Group sets date to probe RNC hopefuls

An organization of
conservatives on the Republican National Committee has changed its schedule in
an effort to avoid timing conflicts with a debate for RNC chairman candidates.

The Conservative
Steering Committee, headed by Indiana national committeeman James Bopp Jr., had
scheduled tryouts for chair candidates on Jan. 5 in Dallas. Now, the committee
will meet with candidates face to face in Washington on Jan. 6, a day after the
candidates square off in a debate hosted by Americans for Tax Reform.

{mosads}Candidates will
get five minutes to make their cases before being subjected to 25 minutes of
questioning from committee members. The meeting will conclude with a straw poll
during which committee members will render judgment on whether candidates are
conservative enough and therefore acceptable, or unacceptable, as RNC chairs.

“The whole purpose
[of the Steering Committee] is to allow us to informally discuss matters,” Bopp
told The Hill in an interview. Bopp and others in the group wanted “to have a
forum for discussion among conservatives on the RNC with the goal of advancing
the conservative policies of the RNC.”

One participant in
a two-hour long conference call held Friday said the consensus was that the RNC
needs a chairman who can hold together social, fiscal and national security
conservatives, which can be seen as a shot at former Maryland Lieutenant
Governor Michael Steele. Steele has been attacked by some members of the
committee as too moderate for their tastes.

The Steering
Committee, the participant said, is seen as a front for current chairman Robert
“Mike” Duncan. Bopp denies favoritism toward any candidate, though. The
candidates “all have assets and I think we have an exceptional group,” he said.

“The effort has
been to bring every conservative who is interested in sharing their thoughts
and ideas and [who] would find it useful to have a discussion among
conservatives,” Bopp said. “That doesn’t help or hurt any particular candidate.”

The gathering in
Washington will only be open to Steering Committee members, a number Bopp
places at 74.