RNC votes to block CNN, NBC from hosting debates
By STEVE PEOPLES
Associated Press
BOSTON (AP) -- The Republican National Committee approved a resolution Friday to block two television networks from hosting GOP presidential primary debates.
Friday's vote affirms RNC chairman Reince Priebus's threat against CNN and NBC unless the networks dropped plans to air programs about possible Democratic presidential contender Hillary Rodham Clinton. The vote was unanimous.
Priebus said CNN has "an obvious bias."
"That's a network that won't be hosting a single Republican primary debate," Priebus declared, receiving a standing ovation from Republican activists from across the country gathered for the committee's summer meeting in Boston.
In a statement, CNN said a division of the company planned to air a documentary about Clinton in 2014.
"The project is in the very early stages of development, months from completion," the CNN statement read. "We encouraged all interested parties to wait until the program premieres before judgments are made about it. Unfortunately, the RNC was not willing to do that."
Even before the Clinton dispute, Republican leaders favored plans to have fewer presidential debates with more friendly moderators. They believe their 2012 presidential candidates spent too much time beating up on each other in last year's monthslong primary season, contributing to Mitt Romney's loss.
"Our party should not be involved in setting up a system that encourages the slicing and dicing of candidates over a long period of time with moderators that are not in the business of being at all concerned about the future of our party," Priebus told reporters.
Democratic National Committee spokesman Michael Czin criticized Friday's vote.
"Instead of modifying their policies to actually present smart solutions for middle class families, the only thing the GOP can unite behind is a plan to continue to limit the audiences - and voters - to whom they will communicate," he said.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/20 … s-is-more/
The Republican National Committee’s decision to exclude CNN and NBC from the 2016 primary debate process is about Hillary Rodham Clinton, right? Only partly.
The more important takeaway from the whole saga is that party leaders know they desperately need to limit the number of debates in 2016. And the step the committee took Friday allows the national party tighten its grip over a process that, in the eyes of many Republicans, cost the GOP in 2012.
Just ask RNC Chairman Reince Priebus.
“The fact of the matter is I’ve got to protect this party and our nominees. We don’t want a whole lot of 23 debate rounds like we’ve had before,” Priebus said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week With George Stephanopoulos.”
Leaving NBC and CNN out of the fold (to be clear, the networks can still host debates, but they won’t be officially sanctioned by the party) simplifies the RNC’s task of limiting the number of debates.
“Look, if you’re not going to have 23 debates, these guys are making it a lot easier for us to pare that down to a reasonable number in front of people and entities that actually give a darn about the future of the Republican Party,” Priebus added.
Republican candidates debated 20 times in 2011/2012. The process allowed lesser-known candidates to access hours of precious earned media time to build their profiles and, in the process, ding the frontrunners. The debates also highlighted before a national audience positions that proved costly later on in the campaign. To wit: Mitt Romney’s “self-deportation” remark on immigration.
They long parade of debates is also tailor-made to expose weaknesses. For the most part, the most memorable debates are the ones in which something goes terribly wrong for one of the candidates. Look no further than Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s “oops” moment, arguably the part that stands out the most from all 20 GOP debates.
As we’ve written, there are other reasons why it was smart for the RNC to pick a fight against CNN and NBC over their decisions to produce films about Clinton, which Priebus cast as an attempt to tip the scales in Clinton’s favor ahead of a possible 2016 campaign. The mainstream media and Clinton are both viewed with heavy skepticism in the GOP base. So, it was a battle sure to fire them up.
But don’t lose sight of the bigger picture when it comes to anything debate-related for the GOP headed toward 2016. The overarching goal for the party is to ensure the free-for-all Republicans lived through in 2012 doesn’t happen again.
Besides, the GOP is too busy denying the right to vote to the young, the old, Hispanics, Latinos, and African Americans, or just about anyone who might lean toward the Democratic ticket. Trying to limit the turnout at the polls is the ultimate confession that you do not have good ideas to help the people, esp. the middle class!