On Call Exclusive: RNC Chief Duncan On Second Chances
Even as colleagues jockey to replace him, Republican National Committee Chairman Mike Duncan has launched an outreach campaign to members to determine if they want him to keep his job.
In an interview today with On Call, Duncan said he is about a third of the way through that process and that he'll decide sometime over the next 70 days -- the party meets in January to vote for its next chairman -- if he'll seek to stay put.
"You should believe that you can do a better job the second time," Duncan said. "Certainly, I think I’ve learned a lot of things that I would be able to apply the second time. It’s also, you don’t have the constraints when there’s not a (Republican in the) White House. You involve your membership more. You have more of a responsibility, everything from fundraising to candidate recruitment. So there’s a lot of exciting opportunities with it."
Duncan said the men looking to oust him are all "future leaders of the party" and that there is room in the GOP for a variety of public voices. But the party, he said, needs a collaborator at the helm, a team-builder willing to help recraft a Republican message.
"I think you have to bring people together," Duncan said. "I think that’s one of the big things we have to do, to communicate our conservative, center-right message to the country. Some people want to find a savior who would come in and lead the party in that direction. I approach it differently. I approach it from a team-building position. I think you have to work with the House and the Senate leadership and also the governors and come up with a consistent message and communicate that with the American people. And I don’t think there’s one messenger to do that. I think we have a lot of capable servants. I think we have a lot of new people who will be future leaders for the party, and I would hope to involve as many of them as possible."
Four men have so far declared their desire to replace Duncan: South Carolina Republican Party chairman Katon Dawson, Iowa Rep. Jim Nussle, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele. Still, Duncan said it's not uncommon historically for the party to consider a leadership shift when it loses the White House, but he said he is no rush to make a decision.
"I certainly understand that," Duncan said of the clamoring for his job. "And they have every right and reason to do that. That’s what democracy is about, and we have a very open party. And all the people that you mentioned, I consider friends, and I think they’re good leaders of the party."
Duncan said the election did not mark a mandate for Barack Obama but that the results do require the party "to step back and listen to what people have to say and earn back their trust."
One of the ways to do that is through technology, Duncan said, noting the launch today of a new Web site for voter feedback about the party's future: republicanforareason.com.
Similar to the party's platform crafting process this summer, GOP leaders are seeking comments from members and voters via the Internet about its future direction. Duncan said new technologies must be central to the party's renaissance -- and this new site marks the beginning of that journey.
(JENNIFER SKALKA)
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