dissected and analyzed to score points, to make a point. you have to appreciate that behind those numbers are the efforts of your state central committees, your county committees, your activists, our friends in the tea party movement >> the responsibility of leadership in this party, not just in this office of chairman, not just in the office of cochair, or secretary or general counsel -- but in the very offices each one of you hold is to be a leader first. that is what the members of this party expect you to do when you come to the republican national committee. your efforts began in 2009. in a little place called

virginia, new jersey and you shocked the world because we weren't supposed to win in virginia and we damn sure were not supposed to win in new jersey. but you did. you know what else you did that does not get reported? you won the mayor's races in 2009. albuquerque, new mexico, the first time in 20 + years, we have the mayor's office. county executive races, upstate new york, everyone was focused on other things. meanwhile, the party was slowly and steadily building brick by brick the success that was borne out there. those of the tide of adverse that this party has to be engaged in. every single day.

some of the numbers i want to share with you, again, are not just numbers on paper, but they are testament to the work that each one of you did, each one of view, not just what jan and i did with the 400,000 miles per year or poring over books. sharon was out their rallying the troops. it is not just what we did but what you did every single day. 44 million voters voted for us. in 2000 tent. that was the highest midterm turnout for any party in any midterm in the history of this country. you did that. republican gop efforts smashed multiple voter turnout efforts. it was a stunning 24% increase

in voting, you did that. all of you played a pivotal role in opening and establishing 360 victory offices across the country with a paid staff who were there on the ground with you compared to just 154 victory offices in 2008 and 140 in 2006 by virtue of the very plans to put together. for the first time in history of our party, we had a 50-state strategy. we had a strategy of the territories where we won the governorship and the lieutenant governorship of guam and we want races in places where people did not expect this to run or wind. you did that. the rnc made an impressive use of new media to boost turnout for the rnc website of love was or when -- completely revamped. it drove visits up 159%.

the content of outgoing e-mails was enhanced to become more effective. in fact, our e-mail achieved a 40% open rate up from about 3% in 2008 and inclick-thru rate was close to 15%. many of us may not appreciate but i know saul anuzis does. he is probably clicking right now. those percentages are real people coming to you, coming to our party to get information, to learn, to become involved. that is what you did. on the fund-raising side, you added, through your efforts in your state party and what we did nationally, over 1 million

new donors, a small, medium, and large. this reverse the decline of new voters we have seen in recent off-year collections, quadrupling the number is raised from new donors from 2009. you did that. the efforts of our party, a party once tagged as an endangered species, speaks for itself. i hope all of you, regardless of the outcome of this day, appreciate what you have done to we all talked about the republican renaissance two years ago. look how we have pulled ourselves and moved forward. now the task becomes harder. because president obama is waiting for you.

the democrat party is waiting for you. they are going to engage us on the battlefield of ideas, the battlefield a policy, and i thank heaven that we have speaker behner right there on the front lines for us. [applause] and leader cantor and the leadership of our party on the hill, but most especially the leadership we have in our state, our new governors, our new state legislators. on that front, because this is the real work you did, we picked up over 680 state legislators seats. that is an amazing feat. do you understand what that means when it comes to redistricting? 194th congressional district lines will be drawn by

republicans over the next two years. 44 congressional district lines will be drawn by democrats. that is what you did. you made a difference. planning, hard work, engaging, not just our base and are activists, but our grass roots, folks who did not know that they were grass-roots folks, who are part of our tape. that is what a good party does. you have all proven and shown the republican party is a good party. it is ready and willing to work on behalf of the american people. i have been honored to serve these past two years as your chairman. i know the work that lies ahead will be difficult and challenging. i have no fear ignored doubts that you will rise to that occasion because you are the republican party in action every single day in states all across

this great country and neighborhoods and communities, it has been such a pleasure for me to watch all of you work outside your comfort zone. we hope, through the efforts that you commit to when you leave this meeting, that you are ready to give the democrats hell over the next two years that you are willing to work and fight on behalf of the american people of like anything you have ever done before because the work is too important, the challenges are too great, and our grandkids and our great friend kids are dependent on us in this hour to get it right. that is what a good republican party does for the people of america. i thank you for what you have done so far. god bless you. [applause] now the nominations for the

candidates running for rnc chairman. >> we will now begin the nomination process. the secretary has confirmed that five candidates for chairman have demonstrated the required support for nomination. the chair recognizes john ryder from tennessee for the purpose of nominating a candidate for rnc chairman. i believe we have lost john ryder's voice. >> i am chris devaney standing in for john ryder. on behalf of the great state of tennessee, i am proud to nominate ann wagner as the next chairman of the republican national committee. [applause] we have some good people running but i believe that ann wagner

