Michael S. Steele
Encyclopedia
Michael Stephen Steele (born October 19, 1958) is an American
politician who served as the first African-American chairman of the Republican National Committee
from January 2009 until January 2011. From 2003 to 2007, he was the seventh Lieutenant Governor of Maryland
, the first African American elected to statewide office in Maryland
. During his time as Lieutenant Governor, he chaired the Minority Business Enterprise
taskforce, actively promoting an expansion of affirmative action
in the corporate world.
In 2006, Steele made an unsuccessful run for the U.S. Senate
, losing to Democrat Ben Cardin
. He then served as chairman of GOPAC
, the political training organization of the Republican party, was a political commentator for Fox News and a partner at the law firm of LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae LLP before making his bid for RNC Chairman. He co-founded the Republican Leadership Council
, a "fiscally conservative
and socially inclusive" political action committee, in 1993. On December 13, 2010, he announced his intentions to seek a second term as Republican National Committee Chair. On January 14, 2011, after four rounds of voting, Steele dropped out of the race and endorsed Maria Cino
. Reince Priebus
went on to win the election to succeed Steele. He commenced as a columnist for online magazine The Root in May 2011.
in Prince George's County, Maryland and was adopted as an infant by William and Maebell Steele. William died in 1962. Maebell, who had been born into a sharecropping
family in South Carolina
, worked for minimum wage as a laundress to raise her children. After Michael's father died, she ignored her friends' appeals to apply for public assistance, later telling Michael 'I didn't want the government raising my children'. She later married John Turner, a truck driver. Michael and his sister, Monica Turner, were raised in the Petworth
neighborhood of Northwest Washington, D.C.
which Steele has described as a small, stable and racially integrated community that insulated him from some of the problems elsewhere in the city. Steele's sister later married and divorced former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson
.
Steele attended Archbishop Carroll Roman Catholic High School
in Washington, D.C., participating in the Glee Club, the National Honor Society
and many of the school's drama productions. During his senior year, he was elected student council president.
In 1977, Steele enrolled at Johns Hopkins University
in Baltimore where he received a bachelor's degree in international studies.
Steele then spent three years preparing for the Catholic priesthood at the Augustinian Friars Seminary at Villanova University
, teaching high school classes in world history and economics for one year at Malvern Preparatory School
in Malvern, Pennsylvania
. He left the seminary prior to ordination.
He then enrolled at the Georgetown University Law Center
, attending classes at night and receiving his Juris Doctor
in 1991. He failed the Maryland bar exam, but then passed the Pennsylvania bar exam.
Steele was employed as a corporate securities associate at the Washington, D.C. office of Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton. From 1991 to 1997, he specialized in financial investments for Wall Street
underwriters, working at Cleary's Tokyo, Japan office on major product liability litigation and at its London
office on corporate matters. He left the law firm and founded the Steele Group, a business and legal consulting firm.
Republican Central Committee. He was a founding member of the centrist, fiscally conservative and socially inclusive Republican Leadership Council
in 1993 but left in 2008 citing disagreements over endorsing primary candidates, though detractors contend that his departure was a politically convenient effort to boost his chances of becoming the RNC chair. In 1995, the Maryland Republican Party
selected him as their Republican Man of the Year. He worked on several political campaigns, was an Alternate Delegate to the 1996 Republican National Convention
and a Delegate to the 2000 Republican National Convention
.
In December 2000, he was elected chairman of the Maryland Republican Party
, becoming the first African American ever to be elected chairman of any state Republican Party.
, who was running for Maryland Governor, selected Steele as his running mate for Lieutenant Governor. The campaign was waged against Democrat Kathleen Kennedy Townsend
, who was running for Governor and Charles R. Larson
who was running for Lieutenant Governor.
Steele resigned his chairmanship of the Maryland Republican Party to campaign full-time. The Baltimore Sun
praised Townsend's running mate, Larson, for his experience and expertise, stating that: "state GOP chairman Michael S. Steele, brings little to the team but the color of his skin."
In the September primary election, Ehrlich and Steele had no serious opposition. In the November 2002 general election, the Republican Ehrlich-Steele ticket won, 51 percent to 48 percent even though Maryland traditionally votes Democratic and had not elected a Republican Governor in almost 40 years. The Townsend-Larson campaign had been tainted by outgoing Democratic governor Parris Glendening
's marital problems and backlash due to his strict enforcement of environmental regulations. During the election, Townsend was also criticized for her choice of running mate; she picked retired Admiral Charles R. Larson, a novice politician who had switched parties only a few weeks before.
Steele's most prominent efforts for the Ehrlich administration were reforming the state's Minority Business Enterprise program and chairing the Governor's Commission on Quality Education in Maryland. Steele garnered criticism for his failure to oppose Ehrlich's reinstitution of the death penalty, despite claims of racial inequities in the use of the death penalty, Steele's own religious beliefs and his prior anti-death penalty pronouncements.
In 2005, Steele was named an Aspen Institute
Rodel Fellow in Public Leadership and was awarded the Bethune-DuBois Institute Award for his continuing efforts to improve the quality education in Maryland.
