Steele The Moment

RNC Chairman Michael Steele received a lot of media flak for his March 2nd speech at Tavis Smiley's "State of the Black Union" summit. But I watched the summit and saw the speech go over with its intended audience. Seated amongst liberal luminaries such as Cornel West, Al Sharpton and Lani Guinier, Steele engaged in a healthy and down-to-earth dialogue about the barriers to entry that minorities still face, disparities in education and health care, and gun violence in urban communities. Could the last RNC chairman Ken Mehlman have done that?

Steele talked about black successes too, but the problems are where the GOP can gain insight and advantage. Steele has already shown himself dedicated to making inroads in minority communities. To be sure, co-opting Democratic issues such as education and fighting inner city crime isn't a new idea. George Bush did it successfully as governor of Texas and tried again in 2000 with his compassionate conservatism.

But as the first African-American party chairman, Steele gives minorities a seat at the GOP table. He is also probably more respected in the black community than any other Republican aside from Colin Powell. On many issues - gun rights, education, crime prevention - the GOP isn't necessarily on the wrong side; they are just on the other side and must appear to be open to negotiation. For example, gun rights sound great when you're a sport shooter or hunter and live in a nice comfortable area. It doesn't sound so great when you live in Richmond, Orlando, or another mid-major city that is plagued with gun violence. It's not a secret that certain regulations like the Lautenberg Amendment, which bars gun possession by abusers convicted of misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence, gives law enforcement a leg up. But the gun lobby - NRA, et al - recently supported an argument that would've gutted it. The argument was proffered by a convicted domestic abuser, based on a significantly narrow interpretation, and ruled against in the Supreme Court.

In minority communities, especially black ones, it seems as though law enforcement's hands are too frequently tied when it comes to protecting black victims yet all too free when it comes to imprisoning black suspects (blacks are six times more likely to be imprisoned). This distrust naturally fosters even more problems. Steele can certainly help to cut through this distrust by supporting policies that empower urban communities, continuing to support affirmative action, and ending the condescension emanating from the likes of Rush Limbaugh (to whom he should not have recently apologized). So it's Steele's moment. The GOP should fall back and let the man work.