As the elected Republican National Committeeman from California, I plan on sharing information over the next few weeks on the race for the Chairmanship of the Republican National Committee. Who wins the RNC chairmanship will help propel Republicans or get us sidetracked into a ditch.
The RNC Chair is only the official face and public opposition to the Democrat Hegemony.
Every time Obama, Reid and Pelosi speak, only the RNC chair was be the Republican voice. Not our guys in the House or Senate. The January 28 election for the new RNC chair is the most important vote for all 168 (3 per state plus 6 territories) RNC members. The vote will take place one week after the Obama Inaugural in Washington DC… and it’s getting mighty hot for all 168 members.
There are six candidates. The guy who was in charge of the last thrashing is running for re-election. He is the Bush holdover, having been hand-selected for the job by the President. Chances are you cannot name him. Neither can most Republican leaders or activists. He is the "invisible" chair. Have a look at this piece I wrote recently in Politico.
Two candidates are current state chairs. Saul Anuzis of Michigan (pictured below, left) and Katon 
Dawson of South Carolina (pictured below, right). Both are sharp, experienced and would be good chairs. Both have important 
support. Chip Saltzman is a real dark horse. Chip served as Huckabee’s campaign chair, but his release of Paul Shanklin’s CD featuring "Obama the Magic Negro" voice by Al Sharpton has generated a lot of negative press.
The two remaining candidates are long time successful politicians who have paid their dues. Both are media intelligent, both write frequently; both are movement conservatives.
Both happen to be African American. Ken Blackwell, former Mayor, state Treasurer, HUD reformer and Secretary of State Ohio and Michael Steele, former Lt Governor and Republican Chairman of Maryland, happen to be the best known candidates.
These high profile candidates could have been Asian or Latinos or women. Today, our Party is producing a broader category of leaders. This is extremely healthy for our future.
Ken Blackwell (pictured right) just earned the endorsements of a plethora of conservative icons including Morton Blackwell, Phyllis Schlafly , David Keene, Pat Toomey and Steve Forbes. He owns more guns than any of the other candidates. He will certainly clean house with the good old boys at the fossilized RNC HQ.
I like Michael Steele (pictured below, left) a lot. I served with him when we were both state 
party chairmen from 2001 to 2003. Michael a former Benedictine Monk for three years, is the most effective communicator, as seen on Fox TV. He enjoys public endorsements by Sean Hannity , Dennis Miller and is doing for one year Bill Bennett’s Morning in America Show every Friday. He promises to clean the stables at the RNC, as GOPAC chair knows how to raise the huge funds in the 2009 in the merging Obama era.
Have a look here at the definitive debate sponsored by Grover Norquist’s Americans for Tax Reform and was featured live on C-Span and several other outlets. Interestingly, the first question posed to the candidates in the debate was submitted by none other than FlashReport’s Publisher, Mr. Fleischman!
Michael Steele is the only charismatic one. He can sell our values.
Few RNC members have or probably will declare their favorites. Each RNC member got there spending lots of years in politics. It’s a secret ballot, so there will be a fantastic game of Liar’s Poker. So anyone can say who they are for and vote another way. The winner must get a majority of the 168. Some predict this race will take up to six ballots.
Between now and Jan 28 the mud will be flying, threats made, friends betrayed, promises made, deals offered, – – just a good political fight. The key will be how long will it take the RNC to coalesce into a winning formula to change the Party’s brand. Our decision will help determine if we will be the out party like the Conservatives in England who still wait some dozen years ago or we get back into the game in 2010.
January 8th, 2009 at 12:00 am
I like Michael Steele
January 8th, 2009 at 12:00 am
What we need is not a spokesperson, but someone who can organize and lead — someone who can retool the conservative message to appeal to all those demographic groups we have been loosing.
But most of all, we need someone who realizes the degree to which the GOP is in trouble, i.e. someone who realizes that the left/Democrats have been waging perpetual and total war on this country (including non-electoral aims), and that in order to defeat them we must do the same! This is a war for the soul of this country, and we are far too close to loosing.
January 9th, 2009 at 12:00 am
Ken Blackwell is the one who has garnered the Conservative grassroots leaders. The Morton Blackwell endorsement is notable since he leads Leadership Institute, which trains political leaders how to organize. The Phyllis Schlafly type knows a Reagan Conservative and Morton Blackwell knows how to organize. Ken Blackwell is our man.