ABC Political Punch chat with Saul Anuzis about the 'Race for RNC Chair'

Saul Anuzis on FOX News with Neil Cavuto, on Why He’s Taking On Michael Steele

TO:                        RNC Members

FROM:                   Saul Anuzis, MI-NCM

RE:                        Announcement for RNC Chairman

DATE:                   November 12, 2010

Congratulations on your success, nationwide and state-by-state.  Without the leadership you and our fellow members of the National Committee provide, we as a party, a conservative movement, would not have been able to rally America for the historic victory we achieved on Election Day.

This is an exciting time to be a Republican and, as leaders, we have an awesome task ahead of us.  The American people have given us a ‘second chance’ and that opportunity brings with it huge responsibility and challenge.

Now we turn our attention to 2012. America must elect a new President.  It is that hope, that necessity, that challenge, that draws me to announce my candidacy for the Chairmanship of the Republican National Committee.

I don’t take lightly the fact that I am challenging a friend and colleague for the Chairmanship. When Michael was elected Chairman, I was the only candidate who stepped forward to attend the next morning’s RNC breakfast meeting, agreed to join the transition team, and later took on several roles as a team player on the RNC…and have attended every meeting since.

Given my involvement and efforts to help over the past two years, it was not an easy decision for me to seek the post.  As someone who believes in loyalty, my natural instinct would be to sit this out.  But the simple fact is that the overriding challenge we face is winning back the Presidency in 2012 and we will not accomplish that objective unless there is dramatic change in the way the RNC does business.

We cannot be misled by our victories this year.  In 1994 we won the House and Senate yet just two years later Bill Clinton cruised to re-election.  As we’ve seen in the past two years public opinion can change with breathtaking speed.

We can’t rely on our wins in 2010 to carry us to success in 2012. We also can’t win in 2012 unless the RNC re-establishes itself as the powerful force that put us over the top in 2000 and 2004.

But to be a force, the RNC must change and that requires new leadership at the top. I am offering you an alternative, a choice, a different approach to the leadership and stewardship of our party.

Chairman Steele’s record speaks for itself.  He has his way of doing things. I have mine.

We will not win in 2012 if the RNC is not able to provide the financial resources we need to support the organizational efforts and ground games of our state parties.  Without a fully funded Victory program we will be overwhelmed by the efforts of the unions, the Obama campaign and all their allies.

Even though we won an overall victory in 2010 we lost some heartbreaking statewide races in places like Illinois, Colorado, West Virginia, Washington and Nevada, and countless congressional and legislative districts because the other side had a better turnout effort.

Think about your own state. Did some terrific Republican candidate work their hearts out, yet fall short by a handful of votes on Election Day? Now ask yourself: if the RNC had properly funded the Victory program in your state, would that candidate have been a winner? Would that candidate have benefited from a robust 72-hour program with ground troops sweeping in for the final weekend?

These are the stakes:

We will only win in 2012 if the RNC has the maximum level of resources it is allowed to spend on the GOP Presidential ticket.

We will only win in 2012 if the Chairman of the RNC steps out of the limelight and allows our elected officials and presidential candidates to be the face, voice, and agenda setter for Republicans.

And, we will only hold on to our gains–and expand them– if the RNC is able to provide the funding and leadership on reapportionment that is so critical.

Thankfully, in 2010 a group of alternative organizations emerged to help fill the void created by the RNC’s shortage of resources. They found support from many RNC major donors who had lost faith in the RNC. We need these groups and their support, but they can’t be expected to replace the RNC in a presidential year. We must rebuild the trust with our party’s major donors and bring them back to the table.

My philosophy of how the National Committee should be run is simple: to use a football analogy, I believe we should do the “blocking and tackling” for the candidates.

Today, we have many great potential candidates emerging as leaders of our country and our party.  Member of Congress, Senators and Governors now present the ‘face’ of the Republican Party. As our elected representatives, it is their job to set the public policy agenda.

