Dawson takes lead

Posted: Friday, January 30, 2009 2:43 PM by Domenico Montanaro

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
After the surprise drop out of former Chairman Mike Duncan, South Carolina party chairman Katon Dawson has taken a two-vote lead over Michael Steele, 62-60.

This comes despite Duncan encouraging his voters to go with Steele, a source close to Duncan told First Read.

Anuzis moved to 31, and Blackwell remained at 15, rounding out fourth-round voting.

The winning candidate needs 85 votes to clinch. That means Dawson now needs 23 more votes, and Steele needs 25.

Duncan met with Steele privately prior to dropping out to tell him of his plans, a source said. The source added that "he likes Steele," but he's not sure that the members will all move to Steele. Many of them aren't warm to Steele, because he's not a committee member.

The source also said that Duncan pulled out because he's a "party guy" and didn't want a long, drawn-out fight.

This now is shaping up to be a fight between, fundamentally, an "insider" (Dawson) and an "outsider" (Steele). It also ironically sets up the first African American to lead the Republican Party against a party chairman from the South, who was a member of a country club that was formerly all-white.

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Comments

Republicans would rather DIE than have a black man run their party, trust me there is NO way they will vote for Steele!

T, Hampton, VA (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 2:52 PM)

So much for a slow Friday news day. And it started with Saltsman dropping out featured on governmentality.
http://www.governmentalityblog.com/my_weblog/2009/01/chip-saltsman-pulls-out-of-rnc-race.html

Sam (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 2:56 PM)

Mike Dawson is the guy who said he got into politics to oppose FORECD BUSING

He's been standiong up for white people ever since

A PERFECT GOP chairman
(but, where's David Duke ? He'd be even better)

MSierra, SF (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 2:56 PM)

You'd think that the repugnant ones could have selected a new chair by now but then they're so incompetent they'll be at it all day long to prolong the agony of victory for whatever chump gets the booby prize called the RNC chair. Still it is gratifying to see yet another bushwhacker crony biting the dust, now that's change we can believe in.

Looks like the RNC isn't progressive enough to select Steele. Nothing says white supremacy like some dimwit racist from South Carolina. What kind of idiotic name is Katon? Did "Blamey Whinehouse" Palin name him too?

Prison for rove and the banking robber barons!

Eric, Salinas, CA (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 2:59 PM)

"It also ironically sets up the first African American to lead the Republican Party against a party chairman from the South, whose country club formerly was all-white."

What is ironic about this?

Eric, Denver, CO (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 2:59 PM)

I see what's happening here. This is like THE STING, right? Only in this case, the admittedly out-of-touch crowd will end up pulling it out at the wire. And nobody sees it coming until it's too late.

If that's their strategery, they're doomed. STILL doomed, I mean.

Anna Molly (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 2:59 PM)

Anyone call Rush to see who he wants? That should give "whoever" the right amount of votes in a New York minute.

Just Askin' (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 3:03 PM)

Free American Tehachapi Ca, Barney :
'...Changing Ted's diapers...'

The only person in the Senate who wears diapers is
'Family Values' playboy, Sen David Vitter (R-LA)

But he gets his hooker girl-friend to put his diapers on him

(after he gets *ss backwards)

PS
Barney, are you a purple Dinosaur ??

Msierra, SF (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 3:08 PM)

I personally would like to see Steele win and bring some much needed diversity to the GOP. But to all the hypocritical liberals out there...you're the ones who have attacked every black conservative through the years (Clarence Thomas, Condi Rice...etc) and called them "Uncle Tom" or worse. It's hypocritical to support the promotion of minorities ONLY if they're liberal. I hope and pray for more black and hispanic conservatives to arise. Then we can debate on issues and ideas and not on skin color.

Liberal hypocrisy (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 3:08 PM)

Looks like Duncan didn't have much control over his "insiders". I think the next round will determine this thing. I just can't see the party of the primarily South choosing an African American from the North East. I mean this is not a token position such as VP - this person needs to be able to fundraise from the GOP base.

Kelly (from Pittsburgh) (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 3:13 PM)

Think I will put my nickel on Dawson. Pat Buchanan, Rush Limberger, and all the right wing nuts will not go for Steele.

Anna Molly: I enjoy your comments.

Ron Indiana (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 3:16 PM)

Oh my God, If the Republicans elect a Black Chairman,
who will understand what the white people in Arkansas are going through? Will they let Joe Biden understand them since they claimed Obama couldn't?

Amy B Portland, ME (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 3:18 PM)

Katon Dawson is a conservative with strong ethics. He is also one of the nicest guys I know. He straightened out the financial mess that our former state party chair left us in. He would be a spectacular RNC chairman. The RNC needs to be brought back to it's roots if we are going to recapture the heart of this country. We have to stop being Democrat Lites and start holding firm to our ideals of personal freedom/responsiblity and less government. "Compassionate Conservatism" meant only that we caved everything to the liberals and it got us to this mess. Katon recognizes our failures and will help return us to the right. I don't care what color anyone if they are right on the issues. I know Katon and I know he's the right man for the job.

Esther Wagner, Simpsonville, SC (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 3:37 PM)

Mr. Dawson is a member of Forest Lake Country Club, a whites-only country club. It is impossible for anyone to believe that Dawson was uaware of the club's discriminatory policies towards blacks and minorities until 2008.

Nancy R., Boston, MA (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 4:00 PM)

Hey you guys that think in slanted terms. The Legislative Black Caucus would not allow white Jewish Democrat Representative Cohen from Memphis into their inner circle. Where is your protest reagarding this situation that is on display in the very halls of Congress every day? Blacks basically did not support Michael Steele the last time he ran for office in Maryland. The reason...they prefered a white liberal over a black conservative. I am white and was pulling for Michael beginning the day he began seeking the RNC chairmanship. Good luck to you liberals who only think in racist terms.

Bobby Jarrell (Sent Friday, January 30, 2009 4:58 PM)

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