RNC uses fear, deceit, contempt and a heap of stupidity

What happens when a 72-page hard bound copy of a confidential fund-raising document is found in the lobby of a luxury hotel in Florida? The finance arm of the GOP gets caught with their pants down and it's not a pretty sight.

The presentation, delivered by RNC Finance Director Rob Bickhart to top donors and big money raisers, displays "an  air of disdain for the party’s donors that is usually confined to the barroom conversations of political operatives."

Politico writes, "Manipulating donors with crude caricatures and playing on their fears is hardly unique to Republicans or to the RNC – Democrats raised millions off George W. Bush in similar terms – but rarely is it practiced in such cartoonish terms."

Under Michael Steele, "the RNC has shifted toward a reliance on small donors, but the document reveals extensive, confidential details of the strategy for luring wealthy checkwriters, which range from luxury retreats in California wine country to tickets to a professional fight in Las Vegas."

The RNC reacted with alarm to a question about it Wednesday, emailing major donors to warn them of a reporter’s question, and distancing Steele from its contents.

“The document was used for a fundraising presentation Chairman Steele did not attend, nor had he seen the document,” RNC Communications Director Doug Heye said in an email. “Fundraising documents are often controversial.



“Obviously, the Chairman disagrees with the language and finds the use of such imagery to be unacceptable. It will not be used by the Republican National Committee – in any capacity – in the future,” Heye said.

So, why take the time to draw it up and then have the stupidity to present it to major donors?

The presentation targets two groups of fundraisers.

For small donors, described as "Viscerel Giving," cultivate fear and extreme negative feelings toward the Obama Administration. "Reactionary."

Major donors come under the heading "Calculated Giving" - "Peer to Peer Pressure" and "Ego-driven."

A major Republican donor described the state of the RNC’s relationship with major donors as “disastrous,” with veteran givers beginning to abandon the committee, which is becoming increasingly reliant on small donors.