As party leaders and grassroots activists, it is our job to make the calls, knock on the doors, organize our states and precincts and, most importantly, raise the money to help elect Republicans.

With those thoughts in mind let me outline what I will do if you choose to elect me as Chairman.

I will be a tenacious fundraiser who will make fundraising my number 1 priority as Chairman.  As the Michigan Republican Chairman during some of our party’s toughest times, I raised record amounts of money to make sure our efforts were funded.  I will commit a majority of my time to funding our efforts for this upcoming cycle.

I will NOT strive to be the voice or the face of our party.  Of course I will be happy to discuss politics and elections with the media, but I won’t be competing with valuable airtime from the men and women on our ticket.  Instead, I will work with our elected leaders around the country to give them maximum exposure and guarantee a consistent message that leads us to victory.

I will be a nuts and bolts type of Chairman, one who will concentrate on the fundamentals and ensure we properly develop and execute our ground game.  It will be my goal to create an unprecedented organizational base, fully funded, to make more phone calls, knock on more doors, mail more material and compete on the airwaves to get our message across.

I will work with our National Convention committee and ultimately our nominee for President to ensure an effective, efficient Convention that will showcase our party and launch our nominee into the general election campaign with momentum.  I will work diligently to ensure that we spend every dollar towards running the most efficient and exciting convention possible.

I will raise the funds needed to make sure we have a state of the art reapportionment program nationwide.  To take advantage of our 2010 state election victories we will need to buttress the efforts of our state parties and legislative caucuses to make sure they have the information technology, legal support, and data needed to win the redistricting war.

I will run a tight ship and be a conscientious steward of our donor’s money.  I will engage both our donor community and the Budget Committee in a detailed review and supervision of how we allocate our resources.  I will be accountable for every penny spent. I will always be mindful that the RNC’s resources come from hard-working Americans who love their country and were willing to sacrifice to make it a better place.

I will be a team player and work cooperatively with the NRSC, NRCC and RGA to elect more Republicans across our country.  I will not take sides in the Presidential primary contest but will be a reliable player that the eventual presidential nominee will be able to depend on, and work with closely and cooperatively through the presidential campaign.

I will be available to you and the other Committee members and use your input and advice as we develop election targets and support programs.

I will be directly in charge of our Election Day programs and support efforts.  During the final days of the 2012 campaign I will be at headquarters 24/7, overseeing our national campaign and making sure that every call is made, every email sent, every piece of literature delivered and every Republican voter we can identify gets to the polls in order to achieve success.

Finally, I will ONLY run for ONE term, help elect our president and support his/her recommendation for our next Chairman.

We saw this plan work in Michigan this year. By raising the necessary funds and giving local parties the tools they needed, the Michigan Republican Party created an environment where our slate of great candidates cruised to victory, winning every statewide office, taking back the state house and Supreme Court,  increasing majority in the state senate and increasing our GOP Congressional delegation by two seats.

My agenda is very straightforward. I have no interest in running for office. I won’t be writing a book.  It is not my goal to be famous. However, you’ll be hard pressed to find anyone who will work harder, more diligently and be more committed to electing Republicans from the top to every township and city across this great country of ours.

Our Republican Party has a proud history as the Grand Old Party but we have an even brighter future as the Grand Opportunity Party that leads us into the 21st century with innovative solutions based upon our proven principles.

In 2012 one of two things will happen.  We will either win back the Senate and White House and set America on the right pathway forward, or we will squander this opportunity and allow President Obama to continue moving our nation to the left, to an era of unprecedented government growth and intrusion into our lives.

As an RNC member, the choice is yours as the outcome will be determined, in large part, by which party has the resources and the organizational program to prevail.

If you believe that what we have seen at the RNC the past two years is good enough to provide us a victory in 2012 then by all means you should stick with our current leadership and direction.

