Dear RNC: Please Stop Whining And Go Win This Campaign

This is a completely useless effort:

The Republican National Committee is asking the Government Accountability Office to examine President Obama's "misuse" of government funds to benefit his reelection campaign.

In an official complaint filed with the GAO, a watchdog agency, RNC Chairman Reince Priebus accuses Obama of "passing off campaign travel as official events," using taxpayer money to fund his reelection efforts.

Every incumbent president has used the perks of office to his advantage during campaigns. Obama probably more than any previous president, but they have some smart people who know how to use the rules to their advantage. Whining about it won't help.

Even if an investigation is opened, nothing will come of it and the RNC will just come off looking like a bunch of whiners. We need winners, not whiners.

Get to work, RNC.

Michael Steele Will Not Continue as RNC Chair

The rounds of voting continue at the RNC meeting, but Chairman Michael Steele has now dropped out.  There are still four candidates in the running.  Steele made an endorsement, but the person he endorsed is not a favorite of conservatives.  We'll see how that all works out.

UPDATE:  Final Ballot: Priebus 97, Anuzis 43, Cino 28 -- 85 votes were needed to win.

Reince Priebus will be the new RNC Chairman.  Don't know a thing about him.

It'll Almost Make Me Want to Send a Letter

Coming next year in honor of Ronald Reagan's 100th birthday, the Gipper Stamp:

Just an idea - when the stamp is released everyone should send at postcard to the RNC with this stamp on it and the message "Don't support any 2012 candidate who doesn't think like Reagan."

Here's Why We're Going to Need a New RNC Chairman

I like Michael Steele personally and supported his run for Chairman of the Republican National Committee.  But I can't support his re-election and it's statements like this that drive me crazy:

Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele said Sunday that he “appreciates” high estimates for the number of seats the GOP may win Tuesday, but that he’s more focused on hitting the mark of 39 seats to take back the majority in the House of Representatives.

“If we get 39 seats and take the majority, that’s a success,” Steele said on CNN’s State of the Union with Candy Crowley. “If we get 37 seats, that’s success. Keep in mind, we got to keep this thing in context here: we were a party out of power.”

No, Michael, if we get 37 seats that's not success, that's a dismal failure in this electoral climate and we'll still be a party out of power.  We've got to have somebody in there who will get right back in the faces of the media and the Dems and won't settle for less than total victory.  I just don't think Steele is the guy.

GOP + Tea Party = Obama Defeat

That's the message coming from Haley Barbour, former RNC chairman, current governor of Mississippi, and possible 2012 presidential candidate:

Christine O'Donnell's upset victory in last week's Delaware GOP Senate primary has generated a lot of talk in the media about where the tea party and the GOP are headed.

Tea party voters have been incited to political action by the policies of the Obama administration and the Pelosi-Reid Congress. These include a heretofore unimaginable federal spending spree, a failed package of stimulus programs, a government takeover of our health-care system, and the Democrats' insistence on raising taxes, particularly on job creators, even though job creation is our country's greatest need.

Tea party voters are not only motivated by the effect these terrible policies are having on them—they are worried about America's future. They fear that their children and grandchildren won't inherit the same country they inherited from their parents and grandparents. What they know with certainty is that future generations will be saddled with paying back the trillions in debt that the Obama administration and Congress are running up with so little positive result.

Replace "tea party" with "Republican" in every instance above, and each description would remain totally accurate. On the issues foremost in voters' minds—the economy, jobs, spending, taxes, debt and deficits—the overwhelming majority of tea party voters and Republican voters are in strong agreement.

That is why it was tremendously important for Republican prospects in the 2010 elections that tea partiers did not run as independents or third-party candidates. To do so would have split the votes of those who know the Obama-Pelosi-Reid policies don't work and are hurting our economy.

Every Republican should be pleased that these tea party candidates chose to run in our primaries. In the vast majority of cases, their participation was welcomed, even cultivated, by GOP leaders—and rightly so.

Read the rest of his analysis here.

