In a GQ interview, Michael Steele made a statement - a series of statements, in fact - that hinted at a broadening of the Republican tent:
Q: Are you saying you think women have the right to choose abortion?
STEELE: Yeah. I mean, again, I think that’s an individual choice.
Q: You do?
STEELE: Yeah. Absolutely.
A Republican that believes women should be allowed to make their own medical decision even if he disagrees with their choice?! Well, such sanity could not stand, and Steele has been forced to walk back his statement:
I am pro-life, always have been, always will be.
<snip>
In my view Roe vs. Wade was wrongly decided and should be repealed.
<snip>
It is important that we stand up for the defenseless and that we continue to work to change the hearts and minds of our fellow countrymen so that we can welcome all children and protect them under the law.
By children, of course, he meant fetuses. Because lord knows Republicans don't believe in helping actual children through programs such as subsidized or government run day care, or Head Start programs, or public education, or post natal health programs, or... well, the list goes on and on. And who can blame them? Fetuses are just so adorable with their translucent skin and tadpole appearance. Real children are crying, screaming, messes. Who wants to help them?
How can Republicans not be so embarrassed by a RNC Chairman as whipped and spineless as Michael Steele? And that's not even going into his professional dereliction of duty; his seemingly inability to hire on new Republican staffers, even in states like Virginia, where they have a legitimate shot at re-taking the governorship, but continue to waste precious time.
One final note to this piece. There was another exchange in the GQ interview that I felt was very revealing:
Q: Why do you think so few nonwhite Americans support the Republican Party right now?
STEELE: ’Cause we have offered them nothing! And the impression we’ve created is that we don’t give a damn about them or we just outright don’t like them. And that’s not a healthy thing for a political party. I think the way we’ve talked about immigration, the way we’ve talked about some of the issues that are important to African-Americans, like affirmative action... I mean, you know, having an absolute holier-than-thou attitude about something that’s important to a particular community doesn’t engender confidence in your leadership by that community—or consideration of you for office or other things—because you’ve already given off the vibe that you don’t care. What I’m trying to do now is to say we do give a damn.
Q: But how are you going to change that perception?
STEELE: You change it by force of personality, you change it by force of will, and sometimes you change it by force. [laughs]
Notice how you don't change the perception by actually changing your policies. Apparently you just talk about the bling-bling, and hope black people are really fucking stupid.
UPDATE: Over at TPM, David Kurtz has actually begun to feel sorry for Michael Steele:
We've all met [people who act as mirrors to whomever they're talking to, agreeing with the opinion of the interview as opposed to having their own] (there's some of this trait in all of us), but it's a personality type that's especially prevalent in political circles. Steele is a particularly hard-core example of the type, and while it's fun to watch on a political level, on a personal level, I've started feeling sorry for the guy.
Of course you have. This is like watching a small puppy be bludgeoned to death in the middle of a children's park.
As always, more commentary can be found at The Left Anchor.