But if you agree with me that victory in 2012 requires a new set of priorities and new leadership I hope you will consider supporting my candidacy for RNC Chairman.

RNC Chairman Michael Steele's Lincoln Day Address

RNC Chairman Steele Delivers Weekly Republican Address (6 Feb 2009)

RNC Chairman Michael Steele Delivers Weekly Republican Address.

Transcript:

This is Michael Steele, Chairman of the Republican National Committee. Democrats have controlled both branches of government for less than a month. And you have to wonder if all that power has gone to their heads.

For the last two weeks, theyve been trying to force a massive spending bill through Congress under the guise of economic relief.

All of us Republicans and Democrats agree the government must act to kick-start the American economy. American families are doing their best to balance their own budgets and pay their mortgages.

The fastest way to help those families is by letting them keep more of the money they earn. Individual empowerment: thats how you stimulate the economy.

But the Democrats have a different philosophy. Instead of leaving money in the family checkbook, they want to send it to Washington, run it through a slow and inefficient government, and hope that does some good.

When families keep the money, they spend it, save it, or invest it. And the private sector economy benefits when families and businesses buy consumer goods or invest it for the future. But when Washington spends the money, some of it may flow into the economy, but all too often, much gets wasted.

Democrats in Congress want a one-trillion dollar spending bill. Youve heard about the pork-barrel programs they want to fund 45 million dollars for ATV trails and removal of fish passage barriers is one that caught my eye. Exactly what is a fish passage barrier and why does it cost 45 million dollars to stimulate the economy with it?

Thats why Republicans in the House voted against uncontrolled spending. This is not a bragging point, but rather a statement that at least Republicans would stand with the American taxpayer.

But voting no is not enough and Republicans have offered innovative ideas to help struggling families and small businesses. Weve offered plans to spark job creation and investment through lower taxes, to stop the taxation of unemployment benefits, and to help Americans keep their jobs and their homes.

The comprehensive Republican plan would lower taxes for all working American families. If youre married, the first 16,750 dollars you make this year will be taxed at ten percent. Why dont we cut that rate in half to give instant buying power to every working American family?

Good ideas lots of them all left out of this plan by the Democrats in Congress.

Republicans stand ready to work with reasonable Democrats to do what is right for America.

But it will take more than bipartisan words from the President. It will require fair-minded action from Democrats in Congress.

Grading the RNC Chair Candidates’ Young Voter Outreach Plans

Grading the RNC Chair Candidates’
Young Voter Outreach Plans

by Aaron Marks

With the RNC Chair election rapidly approaching, I wanted to take a look at how each candidate plans to appeal to young voters. Specifically, I will be referencing each candidate’s plans and platforms as outlined on their respective websites, along with their responses to the question regarding youth voters at the RNC Chair debate hosted by Americans for Tax Reform. Based on these past remarks and platforms, I will then grade each candidate’s overall plan for increasing the Republican Party’s appeal to young voters.

Chip Saltsman Grade: D+

At the ATR debate, Saltsman insisted that young voters are not the future of the Party, but instead the “heart and soul of the party” because “they are involved in every campaign we run.” Saltsman recalled how he was inspired by Ronald Reagan, and how Reagan inspired to people to know that “we were the shining city on the hill,” and he stated that “we need to make sure that we inspire all people across all age groups to let them know that we are a great country.”

Saltsman’s Republican Plan for Victory insists that “Republicans must also develop a new game plan to connect with younger voters” so that they don’t “become habitual Democratic supporters.” In terms of technology, he argues that “we need to rethink our online tactics and strategy,” as the 2008 election cycle taught many lessons, including “the growing political significance of self-organizing citizen activism; the speed at which viral information travels through the blogosphere and other digital media; the power of online fundraising; the extent to which younger voters rely on and demand online information and interactivity; and the peril of a strategy blind to these irreversible developments.”

