RNC’s Communications Chief Resigns
EmailABC News' David Chalian Reports: Just as the Republican Party is expressing optimism about its chances in 2010 following two significant gubernatorial victories in 2009, RNC Chairman Michael Steele has lost his top message man. ABC News has learned RNC communications director Trevor Francis has resigned his post atop the GOP's messaging shop. No replacement has yet been named to succeed Francis. Republican sources are not pointing to any one incident that caused Steele's communications chief to resign his post, but instead to a growing perception among many party insiders that Michael Steele has not yet solved his message discipline challenges despite Francis' efforts. Keeping any party chairman on message and playing nicely with others is never an easy task, but the outspoken Mr. Steele has caught foot-in-mouth disease from time to time during his 10 month tenure, occasionally tripping up the GOP's intended message of the day. Michael Steele called Trevor's RNC stint a "hiatus" from the private sector in a statement issued after Trevor resigned. "Trevor took a hiatus from a very successful private sector career to give service to the Republican Party this year. Trevor's talents will be missed at the RNC. We have accomplished a great deal in the year he was here. He worked tirelessly, as did the whole team, on the victories in Virginia and his home state of New Jersey," said Steele. UPDATE: The RNC advises that veteran Republican consultant and ad man Alex Castellanos will take over as senior communications adviser to the RNC. Castellanos served as an adviser and advertising consultant to Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign in 2007-2008. Prior to that, Castellanos garnered much attention for the health care ad he produced for the RNC during the 2000 presidential cycle where the word “RATS” appeared briefly on the screen in what many observers believed was subliminal messaging.
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Maybe he got tired of the GOP communicating one message: “NO!”
Posted by: stone | November 23, 2009, 4:46 pm 4:46 pm
Somewhere I heard, he’s going back to teaching kindergarten.
Posted by: gus amaral | November 23, 2009, 5:02 pm 5:02 pm
His resigning has nothing to do with Steele. Maybe he didn’t like that Steele was chairman, a position that he wanted and didn’t get. I like Steele because he says what he means and means what he says. He is not wishy washy when it comes to politics. If the republicans want to rise in 2010 they need to shape up. There are republicans and democrats both that don’t know which way the wind is blowing.
Posted by: Mariann Pepitone | November 23, 2009, 7:30 pm 7:30 pm
Its possible that Trevor Francis wants to run for the senate or maybe governor next year. I am sure he will stay in politics. Members of the house will all be up for re-election this year and I am hoping that many republicans will win like the two republicans that won the office of the governor. Pelosi and Reid both need to be voted out of office along with many of the democrats. Since they all got voted in this country has been in the biggest mess ever. Worse than Bush. Obama’s lack of experience in politics is what is keeping these wars doing because he doesn’t know how to make decisions.
Posted by: Mariann Pepitone | November 23, 2009, 7:36 pm 7:36 pm
Mariann Pepitone says, “Obama’s lack of experience in politics is what is keeping these wars doing [sic] because he doesn’t know how to make decisions.”
No president could halt wars on two fronts that have been going for SEVERAL years in a matter of months. Can’t be done. The reason why we have so many dead service men and women is BECAUSE Bush made decisions without thinking. You folks called that decisiveness, and then when it tanked, you come back YEARS later and ask a man who has been in office less than a year to make it all stop. It will take years to unravel this mess made by a Republician Administration and a Republican Congress. Same with the bail outs. Interesting how you all have forgotten that it was George W. Bush who signed bail out legislation last fall.
Posted by: Julia | November 23, 2009, 8:28 pm 8:28 pm
People in this country are suffering from dementia!! How can anyone trust the Republicans after 8 years of terror!! This recession/depression didn’t start on Jan 20th or a direct result of President Obama’s decisions and policies in 11 months or by the Stimulus bill he signed… Obama didn’t cause this economic collapse…
Posted by: Martin | November 23, 2009, 9:55 pm 9:55 pm
Thanks to Julie and Martin, making sure Obama doesn’t take any responsibility for anything. Nice Job.
Bush was lame duck with a majority of Dems in congress and merely signaled with an incoming Dem President he wouldn’t stand in the way of the the stimulus but realize that only 20% or so has been spent and most of it has gone to pro-dem states.