Barbour knows a thing or two about building a party. He was a very successful RNC Chairman and could be a good guy to build the relationship between the Tea Party independents and the GOP.

Some of the GOP insiders really burned bridges over the Christine O'Donnell race in Delaware, and that damage needs to be fixed before the Tea Party crowd will be comfortable working with the Republicans.

Conservative Christian Groups: Don't Give to the RNC

The tone deafness of the Republican National Committee is costing them donations from a very reliably conservative constituency - Christians:

Tony Perkins, head of the Family Research Council and an influential social conservative, is urging his members to stop giving money to the Republican National Committee, POLITICO has learned.

"I've hinted at this before, but now I am saying it: Don't give money to the RNC," Perkins will tell FRC members in the group's next e-mail newsletter. "If you want to put money into the political process, and I encourage you to do so, give directly to candidates who you know reflect your values."

Perkins' move comes two days after it was disclosed that the committee spent nearly $2,000 at a lesbian bondage club near Los Angeles — a revelation that has revived Republican griping about Chairman Michael Steele and the national party.

"This latest incident is another indication to me the RNC is completely tone-deaf to the values and concerns of a large number of people they are seeking financial support from," Perkins writes.

His move comes a few weeks after Mark DeMoss, a prominent Christian conservative P.R. executive and donor, said after the disclosure of the RNC's controversial fundraising presentation that he would stop giving to the national party.

In his missive, Perkins also lamented that the RNC had touted their hiring super-lawyer Ted Olson to represent them in a campaign finance case.

"Yes, this is the same Ted Olson that is trying to overturn the results of the marriage amendment in California," Perkins writes. "The outcome of Olson's challenge to Prop 8 goes far beyond nullifying the votes of nearly 7 million voters in California; his efforts could lead to the overturning of amendments and laws in all 45 states that currently define marriage as the union of one man and one woman."

Many conservatives are tired of funding a national party that doesn't seem very picky about the candidates they support, or the leisure time activities they fund. A lot of people would rather support their local conservative candidates directly rather than have their donations diluted by running them through a middleman like the RNC.

That prevents money from going to RINOs...or lesbos.

RNC Aide Acts Incredibly Stupidly

And he's been fired for spending RNC money on a questionable Hollywood nightclub:

A Republican National Committee staffer who accompanied a group of young donors to a bondage-themed West Hollywood club and then expensed the nearly $2,000 tab has been fired by the committee, POLITICO has learned.

RNC Chief of Staff Ken McKay announced the firing in an internal committee email obtained by POLITICO.

“This was not an RNC sanctioned event and was not associated in any way with any RNC official event,” McKay wrote of the February outing to Voyeur, a West Hollywood club modeled after the risqué Tom Cruise-Nicole Kidman movie “Eyes Wide Shut.”

The late-night excursion followed an official RNC event in Los Angeles for donors in its “Young Eagles” program, McKay wrote, stressing that neither Chairman Michael Steele nor any senior staff were aware of either the outing or the committee’s reimbursement of the cost.

McKay wrote that the fired staffer, who is not named in the email, “was aware that this activity was not eligible for reimbursement and had been previously counseled on this very subject. Accordingly, that staff person has been terminated.”

McKay also wrote that the donor who was reimbursed for footing the bill at Voyeur, Erik Brown, “has verbally agreed to repay the funds to the RNC.”

A source with knowledge of the situation said Brown, a church-going mid-level political operative, “was not entirely thrilled with the venue that people ended up at,” but nonetheless agreed to foot the bill after the RNC staffer in question told him the committee would reimburse the cost.

It's not enough to get rid of the clown to spent the money and submitted the expense, whoever approved it for reimbursement also needs to go, even if it's Steele himself.

You First, Democrats

How about leading by example, Democrats, instead of silly PR stunts like this:

The Republican National Committee has rejected a proposal from its Democratic counterpart to sign a joint “civility” statement, POLITICO has learned.

