Republican National Committee

Republican officials voted Friday to elect their first black national party chairman, a response in part to election defeats that have left the party's base more white and Southern at a time when the country is growing more diverse. The election of Michael Steele puts in the limelight a charismatic African American who has championed outreach to minorities as key to the party's future.

Republican National Committee Chairman Michael S. Steele was on the receiving end of a fresh round of criticism from prominent party members Thursday after an interview was released in which he referred to abortion as an "individual choice." His comment to GQ magazine inflamed opponents of abortion rights, one of the GOP's core constituencies, and further complicated Steele's difficult first month on the job.

Michael S. Steele completed his first 100 days as Republican national chairman this weekend, but the party let the milestone pass without notice. Steele made history in January as the first African American to head the Republican National Committee. It's been largely downhill since, with Republicans in disarray and Steele under siege over a variety of problems, many self-inflicted.

National Republican Committee Chairman Michael Steele, in an effort to move beyond the woes of his party and his own gaffes, declared Tuesday that Republicans had turned a corner and were ready to step up their attacks on President Obama. The "era of apologizing for Republican mistakes of the past is now officially over," Steele said, which could include his own missteps that have led to negative publicity and internecine bickering in his first four months in office.

The Obama White House has begun advancing an aggressive political strategy: persuading the country that real power behind the Republican Party is not the GOP leaders in Congress or at the Republican National Committee, but rather provocative radio talk show king Rush Limbaugh. President Obama himself, along with top aides and outside Democratic allies, have been pushing the message in unison.