The American Spectator

The Spectacle Blog

As sympathetic as I am to the anti-bailout angst, I gotta wonder whether the insurgent RNC members aren't opening a big can of worms. From the Washington Times article:

Nonetheless, not all RNC members -- including some of Mr. Bopp's fellow conservatives -- are pleased with the idea of having it make policy instead of simply minding the campaign fundraising store.

Fellow RNC member Ron Nehring, chairman of the California GOP, expressed more reservations.

"We have to be careful not to confuse passing resolutions for action, or creating a situation where people interpret the lack of some resolution as an excuse for inaction on an important issue," he said.

Nehring makes a good point, and I'd add that turning the RNC into a vehicle for routine policy debate would completely change internal RNC politics; suddenly ideology would matter as much as organizational competence. I'm not sure that would make the party more effective.