MD-Sen: Steele outed

There was a brief flurry of speculation in the blogosphere today (or yesterday, rather) over who was the unnamed Republican Senate candidate that made several harsh criticisms of President Bush's handling of the war in Iraq and Hurricane Katrina, as well as compared his party affiliation to a "scarlet letter". Brief, I say, because it wasn't long before staffers of Maryland's own Michael Steele named him as the would-be Hester Prynne.

Although the mystery is solved, Milbank's article is still a great read, as he seems acutely aware of the absurdity of having a secret airing of grievances taking place in a restaurant with nine reporters on hand. Sen. Bill Frist even comes up to Steele, shakes his hand, and says, "He's the best!" If Steele was trying to distance himself from the GOP, he did a very poor job of it.

The whole incident confirms my long-standing impression that Steele is simply not ready for prime time. Leave aside, for the moment, his conservative positions on many issues -- in the Milbank article, Steele voices support for constitutional amendments banning flag burning and same-sex marriage, as well as opposition to embryonic stem-cell research and a guest-worker program for immigrants. Such positions put him at a disadvantage in a strongly liberal state like Maryland; but the real problems of his candidacy are more fundamental.

From the made-up charges of being pelted with Oreo cookies in 2002; to his failure to denounce Bob Ehrlich's attendance of a fundraiser at an all-white country club; to his comparison, in front of a Jewish audience, of stem-cell research to Nazi medical experiments; to his difficulties holding on to campaign staff; to the fact that he's willing to take money from Bush and other top Republicans but unwilling to show his face with them -- all these things evince a lack of a quality all successful politicans have: the ability to forge coalitions. Steele, rather, seems to be alienating both members of his own party and key constituencies in Maryland; e.g., African-Americans and Jews.

Ultimately, he seems unable to control his own message. And if he's having a hard time representing himself, how much harder, then, will it be for him to represent the people of Maryland?