At the 2004 Republican National Convention
, Steele gave the Republican counterpoint to Barack Obama
's 2004 Democratic National Convention
keynote address; it was Steele's first major national exposure. In April 2005, President Bush chose him to be a member of the U.S. delegation at the investiture of Pope Benedict XVI
in Vatican City
.
, Maryland's longest-serving United States Senator
, announced in March 2005 that he would not be a candidate for re-election in 2006, top state and national Republican officials began pressing Steele to become their party's nominee for the seat. In April 2005, The Baltimore Sun
announced the results of a poll it conducted, stating that Steele would run statistically neck and neck against either former NAACP head Kweisi Mfume
, or Rep. Benjamin L. Cardin
of Baltimore County
. Steele formally announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate on October 25, 2005.
Steele lost the general election to Cardin on November 7, 2006, 44 percent to Cardin's 55 percent. Steele's former campaign finance chairman later alleged improprieties in Steele's handling of campaign funds, which Steele denied.
as the chairman of the Republican National Committee
. Senator Mel Martinez
of Florida, who had the endorsement of President George W. Bush, got the position.
In February 2007, Steele became chairman of GOPAC
, a political action committee
that helps fund state and local Republican campaigns around the country and is responsible for training future Republican candidates. He succeeded former U.S. Congressman J.C. Watts
, a fellow black Republican. In April 2007, Steele joined the international law firm of Dewey & LeBoeuf
, as a partner in the firm's Washington, D.C. office.
At a speech given at the Media Research Center
's 2007 DisHonors Awards Gala, Steele said: Steele is considered a possible candidate for Governor of Maryland
in the future, and has said he's "intrigued by the idea". He has said that he will not run for President in 2012.
Steele appeared several times on HBO's political show Real Time with Bill Maher
, and was on Comedy Central
's talk show The Colbert Report on January 23, 2007. He also hosted a PBS Republican Primary debate in Baltimore, Maryland on September 27, 2007.
He coined the phrase "Drill Baby Drill" during the 2008 Republican National Convention
in Minnesota
, where he promoted offshore drilling
as an alternative to dependency on foreign oil.
chief, was selected in the aftermath of President Obama
's election, when many in the GOP saw him as a charismatic counter to the first black president.
2008 RNC Chairman Vote
Source: CQPolitics, and Poll Pundit
In December 2010, Steele declared that he would run for re-election as RNC chair.
's Face the Nation
as to who spoke for the Republican Party, President Obama's chief of staff Rahm Emanuel
said it was Rush Limbaugh
because "whenever a Republican criticizes [Limbaugh], they have to run back and apologize to him, and say they were misunderstood. He is the voice and the intellectual force and energy behind the Republican Party. And he has been upfront about what he views, and hasn't stepped back from that, which is he hopes for [President Obama's] failure. He said it. And I compliment him for his honesty, but that's their philosophy that is enunciated by Rush Limbaugh."
In remarks aired by the CNN
program D.L. Hughley Breaks the News
on March 1, 2009, Steele said he, rather than Limbaugh, is "the de facto leader of the Republican Party. Rush Limbaugh is an entertainer. Rush Limbaugh's whole thing is entertainment. Yes, it is incendiary. Yes, it is ugly." On March 2, 2009 Limbaugh said on his radio show that Steele is not fit to lead the Republican Party, asking of him "Why do you claim to lead the Republican Party when you seem obsessed with seeing to it President Obama succeeds?" After the show Steele called Limbaugh to apologize, saying "I have enormous respect for Rush Limbaugh. I was maybe a little bit inarticulate. There was no attempt on my part to diminish his voice or his leadership. I went back at that tape and I realized words that I said weren't what I was thinking. It was one of those things where I thinking I was saying one thing, and it came out differently. What I was trying to say was a lot of people want to make Rush the scapegoat, the bogeyman, and he's not." Steele later issued another statement to say that Limbaugh "is a national conservative leader, and in no way do I want to diminish his voice. I truly apologize."
, and thus "firing" Speaker Pelosi from her position as Speaker of the House of Representatives
. The tour began on September 15 and lasted 6 weeks, visiting 48 states in the Continental U.S., with stops in more than 100 cities while covering 14,000 miles. The tours purpose was to "encourage votes for Republicans in districts across the nation." The stops in individual districts gave Steele, "known for his bomb-throwing speaking style," an opportunity to fire up local GOP activists. During the tour, "Steele urged party unity" as the Republicans attempted to take over the House of Representatives and end Representative Pelosi's term as Speaker of the House.
. After seven rounds of balloting, Reince Priebus
was elected chairman over incumbent chair Michael Steele, Saul Anuzis
, Ann Wagner
and Maria Cino
.
