RNC Bloggers Forum 2006 Roundup

I'm always a bit leary of giving information directly from the horse's public relations officials, but for the most part, the folks that I have met at the RNC have been straightforward, honest, and frank about their situation and willing to entertain new ideas about tactics.

Big kudos to Patrick Ruffini, the technical director for the RNC. Again, about a dozen or so bloggers attended the event. Today was especially exciting because I got to meet Michelle Malkin. The rumors are true... she's as pleasant as seems on TV.

The other usual suspects were there: | Michelle Malkin, Matt Margolis, Blogs for Bush | Mark Noonan, GOP Bloggers | Flip Pidot, Suitably Flip | Ian Schwartz, The Political Teen | Tim Chapman, Townhall.com | Mary Katherine Ham, HughHewitt.com | Ed Morrissey, Captain's Quarters | Bob Hahn, RedState | Pat Cleary, NAM | Wizbang.com

Pat brought out the big guns with RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman talking off and on the record. The bloggers had some very good questions for Big Mehl. Michelle asked about about immigration, Ken was frank about his support for the workers program, but left open the door for "smart" ideas, finding a way where law breakers are not rewarded but ensuring some place for the influx of workers aleady out there.

I asked: "What's the word around the water cooler. Are people around here in tune with the shakiness that Republicans have felt over the last 6 months... the rift fromt the Miers nomination, the frank disgust that many people on the base have towards Senate Republicans, the disappointment about the late to the game push back for the war on terror, the queezy feelings about the lobbying scandals. Are things that people around here would recognize admit to and adjust their actions accordingly?" Ken answered that they are indeed worried about this and trying to address this by listening to people outside the bubble. Ken has a good claim on working outside of the the beltway indicating that he lives "in the opposite of the bubble" having clocked 155,000 air miles last year, 33 states, 109 cities, and 229 events.

On Alito, Mehlman indicated that he expects confirmation and that Alito is the most qualified nominee in 70 years. Mehlman said: "The only conflict here in the senate is with Chuck Schumer" deciding whether to oppose Alito for purely political reasons or deal with the reality of his previous stance on Alito.

On Arnold, Mehlman indicated that he met with the new dem hire on Arnold's staff and described her as a "total proffessional" f the job of a leader is to have vision she's committed to executing on that vision. While he notes some disagreements with Arnold's agenda there are a lot of common threads as well.

Next we heard from an official strategist at the RNC who gave us a the breakdown of the Senate and Congressional races state by state. This was very impressive. Bottom line: No chance of a Senate takeover in '06 and trends in congress don't show dem's taking majority unless things go south with scandals.

The strategist indicated that they are supporting Chaffee in RI. Some bloggers openly questioned this move (considering Chaffee's Rhino status). The reply was: " "It's about the majority." This is where things break apart with the base. But it is without question a difficult political play for all the parties involved.

Another strategist indicated that the 1994 comparisons from the dems don't hold up. Some quick numbers here:

Item	1994	2006
Open Seats	52	22
Districts with 5% or less	42	9
Split Districts	103	59

The last two items indicate districts in which the candidate won by just 5% and "split districts" are where the President won the majority but the candidate is a Dem.

Altogether, there was a lot of information that indicated:

1. The rose-colored glasses are off


2. The outlook is fair to good for '06 elections


3. Strategies are in place to give bloggers tools to make a difference