The United States is truly a remarkable place which never ceases to astound me. How so many different types of people with so many constantly clashing opinions seem to live in relative peace and harmony really is something note worthy.
Last week when Karl Rove came to visit our fine institution, most of us were excited, whether or not we agreed with his policies and tactics. Many of us from all facets of politics took away something of value, and we handled his visit with what I thought embodied Southern class and dignity. Little did many of us know the week prior to his visit, at a similar event in California he was met by anti-war protesters, and even an attempted citizen’s arrest from the deep-seated Democratic activist and fundraiser, Jodie Evans.
It was also there in the same Veterans Memorial Building where he was asked about his opinion on Michael Steele, the current chairman of the Republican National Committee (RNC). He has recently been under heavy scrutiny for a scandal involving nearly $2,000 spent on “food” at a bondage club called Voyeur West Hollywood.
According to Politico, a RNC staffer accompanied a group of young donors to the club after an official RNC event in Los Angeles and then subsequently had the $1,946.25 reimbursed by the RNC to Orange County GOP consultant Erik Brown.
So, should Michael Steele resign as chairman for the RNC after this latest scandal he is involved in? First, let me just say that as a college student, I am always wary of writing political opinions. I’m just a kid who’s barely the legal drinking age. With that said, let me run away from my own personal problems and put in my two cents about the ramblings of our political circus.
To be fair, neither Steele nor any senior staff was aware of the outing or of RNC’s reimbursement. To blame him directly for this by anyone on any side to me seems absolutely ridiculous. Is it the CEO’s fault if one of his low level accountants does something illegal with the company’s money? Sure, in a sense, but really there should be effective buffers in place to catch and stop something like that from happening in the first place.
And that’s exactly how the RNC has responded. In a statement released by the RNC, it was stated that revisions of accounting and reimbursement have been put into place to make sure nothing like this happens again. Nevertheless, the reason I write “latest” scandal is because Steele as of late has been no stranger to flying into political turbulence with his own party. He is seen as the steward of its money, and recently many within the GOP have started to view the way he spends money as smug and even downright egotistical.
“Michael Steele is an imperial chairman,” one longtime Republican fundraiser told Politico. “He flies in private aircraft. He drives in private cars. He has private consultants that are paid ridiculous retainers. He fancies himself a presidential candidate and wants all of the trappings and gets them by using other people’s money.”
But if you need a high-profile busy person in a smaller town at a certain time on a certain day, isn’t one of the most effective ways to get them there in a time efficient manner a private jet? And let’s be real, you can’t meet at the Holiday Inn Express or Friendly’s to ask for five figure donations. Some of these increased expenses are just the cost of doing business. So rather than focus on whether the DNC or the RNC is less frugal, maybe we should focus instead on the fact that “the cost of doing business” is way too high at the upper end for corporations and politicians – and this costs all of us every day in prices and taxes.
According to disclosure reports, major donors have decided to shift their giving to other party committees. [In 2005, the RNC raised $46 million from donors who gave more than $250 and $55 million from small donors.] In 2009, Steele’s RNC brought in just $24 million – nearly half as much – from big donors and $58 million from small donors.
But I don’t understand why the media as of late has been comparing the 2009 committee to the 2001, or 2005 one. It is apples and oranges. Both of those other two committees had the clear advantage of a presidential appearance. Any basic student of politics knows that the party in power usually raises more money than the one in opposition.
Yet the RNC garnered more money than the Democratic National Committee in seven of 12 months in 2009 and obtained more in total for that year. All of this, mind you, occurred with the 68 percent approval rating of the president at the time and the Democrats large majorities in Congress. What it really comes down to is winning elections. And like it or not, the RNC has been pumping money in to critical elections and getting the job done in major places like Virginia, New Jersey and Massachusetts.
So is there some kind of conspiracy by the media to make the GOP appear dysfunctional and weak? Who knows? I doubt it. Honestly though, I’m still thinking about how I can get my own reimbursement after seeing “Eyes Wide Shut”. I’m a Stanley Kubrick fan, but that was not his best work. At least they didn’t go to a nightclub inspired by “Brokeback Mountain”.
Julio Cespedes is a senior majoring in biological engineering. He can be contacted at [email protected].