Sir Winston Churchill, former British Prime Minister during World War II, once told me, "To every man there comes a time in his life when he is figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a great and mighty work; unique to him and fitted to his talents; what a tragedy if that moment finds him unprepared or unqualified for the moment that could be his finest hour."
Every time current Republican National Committee (RNC) chairman, Ronna Romney McDaniel has been tapped on the shoulder, she has been found unprepared and unqualified for the moment that could have been her finest hour.
She is seeking an unprecedented fourth term as RNC chair later this month. There is absolutely nothing in her tenure as chairman that warrants another term.
She was appointed by President Trump to the position after his successful 2016 presidential election. He wanted someone in the position that he would have total control over; and Romney was more than willing to oblige.
There is absolutely no rationale for Romney being elected to another two-year term.
After two years, in 2018, Republicans lost the House to radical Democrat Nancy Pelosi. This was followed by us losing the White House in 2020; and then just last November we thoroughly under performed during the midterm elections, taking the House by a mere five votes and failing to pick up the Senate that we should have won.
What is the common thread during this six-year period? You guessed it, Ronna Romney and the utterly poor messaging coming out of the RNC. The RNC is supposed to be the PR arm of the national party with a focus on messaging and communications. In this regard she has been totally incompetent.
Blacks voted for Trump and his policies, not the Republican Party.
Why?
Because under Romney, the RNC has adopted a "ghetto approach" to the Black voter. Last year I wrote a column about this idiotic strategy by Romney. To read it, click on this link.
Romney has literally spent millions of dollars setting up RNC "outreach" offices in inner cities across the country that has been a colossal waste of time and money.
Romney is so detached from the Black community that she had no idea that this move was insulting as hell to the Black community, especially Black conservatives.
So, let me see if I can understand her logic. She spent millions of dollars to set up bricks and mortar offices in inner cities across the country to talk to people who are the least likely to vote (low-income people who live in the inner cities); let alone vote for a Republican.
This is political malpractice and justifies her not being reelected on this basis alone!
I challenge the 168 voting members of the RNC to find me one photograph of Romney meeting with any of the top conservative minority entrepreneurs in the country?
Let me save you some time, they do not exist because after six years in office, Romney has NEVER met with the most successful conservative minority entrepreneurs in the country. She does not know they exist nor that they are an untapped potential source of new financial contributors to the party.
They are mostly sitting on the sidelines because they do not believe they have a role in the party, though they vote Republican.
Why have they not been invited to serve on the RNC's finance committee? I guess under Romney those positions are only reserved for whites.
Over ten years ago I founded the only conservative organization in the U.S. whose sole focus is on getting more Blacks involved in the Republican Party. We focus strictly on the Black businessman!
The group is called Black Americans for a Better Future. Click on this link to support our efforts.
Last month we hosted a dinner with several Republican congressional friends of mine with twenty-five of the top Black, Asian, Hispanic, and Indian entrepreneurs in the U.S. The revenues represented by these twenty-five firms were north of $ 1.2 billion. Yes, you heard right, $ 1.2 billion!
Click on this link to see the photos.
All of them were conservative, but none have contributed money to the RNC in years. These are some of the most successful businessmen in the country and Romney has no idea that they exist.
Again, this is political malpractice on Romney's part and should bar her from serving another day, let alone another term.
Even Republican mega donor and co-found of Home Depot, Bernie Marcus understands the role and value of the minority entrepreneur within our conservative movement. Read his well thought out editorial in the Wall Street Journal.
Marcus is 93 years old and totally understands the value of diversity; whereas Romney is 49 years old and does not have a clue. Now go figure that one out.
Again, she is totally unprepared and unqualified for another term.
Finally, Romney comes from an extremely wealthy patrician family. She is the niece of current U.S. Senator from Utah and former 2012 Republican presidential candidate, Mitt Romney. She is also the granddaughter of former three-term Michigan Governor, George W. Romney.
George Romney was a Civil Rights icon and worked and marched with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. None of his family has even come close to matching his legacy relative to the Black community.
So, it should come as no surprise that Romney is so threatened by the candidacy of Harmeet Dhillon for RNC chair that some of her supporters are trying to use Dhillon's religion against her.
Dhillon is a lawyer and serves as national committeewoman to the RNC from California, thus making her one of the 168 who will be voting for the next chairman.
Dhillon is also from India and is a practicing Sikh.
I have discussed this issue with several of my friends who are part of the 168 and they have confirmed receiving disturbing phone calls about Harmeet's religion from some of Romney's supporters.
I have confirmed at least two Romney supporters who are using this disgusting tactic, one from the Midwest and the other from the South.
Last week Romney issued a statement denouncing this religious attack on Dhillon; but if you think she did not at a minimum give a wink and a nod; I have two towers in New York I want to sell you!!!
Alright, let us be charitable and give Romney the benefit of the doubt and assume that she really did not have anything to do with these despicable acts.
What type of environment has Romney created among her supporters that they would even think to commit such an act on their own?
So, issuing a perfunctory press statement denouncing this act is performative at best. If her supporters think this is OK, what kind of RNC do they think Romney really wants?
Every time Ronna Romney has been tapped on the shoulder, she has been found unprepared and unqualified for the moment that could be her finest hour.
Harmeet would make a great RNC chair and bring fresh ideas and people to the party.
This party and the conservative movement could use a little diversity at every level, so let us start by electing Harmeet Dhillon as our next party chair.
What a tragedy if the 168 members of the RNC do not agree with me.
Raynard Jackson is a Pulitzer Award nominated columnist and founder and chairman of Black Americans for a Better Future (BAFBF), a federally registered 527 Super PAC established to get more Blacks involved in the Republican Party. BAFBF focuses on the Black entrepreneur. For more information about BAFBF, visit www.bafbf.org. You can follow Raynard on Twitter @RealRaynardJ or Gettr @RaynardJackson.