For Election night 2000, several of the "Irish for Bush/Cheney" leadership: Grant Lally, Jeffrey Cleary and Judith Hard, were invited to join then-Governor George Bush, at his Election Night victory rally in Austin Texas. It turned into a long, rainy night in Austin.

Following the election, the Bush Campaign summoned the Irish American Republicans to take the lead in protecting President-Elect Bush's victory in Florida, against the Gore campaign operatives' relentless efforts to steal the election.

The IAR Leaders Grant Lally, Justin Driscoll, Brian McCarthy, Jeffrey Cleary, Brendan Quinn, Kenneth Curley, Judy Hard, Josh Toas, Robert Farley, Rick Nelson, Bruce Tague, Duane Gibson, and Congressman John Sweeney (R-NY), and many others, all flew to Florida at the request of the Bush/Cheney Campaign, to take the lead in the Recount efforts.

Dubbed the "Wild Geese of Miami," the Irish Republicans successfully fought-off the attempted theft of the Presidency. Grant Lally served as the GOP Floor Manager of the Miami Recount, battling to protect the integrity of the ballots.

Congessman John Sweeney served as overall Bush political director for the south Florida recounts, a role for which President Bush awarded him the knickname "Congessman Kick-Ass."

The Irish American Republicans played a vital role in the peaceful protest that the media dubbed the "Brooks Brothers' Riot," successfully demanding that the media have access to the secret "overcount" ballot recount that the Miami-Dade Canvassing Board proposed to hold behind closed doors. IAR Chairman Brian McCarthy was particularly featured on the cover of Newsweek, defending our right to open government. 

For five long weeks, and in Florida counties ranging from Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach counties in the south, to  Washington county in the Florida panhandle, the Irish American Republicans fought hard, and made the critical difference.

Working together with the Bush/Cheney campaign, the efforts of the Irish-American Republicans, and those of Lally, Driscoll, McCarthy and Cleary, in particular, ensured that the actual winners of the election, the right men for the job, were elected the President and Vice President of the United States . Recent history has shown us that our nation needs the leadership of President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, for which we are grateful.

With the 2004 Presidential election too close to call, the RNC and Bush/Cheney 2004 summoned the Irish American Republicans save the day in the key battleground state of Ohio. IAR Board member Brendan Quinn was given overall command of the critical Cleveland area; and Irish Republicans from across the country flew to Ohio, to take critical leadership roles.

IAR Board member Justin Driscoll coordinated Cleveland election litigation; Irish for Bush/Cheney Chair Grant Lally took charge of Lorain County and Oberlin City in western Cleveland; Jeffrey Cleary was named Director of Presidential Advance; and IAR leaders Bruce Tague, Mitch Baxter, Dr. John Vafai, Deborah Misir, Col. Kenneth Curley, Mary Mahon, William Sanders, Bryan Noel, John Gorman, Frank Scaturro, David Lai, John Scales, Dale Louda, Andrew Siff, and many others, joined Ohio IAR leaders Dan Carter, Jim Miller, Dave Moore, Chairman Bob Rousseau, Paul Blevins, state GOP ED Chris McNulty, and many other Ohioans, to make the critical difference.

The IAR exposed "Juanita Smith" - who had died in 2002 at age 83 - and was miraculously re-born and re-registered to vote in September, 2004, as a 22-year old Oberlin College student. The IAR obtained a Court Injunction in Lorain County, barring identified double registrants, from fraudulently voting absentee twice (or more times) in Ohio and other states.

The IAR trained over 2000 GOP poll watchers, the front line of Republican anti-fraud efforts in Ohio.

The Irish American Republicans are proud of our members who played a critical role in helping to win Ohio in 2004, and ensuring that President George Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney were returned for a second term.

National Coalitions Director for Bush/Cheney 2004, Jafar Karim, reached-out to the The Irish-American Republicans, to rebuild the successful "Irish for Bush/Cheney" coalition from 2000. Chaired during the 2000 campaign by our Executive Director Grant Lally, Irish for Bush/Cheney successfully organized Irish for Bush Cheney efforts in over 30 states, and helped to spearhead the campaign efforts in the battleground states.

The Irish American Republicans organized the most incredible Irish gathering ever seen in the Reuplican Party: the official 2004 "Celebration of Irish Heritage" event for the Republican National Convention.

Over 1300 Irish Republicans and supporters gathered on a perfect day, alongside the historic Irish Hunger Memorial in Battery Park City, in an open air tent along the Hudson River , to celebrate the success and outreach of President Bush, our host Governor George Pataki, and the swelling legions of Irish American Republicans in our Republican Party. GOP Chairman Ed Gillespie, Ambassador Richard Egan, Massachusetts Lt. Governor Kerry Healey, and scores of Congressmen and state and local officials attended an event that Irish Connections magazine described as "awesome."

The Irish American Republicans wish to thank Amb Richard Egan, Guiness Breweries, Diarmud Hogan, William Plunkett, and our Chairman Brian McCarthy, for making the event such a success.

Under the guidance of 2000 GOP Platform committee member, and IAR Board member, Michael Finnegan, the Republican Party adopted a 2000 plank on Irish affairs that the Irish Voice newspaper described as having "put the Democrats to shame"

Finnegan served as Counsel to Governor George Pataki and is widely credited with the enactment into law by New York State of "the Irish Hunger Curriculum." It that requires that the history, political causes, and preventability of the Great Irish Famine, be taught in all primary and secondary schools in the State of New York.

The Irish and American media launched a firestorm against Al Gore for ignoring the Irish Peace Process, producing an embarrassingly "anemic" Irish statement in the Democrat Platform, and for turning his back on Irish issues.

In the autumn of 1999, Bush campaign leader Heinz Prechter reached-out to the Irish American Republicans to form an Irish coalition for Governor George W. Bush.

In a now-historic meeting, held at the New York Athletic Club, Prechter summoned the leaders of the Irish American Republicans. Prechter asked the IAR to discuss with him, and Karl Rove via teleconference, how then-Governor George Bush could win the Irish vote, and make a difference for Ireland. Rove identified the Irish vote as being one of the most selective, and a key demographic constituency for Governor Bush, if he was ever to win the Presidency.

When an energetic young aide to Prechter interjected out of turn, and boasted that the Bush campaign had already organized coalitions for 15 tiny immigrant minority communities, listing them each proudly and then after number 14, stuttering "and one more, who did I forget...," IAR founding Board member, Stanley Quinn Casey, intoned with authority "only 75 % of the American public..."

With that meeting, the Irish alliance with George Bush was forged, and "Irish for Bush" became a key player for then-Governor Bush, in the 2000 election.

In February, 2000, the Irish American Republicans drafted that official Irish Policy Statement, issued by Governor George Bush, and published in the Irish and other newspapers. The Policy Statement promised that a Bush Administration would be actively engaged with Ireland, and boldly promised the appointment of a US Special Envoy for the Irish Peace Process.