, was released on January 4, 2010; it was published by Regnery Publishing
, ISBN 978-1596981089. The Associated Press
reported that, "Steele focuses much of the book on familiar GOP denunciations of President Barack Obama
's overall policies (a roadmap to failure), the $787 billion stimulus bill (a reckless, wasteful, pork-laden spending spree), liberal views on manmade global warming (A threat to life on Earth? Depends on whom you ask) and other issues. To regain the public confidence, Steele says the GOP should, among other things, expose the reign of error inherent in liberal policies, contrast conservative and liberal principles, and highlight the damage caused by Obama's policies while explaining conservative solutions."
Interviews and statements
Articles
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politician who served as the first African-American chairman of the Republican National Committee
Republican National Committee
The Republican National Committee is an American political committee that provides national leadership for the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican political platform, as well as coordinating fundraising and election strategy. It is...
from January 2009 until January 2011. From 2003 to 2007, he was the seventh Lieutenant Governor of Maryland
Lieutenant Governor of Maryland
The Lieutenant Governor of Maryland is the second highest ranking official in the executive branch of the state government of Maryland in the United States. He or she is elected on the same ticket as the Governor of Maryland and must meet the same qualifications.The current Lieutenant Governor is...
, the first African American elected to statewide office in Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. During his time as Lieutenant Governor, he chaired the Minority Business Enterprise
Minority Business Enterprise
A Minority Business Enterprise is an American term which is defined as a business which is at least 51% owned, operated and controlled on a daily basis by one or more American citizens of the following ethnic minority classifications:...
taskforce, actively promoting an expansion of affirmative action
Affirmative action
Affirmative action refers to policies that take factors including "race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation or national origin" into consideration in order to benefit an underrepresented group, usually as a means to counter the effects of a history of discrimination.-Origins:The term...
in the corporate world.
In 2006, Steele made an unsuccessful run for the U.S. Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
, losing to Democrat Ben Cardin
Ben Cardin
Benjamin Louis "Ben" Cardin is the junior United States Senator from Maryland and a member of the Democratic Party. Before his election to the Senate, Cardin was a member of the United States House of Representatives, representing from 1987 to 2007.Cardin was elected to succeed Paul Sarbanes in...
. He then served as chairman of GOPAC
GOPAC
GOPAC is a Republican state and local political training organization. Although often thought of as a PAC, or Political Action Committee, it is actually a 527 organization. It describes itself as "the premier training organization for Republican candidates in elected office on the state and local...
, the political training organization of the Republican party, was a political commentator for Fox News and a partner at the law firm of LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae LLP before making his bid for RNC Chairman. He co-founded the Republican Leadership Council
Republican Leadership Council
The Republican Leadership Council , founded in 1993 as the Committee for Responsible Government, is a United States political advocacy group and political action committee that promotes Republican candidates who espouse a platform that the organization characterizes as "fiscally conservative,...
, a "fiscally conservative
Fiscal conservatism
Fiscal conservatism is a political term used to describe a fiscal policy that advocates avoiding deficit spending. Fiscal conservatives often consider reduction of overall government spending and national debt as well as ensuring balanced budget of paramount importance...
and socially inclusive" political action committee, in 1993. On December 13, 2010, he announced his intentions to seek a second term as Republican National Committee Chair. On January 14, 2011, after four rounds of voting, Steele dropped out of the race and endorsed Maria Cino
Maria Cino
Maria Cino is an American politician. Beginning March 2007 she was Chief Executive Officer of the Committee of Arrangements , which organized the 2008 Republican National Convention.-United States Department of Transportation:...
. Reince Priebus
Reince Priebus
Reinhold Reince Priebus is the chairman of the Republican National Committee. He is also a previous chair of the Republican Party of Wisconsin....
went on to win the election to succeed Steele. He commenced as a columnist for online magazine The Root in May 2011.
Early life
Steele was born on October 19, 1958 at Andrews Air Force BaseAndrews Air Force Base
Joint Base Andrews is a United States military facility located in Prince George's County, Maryland. The facility is under the jurisdiction of the United States Air Force 11th Wing, Air Force District of Washington ....
in Prince George's County, Maryland and was adopted as an infant by William and Maebell Steele. William died in 1962. Maebell, who had been born into a sharecropping
Sharecropping
Sharecropping is a system of agriculture in which a landowner allows a tenant to use the land in return for a share of the crop produced on the land . This should not be confused with a crop fixed rent contract, in which a landowner allows a tenant to use the land in return for a fixed amount of...
family in South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, worked for minimum wage as a laundress to raise her children. After Michael's father died, she ignored her friends' appeals to apply for public assistance, later telling Michael 'I didn't want the government raising my children'. She later married John Turner, a truck driver. Michael and his sister, Monica Turner, were raised in the Petworth
Petworth, Washington, D.C.
Petworth is a residential neighborhood in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C., bounded by Georgia Avenue to the west, North Capitol Street to the east, Rock Creek Church Road to the south, and Kennedy Street NW to the north...
neighborhood of Northwest Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
which Steele has described as a small, stable and racially integrated community that insulated him from some of the problems elsewhere in the city. Steele's sister later married and divorced former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson
Mike Tyson
Michael Gerard "Mike" Tyson is a retired American boxer. Tyson is a former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world and holds the record as the youngest boxer to win the WBC, WBA and IBF world heavyweight titles, he was 20 years, 4 months and 22 days old...
