Hired Guys

A month after the elections, American attorney and former chairman of the Republic National Committee, Kenneth Mehlman, reminded the Republican Party governors that they needed to rectify the mistakes they committed in the previous elections. If not, they will face years of political storm.

On November 30, 2006, exactly 23 days after the elections, at an annual meeting with the Republican Governors Association, Ken Mehlman stressed that the Grand Old Party (or the GOP) governors must go back to “good policy that makes good politics.”

On Nov.7 that year, the Democratic Party won most of the governorships and gained control over the White House and the Senate since the 1994 Republican revolution. While they are out of authority in Washington, the residual non-winning GOP governors took up a higher public profile. They may even pave the way for an achievable political comeback with the Republican Party.

Ken Mehlman addressed the governors in the yearly meeting and told them that they were “the greatest and most innovative think tank in politics” and that they are very much needed by the Republican Party and the nation. They were expected to do what they do best, “to change government for changing times.”

“If that is the approach we take, then we are destined to spend far more than one term in the minority,” Mehlman said. “And we as a party will deserve it.” At the end of 2006, Ken Mehlman stepped down as the chairman of the Republic National Committee.