Posted on 04/05/2010 5:22:40 AM PDT by iowamark
Embattled Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele said he won't resign despite calls for him to step down amid reports of the group's excessive spending, adding that he and other African-American leaders such as President Obama have a slimmer margin of error because of their race.
"The honest answer is, 'yes,'" he said on "Good Morning America" today. "Barack Obama has a slimmer margin. A lot of folks do. It's a different role for me to play and others to play and that's just the reality of it. But you just take that as a part of the nature of it."
"My view on politics is much more grassroots oriented ... so I tend to, you know, come at it a little bit stronger, a little bit more street-wise. That's rubbed some feathers the wrong way," Steele told "GMA's" George Stephanopoulos.
Steele is under fire by his own party members for what some people consider lavish spending -- $17,000 for private jet travel, $13,000 for limousines and car services and $9,000 for a trip to the Beverly Hills hotel. But the most controversial revelation was that RNC staffers spent nearly $2,000 at Voyeur West Hollywood, a sex-themed nightclub in Los Angeles. The employee who authorized the expense was fired, but then the RNC shot itself in the foot again later, sending a fundraising letter that mistakenly directed donors to call a phone-sex number...
It's clear that questions about Steele's leadership have become an uncomfortable issue for Republicans.
While most GOP lawmakers are sidestepping the question of whether it's time for Steele to step down, they are crying foul over freewheeling spending at the RNC and demanding a shakeup...
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
Steele has to step down. No room for any racial card of even the smallest flavor.
Everything is about race to these people!
These people should be nowhere near power.
And how come it takes 3 reporters to tell us what Steele said??
Bingo.
When hiring, a firm must look at all the political liabilities a canidate brings. Wait...nobody is hiring. never mind.
Time for Steele to go home.
Steele’s gotta go. Every RINO has to go. We have to get our party back. The Left has crashed it, and trashed it.
Break out the Lysol, clean up the mess.
Interesting point, and it may well be true.
When Zero was running for the Senate in Ill. and the Republican candidate (Ryan?) was forced out, the state party immediately went with Alan Keyes. Why Keyes? Was the rationale that “well, no white candidate will be able to attack this socialist jerk without being called racist, so we have to have a black candidate to match their black candidate”? I see the same logic used by Republicans sometimes with women—”they'll run Hillary so we need to run Condeleeza Rice”. So maybe the state Republican party chairmen who selected Steele thought it was a brilliant move because Steele could hammer President Jug-Ears with impunity.
The GOP isn't known as the Stupid Party for nothing.
Correct. If an old white guy had been the RNC Chairman and come up with these outrageous screw ups, he'd be out on his butt long ago. Steele is still RNC Chiar precisely because he is black and the RNC people are sacred of sacking his sorry a** because they fear being called ‘racist”. I say kick him out NOW before he does even further damage to the GOP. This guy is a total disgrace!
I’m sorry I ever supported him. I thought he was different. Just another race card player.
I think Steele is right. I can’t imagine the way the press would cut Obama to pieces if he ever broke a campaign promise, or said something stupid. And just because he is black...sad, the world we live in.
Not sure if Steele is the bigger idiot, or if it is Stephanopolus...
The RNC is run by RINO losers, thats why conservatives do not donate money to them, giving to actual candidates instead.
Get Steele the hell out of there! What a loser! I am so darn sick and tired of the race card crap! LEAVE STEELE! LEAVE NOW YOUR MORON!
Steele is a classic example of a mole. He worked his way into the highest levels of the party. His purpose is to sow as much discord as possible in the party.
Once he is fired he will be a poster boy for conservative racism as he leaps into the waiting arms of a grateful Obama.
Michael Steele was a liberal plant from the start.
If he had been a real conservative he would have been a rock star....idiot.
AMEN!
Partly. The other pat is that the GOP was demoralized at the time and the leadership were running round like headless chickens. At the time, the popular spiel was that the GOP was screwed and had to go for this “big tent” business, whereby we brought in all these gays, trans-genders and whatnot's to come lead the GOP, or we'd be out of power for what, 40 years(according to James Carville)?
Michael Steele went for this job, not so much to help the Republican Party, it was all about living it up, and exploiting his position to fill his own pockets as fast as he could.
B. Franklin
The guy needs shit canned out of the party where he can play that race card crap elsewhere.
Less than 7 months to the election.
No room for error.
Steele has rusted through. Time for new mettle.
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