As one of the early supporters of Mr. Steele to head up the RNC, I must say that over time I have become more than a little disappointed in all of the controversy that came to surround him relatively quickly after his assuming his present position of RNC Chairman. I would usually listen to the radio every Friday morning when he would fill in for Bill Bennett on Bennett's radio show, "Morning in America." I found myself eagerly anticipating his assuming the leadership of the RNC. So I now find myself experiencing some rather mixed emotions upon hearing that there are now multiple news outlets who are reporting that the embattled GOP leader may not be seeking a second term. While I think he's a very personable as well as a very likeable guy, there have been more than a few instances where I have found myself pulling my hair out while questioning the wisdom of certain decisions that have been made over the course of his tenure as RNC Chairman. And I find myself wondering how much of the success regarding the gains made in recent election was because of his leadership of the RNC, or happened more in spite of the RNC as it presently exists with Mr. Steele at the helm. I think there were any number of candidates out there who were left wanting for RNC support. That perception I think is what caused me, as well as many others, the most heartburn regarding Mr. Steele's leadership.
So it is now that I'm beginning to hear that, “Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele is expected to announce he will drop out of the highly contested race to keep his post,” as Fox News is now quoting some of those uniquely omnipotent and as always, unnamed sources who are not always the most reliable. The news outlet confirmed that Mr. Steele sent a confidential e-mail to committee members on Saturday asking them to join him "for a private conference call" Monday evening. Politico also confirms much the same news in reporting a story of its own. “Key supporters expect him to drop out of the hotly contested race,” its story says. The outlet adds that Mr. Steele “has built no known reelection team or structure, making the prospect of a campaign unlikely in the face of competition that grows fiercer by the day.” Mr. Steele has become wildly unpopular within the party not only amongst the party hierarchy, but with many of those who compose rank and file Republicans as well. He has generally been seen as being unable to raise sufficient amounts of money and as lacking the leadership skills necessary to competently lead the party into the next very crucial election cycle. In fact, a recent staff member criticized Steele’s leadership in a scathing resignation letter and a website has even popped up supporting his defeat. However, reports of his demise may be a bit premature, as Fox News has also reported that Chairman Steele may use the previously mentioned conference call to announce that he is in fact running for re-election. So which will it be? Will he stay or will he go?
Critics have become larger in number as time has gone by, as well as much more vocal regarding their opposition. Many have described the chairman as being somewhat gaffe-prone and as having simply has not raised enough money. And I find myself agreeing with that assessment, I would argue, based only on my own personal opinion, that many who would have been willing to contribute were turned off by, as was I, some of the decisions regarding the choosing of which candidates to support and which candidate to not support. I found myself giving money to Jim DeMint's organization which seemed to be much more committed to the supporting of truly conservative candidates. The fierce competition will end next month with the selection of the next chairman who will be required to be very aggressive in the GOP's preparation for the 2012 election cycle. A chairman, be it Mr. Steele or someone else, will be elected next month during the committee’s winter meeting. This may all be nothing more than conjecture on the part of those who would like to see Mr. Steele replaced, or it may actually be that Mr. Steele has not yet decided whether to seek a second term. We will just need to wait and see. But according to allies, Steele has not revealed his plans, and the chairman has been nothing if not unpredictable. Republicans reaped heavy publicity in January 2009 when they chose Steele as the party’s first African-American chairman, but he has proven to be unable to live up to many of those expectations.
So this evening he may finally put an end to weeks of rumors that he would not seek a second term. Apparently he is said to be amused by many reports of his retirement as he has intentionally kept his plans secret for the last month in order to flush out competitors for the post, Fox has now learned. And those competitors do not now seem to be in short supply, at least according to Politico, as they are said to include: Wisconsin Republican Chairman Reince Priebus; Ann Wagner of Missouri, former co-chair of the RNC; Maria Cino, who is backed by former RNC Chairman Ed Gillespie and former Vice President Dick Cheney; Saul Anuzis, former Michigan Republican chairman; and Gentry Collins, who served as RNC political director until last month. I think I've even heard Sarah Palin's name being bandied about. Now while it is true that the Republicans picked up 63 seats in the House and narrowed the gap in the Senate while also picking up 19 state legislative bodies in the November midterm election, it has not alleviated the pressure that has been mounting for some time for Steele to step down from the position. There were occasions during the last election campaign where Mr. Steele, either by comments made, or actions taken, was a distraction, taking attention away from the candidates running for office under the Republican banner. Whether it was the peddling of his book or the making of certain comments regarding our ongoing War on Terror, he was the instigator of a needless distraction during the run up to what was seen early on as a very consequential election. It seemed as if his priorities were just a bit skewed, more so in his own direction instead of supporting the Republican Party's candidates.
Overall I think it for the best if Mr. Steele were to step down, passing the torch to someone new. We need some new blood, critical times lie ahead and we simply cannot afford to have our eye taken off the ball because of needless distractions. We need to be extremely focused in our efforts to restore some degree of sanity to our government. But I would hope that he would continue his efforts regarding the advancing of the conservative agenda by continuing to speak out about where it is that the Liberal/Socialist agenda of the Democrats has gotten us. If he sinks to doing nothing more than to criticize and to throw around accusations of racism or to the making of ridiculous threats, then I'm afraid he is not the man I thought he was. He must realize that this isn't personal, it's just business. And he would be doing himself a huge favor if that's the way he takes it. There is still much good he can do for his country should he decide to do so. He can still be a voice of reason in trying to create an environment that could be utilized in an effort to entice more African-Americans to perhaps question the wisdom of sticking with a Democrat Party that does not have their best interests at heart. To see that the only thing to which the Democrats are dedicated is the increasing of their own political power by any means necessary. So, which will it be Michael?
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