.
Steele attended Archbishop Carroll Roman Catholic High School
Archbishop Carroll High School (Washington, DC)
Archbishop Carroll High School is a private, Catholic high school located in Washington, D.C. It is owned and operated by the Archdiocese of Washington.-Background:...
in Washington, D.C., participating in the Glee Club, the National Honor Society
National Honor Society
The National Honor Society is a recognition program for high school students in grades 10-12 in the United States and in several other countries...
and many of the school's drama productions. During his senior year, he was elected student council president.
In 1977, Steele enrolled at Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
in Baltimore where he received a bachelor's degree in international studies.
Steele then spent three years preparing for the Catholic priesthood at the Augustinian Friars Seminary at Villanova University
Villanova University
Villanova University is a private university located in Radnor Township, a suburb northwest of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
, teaching high school classes in world history and economics for one year at Malvern Preparatory School
Malvern Preparatory School
Malvern Preparatory School, commonly referred to as Malvern Prep, is an independent Catholic middle and high school for boys located in Malvern, Pennsylvania. It was started and is still run by Order of Saint Augustine...
in Malvern, Pennsylvania
Malvern, Pennsylvania
Malvern is a borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,998 at the 2010 census. The main road through the borough is King Street, although the borough is also bordered by Paoli Pike on the south, and is near US 30 on the north. The primary cross street is Warren...
. He left the seminary prior to ordination.
He then enrolled at the Georgetown University Law Center
Georgetown University Law Center
Georgetown University Law Center is the law school of Georgetown University, located in Washington, D.C.. Established in 1870, the Law Center offers J.D., LL.M., and S.J.D. degrees in law...
, attending classes at night and receiving his Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
in 1991. He failed the Maryland bar exam, but then passed the Pennsylvania bar exam.
Steele was employed as a corporate securities associate at the Washington, D.C. office of Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton. From 1991 to 1997, he specialized in financial investments for Wall Street
Wall Street
Wall Street refers to the financial district of New York City, named after and centered on the eight-block-long street running from Broadway to South Street on the East River in Lower Manhattan. Over time, the term has become a metonym for the financial markets of the United States as a whole, or...
underwriters, working at Cleary's Tokyo, Japan office on major product liability litigation and at its London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
office on corporate matters. He left the law firm and founded the Steele Group, a business and legal consulting firm.
Political development
After joining the Republican Party, he became chairman of the Prince George's CountyPrince George's County, Maryland
Prince George's County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland, immediately north, east, and south of Washington, DC. As of 2010, it has a population of 863,420 and is the wealthiest African-American majority county in the nation....
Republican Central Committee. He was a founding member of the centrist, fiscally conservative and socially inclusive Republican Leadership Council
Republican Leadership Council
The Republican Leadership Council , founded in 1993 as the Committee for Responsible Government, is a United States political advocacy group and political action committee that promotes Republican candidates who espouse a platform that the organization characterizes as "fiscally conservative,...
in 1993 but left in 2008 citing disagreements over endorsing primary candidates, though detractors contend that his departure was a politically convenient effort to boost his chances of becoming the RNC chair. In 1995, the Maryland Republican Party
Maryland Republican Party
The Maryland Republican Party is the branch of the United States Republican Party located in the state of Maryland, headquartered in Annapolis. It is historically the underdog party in state politics.-U.S. House of Representatives:...
selected him as their Republican Man of the Year. He worked on several political campaigns, was an Alternate Delegate to the 1996 Republican National Convention
1996 Republican National Convention
The 1996 National Convention of the Republican Party of the United States convened at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, California, from August 12 to August 15, 1996...
and a Delegate to the 2000 Republican National Convention
2000 Republican National Convention
The 2000 National Convention of the Republican Party of the United States convened at the First Union Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from July 31 to August 3, 2000. The 2066 delegates assembled at the convention nominated Texas Governor George W. Bush as the Republican candidate for U.S....
.
In December 2000, he was elected chairman of the Maryland Republican Party
Maryland Republican Party
The Maryland Republican Party is the branch of the United States Republican Party located in the state of Maryland, headquartered in Annapolis. It is historically the underdog party in state politics.-U.S. House of Representatives:...
, becoming the first African American ever to be elected chairman of any state Republican Party.
Lieutenant Governor of Maryland
In 2002, Robert EhrlichRobert Ehrlich
Robert Leroy "Bob" Ehrlich, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 60th Governor of Maryland from 2003 to 2007. A Republican, he became governor after defeating Democratic opponent Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, a member of the Kennedy family, 51% to 48% in the 2002 elections...
, who was running for Maryland Governor, selected Steele as his running mate for Lieutenant Governor. The campaign was waged against Democrat Kathleen Kennedy Townsend
Kathleen Kennedy Townsend
Kathleen Hartington Kennedy Townsend , is an American attorney who was the Lieutenant Governor of Maryland from 1995 to 2003. She ran unsuccessfully for Governor of Maryland in 2002. In 2010 she became the chair of the non-profit American Bridge, an organization that will raise funds for Democratic...