Gotta also love how Democrats are NEVER responsible for troops casualties, it always goes back to Republicans even though the Democrat is in office and said during the campaign he had all the answers. Afghanistan is Obama’s war. The get ‘em out of Iraq quick was also part of his campaign.
Obama didn’t cause the economic collapse, Democrat Congress certainly had allot to do with it.
Posted by: TruthHurts8089 | November 23, 2009, 11:25 pm 11:25 pm
Mariann Pepitone wrote: ” I like Steele because he says what he means and means what he says.”
You obviously don’t know the man.
In Maryland’s 2010 elections I voted for both Republicans and Democrats. I did not like Ben Cardin (D) for U.S. Senate but I could not vote for Michael Steele after the despicable, misleading commercials he ran.
For example, he was opposed to EMBRYONIC stem cell research but knew most voters favored it. What to do? Cleverly, he took advantage of the fact that many people don’t know there’s a difference between ordinary “stem cells” and “embryonic stem cells”.
So, he got his M.S.-afflicted, wheelchair bound sister to run a commercial in which she says, condescendingly, “Of course Michael supports stem cell research.”
And that’s just one of a series of fool-the-voter messages he ran.
So, “he says what he means and means what he says”, huh?
Posted by: The_Mick | November 24, 2009, 12:05 am 12:05 am
Mariann Pepitone: didn’t Steele apologize to Limbaugh about saying something he apparently didn’t mean??
Posted by: stone | November 24, 2009, 8:10 am 8:10 am
While the most recent Major Error was the GOP “LITMUS TEST” issued 11.23.2009. Being an engaged and critical observer of the “Joke of a Chairman of the RNC”, I Certain the GOP “Powers that be” would “Can” Steele, immediately. (Far too many Major “Slides” – far greater than mere “Slip-Ups.”)
But in any case, “The End” has now been put into perspective. By “The Powers that Be” (excluding Michael Steele) appointing Alex Castellanos, Senior Communications Advisor – they’ve put “the writing on the wall!” Steele and Castellanos will NEVER be able to work together. Steele “suffered” grave wounding to his “personal pride and dignity”, when he was made to “bow down” to Rush Limpbaugh for that “Party No – No.”
Steele’s probably now thinking, “I’ll be damned, if I’m gonna’ (sic) “bow down” to “that guy” who’s subordinate to me on the “Org Chart.”
Odds are… all things being equal – they will “Can” Steele, as he’s easily expendable. And it’s been proven the “African American as-Chairman-Angle”, hasn’t yielded the expected results.
Now, since the Latino base is larger than the African American base, they may want to consider………… Poor Michael Steele, he sold his pride… he sold his soul
Posted by: bobj72 | November 24, 2009, 10:39 am 10:39 am
Politics as usaual in Washington is over.
Party now Democrat’s come 2010 and 2012 your party is going to be voted out!!!
Your party has thrown senior citizens under the bus and your party is going to pay for it. Obama’s health care bill is not good for America.
Posted by: John Demeter | November 24, 2009, 12:10 pm 12:10 pm
Oh….. So it was RAT Alex Castellanos RAT who came up with those ads for the RATS Republican Party RATS during the 2000 campaign. Then he went to work for Gordon Gecko Mitt Romney Gordon Gecko.
Posted by: RMF | November 24, 2009, 4:53 pm 4:53 pm
Steele, the hip hop chairman of the GOP who regularly gets his butt handed to him by the likes of mental midgets like Geraldo.
Steele who says whites are afraid of him.
No Michael, we are afraid of your incompetence. Like Eric Holder, you never should have been hired and can think political correctness, not good leadership, for all of your wealth and sought after fame.
The Republicrats are to weak kneed to even give this clown his walking papers. The communications director was forced out because Steele was pitching a fit about not getting enough credit for the recent elections.
Steele needs to go if we are going to have any kind of real opposition party. He has totally blown the debate on health care, Cap n Trade and fiscal conservatism.
Posted by: serfing surf | November 24, 2009, 8:32 pm 8:32 pm
Given his official role as partisan shill, why is is CNN keeping him on as a commentator?
Posted by: Brooklyn Democrat | November 25, 2009, 11:37 am 11:37 am