The New RNC Chairman - Where Will Steel Take Us?

As an avid member of the Republican Party, as always I am concerned about where the party is going. Just a few days ago the party elected a new leader - Michael Steele. This is the very first African American to be chair of the party.

Mike Duncan, who was the previous chairman, had this to say about the party after voting three times with no conclusion: "The winds of changes are blowing at the RNC." He then withdrew his name, and finally after vote number six, Steele came out the winner.

Now I must say, the phrase that Duncan said "the winds of change are blowing" kind of scares me. After all, all we heard about in the last election was about "change" and look where that got us. Obama ran on change and McCain tried to talk about change too.

After the last election, it definitely shows that we need something different in the Republican Party. Perhaps new blood? A new leader? The party has been fractured greatly. One RNC member, Hank Werronen, said "…The party isn't sure where they want to go." That again scares me a bit. We need to have a clear vision of where we are going.

So, now we have a leader. Michael Steele. The question is, does he know where we are going as a party? Where will he take us?

As republicans we've had trouble in the past few years communicating our message. Why? Well, I think that's because we aren't real sure of our message anymore. We keep seeing people in the party who decide to be "Moderate" Republicans. Some seem to have the idea that if the party becomes more moderate that we'll somehow become more popular. Sorry folks…it doesn't work that way.

I believe that Americans are crying for a Republican party that will truly STAND for something. Let's not be "moderates" with no real direction. Instead, we need to define who we are as a party again. Forget trying to be moderate on issues. For years republicans have stood strong on important issues like abortion, gun rights, religion, and more. It's not time to abandon those issues to become "Moderates."

A look at Steele shows an eloquent man. He has the ability to be able to articulate what we stand for as a party. I just hope he doesn't forget what we should be standing for! From his speeches, it sounds like Steele is ready to do something. He's ready to make changes. In fact, he has said "…to those of you who wish to obstruct, get ready to get knocked over."

As long as he's running in the right direction, I don't care if he knocks people over. I just hope he's not making a mad dash for the middle of the road. That's a good place to get run over. Let's stick to the right, to our republican views, to conservatism. Change is good if we have a sense of purpose and direction. However, change for the sake of change never did anyone any good. (Just look at Obama!)