| Michael Steele | |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 30, 2009 |
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| Preceded by | Mike Duncan |
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| In office January 15, 2003 – January 17, 2007 |
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| Governor | Robert Ehrlich |
| Preceded by | Kathleen Kennedy Townsend |
| Succeeded by | Anthony G. Brown |
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| Born | October 19, 1958 Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland |
| Birth name | Michael Stephen Steele (after adoption) |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Andrea Derritt Steele (m. 1985) |
| Children | Two |
| Alma mater | Johns Hopkins University (B.A.) Georgetown University Law Center (J.D.) |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Profession | Lawyer |
| Religion | Roman Catholic[1] |
| Signature | |
| Website | Michael Steele's blog |
Michael Stephen Steele (born October 19, 1958) is an American politician, serving since January 2009 as the first African American chairman of the Republican National Committee.[2] From 2003 to 2007, he was the seventh Lieutenant Governor of Maryland, the first African American elected to statewide office in Maryland. During his time as Lieutenant Governor, he chaired the Minority Business Enterprise taskforce, actively promoting an expansion of affirmative action in the corporate world.[3]
In 2006, Steele made an unsuccessful run for the U.S. Senate, losing to Democrat Ben Cardin. He then served as chairman of GOPAC, the political training organization of the Republican party, was a political commentator for Fox News and a partner at the law firm of Dewey & LeBoeuf before making his bid for RNC Chairman. He co-founded the Republican Leadership Council, a "fiscally conservative and socially inclusive" political action committee, in 1993.[4]
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Steele was born on October 19, 1958 at Andrews Air Force Base in Prince George's County, Maryland[5][6] and was adopted as an infant [7] by William and Maebell Steele. William died in 1962.[8][9] Maebell who had been born into a sharecropping family in South Carolina,[10] worked for minimum wage as a laundress to raise her children. After Michael's father died, she ignored her friends' appeals to apply for public assistance, later telling Michael 'I didn't want the government raising my children'.[10] She later married John Turner, a truck driver. Michael and his sister, Monica Turner, were raised in the Petworth neighborhood of Northwest Washington, D.C. which Steele has described as a small, stable and racially integrated community that insulated him from some of the problems elsewhere in the city.[10] Steele's sister later married and divorced former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson.[11]
Steele attended Archbishop Carroll Roman Catholic High School in Washington, D.C., participating in the Glee Club, the National Honor Society and many of the school's drama productions. During his senior year, he was elected student council president.[12]
After graduating, Steele spent three years preparing for the Catholic priesthood at the Augustinian Friars Seminary at Villanova University,[13] teaching high school classes in world history and economics for one year at Malvern Preparatory School in Malvern, Pennsylvania.[14] He left the seminary prior to taking the priestly vows.[15]
He then enrolled at the Georgetown University Law Center, attending classes at night and receiving his Juris Doctor in 1991. He failed the Washington D.C. bar exam, but then passed the Pennsylvania bar exam.[16]
Steele was employed as a corporate securities associate at the Washington, D.C. office of Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton. From 1991 to 1997, he specialized in financial investments for Wall Street underwriters, working at Cleary's Tokyo, Japan office on major product liability litigation and at its London office on corporate matters. He left the law firm and founded the Steele Group, a business and legal consulting firm.[6]
After joining the Republican Party, he became chairman of the Prince George's County Republican Central Committee. He was a founding member of the centrist, fiscally conservative and socially inclusive Republican Leadership Council in 1993 but left in 2008 citing disagreements over endorsing primary candidates,[4] though detractors contend that his departure was a politically convenient effort to boost his chances of becoming the RNC chair.[17] In 1995, the Maryland Republican Party selected him as their Republican Man of the Year.[6] He worked on several political campaigns, was an Alternate Delegate to the 1996 Republican National Convention and a Delegate to the 2000 Republican National Convention.[7]
In December 2000, he was elected chairman of the Maryland Republican Party, becoming the first African American ever to be elected chairman of any state Republican Party.[6]
In 2002, Robert Ehrlich, who was running for Maryland Governor, selected Steele as his running mate for Lieutenant Governor. The campaign was waged against Democrat Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, who was running for Governor and Charles R. Larson who was running for Lieutenant Governor.
