HONOLULU - The chairman of the Republican National Committee yesterday denounced a proposed resolution that would require GOP candidates to adhere to a checklist of conservative positions in order to receive party support, warning that it could undercut the party as it seeks to win back control of Congress.
The chairman, Michael Steele, expressed his views in an interview yesterday as the Republican National Committee prepared to debate the resolution at its winter meeting in Honolulu.
Dubbed the Reagan Resolution, the plan being pushed by conservative leaders would require candidates to agree to at least eight of 10 positions - on issues including abortion, immigration, same-sex marriage, and health care - or face an automatic cutoff in financing from the Republican National Committee.
Steele warned that it would damage recruitment efforts and put the party at a disadvantage at a time when it seemed poised to make gains.
“Let me ask you: Would you join an organization that stood at the doorstep with a clipboard and checked off to make sure that you fit every criteria they had?” Steele said. “I am personally not in favor of litmus tests. It’s not what brought me into the party.”
Steele said the resolution - proposed by James Bopp Jr., a conservative from Indiana - would block the party from aiding federal and state candidates.
“This thing becomes a slippery slope,” Steele said.
Bopp, in an interview, argued that the party was damaging itself by supporting Republicans who do not adhere to conservative positions, and said not adopting a resolution like his could encourage the emergence of a third-party conservative movement in 2012.
Bopp’s resolution faces serious opposition here, and it is not clear that it will make it to the floor today for a final debate. A committee of state party chairmen voted unanimously to urge its defeat last night, Republican officials said. Bopp has prepared a less stringent resolution.
Bopp said his resolution was not politically burdensome, and he pointed to Scott Brown, the Republican elected to the Senate from Massachusetts. “Scott Brown passes the Reagan test with flying colors,” he said.
Steele’s eyes widened when told of Bopp’s assertion. “Mr. Bopp is sort of fudging the descriptions there a little bit,” Steele said, reflecting a view that Brown would not pass the test. -- NEW YORK TIMES
Holloway, 18, was one of two participants in the DC Scholars program honored with a coveted seat in the House chamber.
“The president and first lady have been opening up the White House in new ways, and they’ve made a special effort to make this a place for young people to learn about the world around them, whether it be through the mentoring program, music workshops, or the DC scholars program,” White House spokeswoman Moira Mack said.
Holloway, who dances with the CityStep dance troupe that works in the Cambridge public schools to improve students’ self-esteem, said she was thrilled to be asked.
“It was like something out of a movie,” Holloway said. The Washington, D.C., native said she had met the president’s wife once during her time at the White House. “She’s really cool in person, really down to earth. She’s an amazing lady.”
Another person with ties to the Bay State, Juan Carlos Yépez of Lawrence, was also invited to join Michelle Obama. Yépez’s company, Mainstream Global, a distributor of integrated circuits and computer products, suffered severe damage from Merrimack River flooding in 2006. Owners Juan and Luis Yépez kept their 12 employees on the payroll as recovery workers got a Small Business Administration loan, and now have put the company back on track. - SUSAN MILLIGAN
