Can't the GOP Get Anything Right?

This report from CNN bothers me:

Sen. Mel Martinez (R-FL) "has accepted an offer by the White House to become the new chairman of the Republican National Committee," according to CNN.

"Under the arrangement, Martinez will remain in office and serve as the party's lead spokesman as well as take a major role in fundraising and political outreach, while RNC General Counsel Robert (Mike) Duncan will oversee the committee's day-to-day responsibilities. Duncan is serving his fourth term as a RNC committeeman from Kentucky and was also elected the committee's Treasurer in Jan. 2001."

Michael Steele was ready and willing to take on this job, and would have been able to devote his full effort to it. Instead, the GOP has hired a part-time Senator/ part-time RNC chief who, thanks to the responsibilities inherent in each position, won't do either one of them well. The GOP just squandered an amazing opportunity to elevate a smart, conservative black Republican to one of the highest positions in its party. That's just plain dumb.

And if you think I'm being hard on this selection, just look what they have to say at RedState:

We could have had a promising up-and-comer with a great life story, fantastic political skills, and odds-on-sharps like you wouldn't believe.

We could have had a dirty machine politico, who may make us all cringe a little at what he's willing to countenance, but who is used to the odd knifefight with a K-Bar and a rusty razor, and who could help us work our way back into the majority.

We could have had a lobotomized sea lion, who would at least know to bark to get some kind of fish on command.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the next best thing (by a little) to making Kevin Phillips the new RNC Chair: Bonehead Martinez. Yes, that's right, Bonehead, who with a five-point Bush win in trending-Red Florida at his back, barely managed to beat one of the more anodyne, bland Democrats to run for the Senate outside of Massachusetts; Bonehead, who managed to take a dicey political situation in the Terri Schiavo affair and make himself into a Google search result; Bonehead, who if asked to eat eggs over easy and shave at the same time, would end up with shiny whites and yolk smeared in fork-tine streaks across his face; Bonehead is going to be the RNC Chair.

And if gets better! He's going to multitask!

Ouch!