texas state property. Despite the lawsuit, Varnell emphasized the Republic's peaceful nature and its findings.
"We've elected a government. We have a provisional government. We've got a treasury. We have got a country," Varnell said. "And this is done by lawful means."
Since then, Varnell and an estimated group of 20 members of the Republic of Texas left the group to form another organization that supports McLaren's actions. Varnell could not be reached for comment.
Sanders said he believes that McLaren and the other splinter groups at least share the same goal as the Republic of Texas.
"I'm not saying that his ideas about what needs to be done and what we're trying to do are different than mine," he said. "He's just trying to go about it in a different fashion."
Although McLaren shares the republic's overall goal for Texas to leave the United States, Sanders said what McLaren did was wrong.
"No matter what good comes from him doing that, what he did is unlawful and it's a terrible thing," Sanders said. "You don't break into somebody's house and hold them hostage. I don't care what you think they did or what they believe or what stand for. They have that right to believe what they believe is right."