Former RNC chair: 'This shutdown rests at the feet of the GOP'

Former Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairman Michael Steele says that the GOP is to blame for the government shutdown after lawmakers missed the deadline to pass a funding bill late Friday.

"Despite the rhetorical effort to paste Democrats with 'Schumer's Shutdown' and to redefine what constitutes majority control of the Senate ('60'? Really?), the fact remains that this shutdown rests at the feet of the GOP and it appears a majority of Americans agree," Steele told Politico.

Steele, who chaired the RNC from 2009-2011, before former White House chief of staff Reince Priebus, called the shutdown "pitiful" and said it "certainly could have been avoided."

The former Republican Party chief blamed President Trump for sinking a potential deal, saying Trump "wound up negotiating against himself by taking a potential agreement off the table."

[SOURCE: THE HILL]

African American Staffers Departing Republican National Committee

The Republican National Committee's Director of African American outreach is leaving the organization.

Kristal Quarker-Hartsfield is the highest ranking African American at the Republican National Committee and is responsible for strategy around the African American vote. NBCBLK has learned that Quarker-Hartsfield's official last day at the RNC will be April 1.

This marks the second big departure at the Republican National Committee in the last few weeks. NBCBLK first reported the departure of Orlando Watson, the Republican National Committee's Communications Director of Black Media, who left on March 4th.

That there has been a mass exodus of Black staff from the RNC is undeniable. Quarker-Hartsfield and Watson are two of four top African American staffers to leave the RNC over the past year. Raffi Williams, the former RNC Deputy Press Secretary and the son of FOX News political analyst Juan Williams left the RNC last year for a job in media. Another African American RNC staffer Tara Wall, who was a strategist for Mitt Romney's 2012 presidential campaign and worked for the RNC as a senior strategist for media and engagement, left in late 2015. The sole remaining top level African American staffer would appear to be Lucas Boyce. Boyce was hired to replace Wall and is listed as the RNC's Senior Strategist for Media and Engagement on their website.

Read more: Yet Another Top African American Staffer Departs RNC

Republicans release video reaching out to African Americans

It's now March of 2016 and the GOP being the GOP waited until February 29, the LAST day of Black History Month to release a video showing focusing on African Americans. What's very interesting is the video titled We Are The GOP, was released after the Donald Trump/David Duke/KKK controversy. Gee, wonder if there's a connection there? Watch the video below.

Ben Carson: GOP Should Be Focusing on Black Communities They’ve ‘Neglected’

On Fox’s MediaBuzz, Ben Carson talked to Howard Kurtz about how the Republican party should be doing more to reach out to black communities they’ve “neglected.” If Dr. Ben Carson keeps saying things like this his polling numbers will drop with the "base" as this could be considering pandering to a "special interest" group. Watch his interview below.

White supremacist donated to GOP presidential candidates

The leader of a rightwing group that Dylann Roof allegedly credits with helping to radicalise him against black people before the Charleston church massacre has donated tens of thousands of dollars to Republicans such as presidential candidates Ted Cruz, Rand Paul and Rick Santorum.

Earl Holt has given $65,000 to Republican campaign funds in recent years while inflammatory remarks – including that black people were “the laziest, stupidest and most criminally-inclined race in the history of the world” – were posted online in his name.

After being approached by the Guardian on Sunday, Cruz’s presidential campaign said it would be returning all money the senator had received from Holt.

Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/jun/21/dylann-roof-manifesto-charlston-shootings-republicans