My Take: Saltsman is correct that Republicans must find a way to connect with and inspire young voters. However, his plan offers virtually no substance as to how to accomplish this. After the GOP’s devastating 2-to-1 national defeat among young voters, this is simply inadequate for someone striving to be the leader of the Republican Party’s future.

Ken Blackwell Grade: D+
(This is OKGOP Chair Gary Jones pick)

At the ATR debate, Blackwell repeated his call that, “We have to bring [the College Republican National Committee] back into our structure,” and he also advocated Rebuild the Party’s “40 under 40″ strategy. He noted that he believes it is necessary to include “young folks at the policy level, the organizational level, and the service level — at every level of government.”

In his Conservative Resurgence Plan, Blackwell insists that Republicans must draw “contrasts with Democrats regarding these principles, values, and ideas.” He also argues that the RNC has been “negligent in the development of young candidates and operatives through the College Republicans and Young Republicans.” Overall, he states that, “We will work to make changes necessary to strengthen the relationship between College Republicans and the RNC, allowing us to work together electing more Republicans.” Technologically, Blackwell identifies the need to establish a CTO as senior level RNC staff. He also proposes “rolling out a social network which will serve as the foundation of a new Republican online movement.”

My Take: Blackwell’s plan strives to enhance the relationship between College/Young Republicans and the RNC. He (correctly) points out that the RNC has largely neglected developing young candidates and operatives, although he fails to propose a specific solution to this problem beyond offering RNC “funding for a national field program of well-trained College Republicans.” In the end, what he proposes may certainly solidify the RNC’s collaboration with existing young Republican voters and institutions, but it offers insufficient substance as to exactly how to accomplish this. More importantly, his plan offers little in terms of proposals for bringing new young voters into the GOP.

Katon Dawson Grade: F

Like Chip Saltsman, Dawson invoked Ronald Reagan’s name and vision in his response at the debate. He pointed out that “it didn’t matter that [Reagan] was 60-some odd years old, the youth came out everywhere and voted across lines.” Based on this, he concluded that “it’s the value of our candidates, how we recruit them, and how we energize it…it comes from the quality and the value of the people we put on the ground.”

The Dawson Plan states that, “The Republican Party was once known as the party of small business, entrepreneurship and enterprise. That mantle was lost when our leaders promoted big government, big spending, and more mandates and regulation.” It briefly touches on the problems that the GOP is encountering with young voters when Dawson writes, “Meanwhile, young voters 18 to 29 voted for Barack Obama by a margin of 2-to-1.” The plan proposes a four-pronged “Operation eGOP” to enhance the Republican Party’s use of technology. The three components are: first, creating regional eCampaign Directors to work with state and local parties; second, for the RNC to “invest in new technology to build a platform so multiple vendors can use RNC technological and information resources for candidate websites and tools”; third, for the RNC to invest in building a “robust and open” social network; and fourth, to commit to recruiting 5 million new online activists. Interestingly enough, Dawson is the only candidate who hasn’t endorsed the Rebuild the Party plan.

My Take: Dawson recognizes the importance of candidates that appeal to young voters, but neither his plan nor his debate response address what he will do as RNC Chair to ensure that these sort of candidates run and are given the resources to be elected. Not only does Dawson fail to provide any specifics as to how he would appeal to young voters, but he has not even endorsed the Rebuild the Party plan which offers a number of ideas in terms of ways to do this.

Michael Steele Grade: D-

In response to the question at the ATR debate, Steele argued that approaching the problem with young voters through a “national footprint” is not enough; instead, he spoke about “something that’s in your backyard.” Michael suggested that if Republicans “want to have a face-to-face with young people, then you need to be on the college campuses. You need to help them organize. You need to be in their neighborhoods and their communities speaking directly in their language on the issues that are important to them.” Overall, he insisted that we must “actually put them in the game and let them play the game. That’s when you’ll start to attract folks.”

None of Steele’s Blueprint for Tomorrow addresses the issue of increasing the GOP’s standing with young voters, and it is fairly vague in terms of plans for improving the Republican Party’s use of technology.