Various members of the DNC — including Chairman Tim Kaine, Executive Director Jen O’Malley Dillon and Communications Director Brad Woodhouse — contacted their respective RNC counterparts this week in hopes of getting RNC Chairman Michael Steele to co-sign a document with Kaine that, in part, called for “elected officials of both parties to set an example of the civility we want to see in our citizenry.”

When Democrats are out of power civility is completely a foreign concept to them. Once in power they demand civility from their opponents that they would never give when they were in the minority.

Stick it in your ear, Dems. How's that for civility?

Happy Valentine's Day From the GOP

I have my doubts that these will catch on:

This Valentine's Day, the party labeled by Democrats as the Party of No is remaking itself into the Party of Love.

The Republican National Committee is sending out a fundraising e-mail that urges donors to send GOP Valentine's E-Cards to loved ones, with online contributions of anywhere from $10 to $100.

Donors can choose from 18 different Valentine's cards that the RNC has created, including one that features Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi claiming they didn't craft the card behind closed doors, as they did with their "government-run health care experiment."

Another has President Obama claiming he's saved or created millions of Valentine's, "just like his party has claimed that the wasteful, pork-filled stimulus bill has created or saved thousands, 1.5 million or 2 million jobs depending on which Obama administration official you ask."

Many of the cards make light of the troubles Democrats recently have found themselves in.

One card features White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, who apologized last week for calling Democrats who oppose a health care measure "f---king retarded," sending wishes for a "Happy Valentine's Day."

Another card shows the community organizing group ACORN saying "We'd like to help you set up a tax-free 'romance business.'" The group has been under fire since last year when some of its workers were caught on video offering advice on how to set up a brothel for child prostitutes to a couple posing as a pimp and prostitute .

I think I'll pass.

RNC's Employee Insurance Policy Covers Abortion

Boy, this is a screw-up:

The Republican National Committee will no longer offer employees an insurance plan that covers abortion after POLITICO reported Thursday that the anti-abortion RNC's policy has covered the procedure since 1991.

"Money from our loyal donors should not be used for this purpose," Chairman Michael Steele said in a statement. "I don't know why this policy existed in the past, but it will not exist under my administration. Consider this issue settled."

Steele has told the committee's director of administration to opt out of coverage for elective abortion in the policy it uses from Cigna.

Federal Election Commission Records show the RNC purchases its insurance from Cigna, and two sales agents for the company said that the RNC’s policy covers elective abortion.

As of Thursday, the RNC’s plan covers elective abortion – a procedure the party’s own platform calls “a fundamental assault on innocent human life.”

Informed of the coverage, RNC spokeswoman Gail Gitcho told POLITICO earlier Thursday that the policy pre-dates the tenure of current RNC Chairman Michael Steele.

“The current policy has been in effect since 1991, and we are taking steps to address the issue,” Gitcho said.

Nothing like giving Democrats ammunition to use against you. Not to mention all those people who have donated to the RNC over the years and just found out they've been helping to fun abortion coverage.

The RNC Versus the DNC

The battle has been joined over the issue of protesters at Democrat town hall meetings. The DNC insists it's all being run by evil corporations, and the RNC is tired of Obama's "experiments" such as the stimulus bill, cap-and-tax and Obamacare.

I enjoyed this part of a report from Red State:

This morning, the DNC launched a new ad curiously portraying President Obama’s critics as right-wing fringe lunatics, reflexively opposed to the president’s domestic agenda for belief in a citizenship conspiracy. At the close of the offensively absurd web video, a voice over instructed viewers to call the RNC to voice their outrage.

But the RNC was quick to the turn the tables on the Democrats with the particularly well-produced web ad, featuring an aloof Obama playing basketball while figures of the economic downturn race across the screen.

Popout

And in a surprising display of savvy, Democratic allies who reached the RNC’s phone line were instructed to press 1 to voice concern over Republican “mobs,” at which point their call was automatically directed to the DNC’s main switchboard.

Heh.

