Steele: "I Have A Problem" With New GOP Group Slamming Reagan

RNC Chairman Michael Steele's fill-in stint as the host of Bill Bennett's radio talk show has produced a handful of quasi-embarrassing moments -- most notably his claim that Mitt Romney's Mormonism helped doom him in the Republican Primary.

At the very end of the nearly two-hour segment, it turns out, was another whack Steele took at his fellow Republicans. Responding to a caller disparaging the National Council for a New America -- the new Republican re-branding effort -- the RNC Chairman joined the fray, saying he had "a problem" with the notion, as put forth by former Gov. Jeb Bush, that the party needed to move beyond the legacy of Ronald Reagan.

"This tour is not about bringing minorities to the Republican Party," Steele said, correcting his caller. "This listening tour that these individuals have put in place is their way, as they said, to look forward, bring about a grassroots caucus and to bring moderates and like-minded Democrats to a series of public forums around the country where we can have a debate of ideas. Now, on its face I see nothing wrong with that. But if you are going to go and start this and start slamming Ronald Reagan, I have a problem. And it is going to be an issue. Because you can't blame the past particularly when that past contributed to the success of the party."

In offering his objections to the messaging coming from the NCNA, Steele joins a host of other Republican officials. Still, it remains rare to see the head of a national political committee disparage major players in his own party. In addition to Bush, the NCNA includes former Gov. Mitt Romney, Rep. Eric Cantor, and Sen. John McCain.

Later in the program, Steele was told that he should have run against Barack Obama in 2008, to which he responded, "It would have been an interesting race." When another caller lamented the media's treatment of Gov. Sarah Palin, he said the issue was endemic to all true conservatives, before saying he preached a type of political philosophy that has people "looking over their shoulders and wondering whether or not Michael Steele is standing there."

"Look, the fact that Sarah is a conservative," he said. "Michael Steele is a conservative, Bill Bennett is a conservative, a Jack Kemp was a conservative. We were a target, we were a ready target for these guys... but the strength of conservatism is that it is real and in its realism it has a way to go out to talk to people and connect to people. That's the biggest threat that we offer. And that's the threat I want to take to the streets everyday. I want them looking over their shoulders and wondering whether or not Michael Steele is standing there. Because I will be, with you [caller] standing right next to me and a whole lot of other conservatives."

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Comments

[RevBookburn]

I cannot even see the words Reagan's Legacy without laughing. He was more stupid than Dan Quayle, more dishonest than Pastor Haggard, and more crazy than Rush Limbaugh. Deregulating corporate America and beginning the economic downfall of the nation? Reagan. Arming/ training al-Queda and creating the culture of ji-had during the Soviet-Afghan war? Reagan, North & gang. Environmental damage to alarming proportions? Reagan, Watt & gang. Reagan's true legacy is buried with bodies of hundreds of thousands of civilians murdered worldwide by one of the worst leaders in modern history. Rev. Bookburn - Radio Volta

[Chilblain]

KEEP DIGGING THAT HOLE MIKE!

[freethinkergirl]

"Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ign0rance and conscientious stup!d!ty."
- Martin Luther King Jr.

[upbeatdem]

Excellent quote and so appropriate! Thank you.

[StephenMcArthur]

The GOP's lame attempt to match its party leadership in a person (Steele) of color with the person of color President of the United States has them in a real fix because some of the GOP "leadership" are already trying to figure out how to put him (Steele) on the unemployment line without it looking bad. What a pathetic bunch of squawking parrots.

[PwnedByJesus]

I guess the only way to win control of the GOP is to host a radio show.

[PwnedByJesus]

Hosting a radio show is apparently the only way to gain power in the Republican Party. Seems to have worked for Rush Limbaugh. Maybe Steele is trying to oust the REAL leader of the GOP.

[dollbaby]

I'm jist tired of the "with it, happening, hip hop, cool" act! Grow up or be yourself or do both. If this is yourself than be somebody else!

[peterg76]

How can they move beyond the legacy of Reagan while they have yet to move to the reality of Reagan?

[bronzy]

Michael Steele is nothing but a $2 who re, that works the street corner, trying to pull in new johns, with his pimp(RNC leaders) keeping a close watch on him and immediately relieving him off any money he makes.

He is only good as a who re but not good enough to manage the money, he has no power and exist only at whim of his pimps!

[GoDogGo]

Does this guy do any actual *work*?

His leadership is fast becoming the textbook for being strategically inept. Steele and the GOP need to move on from "nostalgia" -- Regular voters like myself are increasingly associating the problems of today with the policies of Reagan. Until they create some distance (or sit and wait for the Dems to overreach), they'll never make progress.

[OkieIntellectual]

First off there's a big difference between "slamming" on Regan and saying that its time to move past his legacy. HUGE difference.

Second, Michael Steele needs to stop pretending that he is anything other than a tool to deflect racisim accusations levied at the GOP. They knew that unless their figurehead had a similar skin tone as the President, they would be at an elevated risk of being accused of racism for any criticism directed at the President.

[ImJustSaying007]

Not racism.....................OBSOLETE......ISM

[sippewissett]

It's important to remember that Steele is a person who makes an opinion one moment, then retracts it the next -- as soon as members of the GOP jump up and down OR as soon as the 'great one' (Limbaugh) is offended. Witness the fact that another article on this same site has him retracting his criticism of Romney!

Up is down and down is up with Steele, depending on the day of the week so banging on the current attempt to 're-brand' the GOP is his current opinion. However that will be undone when the participants of the listening tour come down on his head and he recants.

This isn't leadership. It's just spouting and proof of that is his 'pooling' together of Palin, Bennett, Kemp and himself as conservatives under attack when in fact the four of them are not alike, nor are they attacked for the same reasons. Pretty quickly Steele and Palin would be asked to step aside to have Republicans with a brain speak. And the hubris of Steele that had he run against Obama in '08 it would have been an interesting race! Yes, it would have. The GOP would be rubble now, not just in ruins.

How can the GOP expect to regain national leadership with this kind of wingnut heading the RNC?

[SharpDressedMan]

Michael Steele dons a business suit and talks like a thug. He is not the GOP's savior. He doesn't have the organizational mind or futuristic vision. He rose to his level of incompetence.

[ImJustSaying007]

Well put

[spardicus]

Steele believes that if he ran against Obama in '08 "it would have been an interesting race"?

A little delusional?

[sippewissett]

A little? What hubris. He and Palin have that in common: they don't know what they don't know. And they sure don't have a handle on the electorate.

[peterg76]

A clean sweep of all electoral college votes would have been interesting on a certain level.

[Ranta]

I love this guy. I hope they never get rid of him.

[lvdragonlady]

Yes you do have a problem but it is not what you say it is.

[csavage]

I would hope that some "thinking" conservative would start criticizing Reagan-his kowtowing to the Moral Majority got the GOP into the mess they're in now