Word: republican
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...world is the Republican Party going to orchestrate its comeback if it's having such a tough time organizing the seating chart for one fundraising dinner? That, at least, is the question being posed by many amused spectators of the GOP's puzzling game of musical chairs it appears to be playing with Sarah Palin...
...embarrassing spectacle concerns the roster of speakers for Monday evening's GOP annual joint Senate and House fundraiser, the biggest Republican congressional event of the year, which is expected to rake in at least $10 million. The Alaska governor was originally invited last spring by Pete Sessions, the chairman of the National Republican Campaign Committee (NRCC), to address the dinner. She accepted, or so Sessions thought, and a press release went out. But there was apparently a miscommunication in Palin World between Washington and Alaska advisers, because as it turned out, the 2008 vice presidential nominee had a conflict...
Until last week, that is, when fundraiser and Palin supporter Fred Malek pushed the National Republican Senatorial Committee - headed by Cornyn - to re-extend the invitation to Palin. The Alaska governor would be in the area, marking the 50th anniversary of Alaska's statehood with a parade in Auburn, N.Y., the home of William Seward, the former U.S. Secretary of State who spearheaded the Alaska purchase. The idea, according to a Senate GOP staffer, was to make her appearance at the dinner a surprise...
...fact, what the entire Palin saga really shows is what a hard time the Republican establishment is having in pleasing its conservative base and trying to expand it. Palin, after all, is at the top of many lists of possible 2012 presidential contenders, and she remains hugely popular with the Republican base. But she'll never get elected without the support of an establishment that still has its doubts about her mainstream viability. These people need each other; if only they could figure out how to break bread with one another...
...could come but would not have a speaking role, her staff angrily said she likely wouldn't attend the dinner. Cornyn reached out to her personally on Sunday to try to change her mind, and on Monday, Sessions was also reportedly working overtime to try to persuade the popular Republican to attend the event. By late Monday afternoon, Palin had reportedly decided to attend (though not speak at) the dinner...