Obama Does Broadway, RNC Does Stupid

The Obamas are taking in dinner and a Broadway show in New York City, and the Republican National Committee is acting stupid:

President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama landed in New York City late Saturday afternoon for a Manhattan date night that was to include a Broadway show.

A spokesman read a statement from Obama: "I am taking my wife to New York City because I promised her during the campaign that I would take her to a Broadway show after it was all finished.

The president traveled in a smaller, Gulfstream-type plane rather than the larger planes typically used as Air Force One.

The Republican National Committee slammed the outing in an "RNC Research Piece": "As President Obama prepares to wing into Manhattan’s theater district on Air Force One to take in a Broadway show, GM is preparing to file bankruptcy and families across America continue to struggle to pay their bills. ... Have a great Saturday evening – even if you’re not jetting off somewhere at taxpayer expense. ... PUTTING ON A SHOW: Obamas Wing Into The City For An Evening Out While Another Iconic American Company Prepares For Bankruptcy."

The RNC's Gail Gitcho added: "If President Obama wants to go to the theater, isn’t the Presidential box at the Kennedy Center good enough?”

Look, RNC, I'm not an Obama fan either, but he is the President and he's entitled to stuff like this. President Bush took Air Force One to his Texas ranch 77 times and I don't remember the DNC stupidly criticizing each trip.

The RNC will not gain support for Republican candidates with this kind of pettiness.

Michael Steele Declares the End of the One Party System

RNC chairman Michael Steele is sounding a little feisty today (from The Swamp):

"The era of apologizing for Republican mistakes of the past is now officially over,'' Michael Steele, chairman of the Republican National Committee, told state party chairmen today at an assembly at a Potomac Riverfront convention center.

"We have turned the corner on regret, recrimination, self-pity and self-doubt,'' Steele said.

"The second turning point for our party is this. We are going to take the president head-on. The honeymoon is over,'' he said, addressing President Barack Obama's popularity, an "Obama phenomenon'' which the GOP should no longer fear. "The two-party system is making a comeback, and that comeback starts today.''

The party would be abandoning its responsibility, if it didn't speak out against profligate spending and other Democratic initiatives, he suggested, criticial of the big "left turn'' which the nation has taken with its new president.

"We are not going to be silent. We are going to speak up,'' the chairman said to applause in the hall. "We will not be afraid to agree with the president when we believe he is doing what is best for America, but neither will we be afraid to disagree with the president when we believe his actions are hurting our country''
.
"Many have suggested that we have to be careful, that we have to tip-toe around President Obama, that we have to be careful not to take him on,'' Steele said. "The president is personally popular... Folks like him.. He's a great orator. His campaign style is wonderful... He's young, he's cool, he's hip, he's got a good looking family... what's not to like?

"There's only one problem,'' Steele said to more applause. "He's taking us in the wrong direction and bankrupting our country... We will and we must stand against his disastrous policy.... We're going to take this president on with class. We're going to take this president on with dignity,'' he said, deriding the "classless and shabby way'' that Democrats challenged former President George W. Bush.

Good. The GOP has got to quit sitting back and letting Obama and the Dems do whatever they want. We may not have the votes to stop them, but we can certainly make their policies costly for the them in the future. However, the education of the public has to start now to be effective in 2010.

The Obama Card

Don't leave home without it:

Dear RNC, Quit Acting Like Democrats

This is just plain dumb:

A member of the Republican National Committee told me Tuesday that when the RNC meets in an extraordinary special session next week, it will approve a resolution rebranding Democrats as the “Democrat Socialist Party.”

When I asked if such a resolution would force RNC Chairman Michael Steele to use that label when talking about Democrats in all his speeches and press releases, the RNC member replied: “Who cares?”…

Steele wrote a memo last month opposing the resolution. Steele said that while he believes Democrats “are indeed marching America toward European-style socialism,” he also said in a (rare) flash of insight that officially referring to them as the Democrat Socialist Party “will accomplish little than to give the media and our opponents the opportunity to mischaracterize Republicans.”