, who was running for Governor and Charles R. Larson
Charles R. Larson
Charles R. Larson is a retired four-star Admiral of the United States Navy.-Military career:A 1958 graduate of the United States Naval Academy, Larson twice served as Superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. He also served as Commander in Chief, United States Pacific...
who was running for Lieutenant Governor.
Steele resigned his chairmanship of the Maryland Republican Party to campaign full-time. The Baltimore Sun
The Baltimore Sun
The Baltimore Sun is the U.S. state of Maryland’s largest general circulation daily newspaper and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries....
praised Townsend's running mate, Larson, for his experience and expertise, stating that: "state GOP chairman Michael S. Steele, brings little to the team but the color of his skin."
In the September primary election, Ehrlich and Steele had no serious opposition. In the November 2002 general election, the Republican Ehrlich-Steele ticket won, 51 percent to 48 percent even though Maryland traditionally votes Democratic and had not elected a Republican Governor in almost 40 years. The Townsend-Larson campaign had been tainted by outgoing Democratic governor Parris Glendening
Parris Glendening
Parris Nelson Glendening , a member of the United States Democratic Party, was the 59th Governor of Maryland from January 18, 1995 to January 15, 2003...
's marital problems and backlash due to his strict enforcement of environmental regulations. During the election, Townsend was also criticized for her choice of running mate; she picked retired Admiral Charles R. Larson, a novice politician who had switched parties only a few weeks before.
Steele's most prominent efforts for the Ehrlich administration were reforming the state's Minority Business Enterprise program and chairing the Governor's Commission on Quality Education in Maryland. Steele garnered criticism for his failure to oppose Ehrlich's reinstitution of the death penalty, despite claims of racial inequities in the use of the death penalty, Steele's own religious beliefs and his prior anti-death penalty pronouncements.
In 2005, Steele was named an Aspen Institute
Aspen Institute
The Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization founded in 1950 as the Aspen Institute of Humanistic Studies. The organization is dedicated to "fostering enlightened leadership, the appreciation of timeless ideas and values, and open-minded dialogue on contemporary issues." The...
Rodel Fellow in Public Leadership and was awarded the Bethune-DuBois Institute Award for his continuing efforts to improve the quality education in Maryland.
At the 2004 Republican National Convention
2004 Republican National Convention
The 2004 Republican National Convention, the presidential nominating convention of the Republican Party of the United States, took place from August 30 to September 2, 2004 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York...
, Steele gave the Republican counterpoint to Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
's 2004 Democratic National Convention
2004 Democratic National Convention
The 2004 Democratic National Convention convened from July 26 to July 29, 2004 at the FleetCenter in Boston, Massachusetts, and nominated John Kerry and John Edwards as the official candidates of the Democratic Party for President and Vice President of the United States, respectively, in the 2004...
keynote address; it was Steele's first major national exposure. In April 2005, President Bush chose him to be a member of the U.S. delegation at the investiture of Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
in Vatican City
Vatican City
Vatican City , or Vatican City State, in Italian officially Stato della Città del Vaticano , which translates literally as State of the City of the Vatican, is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, Italy. It has an area of...
.
2006 campaign for U.S. Senate
When Paul SarbanesPaul Sarbanes
Paul Spyros Sarbanes , a Democrat, is a former United States Senator who represented the state of Maryland. Sarbanes was the longest-serving senator in Maryland history, having served from 1977 until 2007. He did not seek re-election in 2006, when he was succeeded by fellow Democrat Ben Cardin...
, Maryland's longest-serving United States Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
, announced in March 2005 that he would not be a candidate for re-election in 2006, top state and national Republican officials began pressing Steele to become their party's nominee for the seat. In April 2005, The Baltimore Sun
The Baltimore Sun
The Baltimore Sun is the U.S. state of Maryland’s largest general circulation daily newspaper and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries....
announced the results of a poll it conducted, stating that Steele would run statistically neck and neck against either former NAACP head Kweisi Mfume
Kweisi Mfume
Kweisi Mfume is the former President/CEO of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People , as well as a five-term Democratic Congressman from Maryland's 7th congressional district, serving in the 100th through 104th Congress...
, or Rep. Benjamin L. Cardin
Ben Cardin
Benjamin Louis "Ben" Cardin is the junior United States Senator from Maryland and a member of the Democratic Party. Before his election to the Senate, Cardin was a member of the United States House of Representatives, representing from 1987 to 2007.Cardin was elected to succeed Paul Sarbanes in...
of Baltimore County
Baltimore County, Maryland
Baltimore County is a county located in the northern part of the US state of Maryland. In 2010, its population was 805,029. It is part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Towson. The name of the county was derived from the barony of the Proprietor of the Maryland...
. Steele formally announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate on October 25, 2005.
Steele lost the general election to Cardin on November 7, 2006, 44 percent to Cardin's 55 percent. Steele's former campaign finance chairman later alleged improprieties in Steele's handling of campaign funds, which Steele denied.
