[jeffkrol]

Outgoing Republican National Committee chair Michael Steele's 10 best gaffes

October 2010: Uhh, remind me again, what's the minimum wage?

Steele came under fire after admitting that he doesn't know what the federal minimum wage is. "You really like the minimum wage, don't you?" Steele said, laughing. When O'Donnell said it was okay to say he didn't know what it was, Steele snapped and accused him of "trap playing."

January 2010: "Honest injun on that."

Steele's critics were outraged when the chairman used the phrase "honest injun” during an appearance on Fox News.

Steele wasn't convinced he'd said anything wrong after Fox host Chris Wallace pointed out "congressmen of both parties say that's a racial slur."

"Well, if it is, I apologize for it," answered Steele, insisting he didn't mean it that way when he described the RNC platform last week as the best in 25 years, topping it off by declaring "Honest injun on that."

.....
ect. I'm going to miss the Stewart puppet shows........
And in the spirit of the "meet the new boss, same as the old boss" comment of mine:

“It is reminiscent of 1995 when Senator (Bob) Dole and Speaker Gingrich talked about a new partnership among House, Senate and governors,” Barbour said. “So we look forward to working with them, we were glad to be asked.”

And this all comes at a retreat that is a signature Washington event: As in the past, it’s paid for by a non-profit organization funded, and run, by corporate lobbyists, even though many of the attendees campaigned against special interests and the insider ways of the capital city.

For a new GOP majority that promised to change the ways of Washington — indeed ran against its own party’s establishment in some cases – the retread status of this retreat is striking.

The Contract with America is now the Pledge to America, and Boehner’s chief of staff Barry Jackson – the man pulling the strings quietly behind the scenes here and simultaneously at the RNC meeting in Oxon Hill, Md. – still has a firm grip on every corner of the party’s infrastructure.

Republicans aren’t alone, in fact the blast from the past is also evident on the other side of Pennsylvania Avenue. The day the House GOP gathered here at the harbor-side, sky-scraping Baltimore Marriott Waterfront, the White House announced that Bruce Reed, a Clinton-era policy adviser, would rejoin the executive branch as Vice President Joseph R. Biden’s chief of staff. Last week, former Clinton Commerce Secretary Bill Daley became Obama’s chief of staff.

There’s a reason why both parties are turning to the old political hands even as national life has changed and social media and blogs have made public dealings more instantaneous: The GOP House majority — and the Democrats who control the Senate and the White House — are wrestling with lots of tough issues, not least raising the amount of money the country can borrow and selling it to an electorate who thought they voted for an end to lavish spending and increased debt. Luntz has been the force behind branding some tough issues, and Gingrich was a part of a GOP leadership team that balanced the budget and went toe-to-toe with a Democratic president, even though he failed in significant ways and his tenure as speaker ended in disgrace.

Retreads still drive GOP agenda - Jake Sherman and Richard E. Cohen - POLITICO.com

Gotta love it..........
Sometimes it's fun to look at the "small yet large" players...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barry_Steven_Jackson

In the Abramoff scandal, Jackson has been cited as a regular participant in lobbying contacts with Jack Abramoff and his staffers

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Luntz

Luntz frequently tests word and phrase choices using focus groups and interviews. His stated purpose in this is the goal of causing audiences to react based on emotion. "80 percent of our life is emotion, and only 20 percent is intellect.

Hmmm.. pretty much defines politics nowadays........
BTW:
pronounced ..... Ryns PREE’-bus
http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2011/jan/15/short-lived-celebration-new-rnc-chairman/

---

Last edited by jeffkrol; 01-15-2011 at 10:42 AM.