Steele resigned his chairmanship of the Maryland Republican Party to campaign full-time. The Baltimore Sun praised Kennedy's running mate, Larson, for his experience and expertise, stating that: "state GOP chairman Michael S. Steele, brings little to the team but the color of his skin."[18]
In the September primary election, Ehrlich and Steele had no serious opposition. In the November 2002 general election, the Republican Ehrlich-Steele ticket won, 51 percent to 48 percent even though Maryland traditionally votes Democratic and had not elected a Republican Governor in almost 40 years. The Townsend-Larson campaign had been tainted by outgoing Democratic governor Parris Glendening's marital problems and backlash due to his strict enforcement of environmental regulations. During the election, Townsend was also criticized for her choice of running mate; she picked retired Admiral Charles R. Larson, a novice politician who had switched parties only a few weeks before.[citation needed]
Steele's most prominent efforts for the Ehrlich administration were reforming the state's Minority Business Enterprise program and chairing the Governor's Commission on Quality Education in Maryland. Steele garnered criticism for his failure to oppose Ehrlich's reinstitution of the death penalty, despite claims of racial inequities in the use of the death penalty, Steele's own religious beliefs and his prior anti-death penalty pronouncements.[19]
In 2005, Steele was named an Aspen Institute Rodel Fellow in Public Leadership and was awarded the Bethune-DuBois Institute Award for his continuing efforts to improve the quality education in Maryland.[20]
After a September 26, 2002 gubernatorial debate that had included the candidates for lieutenant governor, Paul Schurick, Ehrlich's communications manager, claimed that the Kathleen Kennedy Townsend campaign had handed out Oreo cookies to the audience.[21] Five days later, Steele said that one or more Oreo cookies had rolled to his feet during the debate suggesting a racist statement against him, that of being black on the outside and white on the inside like an Oreo. "Maybe it was just someone having their snack, but it was there," Steele said. "If it happened, shame on them if they are that immature and that threatened by me." More than three years after the debate, when Steele was running for the U.S. Senate, Schurick claimed "It was raining Oreos... They were thick in the air like locusts. I was there. It was very real. It wasn't subtle."[22] In a November 2005 Hannity and Colmes appearance, Steele agreed with Hannity that cookies were thrown at him during the September 2002 debate.[23] Neil Duke of the Baltimore NAACP, who moderated the debate, praised the "passionate audience" and noted that "derisive behavior" had occurred.[21] but did not see Oreo-throwing. "Were there some goofballs sitting in [the] right-hand corner section tossing cookies amongst themselves and acting like sophomores, as the legend has it?" Duke said. "I have no reason to doubt those sources; I just didn't see it."[22][24][25] The operations manager of the building where the debate was held, interviewed three years after the event by The Baltimore Sun, disputed Steele's claim and said "I was in on the cleanup, and we found no cookies or anything else abnormal. There were no Oreo cookies thrown."[22] Some eyewitnesses, including AP reporter Tom Stuckey[26] and Project 21 representative Kevin Martin,[27] have said cookies were handed out and thrown. Other eyewitnesses, however, did not corroborate that claim.[28][29]
At the 2004 Republican National Convention, Steele gave the Republican counterpoint to Barack Obama's 2004 Democratic National Convention keynote address; it was Steele's first major national exposure. In April 2005, President Bush chose him to be a member of the U.S. delegation at the investiture of Pope Benedict XVI in Vatican City.[30]
Steele appeared several times on HBO's political show Real Time with Bill Maher, and was on Comedy Central's talk show The Colbert Report on January 23, 2007.[31] He also hosted a PBS Republican Primary debate in Baltimore, Maryland on September 27, 2007.[32]
He coined the phrase "Drill Baby Drill" during the 2008 Republican National Convention in Minnesota, where he promoted offshore drilling as an alternative to dependency on foreign oil.[33]
When Paul Sarbanes, Maryland's longest-serving United States Senator, announced in March 2005 that he would not be a candidate for re-election in 2006, top state and national Republican officials began pressing Steele to become their party's nominee for the seat.[19] In April 2005, The Baltimore Sun announced the results of a poll it conducted, stating that Steele would run statistically neck and neck against either former NAACP head Kweisi Mfume, or Rep. Benjamin L. Cardin of Baltimore County.[34] Steele formally announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate on October 25, 2005.[35]
Steele lost the general election to Cardin on November 7, 2006,[36] 44 percent to Cardin's 55 percent. Steele's former campaign finance chairman later alleged improprieties in Steele's handling of campaign funds, which Steele denied.[37]
One day after Steele conceded defeat in the Senate election, Chris Cillizza of the Washington Post reported that Steele was hoping to succeed Ken Mehlman as the chairman of the Republican National Committee.[38] Senator Mel Martinez of Florida, who had the endorsement of President George W. Bush, got the position.