After the Senate race
One day after Steele conceded defeat in the Senate election, Chris Cillizza of the Washington Post reported that Steele was hoping to succeed Ken MehlmanKen Mehlman
Kenneth Brian Mehlman is an American businessman, attorney, and political figure who served as the campaign manager for the 2004 re-election campaign of George W. Bush and Chairman of the Republican National Committee from 2005 to 2007. In 2007, President Bush appointed Mehlman to the U.S...
as the chairman of the Republican National Committee
Republican National Committee
The Republican National Committee is an American political committee that provides national leadership for the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican political platform, as well as coordinating fundraising and election strategy. It is...
. Senator Mel Martinez
Mel Martinez
Melquíades Rafael Martínez Ruiz, usually known as Mel Martinez , is a former United States Senator from Florida and served as Chairman of the Republican Party from November 2006 until October 19, 2007, the first Latino to serve as chairman of a major party...
of Florida, who had the endorsement of President George W. Bush, got the position.
In February 2007, Steele became chairman of GOPAC
GOPAC
GOPAC is a Republican state and local political training organization. Although often thought of as a PAC, or Political Action Committee, it is actually a 527 organization. It describes itself as "the premier training organization for Republican candidates in elected office on the state and local...
, a political action committee
Political action committee
In the United States, a political action committee, or PAC, is the name commonly given to a private group, regardless of size, organized to elect political candidates or to advance the outcome of a political issue or legislation. Legally, what constitutes a "PAC" for purposes of regulation is a...
that helps fund state and local Republican campaigns around the country and is responsible for training future Republican candidates. He succeeded former U.S. Congressman J.C. Watts
J.C. Watts
Julius Caesar "J. C." Watts, Jr. is an American politician from Oklahoma who was a college football quarterback for the Oklahoma Sooners and professionally in the Canadian Football League. Watts served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003 as a Republican, representing the 4th...
, a fellow black Republican. In April 2007, Steele joined the international law firm of Dewey & LeBoeuf
Dewey & LeBoeuf
Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP is a prominent global white shoe law firm, headquartered in New York City. Originally founded in 1909, the firm currently has over 2400 lawyers spread throughout 26 offices in 15 countries on 4 continents, and is known primarily for its corporate, insurance, litigation, tax and...
, as a partner in the firm's Washington, D.C. office.
At a speech given at the Media Research Center
Media Research Center
The Media Research Center is a content analysis organization based in Alexandria, Virginia, founded in 1987 by conservative activist L. Brent Bozell III...
's 2007 DisHonors Awards Gala, Steele said: Steele is considered a possible candidate for Governor of Maryland
Governor of Maryland
The Governor of Maryland heads the executive branch of the government of Maryland, and he is the commander-in-chief of the state's National Guard units. The Governor is the highest-ranking official in the state, and he has a broad range of appointive powers in both the State and local governments,...
in the future, and has said he's "intrigued by the idea". He has said that he will not run for President in 2012.
Steele appeared several times on HBO's political show Real Time with Bill Maher
Real Time with Bill Maher
Real Time with Bill Maher is a talk show that airs weekly on HBO, hosted by comedian and political satirist Bill Maher. Much like his previous show, Politically Incorrect on ABC , Real Time features a panel of guests that discuss current events in politics and the media...
, and was on Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
's talk show The Colbert Report on January 23, 2007. He also hosted a PBS Republican Primary debate in Baltimore, Maryland on September 27, 2007.
He coined the phrase "Drill Baby Drill" during the 2008 Republican National Convention
2008 Republican National Convention
The United States 2008 Republican National Convention took place at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota, from September 1, through September 4, 2008...
in Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
, where he promoted offshore drilling
Offshore drilling
Offshore drilling refers to a mechanical process where a wellbore is drilled through the seabed. It is typically carried out in order to explore for and subsequently produce hydrocarbons which lie in rock formations beneath the seabed...
as an alternative to dependency on foreign oil.
2009 election
On November 24, 2008 Steele launched his campaign for the RNC chairmanship with the launching of his website. On January 30, 2009, Steele won the chairmanship of the RNC in the sixth round, with 91 votes to Dawson's 77. Steele, the Republican Party's first African AmericanAfrican American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
chief, was selected in the aftermath of President Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
's election, when many in the GOP saw him as a charismatic counter to the first black president.
