Oh Goody. ANOTHER Election.

Just what we needed. Another chance to point fingers & scream at each other. I'm referring to the upcoming election for the Chairman of the RNC, which is currently held by Michael Steele.

Courtesy of Hot Air, I found this article at the National Journal's Hotline that discusses all the different factions that are lining up against Mr. Steele.

A Golden Nugget of Classical Goodness from the comments: "Steele has done a great job for the Republicans and brought in the Tea Party. He should stay in his position and we will fight for him." Oooooooookay. Saying that Steele "brought in" the Tea Party is a little like saying King George III "brought in" the the Continental Congress and the American Revolution, but I will concede that he has been at least friendly towards the Tea Parties.

Here's the thing: If you believe that Michael Steele has done a good job of leading the Republican Party, you need to believe that he set out to decentralize power on the right by helping alienate the Tea Party coalition and causing them to bypass the RNC with direct contributions to their favored candidates. If you think that this is a good thing, but don't believe that Steele set out to make it happen, voting for him would be like voting for Mr. Bean or Inspector Clouseau. Rewarding incompetence.

If you think that he's done a bad job and should be replaced, which way do you go with his replacement? There's talk of Reince Priebus, the chairman of the Wisconsin Republican Party, throwing his hat into the ring. I think this might be the best option out there. He's Steele's top assistant at the RNC, so he's not a completely new face who has to learn on the job; however, looking at how the Republican Party kicked ass & took names this year in the Badger State, he seems to be a proven winner.

Let's face it, no matter how the issue is resolved, the GOP will be labeled as racist in the media for deposing their first black chairman on the heels of a big legislative win. I think we need to dig in our heels and take the criticism, because the stakes are MUCH larger in the next election. 2012 isn't just another chance to take the Senate and increase our margin in the House - it's a freakin' Presidential year. Whether the Tea Party stays on the outside or they get one of their own into leadership at the RNC, the next chairman of the RNC will need to be a coalition builder between all factions on the right. Building "hip hop coalitions" and giving interviews to Al Sharpton will be the least of our problems in the next cycle. We need someone who can rally the faithful, and I'm afraid that Michael Steele isn't up to the job.

posted by Russ from Winterset at 11:32 AM

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