My Take: Although Steele’s response drew an astounding round of applause at the debate, I find it worrisome that he provides no specifics as to how to accomplish his goals, and even more discouraging that he does not address winning over young voters in any way in his Blueprint for Tomorrow. While his points from the debate may be accurate, they are far too vague and lack any clear direction or plan.

Mike Duncan Grade: C-

At the debate, Duncan proposed three points to increasing the GOP’s appeal to young voters. First, he stated that the GOP must “make sure we attract young people with ideas,” which he believes can be produced by his proposed Center for Republican Renewal. Second, he pointed to technology as a place to appeal to young voters, noting that the RNC must communicate with them “on the home pages, on the Facebook, with the Twittering.” Finally, he insisted that the GOP needs to have role models for younger voters, such as the newly elected Illinois Congressman Aaron Schock. He also highlighted his opposition to the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, which prevents the RNC from funding organizations like CRs and YRs.

Duncan’s Plan for the Future states that the Republican Party must improve its standing among many demographics, including young voters, “while maintaining our support among our traditional base.” Duncan argues that “we must identify those who share our principles but don’t trust our Party, [and] … gain, or re-gain, their trust by offering real solutions to issues they care about.” Finally, he insists that the RNC must persuade people that “our ideas are the path to a stronger, safer, and more prosperous America.”

My Take: Duncan’s recognition of the importance in electing new young Republicans as “role models” is excellent, but he generally fails to identify specific initiatives that could accomplish this. That said, the Center for Republican Renewal is a concrete solution that could be useful in finding new ideas to increase the Republican Party’s appeal to young voters. His statement about “the Facebook, the Twittering” suggests a possible lack of awareness of these arenas that are crucial in appealing to young voters. Finally, even though eliminating the barriers of the campaign reform act may be valuable, increasing funding to College and Young Republicans will be unlikely to convert many non-Republican young voters into Republicans, as these organizations primarily serve to appeal to existing Republicans.

Saul Anuzis Grade: B-

At the debate, Saul insisted that it is necessary for “Young Republicans, College Republicans, and Teenage Republicans to have a seat at the table.” He cited a study that suggests that “70% of the kids in high school today want to be entrepreneurs,” and argues that the GOP can appeal to this sense of entrepreneurship by re-establishing itself as “a party for free markets and free minds.”

On his website, Saul states that as RNC Chair he would “hold frequent meetings with young leaders,” such that “they will lead our outreach efforts and will have honest funding to do so effectively.” Saul has also been noted as a leader in embracing the sort of technology and openness that is crucial in appealing to young voters — indeed, he even announced his intentions to run for Chair on Twitter. In his Blueprint for a GOP Comeback, Saul writes that, “We will seek input and ideas specifically from … younger groups and leaders to help ensure we are not forfeiting a generation of voters.” In addition to endorsing Rebuild the Party, Saul also proposes a “60 under 40″ plan, in which “Only 60 individuals under the age of 40 will be chosen each year.” These individuals “will travel to Washington for leadership training, media training, and fundraising training.” Finally, Saul advocates practices such as “Best Web Ad” contests that he will aim specifically at younger Republicans “to encourage … creativity and passion.”

My Take: Saul identifies a number of concrete proposals for appealing to young voters, and his understanding of and willingness to embrace technology could help the GOP make inroads among these voters. However, his decision to limit training to 60 individuals each year is disheartening. Saul’s belief in including young voters at the table and using their guidance could be immensely valuable — but for this to be a success, these young voters must be diverse, not just “members of the choir.”

Conclusion

The lack of substantial and comprehensive plans for increasing the Republican Party’s appeal to young voters from the majority of the candidates for RNC Chair is rather frightening.