While I agree that many, if not all, if the Democrat proposals have a strong resemblance to socialism, playing these silly word games does absolutely nothing to advance the cause of conservatism or attract voters to the party.

The Democrats are well known for name calling, which usually occurs as soon as they run out of ideas (usually about 30 seconds into any argument with a lefty). What this tells me is that the RNC is running out of ideas.

The RNC Election - UPDATE: It's Steele!

UPDATE: Congratulations to Michael Steele, new RNC Chairman!

Michael Steele wins on the 6th ballot 91-77 over Katon Dawson. Nice job, Republican National Committee!

Given the way the GOP is standing up to Obama's Porkulus bill, and now this election of Micahel Steele, things are definitely looking up for the party. I don't think 2010 is going to look anything like 2006 & 2008.

=======
Today several candidates are vying for the position of chairman of the Republican National Committee. As of this writing there have been four ballots and two candidates have already dropped out, including the imcumbent chairman. Ken Blackwell has also dropped out and endorsed Michael Steele. Here are the results of the fourth ballot (from Campaign Spot):

Steele: 60
Dawson: 62
Anuzis: 31
Blackwell: 15

The winner needs 85 votes. If all of Blackwell's go to Steele, you have to think he's gonna win it. Stay tuned.

There are concerns that fourth ballot leader Katon Dawson could be a problem for the GOP. I personally would like to see Michael Steele win it. Saul Anuzis sends me 4 or 5 email a day, but that apparently hasn't helped him. He'll be the next one out.

UPDATE: Fifth round:

Steele: 79
Dawson 69
Anuzis 20

I'm now hearing that Anuzis has dropped out without endorsing either candidate. Next round should decide it.

Michael Steele on Fox News Sunday

Michael Steele, who is now running for RNC chairman, was interviewed by Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday. He was impressive as you'll see below:

RNC Calling for Audit of Obama's Contributions

I had a piece the other day about the mysterious Mr. Good Will who had made 1,000 contributions to the Obama campaign totally well over the regulatory limits, and now the RNC is calling for a full audit due to multiple irregulaties, including illegal contributions from foreign nationals:

The Republican National Committee announced today that on Monday it will file a fundraising complaint with the Federal Election Commission against the presidential campaign of Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., charging the Democrat has accepted illegal donations from foreigners as well as contributions that exceed the $2,300-per-person federal limits from American citizens.

Obama's campaign has raised almost $460 million so far, and almost half that has been raised by small donors contributing less than $200. RNC chief counsel Sean Cairncross today noted in a conference call that questions have arisen about those smaller donations, which by law the campaign is not required to disclose.

Newsweek reported over the weekend that that FEC auditors have asked the Obama campaign about a number of contributors whose contributions seem to violate campaign laws, such as "Good Will" of Austin, Texas, who listed his occupation as "You" and his employer as "Loving" and gave more than $11,000 total in $10 and $25 increments. Another questionable donor, "Doodad Pro" of Nunda, N.Y., gave $17,130 in similarly small increments.

"The Obama campaign has a track record of accepting these," Cairncross said.

He also said that "the Obama campaign has accepted contributions from foreign nationals and has knowingly done so through at least its failure to reasonably investigate where all this money is coming from." The RNC will ask the FEC to audit these smaller donations.

Earlier this year the Obama campaign returned more than $30,000 from Monir and Hosam Edwan, two Palestinian brothers in the Gaza Strip who said that they'd purchased Obama 2008 T-shirts in bulk from the Obama campaign Web site.

Of course, any questioning of Obama is racist:

The Republican National Committee's complaint about "foreign" contributions to Barack Obama's presidential campaign is a directed, political tactic designed to raise questions about Obama's foreignness and otherness.

McCain's campaign is going into a full-throated attack on Obama's character. It's hard to say whether anyone is willing to listen to it anymore.

BarackBook.com

As a Facebook user I'm always looking for clever new applications to add to my profile, and I just added this one:

Here’s an entry you would not expect to see on Barack Obama’s official profile on the social networking site Facebook: “Barack Obama is now friends with Antonin ‘Tony’ Rezko.”

