Republican National Committee chooses new Chairman

From the New York Times:

WASHINGTON — The Republican National Committee chose Michael Steele, an African-American, as party chairman on Friday, putting a new face on a beleaguered party as it seeks the right posture to take on President Obama and an overwhelmingly Democratic Congress.

The election of Mr. Steele, a former lieutenant governor of Maryland, means that both major political parties are being led by African-Americans. Mr. Steele is the first black chairman of his party, and his selection was particularly striking for Republicans, who have been criticized over the years as stirring racial animosities in an effort to build political coalitions, particularly in the South.

If history is any guide, Mr. Steele will be anything but a behind-the-scenes functionary, given that, with Republicans out of the White House and in the minority in Congress, the party has no dominant national figure.

Instead, he is likely to be, at least until the presidential race starts in two years, at the leading edge of his party as it makes its case against Mr. Obama.

Indeed, many Republicans said they were drawn to Mr. Steele because of his feisty public presence and television skills, and Mr. Steele made clear, from the moment he accepted the position after six rounds of voting that took up most of an afternoon, that he would move aggressively to take on the Democrats.

In a message to members of the Facebook Group "Proposal for 2012 Primaries" regarding the RNC selection, group leader Will Bower said the following:

Whether you are a Democrat, a Republican, or an Independent, it's worth noting that the RNC will most likely have the greatest say in how primaries and caucuses are reformed over the next few years.

Why is this? Unless something unforeseen happens, Barack Obama will be the DNC's candidate in 2012... so there will be little impetus for the DNC to bring about Election Reform over the next four years.

While I have no idea where my Presidential vote will go in 2012, I do want to see reforms made in the primary process and the electoral process overall. Ultimately this means the cooperation of both major parties.