stands alone as the one candidate who possesses the complete package of skills needed to make a clean start for the rnc. ann wagner has certain republican party for 20 years. she served at the local precinct level, as a township committee woman, at the state level as a state party chairman and as co- chairman of the rnc. i know that she is a dedicated volunteer and able leader and for me, a solid conservative. we all know how critical the next two years will be. these are critical time for america and the current administration would like to change this country in a way that i don't think any of us want to. the republican party is the critical organization to take our country back. and put it on the right track. as state chairman who raises money on a daily basis, the rnc has lost credibility with donors or both large and small.

in order to restore the credibility, we need a chairman who can raise the money and manage the money that she raises. and all offers those --ann offers those abilities. she has demonstrated her ability to raise money. as co-chair, she was part of the team to race to lead to $84 million during the 2002 election cycle and $380 million during the 2004 election cycle. she raised money for the missouri republican party and has outlined an aggressive fund- raising plan that includes immediately convening past and present rnc finance chairmen to create a new team 120 program for maxed out donors. that will include regional groups and has the political savvy to lead our party in this crucial election. having served as a party official and campaign official,

she has been a customer of the rnc and she knows what we need to deliver the state's and to the campaigns in order to rid -- to elect republicans to office in 2012. she will run a tight ship at the rnc, and instituting management changes that the committee will structure are committing more like a business. ann knows what it takes issue will run it like a ceo. she will be -- she will run a member-oriented committee. she is not the candidate of any presidential campaign or any special interest or vendor. she will be a co-chairman and a members member. she will be a servant-leader. she will bring the full package still said to the rnc. ann as the average of talents and skills that fit the committee at this crucial time and i urge you to vote for ann

wagner as our national committee chairman. [applause] >> thank you, chris. the chair recognizes jan staples for a second day. >> with a chance to make history by electing a woman for the chairman of the rnc. i second denomination of ann wagner for chairman of the rnc. >> carloine mcclarty, i also second the nomination for ann wagner, she is the complete package. >> i enthusiastically second this nomination for ann wagner for chairman. >> i am from missouri, i enthusiastically endorse ann and second the nomination. >> i am from kentucky and i am

proud to second the nomination of ann wagner. >> i am from west virginia, i joined my fellow members in not been -- and second in the nomination for ann wagner. >> i am from missouri and is my distinct honor to second the nomination of ann wagner. she was a great chairman in missourian to is a great cochaired the issue a great -- she will be a great chairman of this committee. please support me in supporting ann wagner as chairman of this committee. [applause] ." >> thank you. the chair recognizes steve king from wisconsin for the purpose of nominating a candidate for rnc chair. >> thank you, madam chairman. on behalf of the governor of the

great state of wisconsin, scott walker, our newly elected senator ron johnson from wisconsin, our congressional delegation including paul ryan and on behalf of the republican party wisconsin, i am proud and happy to stand before you and for our next chairman of the republican national chimecommite chairman, reince preibus. [applause] i have been involved in politics for some time, 30 something years and have watched over the last dozen or so years, the career that reince has brought to our party culminating several years ago when he became our leader. he immediately, upon becoming been chairman, he retired air debt, he ran the house, he hired the best people, he raised record amounts of money. he regretted conservative candidates. he represented us wonderfully to

the media. he stayed on message. he wrapped us -- he wrapped his around the various coalition groups to include the tea party and the results november to show it. never before in the history of our state at least turned our stayed around. governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, both houses, the united states senate, and two congressional seats. it was a state that was totally black and blue became totally red. and now, he is offering to bring the kind of leadership to our national party. reince is the leader that we need to unify our committee, bring the resources we so badly need if we are going to succeed and build on the successes we enjoyed in 2010 in 2012. i urge your support for the next generation of leadership to our

party, reince preibus. [applause] >> thank you, state party chair recognizes the seat belt, national committeewoman from montana for the purpose of recognizsecond day. >> i am happy to second the nomination for reince preibus today. he knows all about winning. [applause] >> national committeewoman from wisconsin, i am extremely proud to second the nomination of my state chairman as i have learned firsthand his strong work ethic and his commitment to serve -- service leadership, thank you. >> mississippi, i am supporting reince preibus for many reasons but one of them is he will be a great fundraiser. he will keep people come of