2008 RNC Chairman Vote
Source: CQPolitics, and Poll Pundit
| Candidate | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 5 | Round 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Steele | 46 | 48 | 51 | 60 | 79 | 91 |
| Katon Dawson Katon Dawson Katon Edwards Dawson is an American politician from the state of South Carolina, former chairman of the South Carolina Republican Party and was a 2009 candidate for chairman of the Republican National Committee.-Early life:... |
28 | 29 | 34 | 62 | 69 | 77 |
| Saul Anuzis Saul Anuzis Saulius "Saul" Anuzis is a Republican Party leader from the U.S. State of Michigan, he is currently serving as national chairman for the Save American Jobs Project on the American Solutions team... |
22 | 24 | 24 | 31 | 20 | Withdrew |
| Ken Blackwell Ken Blackwell John Kenneth Blackwell is an American politician and activist who served as the mayor of Cincinnati, Ohio from 1979 to 1980 and Ohio Secretary of State from 1999 to 2007. A Republican, he was the first African-American to be the candidate for governor of a major party in Ohio. In 2006, Blackwell... |
20 | 19 | 15 | 15 | Withdrew | |
| Mike Duncan | 52 | 48 | 44 | Withdrew | ||
- Candidate won that Round of voting
- Candidate withdrew
- Candidate won RNC Chairmanship
In December 2010, Steele declared that he would run for re-election as RNC chair.
Leadership dispute with Rush Limbaugh
On March 1, 2009 in response to a question on CBSCBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
's Face the Nation
Face the Nation
Face the Nation with Bob Schieffer is an American Sunday-morning political interview show which premiered on the CBS television network on November 7, 1954. It is one of the longest-running news programs in the history of television...
as to who spoke for the Republican Party, President Obama's chief of staff Rahm Emanuel
Rahm Emanuel
Rahm Israel Emanuel is an American politician and the 55th and current Mayor of Chicago. He was formerly White House Chief of Staff to President Barack Obama...
said it was Rush Limbaugh
Rush Limbaugh
Rush Hudson Limbaugh III is an American radio talk show host, conservative political commentator, and an opinion leader in American conservatism. He hosts The Rush Limbaugh Show which is aired throughout the U.S. on Premiere Radio Networks and is the highest-rated talk-radio program in the United...
because "whenever a Republican criticizes [Limbaugh], they have to run back and apologize to him, and say they were misunderstood. He is the voice and the intellectual force and energy behind the Republican Party. And he has been upfront about what he views, and hasn't stepped back from that, which is he hopes for [President Obama's] failure. He said it. And I compliment him for his honesty, but that's their philosophy that is enunciated by Rush Limbaugh."
In remarks aired by the CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
program D.L. Hughley Breaks the News
D.L. Hughley Breaks the News
D. L. Hughley Breaks the News was a comedy news show that aired on CNN from October 25, 2008 to March 2009, hosted and head written by comedian D. L. Hughley. On March 9, 2009, CNN announced that Hughley would be ending the show due to a desire to work in Los Angeles and be closer to his family...
on March 1, 2009, Steele said he, rather than Limbaugh, is "the de facto leader of the Republican Party. Rush Limbaugh is an entertainer. Rush Limbaugh's whole thing is entertainment. Yes, it is incendiary. Yes, it is ugly." On March 2, 2009 Limbaugh said on his radio show that Steele is not fit to lead the Republican Party, asking of him "Why do you claim to lead the Republican Party when you seem obsessed with seeing to it President Obama succeeds?" After the show Steele called Limbaugh to apologize, saying "I have enormous respect for Rush Limbaugh. I was maybe a little bit inarticulate. There was no attempt on my part to diminish his voice or his leadership. I went back at that tape and I realized words that I said weren't what I was thinking. It was one of those things where I thinking I was saying one thing, and it came out differently. What I was trying to say was a lot of people want to make Rush the scapegoat, the bogeyman, and he's not." Steele later issued another statement to say that Limbaugh "is a national conservative leader, and in no way do I want to diminish his voice. I truly apologize."
Fire Pelosi Bus Tour
In the fall of 2010, Steele launched the "Fire Pelosi Bus Tour," with the focus of taking over the United States House of RepresentativesUnited States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
, and thus "firing" Speaker Pelosi from her position as Speaker of the House of Representatives
Speaker of the House of Representatives
-National governments:* Speaker of the House of Representatives of Antigua and Barbuda* Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives* Speaker of the House of Representatives of Belize* Speaker of the House of Representatives...
. The tour began on September 15 and lasted 6 weeks, visiting 48 states in the Continental U.S., with stops in more than 100 cities while covering 14,000 miles. The tours purpose was to "encourage votes for Republicans in districts across the nation." The stops in individual districts gave Steele, "known for his bomb-throwing speaking style," an opportunity to fire up local GOP activists. During the tour, "Steele urged party unity" as the Republicans attempted to take over the House of Representatives and end Representative Pelosi's term as Speaker of the House.
2011 election
The 2011 Republican National Committee (RNC) chairmanship election was held on January 14, 2011, to determine the next chairman of the RNC, who will serve a two-year term ending in 2013 and will lead the party through the 2012 general electionsUnited States elections, 2012
The 2012 United States elections will be held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012. The 57th quadrennial presidential election will be held on this date, coinciding with Senate elections where 33 races will occur, as well as House of Representatives elections to elect the members for the 113th Congress...
. After seven rounds of balloting, Reince Priebus
Reince Priebus
Reinhold Reince Priebus is the chairman of the Republican National Committee. He is also a previous chair of the Republican Party of Wisconsin....
was elected chairman over incumbent chair Michael Steele, Saul Anuzis
Saul Anuzis
Saulius "Saul" Anuzis is a Republican Party leader from the U.S. State of Michigan, he is currently serving as national chairman for the Save American Jobs Project on the American Solutions team...