But that’s the first item on Mr. Obama’s “FriendFeed” on BarackBook.com, a Facebook parody site created by the Republican National Committee that it says will go live on Tuesday. According to the R.N.C, the site is intended to showcase some of Mr. Obama’s “notable associations.”

And highlighting Mr. Obama’s relationship with Mr. Rezko, the Chicago real estate developer who was recently convicted in federal court of corruption and money laundering, is just the beginning. Mr. Rezko was an early political backer of Mr. Obama and donated large sums to his campaigns. (Mr. Obama has since severed ties with Mr. Rezko and given much of the money he raised to charity.)

An early glance at the R.N.C. mockup shows Mr. Rezko with his own profile page that lists links to Mr. Obama and other “friends” of the Illinois senator. Other “BarackBook” friends include, Eric Holder, a Washington lawyer and member of Mr. Obama’s vice presidential selection team, and William Ayers, one of the founders of the radical group Weather Underground.

Each profile is set to include videos, news articles and sections like “Facts About Me and Barack,” “My Donations and Bundling for Barack” and “What Barack Says About Me.” The R.N.C. says it plans to continue updating BarackBook between now and the election. (Notably, the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright, Mr. Obama’s controversial former pastor, does not yet have a profile.)

Users of Facebook – the real one – may be able to install an application on their personal page with links to BarackBook.

Alex Conant, a spokesman for the R.N.C. called the planned site “an interactive way to learn more about Obama’s poor judgment.”

Note: You can now install BarackBook.com on your Facebook profile as I did. Nice work by he RNC (and I don't get to say that very often).

GOP Sees Danger in November and Surrenders

This item at Politico spells out how dangerous the political atmosphere is for Republicans this fall:

Following the victory by Democrat Travis Childers in tonight's special election, National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Tom Cole (Okla.) issued what can only be called a declaration of surrender. Here is Cole's statement, which I found simply amazing:

"We are disappointed in tonight's election results. Though the NRCC, RNC and Mississippi Republicans made a major effort to retain this seat, we came up short.

"Tonight's election highlights two significant challenges Republicans must overcome this November. First, Republicans must be prepared to campaign against Democrat challengers who are running as conservatives, even as they try to join a liberal Democrat majority. Though the Democrats' task will be more difficult in a November election, the fact is they have pulled off two special election victories with this strategy, and it should be a concern to all Republicans.

"Second, the political environment is such that voters remain pessimistic about the direction of the country and the Republican Party in general. Therefore, Republicans must undertake bold efforts to define a forward looking agenda that offers the kind of positive change voters are looking for. This is something we can do in cooperation with our Presidential nominee, but time is short.

"I encourage all Republican candidates, whether incumbents or challengers, to take stock of their campaigns and position themselves for challenging campaigns this fall by building the financial resources and grassroots networks that offer them the opportunity and ability to communicate, energize and turn out voters this election."

Think about this Cole statement - "Democrats are running as conservatives, and Republicans can't beat 'em." So take that club out the GOP arsenal heading into November.

Then Cole covers himself politically by saying "voters remain pessimistic about the direction of the country and the Republican Party in general." Which he follows by urging his candidates and incumbents "to take stock of their campaigns and position themselves for challenging campaigns this fall," especially since Democrats will enjoy a big financial edge.

This whole statement is an admission by Cole that he does not now how House Republicans can win in November as a group, so each member better protect himself or herself. To his credit, Cole has been warning his members that they need to run as outsiders this fall, but beyond that general admonition, the Oklahoma Republican can't show them a path to victory. It's an extraordinary statement by the head of a national campaign committee, but it is not one that's going to inspire any warm feelings from his GOP colleagues.

The interesting point in the piece is that Democrats can only win if they run as conservatives. We saw the same thing in 2006 as a number of Dems were elected by running as conservatives. Since the GOP has pretty much abandoned conservatives, why shouldn't the Dems take over?