Michael Steele's Enemies List

RNC chair Michael Steele has faced perhaps the rockiest year of any party chair in modern times, and as his national committee heads to Honolulu for a semi-annual meeting, there are no shortage of members ready to tell him about it.

But Steele is in no serious danger of being removed as party chair. After all, who can argue with results? The party has won GOV races in VA and NJ and a Senate seat in MA, and whether or not Steele deserves the credit, he has claimed it, and RNC members and allies have taken note.

Still, with a year to go in his term as chair, Steele will face pressure less from rival Dems than from within his own party. Today, as we head to the RNC's winter meeting, we offer a preview of the 5 groups and people who have caused Steele the most pain -- and who will continue to do so:

The Old Bulls: Steele did not serve on the RNC when he was elected chair, and he did not make inroads with key members who hold disproportionate amounts of power. When those old bulls wanted to add routine checks on the chair's power to spend big money, Steele erupted, and in a flurry of nasty emails threatened to resign.

Eventually, the old bulls got their spending resolution passed, and Steele described it as a win. Now, the chairman talks regularly with members like NJ committeeman David Norcross, MA committeeman Ron Kaufman and others. But they are sticklers for the old ways of business, when the party chair served as a fundraiser rather than a public face for the GOP. They are also the first to take public swipes at Steele, as Norcross did when he suggested party leaders were taking a look at a resolution that could force Steele to end his book tour or donate proceeds to the party.

Congressional Leadership: Members of Congress do not trust Steele, and they have made it clear to him on several occasions that he should not make policy. Members in both chambers have told Steele to stop suggesting GOP office holders could be punished for their public stands, too. And after Steele said he did not believe the party could retake the House, a routine conference call became a forum for senior Congressional aides to beseech RNC communications staffers to keep Steele quiet.

Meanwhile, Steele's book of GOP principles came as a surprise to GOP leaders who have actually won elections. That angered many political strategists who worried that their candidates will now have to answer for policy prescriptions that were never vetted by party officials. The fact that Steele is making money off the book only makes GOP leaders chaffe more.

Congressional aides and political consultants around the city are fully aware that Steele will try to take credit for GOP wins this Nov., as he has for the party's wins in VA, NJ and MA. But those upset with the way Steele has handled his committee, and with the lack of support he has given to Hill GOPers, are quietly working behind the scenes to deny Steele any credit. Harmony will reign in public, but in private, top members of Congress are grumbling that Steele has been an ineffective shepherd of the party brand.

Big Donors: It is little secret that, under Steele's tenure, fundraising costs have skyrocketed. Small-dollar donations, whether contributed by phone, mail or internet, cost more per capita than big checks someone writes once or twice a cycle. RNC officials argue that the gambit will pay off over the next decade, but feelings, even among RNC members, have been hurt, and an upset big donor is not a generous big donor.

Steele's reliance on small donors means larger donors have been ignored; they complain he doesn't call, and indeed sources have said that Steele has been notoriously averse to calling donors during his political career. Groups like the RGA and the NRSC have benefited as big donors find new outlets for their money.

But the RGA cares about GOV races and the NRSC cares about SEN races. Only the RNC is able to coordinate Victory plans that benefit all levels of the ticket. And without those Victory plans, state legislative seats the party needs to win in order to have a big impact on redistricting could fall through the cracks.

Katon Dawson: Dawson served on the RNC for 7 years, turned around the SC GOP and, when he ran for RNC chair, finished 2nd to Steele. He is better liked by conservatives on the RNC, and he has made it clear he will not go quietly into that political good night: Dawson will be in HI at the meeting this week, even though he has no formal role.

Dawson's presence will serve as a reminder to Steele that others sought his job, and that many remain upset he won. Steele has taunted his critics, telling them to fire him if they didn't like the job he is doing. But that bravado overlooks the fact that Steele's committee is made up of members who are frequently working at cross purposes.

Steele has not said whether he will run for another term next year, and many believe he would not have the votes to win if he did. Waiting in the wings, though they may deny it, are several others: Many suspect CA GOP chair Ron Nehring, WI GOP chair Reince Priebus, ex-MI GOP chair Saul Anuzis and perhaps even Dawson himself want a shot at the chairmanship.

Himself: Steele's troubles over the last year have been largely self-inflicted, and even the larger dust-ups have been touched off by easily avoidable gaffes.

Some Steele detractors began quietly trying to organize his ouster after a Feb. '09 interview, published the following month, in which Steele said abortion was a personal choice; soon after, Steele's dispute with Norcross, Kaufman and Treas. Randy Pullen erupted. Earlier this month, Steele's comment about the GOP falling short of winning back the House touched off the confrontation on the conference call, followed by suggestions that Steele should not be making a profit off a book while at the RNC.

GOPers are set up for success in '10, and if they do, many of Steele's gaffes may be forgiven. And though he has made enemies during his months in office, he's made more friends, meaning Steele could come out of his term in good shape -- providing he doesn't succumb to his enemies list, including the threat his lack of discipline poses to himself.