Fight for the RNC Chairmanship Heats Up
The field for RNC chair has gotten crowded and it seems that former Mike Huckabee campaign manager, Chip Saltsman, in an attempt to stand out in the crowd, may have foul-balled his chance at becoming the next head of the GOP, by sending a controversial satirical CD to RNC committee members.
~~John Cronin~~
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2008/12/26/fight-for-the-rnc-chairmanship-heats-up/?mod=rss_WSJBlog
Susan Davis reports on politics.
The six-way race for the chairmanship of the Republican National Committee is intensifying as some party members are pushing to hold a preemptive meeting in early January to screen the candidates, according to the Washington Times.
However, one of the candidates, Chip Saltsman, the former presidential campaign manager for Mike Huckabee, may have made a fatal move in his bid after The Hill newspaper reported today that Saltsman sent a 41-track parody CD to the RNC’s 168 member committee that includes a song entitled “Barack the Magic Negro.”
The song, to the music of “Puff the Magic Dragon,” was first popularized on Rush Limbaugh’s conservative radio show. It was written by Saltman’s pal and conservative satirist Paul Shanklin.
The “We Hate the USA” parody CD also includes satirical songs such as “Wright place, wrong pastor,” a reference to President-elect Barack Obama’s controversial former pastor Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr., and “The Star Spanglish Banner.”
“Paul Shanklin is a long-time friend, and I think that RNC members have the good humor and good sense to recognize that his songs for the Rush Limbaugh show are light-hearted political parodies,” Saltsman told The Hill.
Maybe. Or Maybe Saltman’s gag gift will turn off committee members mindful of the fact the party is losing support among minorities and that mocking Obama—with high approval ratings and today listed as the most admired American—may not be the best way to give the GOP that more “inclusive” vibe it’s been searching for since their November losses.
Prospective GOP party leaders may also want to leave the word “negro” in any context to conservative satirists and not tie it to the national party committee–good satire rarely translates in to smart politics.
The potential for further discord was highlighted in today’s Washington Times, which notes that a “power struggle” is playing out behind the scenes as some RNC members are advocating for a special session on Jan. 6 to hear presentations from all six current candidates. The RNC is currently scheduled to pick the next party chair at their winter meeting three weeks after the proposed session.
They include Saltsman, current RNC Chair Mike Duncan, South Carolina GOP Party Chairman Katon Dawson, Michigan GOP Party Chairman Saul Anuzis, former Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele, and former Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell.
The special session is seen as a move to level the playing field for all candidates and dilute any influence President George W. Bush’s political machine still holds at the RNC. The Washington Times reports that state party chairs from California and North Dakota are agitating for a special session, among others.
December 28th, 2008 at 3:32 pm
Some pardorys are funny. Others are offensive. As the mother of 3 Black children, I have ALWAYS found the ‘Barack the Magic Negro’ paradoy to be offensive. I even wrote to Rush Limbaugh to ask him to stop playing it on his shows. Saltman must have Huck’s sense of comic timing. The tossed a gooser on this one.
December 28th, 2008 at 3:57 pm
Poor taste seems to run rampant throughout the Huckabee organization.
First there is Huckabee “innocently” inquiring whether Mormons believe the devil and Christ are brothers. Months after Huckabee lied about the “floating cross” in his Christmas video, his campaign manager, Ed Rollins, admitted they did it on purpose. Then their was MH, marketing himself as the “Christian” candidate, the “joke” at the NRA meeting and now the guy he hopes to install as RNC chair sending out 168 CDs to RNC Committee Members referencing the President-elect and his race in a satirical way.
OMG, these people are starting to remind me of the Clintons. They are an ongoing embarrassment and you just can’t get them to leave the stage.
December 28th, 2008 at 6:21 pm
Yep, the lack of good judgement displayed by the Huck crowd is downright jaw-dropping. I weep for the future of the Republican party.
December 28th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
Hey, just in case the GOP doesn’t have enough race problems, lets throw in another southern white guy who can be painted as a racist - yep, that’s the ticket!
Not only is Saltsman idiotic to have done this, but Katon Dawson, recently belonged to a racist country club. He just happened to quit in protest along about August when he decided he wanted to run for RNC Chair. Isn’t that curious how some people find a conscience so conveniently?
I’m not excited about the people running, none are really ringing my bell– but for Heaven’s sake, let’s hope and pray neither of these 2 clowns gets chosen!
Sheesh!!!
December 29th, 2008 at 3:44 pm
You are all absolutely right. These people are whom we have left as the “Leaders” of the GOP. What’s worse is that there are many people ready and willing to defend them. When are we as a party going to wake up?! It doesn’t matter if their intentions were not rascist or bigoted. The lack of racial and religious sensitivity is more than enough to populate the tv screens.
I agree with Paulee and hope that none of these men get the job. At this point out of the entire lot of candidates; I would throw my support for Saul Anuzis, whose plans appear to be revolutionary. Blackwell defended Saltsman and thus loses his own credibility. Steele is a John McCain republican with a highly unproven track record of running successful electoral campaigns.
December 29th, 2008 at 4:36 pm
The company you keep, remember that…..Obama and all his associations, Huck seems to have bad taste and bad judgement, and now Saltsman follows in Huck’s footsteps….Give them enough rope…………. these guys are likely to shoot themselves in the foot before they are done. Kinda funny, justice is good……..You can’t harbor all that dislike as Huck does without slip ups…..seems the same goes for overly agressive Saltsman………
January 5th, 2009 at 3:10 pm
Vote for RNC Chair here (Read comments/leave comments):
http://www.chooseyourchairman.com/
Opinion on Ken Blackwell (RNC Chair candidate) - choice of Christian right’s more prominent leaders: James Dobson (Focus on Family), Tim LaHaye (co-author ‘Left Behind’), fmr Atty General Ed Meese, Tony Perkins and Phyllis Schlafly (Family Research Council). NOT MITT FANS.
http://www.salon.com/politics/war_room/2009/01/05/blackwell/
January 5th, 2009 at 4:19 pm
ATR RNC now has the video stream of RNC debate today up. Just click below the screen on ‘here’ to access stream directly!
http://www.rncdebate.org/index.php