WASHINGTON — This hasn't been the smoothest rollout for the new chairman of the beleaguered Republican Party, Michael S. Steele. As debuts go, it may rank right up there with New Coke and the movie "Waterworld."
Steele celebrated his ascension as head of the Republican National Committee by almost immediately picking a fight with Rush Limbaugh -- the one party icon still standing amid the rubble of stinging election defeats in 2006 and 2008 that cost Republicans control of Congress and then the White House.
An African American, Steele raised eyebrows by using street lingo in promising a "hip-hop" GOP outreach effort that would be "off the hook" and saying he would show one Republican politician some "slum love." More problematic, Steele suggested that the RNC might not support several moderate Senate incumbents in primary races, remarks he quickly withdrew.
For a party that is looking for fresh guidance, Steele's first weeks have left more than a few faithful wondering if their promised new direction might head them straight off a cliff. But Steele's supporters say he has undertaken a monumental challenge and needs to be given sufficient time to accomplish his work.
A former lieutenant governor of Maryland and unsuccessful Senate candidate, Steele has the arduous task of rebuilding the Republican brand from the ground up.
Polls show that there is ample work to do. According to a recent New York Times/CBS News survey, Americans identifying themselves as Democrats outnumber those who say they are Republicans by 10 percentage points, the largest gap in party identification in 24 years.
Even as Republicans on Capitol Hill say they have made themselves politically relevant by taking a strong stand against President Obama's economic policies, Obama's approval ratings have stayed consistently high. GOP numbers continue to fall. And a fight last week within the party involving Steele and Limbaugh probably hasn't helped.
Steele criticized Limbaugh on a late-night talk show, calling the conservative talk show radio host "an entertainer" whose show is "incendiary" and "ugly." He also disputed the notion that Limbaugh was leading the GOP.
Limbaugh, along with his ardent supporters -- some of the party's most dedicated rank-and-file -- blew a gasket.
"It's time, Mr. Steele, for you to go behind the scenes and start doing the work that you were elected to do instead of trying to be some talking-head media star, which you're having a tough time pulling off," Limbaugh said.
