Nobody knows how to broaden GOP's appeal to non-white voters better than white guy Reince Priebus, but a little healthy competition for the RNC Chairmanship never hurts, right?
J.C. Watts, former GOP congressman, conservative, and, relevant for this discussion, African-American, says he's...
being “encouraged” by supporters to run for chairman of the Republican National Committee, a move he says could broaden the party’s appeal to minorities.
Mr. Watts, who's certainly no liberal, manages to at least recognize his party's predicament:
“My concern right now, and I don’t say this necessarily as a candidate [for RNC chairman], my concern is that as a Republican, every single Republican in America ought to be concerned about what has happened in 2008 and 2012,” Watts said.
[...]
Watts complained that Republican efforts to reach out to minority groups have not been sustained or consistent during his 20-plus years as a politician, but rather are executed on ad hoc basis - usually in election years. In Watts’ view, and that of many other Republican leaders and party operatives, if the GOP doesn’t dramatically improve its image with black and Hispanic voters, it will not be able to win back the White House.
The tactic so often used in the past by opportunistic Republicans—on-demand, temporary message-tweaking to "broaden their appeal" that conveniently expires the day after an election—is losing its effectiveness.
With 93% of African-Americans and 70% of Latino/a's going for Obama this last election, the GOP is faced with the harsh reality that minorities, soon to become majorities, aren't the idiots the GOP takes them for after all.
Watts also tries to point out that attempts to form (token) coalitions for Republican presidential candidates within African-American communities don't go over well, either:
"That’s insulting to the people that they ask to do it when you don’t put an permanent infrastructure in place to give it credibility.”
But will Republicans take the hint? Doesn't look like it, so far:
Priebus has already announced that his seeking a second term as RNC chairman and looks to have more than enough votes wrapped up at this point to guarantee a win even if Watts does decide to formally challenge him.
After all, why fix what isn't broken? RNC spokesman Sean Spicer gives the impression they'd much rather stick with the guy who lost elections but cleaned-up their financial issues, so they can build on their "success" by focusing on the repackaging effort:
“As we head into this next cycle on much better financial footing, the RNC will [be] launching the most comprehensive political and communications outreach effort in the history of the party.”
In the history of the party. Sounds impressive.
It better be, considering all the FAIL he seems to acknowledge:
“There is no question [Republicans need] to do better” with minority voters, Spicer acknowledged. “There’s no other way to read the results [of Election Day.]"
The thing is, he
still doesn't think the
Republican Party itself is the problem:
“The principles of the party are sound, but we have to do a better job of getting into certain communities and speaking to different types and getting back to our core message.”
Once again, the prevailing Republican mentality is on display—message delivery is the problem, not the message itself. These "certain communities" would surely embrace the core principles of the Republican Party,
if properly presented.
As if this Sean Spicer guy wasn't enough idiocy for one article, yet another robot weighs in—Matt Pinnell, the chairman of the Republican Party in Watts' home state of Oklahoma. I wonder who he's backing?
“Not only does Reince deserve another term, but he’s the best person for the job,” Pinnell said. “I think what he’s done over the last couple years to rescue the committee from where we were … not only from a financial perspective, but also his message skills. He’s done a very good job communicating to the 168 in these states. That’s a big part of his job.”
That's why Priebus' "Autopsy Tour" begins today in NYC with a "vent session" held by Republican donors who apparently are a little less than satisfied with the last election's ROI.
Pinnell then further reassures us that Reince Priebus really loves diversity, and that Mr. Priebus is the best guy to broaden the party's appeal:
“I know that the RNC is bringing a lot of people to the table to talk about where we need to go as a party, and where we need to go as a committee. That’s a very healthy process. I think Reince will do a very good job of that. I think he will bring a lot of people from all different walks of life to the table and will be very well prepared for 2014, and certainly 2016.”
I have a hard time believing "all different walks of life" means anything other than the "poor" who earn a paltry $500,000/year.