financial leaders from our party. >> national committeewoman from oregon and i am happy to support reince preibus. he will provide the oversight we need for the next election. >> i am from indiana, i support -- i second the nomination because i have found in working with reince preibus is that he shows uncommon respect for every member of this committee. he will show that as chairman and he is a committed conservative that we need to lead the way in 2012. >> national committee man from nebraska, i am excited to second the nomination for reince preibus who will bring back the discipline we need them georgia, i believe that reince preibus will serve and i will serve us. >> national committeewoman from

arizona. i am supporting reince preibus for rnc chairman because of the way he works with the tea party organizations. thank you. >> national committeewoman for iowa, i m seconding reince preibus for chairman because he will uphold our pro-like platform. >> the august state chairman for the grace of oklahoma, i second started i think he has the plant personality to be able to reach the next generation of voters. >> national committeewoman from the state of california. i am supporting reince preibus and seconding the motion because i know he has the laser focus on elected republicans and especially focusing on bringing the white house back to us. >> national committee man from iowa. i am supporting reince preibus because he is enthusiastic. >> your time is up.

are there any others who would like to second reince preibus? let the secretary know when she will put it in the records. the chair recognizes the national committeewoman from hawaii for the purpose of nominating a candidate for rnc chairman. >> thank you, madam chairman. it is my pleasure today to make this nomination. i don't have to remind this group that together we all fired nancy pelosi in 2010 and now we have a majority in the house of representatives. we have taken over -- we have accumulated another 690 state legislators seats, the most

since 1928 and we have a winning chairman. i would like to ask you at this time to join me in reelecting michael steele so that we can to gather the ft barack obama in 2012. thank you. [applause] >> the chair recognizes the national committee man from florida for the purpose of seconding. >> i am proud to second the nomination of michael steele and thank him for reaching out and reconnecting us with the american people are the tea party folks and everyone realize that he helped and was listening to week, the people for a change and republicans are back in the mainstream of america. thank you. >> national committeewoman from michigan. i am supporting michael steele for reelection because he is the individual best positioned as

rnc chairman to lead us objectively in the next election and promote our common goals, my reason for being an rnc member, thank you. >> i am from the national committeewoman from colorado. i am honored to second the nomination for michael steele as chairman of the republican national committee because he put us on the path to victory in 2010 and i believe he will see us perot victory in 2012. thank you. >> national committeewoman from south dakota, i support and second the nomination of michael steele for reelection because of all the money he sent to our state's for early victory offices and that ended in a win in taking back the house. fire policy was the way to go, thank you. >> madam chair and members, i am from mantegna. i am supporting michael steele

in his reelection because i have believed in the ground up. as he does at the local, state, and national levels. this is the kind of leadership that we expect out of michael and we will see it here through the 2012 elections. >> madam chair, and the national committee man from rhode island supporting michael steele. two years ago, this party was in dire straits and i don't know whether you have noticed, but we just had the biggest year that this party has ever had [applause] what corporation changes that had with you just have the biggest win? it is insane. let's notl of vieyou, change chairman, let's keep it going, we want to win in 2012. [applause] >> rhode island, our success in

november paved the winning pass to 2012 and i, for one, do not wish to change course now. join me in supporting michael steele for chairman of the rnc. he plotted the course and he will bring us home. >> as national committee man of the republican party of the virgin islands, on behalf of the whole delegation, when somebody makes sweet music ,one is a good conductor, you don't get rid of the conductor. he has made sweet music. we second the nomination of michael steele. join in and make sweet music. [applause] >> national committee man from new mexico, michael steele is a proven leader with the energy and enthusiasm to lead us to victory again in 2012. it is my honor to request your support and your vote for michael steele. thank you. >> the chair recognizes

cavanaugh dewine, state chair for ohio. >> ladies and gentlemen and fellow members, i know we have heard all the speeches and i know no one wants to hear any more so let's get to the point. the challenges that face this committee are incredible and they are daunting. in less than 22 months, we have to dig out of a $20 million hall, put $27 million into the presidential trust and fund a get-out-the-vote effort for our presidential candidate, pay for a national convention, we have to identify the presidential candidate and do so while facing what will likely be a billion dollar ground game in an effort to reelect obama. i respect every one of the candidates that has put forth

their candidacy over the last several weeks. i respect the heck out of every one of them and you should, too. i do not envy anyone who gets the job. i know one thing -- this committee needs a quiet, effective, experienced share to tackle these tough challenges. i am confident that maria cino is that person. she is the only candidate in this race who has worked in and around the committee for better than 30 years. she is the only one who has managed the rnc not once but twice. the only one was run a national political operation for a successful presidential campaign, the only one who help bail out a national committee that was in millions of dollars worth of debt and has successfully funded a national convention. the list goes on and on. she has the confidence of our party's highest ranking official, that being speaker john boehner from the great state of ohio and i join him today in respectfully asking each and everyone of you to cast