Despite the fact that the surge in the percentage of the youth vote received by Barack Obama played a huge role in his victory, most of the RNC Chair candidates seem content to preserve the status quo — working with College Republicans, Young Republicans, and other existing young Republican groups and folks while failing to outreach to new young voters.

If the Republican Party wants to win elections and be the party of the future, our next RNC Chair is going to have to do much better than that.

Saul Anuzis and Michael Steele - Two Different Approaches

Hat Tip to Cato @ Delmarva Dealings

Who should be the next
RNC chair?

Some have their favorites.

Some of us are undecided.

Unfortunately, too many Republicans don’t care.

Don’t underestimate the importance of this race.

A great chairman can do GREAT THINGS for the GOP. Just remember the fantastic job done by former chairman and current Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour.

Until the debate on January 5th, we’ll be stuck with getting bits and pieces from the candidates … and the usual opinion from people like me and my Red Maryland colleague Brian Griffiths. However, we do have two larger bits of info from two of the top tier candidates - former Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele and Michigan GOP Chairman Saul Anuzis.

Thanks to our fearless Red Maryland leader Streiff, we have this interview given by Steel to CNSNews.com. You can also watch an interview with Steele on PJTV.

RedState has given a set of of ten questions to each candidate. Anuzis is the first candidate to return his answers. You can read them here.

I encourage you to read both Steele’s interview and Anuzis’ answers carefully.

I believe that you’ll find two distinct approaches.

While they may be close on most issues, Anuzis comes off as more forceful … and forthcoming.

With all due respect to Steele, he appears more concerned with offending someone than on getting it right (pay close attention to the PJTV interview and the Meet the Press interview).

We need a Chairman
who will LEAD!

Moving the Party to the State House

Hat Tip to The Garnet Spy




There is an important gathering this week - potentially the most important between last week’s presidential election and the next. It’s the annual Republican Governor’s Association Conference in Miami.

Yeah, yeah… there will be golf, a cruise and fancy dinners, but there are sessions at which “rising stars” will be recognized and one called “Looking Toward the Future: The GOP in Transition.” If played correctly, This group has the capability to take control of the party and steer it back from the devastation of November 4.

There are 21 Republican governors - 8 will leave in 2010 due to term limits and another in 2011. Mitch Daniels (Indiana), John Hoeven (North Dakota), Jon Huntsman (Utah) and Jim Douglas (Vermont) won reelection. Missouri was lost when Matt Blount chose not to run for re-election.

Naturally, the immediate concerns are going to be retaining as many state house seats as possible in 2010 and pick up as many of the 11 Democrat governorships that will be up for grabs (10 in 2010 and one in 2009). But there is more that they need to do.

The Republican governors need to move the center of the party out of Washington. Take it from Senators and House leaders that are too removed from the citizenry and bring it closer to Republican roots. A subtle but very important point came out during Sarah Palin’s candidacy - executive experience. Governors are the Nation’s company commanders - they are doing the hands-on work that immediately affect Americans. From roads to schools to business incentives and the environment, these are the men and women who know the country - the PEOPLE part of the country - best. The state house is the nexus from which another Reagan Revolution can be launched and from where the GOP must - MUST - concentrate its next group of leaders.

With powerful personalities such as Palin, Bobby Jindal, Tim Pawlenty, Mark Sanford, and others like former Maryland Governor Bob Ehrlich and his Lieutenant Governor and current GoPac Chairman Michael Steele, the Republican Party has what Steele called “a phenomenal farm team.”

The Republican Governor’s Association website contains this statement:

The success of Republican Governors at the polls offers a bright spot for the GOP, and their victories tonight show their importance to the Republican Party’s future.

Republican Governors prove that when we govern well and stick to our principles the nation still supports the Republican Party. The plan that Republican Governors developed two years ago is working.

When Republicans focus on solving problems we can win in any environment. It’s now time to focus on rebuilding our Party at the state level — not in Washington DC — and our governors are poised to do so.

The Republican National Committee
would be wise to recognize the logic.