, Ann Wagner
Ann Wagner
Ann Wagner is an American politician who served as the United States Ambassador to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg from 2005 to 2009. She was also Chair of the Missouri Republican Party for six years, from 1999 until 2005, and Co-chair of the Republican National Committee for four years.- Early life...
and Maria Cino
Maria Cino
Maria Cino is an American politician. Beginning March 2007 she was Chief Executive Officer of the Committee of Arrangements , which organized the 2008 Republican National Convention.-United States Department of Transportation:...
.
| Candidate | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 5 | Round 6 | Round 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reince Priebus Reince Priebus Reinhold Reince Priebus is the chairman of the Republican National Committee. He is also a previous chair of the Republican Party of Wisconsin.... |
45 | 52 | 54 | 58 | 67 | 80 | 97 |
| Saul Anuzis Saul Anuzis Saulius "Saul" Anuzis is a Republican Party leader from the U.S. State of Michigan, he is currently serving as national chairman for the Save American Jobs Project on the American Solutions team... |
24 | 22 | 21 | 24 | 32 | 37 | 43 |
| Maria Cino Maria Cino Maria Cino is an American politician. Beginning March 2007 she was Chief Executive Officer of the Committee of Arrangements , which organized the 2008 Republican National Convention.-United States Department of Transportation:... |
32 | 30 | 28 | 29 | 40 | 34 | 28 |
| Ann Wagner Ann Wagner Ann Wagner is an American politician who served as the United States Ambassador to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg from 2005 to 2009. She was also Chair of the Missouri Republican Party for six years, from 1999 until 2005, and Co-chair of the Republican National Committee for four years.- Early life... |
23 | 27 | 32 | 28 | 28 | 17 | Withdrew |
| Michael Steele | 44 | 37 | 33 | 28 | Withdrew | ||
- Candidate won majority of votes in the round
- Candidate secured a plurality of votes in the round
- Candidate withdrew
Right Now
Steele's book, Right Now: A 12-Step Program for Defeating the Obama AgendaRight Now: A 12-Step Program for Defeating the Obama Agenda
Right Now: A 12-Step Program for Defeating the Obama Agenda, written by Michael Steele, was released on January 4, 2010. The book was published by Regnery Publishing.- Content :...
, was released on January 4, 2010; it was published by Regnery Publishing
Regnery Publishing
Regnery Publishing in Washington, D.C., is a publisher which specializes in conservative books characterized on their website as "contrary to those of 'mainstream' publishers in New York." Since 1993, Regnery Publishing has been a division of Eagle Publishing, which also owns the weekly magazine...
, ISBN 978-1596981089. The Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
reported that, "Steele focuses much of the book on familiar GOP denunciations of President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
's overall policies (a roadmap to failure), the $787 billion stimulus bill (a reckless, wasteful, pork-laden spending spree), liberal views on manmade global warming (A threat to life on Earth? Depends on whom you ask) and other issues. To regain the public confidence, Steele says the GOP should, among other things, expose the reign of error inherent in liberal policies, contrast conservative and liberal principles, and highlight the damage caused by Obama's policies while explaining conservative solutions."
External links
- Chairman Steele official blog at the Republican National CommitteeRepublican National CommitteeThe Republican National Committee is an American political committee that provides national leadership for the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican political platform, as well as coordinating fundraising and election strategy. It is...
site
Interviews and statements
- Interview with The Daily ShowThe Daily ShowThe Daily Show , is an American late night satirical television program airing each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central. The half-hour long show premiered on July 21, 1996, and was hosted by Craig Kilborn until December 1998...
's Jon StewartJon StewartJon Stewart is an American political satirist, writer, television host, actor, media critic and stand-up comedian...
, February 1, 2011 - Interview with C-SPANC-SPANC-SPAN , an acronym for Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network, is an American cable television network that offers coverage of federal government proceedings and other public affairs programming via its three television channels , one radio station and a group of websites that provide streaming...
's Brian LambBrian LambBrian Patrick Lamb is the founder and chief executive officer of C-SPAN, a television network dedicated to coverage of government proceedings and public affairs. Born and raised in Lafayette, Indiana, Lamb earned a degree from Purdue University before joining the United States Navy...
, February 27, 2005 - Interview with Michael Steele on Fox News with Chris WallaceChris Wallace (journalist)Christopher "Chris" Wallace is an American journalist, currently the host of the Fox Network program, Fox News Sunday. Wallace has won three Emmy Awards, the Dupont-Columbia Silver Baton Award, and a Peabody Award. Wallace has been with Fox News since 2003...
, December 22, 2009 - Interview with Michael Steele by The American View, audio
- Michael Steele's Blueprint for Tomorrow
- GOP's Steele Tells Party To Look Forward, Not Backward by Michael Steele
Articles
- 10 Things You Didn't Know About Michael Steele from U.S. News and World Report, April 7, 2008