Free Republic

Republicans still have time to transform their concern about the explosion in the size of our government into a directed political force that sweeps elections this November. The single person who can now do the most to make this happen is RNC Chairman Michael Steele. How? By resigning. The latest mark against Steele is the apparent exposure of a personal belief deeply at odds with Republican philosophy. Yesterday, Mr. Steele said of the war in Afghanistan that “this was a war of Obama’s choosing.” ... Indeed, major donors have deserted the RNC. The DNC has led the RNC in fundraising....

After Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, they rebelled against God and were made to wander aimlessly in the desert for 40 years on a needlessly roundabout journey to the Promised Land. God kept the coveted prize out of reach until that rebellious generation passed. Today we find an improvident Republican Party lost in the political wilderness. As the GOP seeks to find its own Promised Land – a return to majority leadership – it has, to its own detriment, rebelled against the core conservative principles solemnized within its own party platform. In a “big tent” effort to be...

Early this month, Michael Steele said that Rush Limbaugh was "an entertainer" and that his comments were usually "incendiary" and "ugly" on the Hughley Show. As a Republican politician is expected to, he must convince people and compromise on ideas when necessary. Michael Steele was right to emphasize that he is the Republican Party leader not Rush Limbaugh. Later however, he apologized to Rush Limbaugh about those comments, confirming Hughley's fear that Rush Limbaugh was the "De facto leader" of the Republicans. I don't believe that Steele should have apologized, Rush is not the leader of this party, he's just...

Just received this from Michael Steele in the email: "As one of my first official acts as Chairman, I've commissioned a survey of Republican activists in EVERY state. I want to hear from each of you to understand your thoughts and opinions about our Party and how we can once again be the party of ideas. That's why I'm asking you to do two very important things for me: 1) Please take a moment right now to fill out online the State of the Republican Party Survey for the RNC. I want you to be honest and candid in your...

As if it is not enough that they have been decimated by the Democrats in the past couple of elections, the Republican survivors are now turning their guns on each other. At the heart of these internal battles have been attacks on Rush Limbaugh by Republicans who imagine themselves to be so much more sophisticated because they are so much more in step with the political fashions of the time. New Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele's cheap shot at Rush's program as "ugly" set off the latest round of infighting. That is the kind of thing usually said by...

GOP strategists and party leaders are increasingly worried that the party’s run of bad news over the last month and a half is set to continue this week as the Republican National Committee (RNC) prepares to release what are expected to be markedly low fundraising numbers on Friday. The RNC has consistently outraised the Democratic National Committee on a month-by-month basis. Observers say that streak is likely to end this month. . . . . . Steele already had a high bar to meet; in January, under former Chairman Robert “Mike” Duncan, the committee raised more than $13.1 million, including...

In what I thought was a parody interview, Michael Steele, head the of the Republican National Committee, the same man who failed to challenge a cable show host when he compared white Republicans to Nazis, told GQ magazine this: Why do you think so few nonwhite Americans support the Republican Party right now? ‘Cause we have offered them nothing! And the impression we’ve created is that we don’t give a damn about them or we just outright don’t like them. And that’s not a healthy thing for a political party. I think the way we’ve talked about immigration, the way...

PART I: DOMESTIC & SOCIAL ISSUES 1. A recent national poll reported that nearly 25% of Americans want the government to pass more socialism. Do you agree or disagree? • Agree • Disagree • Undecided 2. Which do you believe creates more jobs for the American economy: Government Programs and Spending or the American Free Enterprise System? • Government Programs & Spending • American Free Enterprise System 3. The Obama Administration has proposed spending as much as $1.5 trillion to bail out the banking industry. Do you agree or disagree with this proposal? • Agree • Disagree • Undecided 4....

March 16, 2009 From what I see, the Republican National Committee representatives who picked Michael Steele as their new chairman made a mistake. I think Steele ought to step aside. It pains me to say it, but it pains me more to watch the opposition party, the Republican Party, spin aimlessly and leaderless, while the Obama administration shreds to pieces, with ruthless focus and discipline, everything this country stands for. Yes, of course, the defining moment for me is the recent GQ magazine interview in which Steele sounds more like a Democrat than a Republican. Does a woman have a...

Republican National Committee Chair Michael Steele should resign from his post immediately, according to the American Family Association’s new online survey. In light of Steele’s regrettable GQ interview, AFA President Don Wildmon asked members if the beleaguered Republican chief should resign from his post, declaring the former Lieutenant Governor of Maryland believes “abortion is a choice, and homosexuality is not.” An overwhelming 94% of the more than 74,500 respondents answered Wildmon in the affirmative. Likewise making their displeasure known, prominent social conservative luminaries characterized Steele’s mea-culpa as “very troubling.” Ken Blackwell, who formerly endorsed Steele after withdrawing from consideration for...

The decision by the RNC to choose Michael Steele was largely reflective of the total lack of both confidence and direction of the conservative movement in dealing with the rise of “Obama mania”--the Committee capitulating to the pervasive identity politics that swept the nation as part of the 2008 general election. There is nothing patently wrong with Michael Steele, but his own rise to fame was largely the result that he was a black Republican—and a moderate one at that. However, the choice was not the only poor one made by Republicans of late. The disastrous choice to give into...

Loyal to Liberty Once again we are supposed to believe that Michael Steele had a slip of the tongue. This time in an Interview with Gentleman's Quarterly magazine which included the following exchange: "The choice issue cuts two ways. You can choose life, or you can choose abortion," he said. "My mother chose life. So I think the power of the argument of choice boils down to stating a case for one or the other." Interviewer Lisa DePaulo asked: "Are you saying you think women have the right to choose abortion?" Steele replied: "Yeah. I mean, again, I think that's...

A day after a magazine quoted him as saying abortion was "an individual choice," GOP Chairman Michael Steele may soon be toast. A leading conservative called Steele's remarks in the magazine "cavalier and flippant," underscoring the new chairman's precarious position with party regulars concerned about his off-the-cuff style and penchant for miscues. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee called the remarks "very troubling" and said in a blog posting, "despite his clarification today the party stands to lose many of its members and a great deal of its support in the trenches of grass-roots politics. For Chairman Steele to even infer...

In an attempt to deflect attention from growing problems with conservatives in his party, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael S. Steele has begun naming top aides two weeks ahead of schedule. Mr. Steele on Thursday named Ken McKay his chief of staff, the start of a plan to spread over several days the revelation of his choices: technology chief on Friday, communications director on Monday, finance head on Tuesday and other key positions later. To the consternation of many Steele supporters and critics alike, the vital department-head positions have gone unfilled since the charismatic former Maryland lieutenant governor won election...

In an interview with GQ, Michael Steele called abortion an "individual choice" and said the question should be left to the states. Quotes from the interview; interviewer's questions in italics:THE GOOD:Do you think bipartisanship can work? No. [pause] Look, I’m sorry, I know this is, you know, la-la land and Rodney King time and we all wanna get along, but that is not the nature of American politics. That is not the nature of politics, period.I don’t know if refreshing’s the word, but to hear someone say bipartisanship doesn’t work— It doesn’t work! I mean, I understand the ideal of...

There’s nothing like having a good ole hardcore conservative to lead the RNC whose never afraid to tell the truth, always passionate and never wavering from the core principles that define constitutional conservatism. Yes sir! Click to see the video...