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RNC Chair Steele Refuses to Cancel Speech at Sharpton Event
National Legal & Policy Center ^ | April 13, 2010 | Peter Flaherty

Posted on 04/13/2010 1:28:55 PM PDT by jazusamo

Angela Sailor, the Republican National Committee’s Director of Coalitions, called me today to inform me that Michael Steele will speak as scheduled at the annual conference of Al Sharpton’s group, the National Action Network (NAN). On April 4, NLPC asked Steele to withdraw from the event, which takes place tomorrow through Friday in New York City.

When I went through each of our objections, Ms. Sailor gave me some permutation of the following:

Chairman Steele is going to New York to speak to 500-1,000 people in a ballroom to ask them to support Republican candidates.

When I asked if Steele might have better luck elsewhere, she claimed that many of the attendees are “independent,” who she characterized as “swing voters.” When I queried whether most attendees, who are paying for travel and New York hotel rooms, were more likely activists committed to Sharpton’s message, Sailor stuck to the script. She responded:

If we take time to talk to folks in a ballroom, they will support our candidates if we go and ask them.

Since I got nowhere with that, I asked if she or Steele regretted undercutting Sharpton critics like NLPC, she stated:

We are looking at this the same way as Newt Gingrich who has locked arms with Sharpton.

That’s exactly the problem. And that is why we criticized Gingrich well before the Steele controversy.

Of course, Ms. Sailor’s job is to build coalitions so I asked her whether Steele might offend Rush Limbaugh listeners by hobnobbing with Sharpton, who led the assault on Limbaugh’s NFL ownership bid, a campaign based on fabricated quotes. She claimed that the Steele speech “was not about Sharpton,” and then reverted to the now-familiar party line.

I was most anxious to get an answer to the most important question of all, whether responsible people should associate with a demagogue who has a history of accusing innocent persons of hate crimes, such as in the Tawana Brawley episode and the Duke rape case. I was told again that it was “not about Sharpton,” and that those incidents had “no relationship” to Steele’s decision to go ahead with the speech.

Even though the futility of my questions was already established, I followed-up by asking if Steele would speak at an event organized by former Klansman David Duke. I should have anticipated the answer: It is not about David Duke.

Related:

RNC Chair Steele Should Withdraw From Sharpton Event

Wall Street Journal Is Wrong About New, 'Pragmatic' Al Sharpton

Gingrich Must Sever Ties With Sharpton

Colgate-Palmolive Denies Supporting Sharpton Group In Wake of Rush Limbaugh/NFL Controversy

Sharpton's Corporate Supporters Funded Anti-Rush Limbaugh Campaign

Did Colgate-Palmolive Accept Sharpton Award — or Not?

Sharpton Fined $285K by FEC as Result of NLPC Complaint

New NLPC Special Report Exposes the Real Al Sharpton

Ford Bankrolled Sharpton Convention Featuring Biden



TOPICS: Extended News; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: gop; gopsoldout; newtgingrich; nlpc; republicans; rinosonparade; setupsoldout; sharpton; steele; stuckonstupid
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To: jazusamo

steele just hangin’ with his homies... the people he most identifies with... progressive race baiters.

LLS


21 posted on 04/13/2010 1:51:16 PM PDT by LibLieSlayer ( WOLVERINES!)
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To: jpl

That is my exact feeling. I think he’s gone to the other side.


22 posted on 04/13/2010 1:51:19 PM PDT by beaversmom
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To: jazusamo
Steele will be the democrats October surprise, he will announce that the racists have driven him out of the republican party.
23 posted on 04/13/2010 1:52:29 PM PDT by stockpirate ("......When the government fears the people you have liberty." Thomas Jefferson)
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To: marron

You make a good point about taking Colonel West there with him, he might actually win a few over.


24 posted on 04/13/2010 1:55:06 PM PDT by jazusamo (But there really is no free lunch, except in the world of political rhetoric,.: Thomas Sowell)
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To: jazusamo

Listening to Colonel West is like listening to a prophet. That guy is one fire.

Maybe he needs to succeed Steele at the RNC.


25 posted on 04/13/2010 1:58:55 PM PDT by marron
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To: jazusamo

Anyone who buddies up with sharpton is no friend of mine.


26 posted on 04/13/2010 2:01:29 PM PDT by novemberslady
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To: marron

Steele has more detractors here on FR than he will find at that Sharpton event. They’ll call him an Oreo or Uncle Tom, just not a Rino.

He seems to have a favorable rating of about 1% on most FR threads - most want him to resign, get a spine or just ‘shut up’.

By going into the belly of the beast (Sharpton’s crowd)shows he’s got guts.


27 posted on 04/13/2010 2:01:36 PM PDT by sodpoodle (Despair - Man's surrender. Laughter - God's redemption.)
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To: jazusamo
Another racist organization Why is Steele there?
28 posted on 04/13/2010 2:01:44 PM PDT by Cheetahcat (Zero the Wright kind of Racist! We are in a state of War with Democrats)
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To: sodpoodle

“By going into the belly of the beast (Sharpton’s crowd)shows he’s got guts.”

No he is one of them.


29 posted on 04/13/2010 2:02:58 PM PDT by Cheetahcat (Zero the Wright kind of Racist! We are in a state of War with Democrats)
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To: jazusamo

That’s it! Steele has got to go.


30 posted on 04/13/2010 2:03:09 PM PDT by Carley (Are you better off than you were four trillion dollars ago?)
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To: sodpoodle
By going into the belly of the beast (Sharpton’s crowd)shows he’s got guts.

Guts...no. I believe he's with them.
31 posted on 04/13/2010 2:04:33 PM PDT by novemberslady
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To: jazusamo

Steele's appearance at a racist and anti-Semitic hate group (Google on "Freddy's Fashion Mart") is no better than Obama's appearance there.

I am calling the RNC to tell it to forget about my support (although I will support Republicans privately) while Michael Steele is leading it.
32 posted on 04/13/2010 2:05:27 PM PDT by Winged Hussar (http://moveonpleasemoveon.blogspot.com/)
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To: afraidfortherepublic
I’m still not giving them money, but Michael Steele is doing the right thing here.

Nor will I give them a dime but you may be right about Steele.

I'm very leery when it comes to Sharpton and am hesitant about any Repub rubbing elbows with him. He and Hannity seem to be friends and I've not been able to figure that out. Sean has him on the show and Al spouts his crud while Sean grins about it and then pats him on the back. I don't believe he should give Al the forum.

33 posted on 04/13/2010 2:08:05 PM PDT by jazusamo (But there really is no free lunch, except in the world of political rhetoric,.: Thomas Sowell)
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To: jazusamo

Maybe he’s trying to convince Sharpton to switch parties, or vice versa?.


34 posted on 04/13/2010 2:33:06 PM PDT by Theodore R.
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To: jazusamo

He is going after the black vote...HAHAHAHAHAHAH!


35 posted on 04/13/2010 2:46:44 PM PDT by screaminsunshine (i)
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To: jazusamo

Steele and Sharpton both agree (wrongly) that the GOP
is racist.

Steele and Sharpton’s comments will be captured
for use at the right moment.

Steele was again thinking ONLY of himself.


36 posted on 04/13/2010 3:09:12 PM PDT by Diogenesis ("Resistance to tyrants is obedience to God." --Thomas Jefferson)
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To: Diogenesis
Steele and Sharpton both agree (wrongly) that the GOP is racist.

Exactly...And that will be used against us in the future.

37 posted on 04/13/2010 4:03:18 PM PDT by jazusamo (But there really is no free lunch, except in the world of political rhetoric,.: Thomas Sowell)
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