RNC Chair Steele revising NY-23 history in new book

JUDE SEYMOUR

TUESDAY, JANUARY 5, 2010

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Republican National Chairman Mike Steele is engaging in a bit of revisionist history when it comes to discussing the 23rd Congressional District special election.

Mr. Steele says in his new book, according to the Washington Independent:

The media delighted in portraying the contest as a 'civil war' within the Republican Party. It was really nothing of the kind - some conservatives believed Scozzafava was too liberal, while others simply thought she had the best chance of winning.

It would have been a lot easier for Dede Scozzafava to ignore Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman if only "some conservatives" thought she was too liberal.

But a lot of Conservatives and conservative Republicans thought she was too liberal - certainly on social issues, but also on fiscal issues. It started with the state Conservative Party, who denied her the line. And then the Club for Growth, which wasn't going to miss an opportunity to support a candidate running to the right of a moderate Republican, because it was an opportunity to brighten its own star and further its fiscally conservative agenda.

The club was Mr. Hoffman's lifeline. They produced the ads and bought the airtime that helped wound Ms. Scozzafava, who was also getting attacked from the left.

And when Ms. Scozzafava's poll numbers started to sink, more Republicans started consider Mr. Hoffman more seriously. And that included the politicians, whose imprimatur bought Mr. Hoffman legitimacy amongst a significant segment of NY-23 voters: Fred Thompson, Dick Armey, Sarah Palin, Tim Pawlenty and George Pataki.

There was a 'civil war' - an intersection of ideology between the Hoffmanites who wanted a return to Reagan - a no-tax, no-debt, no-pork, "pro-family," - agenda and all others, who believed the party's tent was wide enough to embrace a pro-union, pro-gay marriage, pro-choice candidate.

Mr. Steele continues:

I endorsed her before she dropped out because, as the Republican National Committee chairman, it's not my job to pontificate on which Republican candidates I like or dislike. The party's grassroots should choose the candidates, who should expect the party's support once they become our nominees.

The chairman is committing the sin of omission. He didn't tell you that the RNC contributed to the Scozzafava campaign only after a Politico story reported that Ms. Scozzafava was having trouble raising money - and that the RNC hadn't contributed a dime. (I will note the National Republican Congressional Committee was doing their part.)

The chairman continues:

And that was the problem in New York: Scozzafava wasn't chosen by the Republican grassroots; she was selected in a backroom deal by a handful of party chairmen. As a result, Republicans got a candidate who wasn't suited for her own district, and the grassroots rebelled. And trust me, the message of that rebellion reached the top of the party. We need to abolish the backroom wheeling and dealing and encourage all congressional districts to choose their candidates through closed primaries.

No one has yet convinced me that Ms. Scozzafava "wasn't suited for her own district." She received the same level of support from voters in the 2008 election as former Rep. John McHugh did in the 122nd Assembly District.

She was for the Employee Free Choice Act, which Mr. McHugh supported. She was for abortion rights, as was Mr. McHugh. She was against cap-and-trade, which Mr. McHugh was criticized for supporting.

And Mr. Steele, probably because he didn't step foot in our district, is a little fact-challenged in his assessment of how Ms. Scozzafava was picked. Let's (again) review the facts:

Four regional meetings, spread out across the district, were held. And the hundreds of Republican committee members in these 11 districts were also invited to attend. ("Scozzafava lining up campaign ducks," July 1.)

Could these be the so-called "grassroots" members that Mr. Steele suggested were shut out?

The candidates who applied for the post considered the process to be open and inclusive. "I think the whole process is fantastic," Mr. Hoffman said. "Hopefully, by doing this, we'll get a candidate the people can get behind." (Nine 'apply' for post in 23rd, July 9)

Ms. Scozzafava was picked during a third round of balloting, which means there was some initial disagreement before there was unanimous consent. ("Scozzafava is GOP's selection," July 23)

The candidate was picked at Sergi's Italian Restaurant in Potsdam, not some previously smoke-filled backroom in an undisclosed location under the cover of dark night.

And here's the kicker: Mr. McHugh didn't resign until Sept. 21. There was a statewide primary on Sept. 15. When exactly does Mr. Steele propose we should have held this party primary? And who should have paid the bill for running this special primary?

Mr. Steele concludes:

By endorsing Owens, Scozzafava proved herself a disloyal Republican - such an opportunist would probably never have survived a competitive primary.

I set aside the 'disloyal' part. Certainly, anyone can make a good argument that Ms. Scozzafava's act was, to her party, an act of disloyalty.

But Mr. Steele is also suggesting that Ms. Scozzafava "would probably never" win a primary.

Oh, really? Ms. Scozzafava had a decade of service in the state Assembly. She was previously mayor of Gouverneur. Mr. Hoffman was unknown to more than 80 percent of voters during the first Siena poll Oct. 1. He didn't receive a single vote during the Republican nomination process.

I can't visit this alternate reality, but I'll guess that Club for Growth may not have found the race - with potentially several competitors - as attractive. The group may not have helped Mr. Hoffman, especially if the race featured other candidates with similar conservative credentials. Without their help, Mr. Hoffman doesn't get his name out. He doesn't get noticed by the national media. He probably doesn't win.

And maybe Ms. Scozzafava still doesn't win, but it would have been interesting to see how the race would have played out if it didn't get hijacked by national interests.

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