In a four-page resignation letter released Nov. 16, RNC political director Gentry Collins lays out a perilous financial picture for the committee, in the hopes that it can regroup in time to fight the 2012 elections effectively. Among his assertions: During the 2010 campaign cycle, the RNC allowed its major donor base to wither. In that cycle, the RNC raised far less money than normal and spent a far higher percentage of the money it had on fundraising. The committee was underresourced during the campaign, and therefore did not engage as fully in many of its usual activities as it could have, such as voter turnout programs.
In his reelection message to RNC committee members Dec. 13, Steele fired back at his critics, saying they “are talking a lot of trash about fundraising and talking a lot of smack about major donors.” He then reportedly pointed out that the committee had raised more in 2009-2010 than what the Democratic National Committee did when the Democrats retook Congress in 2006.
