Steele Death Watch

The reign of Michael Steele is about to come to an end.

Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele is under increasing pressure from within his own party to step down for saying the nine-year old U.S. military conflict in Afghanistan is a "war of Obama's choosing" that history suggests is "probably a lost cause."

Steele has tried to quell the growing uproar by issuing a statement and sending an e-mail to the 162 members of the national committee stressing his support of U.S. troops.

But that hasn't stopped the criticism that continued to swell Saturday.

Bill Kristol was the first to call for Steele to step down following the comments.

You are, I know, a patriot. So I ask you to consider, over this July 4 weekend, doing an act of service for the country you love: Resign as chairman of the Republican party.

Your tenure has of course been marked by gaffes and embarrassments, but I for one have never paid much attention to them, and have never thought they would matter much to the success of the causes and principles we share. But now you have said, about the war in Afghanistan, speaking as RNC chairman at an RNC event, "Keep in mind again, federal candidates, this was a war of Obama's choosing. This was not something that the United States had actively prosecuted or wanted to engage in." And, "if [Obama] is such a student of history, has he not understood that you know that's the one thing you don't do, is engage in a land war in Afghanistan?"

Needless to say, the war in Afghanistan was not "a war of Obama’s choosing." It has been prosecuted by the United States under Presidents Bush and Obama. Republicans have consistently supported the effort. Indeed, as the DNC

The calls will only continue to grow and at some point Steele will have to step down. The comments are reprehensible and inexcusable, and Steele's tenure has been far from great to begin with.

Michael Steele's Stock Has Bottomed

You would have really needed to be following inside baseball of politics to notice, but I believe that Michael Steele's stock as RNC Chair has bottomed and we are now likely to see what he can do in leading the party.

For those that followed, you would have noticed that Steele's tenure as RNC chair started off in a very tenuous manner. He started off by accidentally picking a fight with Rush Limbaugh. He then made comments that made it unclear where he stood on the issue of abortion. There were even rumors that his prior campaign may have siphoned off money to family and friends. Then, the state parties tried to subvert his authority by 1) calling for a national RNC referendum to call the Democratic Party the Democratic Socialist Party and 2) by changing the rules so that the Chair, Steele, would have less power in distributing money.

Now, in the last week, I believe we have finally seen Steele gather himself. I believe he has stopped the bleeding and several events have made me believe that he is at the beginning of a comeback. First, there was this speech.


This is among the most clear and concise visions laid out by any Republican of the way forward since their defeat in 2008. The speech was well received and it finally put Steele in the position of authority that he had been desperately missing.

At the same time, Steele made it clear that if rules are changed and his funding authority is removed he will resigned. He said that he refused to be a "figurehead". So far, the rest of the party apparatus has been silent to his challenge.

Also, the rest of the party apparatus backed down on their threat to change their platform to call the Democrats Democratic Socialists. Instead, the party will say the Democrats are moving us toward Socialism.

Finally, Steele got the endorsement of Sarah Palin.

The transition from Candidate Obama to President Obama has been as predictable as Alaska's winter snow.

We are now witnessing actions that will lead to a monumental shift away from free market capitalism and the strong work ethic that built this great country. 'Change' in this administration has meant rapid movement toward massive government growth, huge tax burdens on future generations, and an unprecedented reliance upon foreign countries.

Today, we learned that Obama’s decisions continue to impact Alaskans; while we as taxpayers now own General Motors, Obama closes another dealership – this time in Soldotna as more of Alaskans’ hard-earned money and jobs are lost to big government. Government should not be in the auto industry business. In Alaska, we have also seen a shift in federal priorities that threaten the loss of subsidized village health care services under the same candidate who led you to believe he'd insure all Americans. The inconsistent messages and actions are unsettling.

But we have another voice in Washington, DC – a man who understands what Alaskans believe: less centralized government control, restrained budgets, more opportunity for development, and fewer taxes. Today, we have a friend in RNC Chairman Michael Steele and his bold and courageous speech defines his leadership goals that will guide us all through this most difficult time for our nation.”

There's almost nothing that helps an embattled leader more than a vote of confidence from a heavyweight. That's what we have with this endorsement by Palin.

Much like in life, being a chairman often comes down to momentum. The first several months of his chairmanship had decidedly negative momentum. Yet, in the last week, he has turned all that around. The momentum is now behind him and so I expect that Steele's best days as Chairman are in front of him.

What the Republicans Need To Do To Find Their Way Out of the Wilderness

First, politics is a cyclical sort of an endeavor. Every four years or so, pundits everywhere ask questions of the losing party, and there is no shortage of doom and gloom regarding the losers. Each party has been left for dead by so called experts more times than anyone can count. So count on this...the Republican Party will rise again. Here is what they need to do to make this rise happen sooner rather than later.

1) The leadership needs to be competent and held accountable.

According to most polling, the overwhelming reason for the Republican's losses in both 2006 and 2008 could be qualified by such adjectives as corruption, incompetence, or by the phrase "losing their way". From 2001-2005, the party that was supposed to be the party of small government and fiscal discipline presided over the biggest expansion of government since the Great Depression. In that time, Duke Cunningham went to jail and Tom Delay got indicted. It was hard to vote for the party of small government and fiscal discipline when they governed with increases in spending, corruption, and government.

