RNC Chair Debate – Steele and Saltzman Best To Move Party Forward

The candidates for RNC Chair, met in a debate sponsored by Americans For Tax Reform yesterday. Televised at 1:00 in the afternoon via C-SPAN and available here on the web, the six candidates used this time to convince those who would elect the next Chair of their qualifications. Of the six, all, including current chair, Mike Duncan, insisted they understood the grass roots – however, there was a “failure to connect”, with the exception of two of the candidates, Michael Steele and Chip Saltzman. Although Saltzman, understands the campaign and how to best utilize, not disenfranchise, the grassroots of the party, his recent boondoggle of an ill-chosen, politically incorrect Christmas Gift, puts his candidacy at risk. Michael Steele remains the one candidate with the “get out the vote” ability as well as the ability to bring the Republican Party back to its original roots of “inclusion”.

The Beltway and those extreme conservative will do their utmost to keep Steele “in his place”, simply because he has a more “moderate approach” ( the Club for Growth comes to mind)and is, for all intents and purposes, not “socially conservative” enough for their tastes. In other words, they would prefer the status quo; the “us vs. them” nonsense that does nothing to bring new members to the party, rather perpetuates those RNC fund-raising mailers that have not changed in tone in the last 30 years. (Which liberal agenda scares you the most – Hurry Send $25 today!) (Mike Huckabee was incessantly attacked by the Club for Growth for the same ridiculous charges, (in league with Unions - i.e. connecting with people and getting re-elected in an state that is soundly Democrat - i.e. Arkansas twice!) which in the end, resulted in McCain’s nomination – and everyone knows how well that turned out.)

Steele, besides having a stellar conservative record, understands the need to focus on those “blue states” that the RNC traditionally avoids. The fact of the matter is that the tried and true method is not working – membership and elected officials are almost non-existent in the Northeast (whereas there are plenty of conservatives), the South is beginning to go the way of the Northeast, leaving only pockets in the Mid-West and some in the West. Steele is, shockingly, exciting. He brings a fresh perspective to an otherwise dull process, and has the ability to energize the base, but most importantly, does not plan to leave the base tucked away in a closet until the next general election, if given the opportunity to serve.

From a moderate conservative standpoint, Steele would have the ability to bring more like-minded individuals into the party, those that hold strong to social conservative values while understanding the need to be open-minded when it comes to getting out the vote.
Portions of the C-Span debate below.