One Republican national committeeman, who has spoken with at least 10 announced or potential candidates for the party chairmanship, said Steele "is getting frustrated because he isn't getting a lot of votes." He only has between five and 10 supporters, including the three Marylanders on the committee, according to this RNC member, who requested anonymity in order to speak candidly about the campaign.
Another RNC member, David Norcross of New Jersey, called Steele "a good friend" but said the Marylander had not emerged as the front-runner. Steele, he said, has been hurt by not being a member of the RNC, which "has generally shown a preference for one of its own, when it's in a position to make a choice." He went on to say that there was no clear leader in the chairman's race yet.
The fluidity of the contest has led some Republican activists to call for a candidate debate, televised on C-SPAN. One group of RNC conservatives wants to screen the contenders later this month and make an endorsement. There was even a published report the other day, on The Atlantic magazine's political blog, that several candidates for chairman would be at Cheney's Christmas party, where many RNC members would also be attending, "so it'll be a chance for one-on-one politicking." A spokeswoman for the vice president refused to confirm the guest list, but some RNC members went to President Bush's Christmas party instead. A party insider explained that those who didn't make the White House list had gotten invites to the Veep's house as a consolation prize.
