New GOP Chair Hits Ground Running

With trunk up and tusks at the ready, the Republican Party seems instantly energized by the election of Michael Steele to RNC Chair, and it may well be because the image conjured is none other than Steele himself.

He has come out swinging at precisely the time the bell sounded and he seems determined to make it a short fight. Charging enthusiastically from his corner, he has been throwing hay makers to gin up his fans in the arena.

OK, so maybe my exuberance gets the better of me sometimes, but I can't help but feel new life for my party, the party I have wistfully watched drift further out to sea as I gazed lugubriously from the pier. And while I realize that few party chairmen have historically made much difference, I also acknowledge that there are but a small number of times when they've been required to even as I'm cognizant that this is just such a time. I know it's all confusing; think how I have felt all these years.

Michael Steele spoke to Jennifer Harper of the Washington Times the other day, and here's how part of that exchange went:

"We've had a hard, cold reality check. We've had our clocks cleaned, with little to show for it," Mr. Steele told me a few days ago.

The new mantra for the party is "Republican for a reason," he said.

"What now? This I ask Republicans: Are you ready to get your game face on and fight for the principles you believe in?"

I suggested it was a call for the party to "get in touch with their inner American" — and Mr. Steele quickly agreed.

"Oh, yeah. Once, Ronald Reagan made it cool to be a Republican again. And that Reagan 'factor' still matters now, but it matters in a different way, for a different age," Mr. Steele said.

"You have to adapt good ideas of the past because politics is not static. It may be a blood sport, but it sure isn't static. You can't change your basic principles and views, but you can express them differently. That's why we saw President Obama succeed. He's translated Reagan rhetoric for this age."

I have nothing but high hopes for Steele and, as a result, our party. I also privately wonder if this development will be sufficient to drag Newt Gingich back into the fray. Watching liberals writhe at such a prospect will be akin to witnessing the squirming of vampires in the rising sun or demons before the Cross.

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Turning The Corner On Race, Religion And Politics

Or What Michael Steele May Mean To The Conservative Movement

Michael Steele, the former Lt. Governor of Maryland, has achieved the mantel of Chairman of the Republican National Committee. Already, the mainstream media is maneuvering to minimize the significance of the event with the sort of social impunity to which conservatives have become far too accustomed. Conservatives have taken it on the chin with a grin because we have understood that ours is a battle fought perpetually uphill, and we have exhaustively dodged the boulders rolling towards us - released by fearful liberals at the top of the hill - with a dogged determination that would make Gandhi curse with envy. The delicious irony is not lost on me.

Being a white, middle-aged male, I have become nearly numb to the vitriol hurled my way by a foe who has enjoyed immunity from the label of hater despite the viciousness with which they have attacked those of my ilk. It simply became fashionable and thus acceptable. I get it. Now, I have the occasion to wonder whether that same foe will demonstrate a similar grace when the tables are turned.

For as long as I can remember, the minority vote has gone nearly ninety percent for whatever democrat candidate was running in whatever race, be it local, state or nation wide. And yet I have noticed that those very minorities who vote for the most liberal of candidates are, by nature of their overt religiousness, the most socially conservative amongst us. Clearly, there is some disconnect at work.

Far be it from me to accuse religious blacks of being easily duped by slick politicians, but many of my conservative brethren from "fly-over country" have been publicly excoriated by both politicians on a national scale and by television media types for that very reason. Because they were white country folks, it was considered great sport to portray them as stupid, gun-toting rednecks. Hard as I try, I cannot excuse such behavior.

We have been led to believe that the election of Barack Obama was a proud moment for blacks in the US and the world over, and I believe there may some validity to that sentiment. But I also have to wonder how many blacks would publicly agree with many of his views as pertain to God and social mores in general. In other words, blacks and whites who believe in God and morality are much more closely aligned than the opinion-shapers would like. If racial harmony was truly the ultimate goal, what better rallying cry could there be than to embrace the conservatism both races so clearly cherish? Why have we been continually kept apart and at odds?

Enter Michael Steele as RNC Chairman. There will no doubt be a concerted effort to portray him as an enemy to the advancement of blacks, and many blacks will enthusiastically cheer on this effort. They will not realize the error of their ways, at least I predict, and will gleefully join in the tearing asunder of this good and honorable man, when it should be abundantly clear he shares the values that most blacks share in their private lives.

The media will attempt to paint Steele's ascension as a token gesture of the "all-white" republican party, a misnomer to be sure. Too many will simply nod and accept that assessment, but blacks should consider what it truly means to be a conservative because many of their number fall under that description...they just may not be aware that it is perfectly fine to let it be. To be sure, it is certainly acceptable to be appalled at the antics of some pols, but our ideologies are too similar to fight anymore.

Michael Steele is a good man and a good politician (an oxymoron, I know), who can unite the conservative movement for once, blurring the lines of "race". It is okay to be a conservative.

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Republicans Ready To Stop Mixing Paint

"Four years ago we raised a banner of bold colors—no pale pastels. We proclaimed a dream of an America that would be "a shining city on a hill." - Ronald Reagan

One of the reasons the Republican party enjoyed such a short ride at the controls of power in the U.S. is clearly obvious; they forgot the vision of Ronald Reagan. It was a vision he believed in and embraced convincingly, enough so that he caused a wave of hope and optimism nearly as powerful as the feelings Obama supporters felt. As one man's opinion though, I don't think President Obama believes his own vision quite as strongly as did Reagan, and I highly doubt that he will be able to deliver in the same fashion.

While Reagan set a course and steered the shortest path toward it, Obama seems to demonstrate - in his first week of the Presidency - a propensity to serpentine. The passengers aboard his bus will no doubt need dramamine in large doses if the trend continues. Of course, there is always the high possibility that he learned the tactic from watching his Republican colleagues during his truncated stay in the U.S. Senate.

As for President George W. Bush, we'll never know if he intended to govern from a conservative stance since his administration was handed a whole new direction by al Qaeda on September 11, 2001. But at least some members of congress on the right side of the aisle are learning slowly the error of their ways. Barack Obama may well have lost his bid for the White House had he faced a true conservative.

Senator Mitch McConnell, R-KY, is sending out the word that the party must change. He's also pointing out that not all conservatives are republicans; we already know that not all republicans are conservatives. He spoke to republicans at a meeting to choose the next chairman of the RNC and he said, in part, this:

"It's clear our message isn't getting out to nearly as many people as it should ... Too often we've let others define us. And the image they've painted isn't very pretty."

He is absolutely correct. Republicans have spent entirely too much time and effort trying to get democrats to just like them and all they have received as reward is a boot heel across the throat. (Side note: this should be a clear indicator to President Obama that appeasement never works). One good way to repair the damage done over the last six years would be to name former Lt. Governor of Maryland, Michael Steele, as head of the Republican National Committee.

I have heard Michael Steele on talk shows and filling in for nationally syndicated radio hosts quite frequently of late, and he seems to have all the ingredients necessary to combat this infuriating march to the left seen in politics. I firmly believe that Mr. Steele is more than capable of taking a can of paint straight off the shelf and applying it to the walls without mixing it with another hue.

Take Reagan's lead, ye politicians on the right. Paint the party with bold colors and broad strokes. Rebuild the party, and they will come.

Author's note: Accompanying cartoon used with kind permission from Brett Noel. See his work at Patriot Art.

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