When the party governs in a way totally opposite of the way its principles are built on, the blame must rest in the leadership of the party. Denny Hastert, the main culprit, is gone, but the swamp hasn't been drained fully just yet. John Boehner was in a leadership position throughout and he's been the leader since 2007. Rather than backing the likes of Eric Cantor and Mike Pence when the issue of the bailout came up, he gave the bailout a lukewarm endorsement. Furthermore, despite having Congress receiving single digit approval ratings, his party, the minority party, lost about 30 seats.

Mitch McConnell has been head since 2007. Despite Harry Reid and the Democratic Senate receiving single digit approval ratings, it was the Democrats that gained as many as 9 seats.

Most importantly, it was the leadership of the RNC, NRSC, and NRHC that must be held accountable. The President wasn't on the ballot. The incompetent Congress, lead by Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, were. Yet, it was the Republican Party held accountable for the incompetence. That lies directly at the feet of all those that created the national strategy for this campaign. I am glad to hear about the line up of potential leaders for the RNC. Whether it be Newt Gingrich, Michael Steele or Fred Thompson, any of them can finally be the face of the RNC that will be able to verbalize the Conservative principles that used to be synonymous with the party.

In any case, leadership must be competent and it must be held accountable. Getting crushed at the ballot box is not all right. The leadership can't keep their posts following such a crushing. This is exactly what happened following the 2006 elections. If it happens again, 2010 will be no better than 2008.

2) Return to Conservative principles

I am amused and puzzled by folks like Christie Todd Whitman that think the answer is to moderate the party. A moderate Republican Party is the Democratic Party lite. If someone wants to vote for liberal ideas, they will vote for a party that is all the way liberal, the Democratic Party.

What the party needs to do is make distinctions, then get out everywhere and not be afraid to debate those distinctions. Here is an example of the problem. We all know what Obama's tax proposal and proposal for health care are. Does anyone know what McCain's proposals on each are? That's the problem. The Republicans have plenty of great small government, free market ideas for revitalizing the economy, health care, and for the financial services sector. First, far too often, they have backed big government programs like No Child Left Behind, prescription drug, and the bailout. Second, the party has very few effective messengers. Ronald Reagan was called the great communicator and the benefit of his communication abilities is immeasurable.

The party needs someone with some sort of good communication skills. (Reagan was after all one of a kind) That's where a Michael Steele, Newt Gingrich, or Fred Thompson could become an effective voice for the Conservative principles the party used to have.

The party needs a new Contract with America a la Newt Gingrich. The party needs to put again in writing what they stand for: small government, border security, free markets, lower taxes, and winning in Iraq and beyond. Unless the public can see what they stand for, no one will know.

3) Embrace the media culture don't whine about it.

We all know the MSM favors the Democrats something like four to one. We all know this isn't fair. We all know that this blatant bias costs votes. So what? Constantly whining about doesn't get any of these votes back.

Here's what I know. First, the MSM media is unbelievably biased. Second, the MSM drives the story by what they cover not what they say about it. Third, the media structure is totally fragmanted. What does all of this mean? It means that while the Democrats have it easier, the Republicans can use the media effectively for their own benefit.

First, the MSM is not the only place to get your message out. The Republicans have plenty of outlets from Fox News, talk radio, Youtube, the blogs, etc. Second, the MSM is full of egotistical blowhards and they can easily be manipulated. Did anyone notice how in the beginning of October there was three days when the lead story was Bill Ayers? That's because for a couple of days the McCain campaign effectively manipulated the media so that they drove a recycled story.

We all know that the New York Times won't lead with any story that even has a snow ball's chance in hell of hurting the Democrats. So what? By 2010, more people will read this blog than the New York Times. The MSM is terribly biased not only in how the cover a story but also what they cover. The MSM is also quickly losing influence. There are plenty of media sources that can start a story so that it reaches the mainstream. Drudge has no problem running with just about any story. Talk radio has been the start of plenty of media firestorms. Even the blogs have started plenty of stories like the fake docs of Bush in the Guard. Even Youtube has been the starting point for several media stories. The point is if Republicans have a story to tell all they need to do is find the right outlet to tell it. If there's a story of Democratic incompetence and corruption and the MSM refuses to cover it, Laura Ingraham, Rush Limbaugh, Fox News, Drudge will all be happy to hear the details. If necessary a Republican can make a Youtube video. If a story is worthwhile, there are plenty of ways for it to reach the folks.

4) Embrace the internet

Nowhere was the disparity in the two parties more striking than on the internet. Barack Obama made his website the center of everything. He created an online community and a way to fundraise. The McCain campaign's website was nearly non existent. Unless the Republicans embrace and figure out how to effectively use the internet, they will continue to get crushed. We live in the age of mass emails, links, and web downloads. The Republicans must be effective at all of them or they won't survive.

No one needs to reinvent the wheel here. Allow for users to be able to blog and comment on RNC sites and other sites like it. Furthermore, have an able moderator of said sites that can turn blogs into a good discussion. Announce events on these sites and use the sites so that folks from all over the country can coordinate attendance at major events. Finally, encourage your heavy hitters to come and blog on major Republican leaning sites like Redstate, Townhall, Little Green Footballs, and Powerline.