"At Da Club: The Young Eagles Landed!"

It's time to Break It Down!

In the wake of the Republican National Committee’s (RNC) most recent parallel universe experience, one staffer has has been fired, another has been forced to resign, and an abundance of undesirable publicity has ensued. According to various news reports, a group of young Republicans was feted at an after-party event at Voyeur in West Hollywood, January 31, 2010. The Young Eagles, as the group is called, are a key demographic target of the RNC; comprised mainly of large-donor males, under age 45. The venue, Voyeur, is said to feature topless female dancers in bondage gear, simulating sexual acts.

Fallout from the episode began to permeate the “mediascape” last week and has continued to snowball. The GOP, which has for years worked fervently to couch itself as the last bastion for Family Values, has been placed in the unenviably discomfited position of explaining how anyone in the organization, even the lowliest of functionaries, could have found it acceptable to arrange and pick up the tab for such an excursion.

Inevitably, as the event details emerged, so did the need to flay a sacrificial lamb. In this case Allison Myers, the Young Eagles director was fired. Ms. Meyers facilitated a consultant’s reimbursement for the costs of the evening of food, fun, frivolity, and fellowship. Framed in the guise of concerns about fiscal responsibility and accountability, news of the event provided a convenient catalyst to question, again, the viability of Michael Steele’s leadership of the RNC.

During the 15 months of Mr. Steele’s tenure, he has had a series of controversial encounters with various factions of the media, as well as with established members of the Party’s insider hierarchy. There have been frequent suggestions that he has indulged consistentlly in furthering his own agenda, at the expense of engaging in the basic work of strengthening the Republican Party. He has been accused of spending too much of the Party’s money, too freely, and too often. He has also been rebuked for accepting appearance fees at events; siphoning money that many within the Party feel should be used expressly to build and expand the Party’s coffers.

In summary, by the GOP having been caught at Voyeur, metaphorically, with their pants down, Steele once again provided dry powder as ammunition to his detractors. Of course in situations such as this, it is standard operating procedure to close the ranks. So as the battle front appeared to advance closer to Chairman Steele, the RNC established a stouter perimeter defense. Clearly sensing that having jettisoned Ms. Meyers was proving insufficient to quell the increasingly bellicose calls for Mr. Steele’s resignation, the Chairman, instead, forced his highest aide, Chief of Staff, Ken McKay, to resign.

In prepared remarks, Mr. Steele asserted that the RNC held him and his staff members accountable for leading the loyal opposition against the President’s destructive agenda, building a stronger Republican Party, and winning elections. He insisted that he is serious about his role, and declared he would use all available resources as effectively as possible. Loosely translated in self-preservation parlance, that reads like this: “Sorry Ken; good-bye!”

In excising Ms. Meyers, Chairman Steele overruled the Shakespearean advisory, “Don’t shoot the messenger.” In pressuring Mr. McKay to resign, Steele demonstrated that the RNC DEFCON system is operational, and that he is ready and willing to deploy and escalate levels, as necessary.

In spite of these signals initiated by Chairman Steele, one heretofore supportive group sent a potentially ominous signal. On Message, Inc., a consulting firm that has long backed Steele, and continued to advise him at the RNC, announced earlier this week that it had severed ties with the RNC. One of the firm’s partner’s Curt Anderson, speaking about the separation noted, the firm felt it was best to step away from its advisory role at the RNC. He added that the firm regarded the Chairman highly, and wished him well. Loosely translated, that reads like this: “Sorry Mike; good-bye!”

The RNC has worked with purpose to distance Steele from the Voyeur incident. They insist he was not there, and that he had no knowledge of the expenditure. All of this may be true, but the Steele regime has the appearance of one that, slowly but surely, is losing it grasp, if not its way. It is uncertain whether Mr. Steele can recover from his Party’s Left Coast dalliance with Sex in the City (of Angels). What is undeniable is…”In Da Club: The Young Eagles Landed!” Ultimately, what they did while there really isn’t the point. That they were there at all is almost certainly the magnetic north that will serve as the be-all-end-all terminus for this discussion. The compelling question is, "Will Michael Steele be standing when the dust settles?"

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com/. A new post is published each Wednesday. For more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post, consult the links below:

http://s0.ilike.com/play#50+Cent:In+Da+Club:13657:s146537.13030.1240575.1.1.13%2Cstd_14a07cd23e3b0546ceaf55a95592a24e

http://www.voyeur7969.com/

http://www.alan.com/2010/03/29/rnc-denies-michael-steele-was-at-sex-themes-nightclub/

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/03/29/2010-03-29_gop_family_values_michael_steeles_rnc_staffers_ran_up_almost_2k_at_strip_club.html

http://www.wenatcheeworld.com/news/2010/mar/30/republicans-fire-staffer-over-sex-club-outing/

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2010/03/reports-say-young-eagles-direc.html?wprss=44

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2010/03/reports-say-young-eagles-direc.html

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2864324/ken_mckay_rnc_chief_of_staff_resigns.html?cat=9

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/05/AR2010040502835.html

http://qctimes.com/news/opinion/editorial/columnists/guest/article_329a1548-3d35-11df-a940-001cc4c002e0.html

http://cbs2.com/local/Republican.National.Committee.2.1600594.html

http://www.whsv.com/virginiaap/headlines/89518717.html

http://www.theage.com.au/world/republicans-in-sex-club-outing-20100330-rbej.html

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/29/AR2010032903822.html?nav=hcmodule

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/04/the_gops_young_eagles_if_youve_got_a_little_insecu.php

http://mystateline.com/fulltext/?nxd_id=151315