*This* Is Why Maryland Didn't Vote for Michael Steele.
Why am I glad that this wishy-washy, spineless, politically impotent man is stuck trying to get money for the RNC and not representing the state of Maryland? Why, with just about every Michael Steele post, do I thank God that Ben Cardin is my Senator?
It's not just that he's joined the chorus of so-called Republicans who have decided to kiss Rush Limbaugh's boot. I get the dynamics of this; people who make mistakes should apologize, and Rush is the defacto leader of the Republican Party (sorry Newt).
No, my beef is this: when confronted by (African-American) D.L. Hugley on CNN, Steele tried to distance himself and the core of the party from Limbaugh's comments. Then, after Limbaugh hit back, Steele not only apologized, he did a 180-degree turn on his description of the man.
It's one thing to say, "I shouldn't have called the guy's comments 'ugly'." It's another to imply that a person who is not an elected official by any means (he didn't even sponsor CPAC) has as much political power as you.
In other words: Michael Steele has proven to be less than a figurehead; he's the "hip" face of a party who has, to date, ignored him. He will say what he needs to say to the audience he's speaking to. And while this is somewhat expected in politics, people at least appreciate a sense of nuisance. Steele has repeatedly told one story to a venue then contradict that story at another venue, which was why I was hesitant when I saw the growing number of black celebrities coming out to support this guy (as if he had any desire to deal with issues like civil rights, poverty or health care). He doesn't care. And in the day of 24-hr news and YouTube, you can't contradict yourself and expect to get away.
Whether Republican or Democrat, a voter hopes against hope that the person they selected will best represent their needs and interests. They also expect their representative to never, ever back down unless its absolutely necessary and even then explain themselves. Most importantly, they expect their representative to be straight with them (especially if they want any future votes).
Michael Steele is none of these things. And that's why Maryland ultimately didn't vote for him.
It's not just that he's joined the chorus of so-called Republicans who have decided to kiss Rush Limbaugh's boot. I get the dynamics of this; people who make mistakes should apologize, and Rush is the defacto leader of the Republican Party (sorry Newt).
No, my beef is this: when confronted by (African-American) D.L. Hugley on CNN, Steele tried to distance himself and the core of the party from Limbaugh's comments. Then, after Limbaugh hit back, Steele not only apologized, he did a 180-degree turn on his description of the man.
It's one thing to say, "I shouldn't have called the guy's comments 'ugly'." It's another to imply that a person who is not an elected official by any means (he didn't even sponsor CPAC) has as much political power as you.
In other words: Michael Steele has proven to be less than a figurehead; he's the "hip" face of a party who has, to date, ignored him. He will say what he needs to say to the audience he's speaking to. And while this is somewhat expected in politics, people at least appreciate a sense of nuisance. Steele has repeatedly told one story to a venue then contradict that story at another venue, which was why I was hesitant when I saw the growing number of black celebrities coming out to support this guy (as if he had any desire to deal with issues like civil rights, poverty or health care). He doesn't care. And in the day of 24-hr news and YouTube, you can't contradict yourself and expect to get away.
Whether Republican or Democrat, a voter hopes against hope that the person they selected will best represent their needs and interests. They also expect their representative to never, ever back down unless its absolutely necessary and even then explain themselves. Most importantly, they expect their representative to be straight with them (especially if they want any future votes).
Michael Steele is none of these things. And that's why Maryland ultimately didn't vote for him.
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