In February 2007, Steele became chairman of GOPAC, a political action committee that helps fund state and local Republican campaigns around the country and is responsible for training future Republican candidates. He succeeded former U.S. Congressman J.C. Watts, a fellow black Republican. In April 2007, Steele joined the international law firm of Dewey & LeBoeuf, as a partner in the firm's Washington, D.C. office.[39]
At a speech given at the Media Research Center's 2007 DisHonors Awards Gala, Steele said:
| “ | I get a question all the time, 'Are you going to run again for office?' And I've thought about that, and I've come to realize that there's still some Democrats out there that I haven't ticked off yet. So, yeah, we're gonna do it again. We're gonna do it again, and all I have to say is, they haven't seen anything yet.[40] | ” |
Steele is considered a possible candidate for Governor of Maryland in the future, and has said he's "intrigued by the idea".[41]
On November 24, 2008 Steele launched his campaign for the RNC chairmanship with the launching of his website.[42] On January 30, 2009, Steele won the chairmanship of the RNC in the sixth round, with 91 votes to Dawson's 77.[43]
Abortion: Steele is opposed to abortion.[44] He has said he thinks Roe v. Wade was "wrongly decided"[45] and "should be overturned."[44] Steele was endorsed by the National Right to Life Committee during his run for Senate in 2006.[44] In a March 2009 GQ interview, after stating that abortion is "an individual choice", Steele followed up with the assertion that "[t]he individual choice rests in the states" and is a decision "[t]he states should make...."[45] In the same interview, Steele stated that he "absolutely" believes there is room for a "pro-choice" candidate in the GOP.[45]
War in Iraq: "It is imperative we improve conditions on the ground so we can bring our troops home as quickly as possible and have the Iraqi people take control of their own destiny. At the same time, we should not publicly state a timetable for implementation. I do not support a 'cut and run strategy.' Any politician out there talking about timetables and timelines is playing into the hands of our enemies who have an enormous capacity to wait. It would be a disaster for us to cut and run, as it would destroy our credibility in the region for at least a generation. At the same time, it is the Iraqi's themselves that will ultimately have to make democracy work in their country. We should stay there only long enough to give the Iraqi people the tools they need to secure the very democracy they voted for three times. After that, it's up to them."[46]
Gay marriage: Steele has stated that he personally opposes a federal marriage amendment to ban same-sex marriage and believes that states should decide the issue for themselves, but has indicated he would uphold the current party platform and thus support the amendment. He rates the issue of banning same-sex marriage low in importance.[47][48]
Gay civil unions: "No, no, no. What would we do that for? What, are you crazy? No. Why would we backslide on a core, founding value of this country?"[49]
Stem cell research: "We have a lot to gain through furthering stem cell research, but medical breakthroughs should be fundamentally about saving, not destroying, human life. Therefore, I support stem cell research that does not destroy the embryo."[50] In February 2006 Steele compared embryonic stem cell research to medical experiments performed by the Nazis during the Holocaust, remarks for which he later apologized.[51]
Gun control: "Society should draw lines. What do you need an assault weapon for, if you're going hunting? That's overkill. But I don't think that means you go to a total ban for those who want to use gun for skeet shooting or hunting or things like that. But what's the point of passing gun laws if we're not going to enforce them? If you want to talk about gun control, that's where you need to start. We've got 300 gun laws on the books right now. At the end of the day, it's about how we enforce the law."[52]
Global Warming: "We are cooling. We are not warming. The warming you see out there, the supposed warming, and I use my fingers as quotation marks, is part of the cooling process. Greenland, which is covered in ice, it was once called Greenland for a reason, right?"[53][54]
Affirmative action: As Lieutenant Governor of Maryland, Steele committed $70 million in grants and loan guarantees for small and minority-owned businesses.[55] "Studies show enormous disparities still exist in education, healthcare, employment and economic opportunities along racial lines in the United States. I believe programs are still necessary to help close these divides. I support giving people opportunities. Programs must be fair to all Marylanders – of every color – and they should focus on economic empowerment." ... "We're just beginning to rediscover what we should be doing with affirmative action. Don't look at our universities. We got that. Let's look at our boardrooms, let's look at the management structure."[55]
Immigration: "Secure our borders first. Let us know and let us make sure the American people know that we're taking care of the important business of dealing with the illegal immigration into this country. You cannot begin to address the concerns of the people who are already here unless and until you have made certain that no more are coming in behind them."[56]
National security: "How do we engage in an enemy we can't see? How do we understand and know their next move? This is going to be a challenging question of the day...I'm not for shooting first and asking questions later." He believes in using "smart intelligence on the ground" while "preparing and placing ourselves in a position to act."[57]
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009: "I think if the government were to get out of the way and let the small business community and corporations of America weed themselves through this process, it's survival of the fittest".[58]
Steele's book, Right Now: A 12-Step Program for Defeating the Obama Agenda, was released on January 4, 2010;[59] it was published by Regnery Publishing.[59] The Associated Press reported that, "Steele focuses much of the book on familiar GOP denunciations of President Barack Obama's overall policies (a roadmap to failure), the $787 billion stimulus bill (a reckless, wasteful, pork-laden spending spree), liberal views on manmade global warming (A threat to life on Earth? Depends on whom you ask) and other issues. To regain the public confidence, Steele says the GOP should, among other things, expose the reign of error inherent in liberal policies, contrast conservative and liberal principles, and highlight the damage caused by Obama's policies while explaining conservative solutions."[60]
| Political offices | ||
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| Preceded by Kathleen Kennedy Townsend |
Lieutenant Governor of Maryland January 15, 2003 – January 17, 2007 |
Succeeded by Anthony G. Brown |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by J. C. Watts |
Chairman of GOPAC February 1, 2007 – January 30, 2009 |
Succeeded by Frank Donatelli |
| Preceded by Mike Duncan |
Chairman of the Republican National Committee January 30, 2009 – Present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
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