In The Blogs

Down in the Hood

| Thu Feb. 19, 2009 9:24 AM PST

The new chairman of the GOP really knows how connect with the youth of America:

Newly elected Republican National Committee Chairman Michael S. Steele plans an “off the hook” public relations offensive to attract younger voters, especially blacks and Hispanics, by applying the party's principles to “urban-suburban hip-hop settings.”

This is ridiculous. I'm a 50-year-old white guy from Orange County, but even I've seen the nationally televised ad that makes clear just how antique that phrase is. What's next? A GOP initiative to attract all the hep cats from North Beach?

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Kevin Drum is a political blogger for Mother Jones. For more of his stories, click here.

Comments

GOP marketing

Submitted by MrTimbo (not verified) on Thu Feb. 19, 2009 9:54 AM PST.

Seems pretty consistent with the GOP approach to just about everything these days, which is to throw a few terms out there that sound vaguely, to their ears, informed and smart to market a a radically incoherent policy or political strategy.

GOP Marketing

Submitted by AndrewBW on Thu Feb. 19, 2009 10:12 AM PST.

At least he's not getting jiggy with it.

what's next for the gop?

Submitted by alan (not verified) on Thu Feb. 19, 2009 10:50 AM PST.

They'll start cultivating influential bartenders. Because there's graft and then there's honest graft.

hippity hoppity

Submitted by Govt Skeptic (not verified) on Thu Feb. 19, 2009 11:06 AM PST.

You just wait. He's going to beat-box in his next PR campaign. Followed by some break dancing. It makes me wonder how they keep from goin under.

Maybe Mr Steele....

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu Feb. 19, 2009 11:12 AM PST.

can hire Detroits Hip Hop mayor...true he is a dem, bus since he just got out of jail I think he would be a great fit over the the RNC

Who let the dogs out?

Submitted by Cazart on Thu Feb. 19, 2009 11:56 AM PST.

He actually seems less comfortable around black people than Mitt Romney. Mitt Romney.

My fellow commentators are

Submitted by Steve W. (not verified) on Thu Feb. 19, 2009 12:27 PM PST.

My fellow commentators are way more funny than I, but I also think his joke about one-armed midgets was in pretty poor taste and won't contribute to him being taken seriously. But then again, Howard Dean, bless his shamefully-treated-by-the-Obama-team-soul, made quite a few gaffes early on in his tenure and that didn't stop him from doing well. Then again, he wasn't an idiot.