your vote for melia cino for chairman. it is now my distinct honor and pleasure to placed into nomination for chairman, the name of mario cino. thank you. [applause] >> the chair recognizes the national committeewoman from utah for the purpose of second and. >> thank you. in 1993, republicans were in big trouble. we had a charismatic young president. we had not held a house majority in 40 years and nrcc was $5 million in debt. maria cino clear that debt and raised millions more dollars. as i look at us today with a charismatic president whose policies are wrong for our country, i want a candidate for chairman who is raise the most money, elected the most republicans, executed the most programs, and who has demonstrated a lifelong commitment to the republican

party and its ideals and that is maria cino. i am honored to second her nomination. [applause] >> chairman of new york state party. in 1996, she raised $100 million and successfully defended our new majority in the house of representatives. in 2000, she ran the successful operation that elected a republican challenger into the white house. in 2004, she ran the political operations that devised and implemented the most successful victory operations in the history of this national party and in 2008, she ran a great convention. therefore, it is my great honor to second denomination of the maria cino who will be the next chairman of our public and

national republican party. [applause] >> i am honored to second the nomination of maria cino because it is time to elect a chairman who will restore credibility to the republican national committee from day one. it is time to elect maria cino will be able to raise money, millions of dollars from day one. it is time to elect maria cino, a chairman who will be able to elect republicans from day one. it is time to elect maria cino, the will stand tall for republicans across this country from day one. i have had 35 years of the national committee and believe me, it is time. thank you very much. [applause] >> i rise to second the nomination of maria cino. i am impressed that she will help write the ship, particularly the internal ship that we have. to help rectify the deficit.

she will help us reach out to our candidates with money because when all is told, we will have to have $700 billion to win in 2012 and she is the only candidate out there who has shown that she can raise that money, thank you very [applause] >> the national committee man for virginia for the purpose of nominating a candidate for rnc chairman. >> madam chairman, it is my honor and pleasure to place a name in nomination for rnc chairman. we are fortunate to have well qualified candidates for national chairman. all of them have made their cases with respect to fund- raising and their political

skills and later today, one of our candidates will win a majority of our votes. as you consider the candidates, i ask you to keep in mind the four questions. who would be most able to incorporate the tea party activists and other newly active grassroots conservatives into the campaigns of republican candidates in 2012? i know these activist organizations. i have trained many for the tea party groups and i believe the answer to that question is saul anuzis. second, who is most likely to exploit fully the high-tech social media for republican candidates? the answer is saul anuzis. home would you be confident with to respond most effectively in

spontaneous give-and-take with representatives of the news media? the answer is saul anuzis. fourth, whom do you know would be the chairman most quickly to get back to you when you want to discuss something important about your state or the rnc? i think the answer is saul anuzis. two years ago, he was my second choice and now i am one of many here saul as my first choice. he is easy to like. i predict we will find that on the final ballot , asa thatul is the second choice of a great many more of us. it is my pleasure to nominate saul anuzis. [applause] >> thank you. the chair recognize the state chairman for south carolina for the purpose of second thing. >> it is my distinct privilege

and honor to second the nomination of saul anuzis. this is a gentleman that does not just walk the walk. he talks the talk and he walks the walk. this gentleman is someone who carries the core competency is that we need for this position. he is a fund-raiser. he is someone that inherently understands the tactician, the ability to strategizing and the fundamentally understands technology and out of reach. ladies and gentlemen, within 30 days of my nomination as state party chairman, the rest of the red states receive some pretty tremendous news. our governor had some foibles and they played out nationwide and there was one person in this room that came to the great state of south carolina and that was saul anuzis. for absolutely no money, he sat with us and help the strategizing. he made historic gains and i attribute most of those to the foundation laid by this gentleman. it is my privilege and honor and

i ask each of you to take the arm-twisting and forget it. go to your hearts and do what's right and forsaul. i yield my time >> i am the national committee man from texas. fellow members of the rnc, it is my pleasure and honor to second the nomination of saul anuzis. he is a proven business manager and party manager. he is a tremendously successful fund-raiser. he is an outstanding manager of the republican message and he has been an effective communicator in all types of media. that is what he is and what he has done. that is what he can be and can do for you and me as chairman of the rnc. i strongly urge that you both for saul anuzis. i yield the balance of my time to the committeewoman of massachusetts. [applause] >> madam chairman and members of the committee, i fully endorse

the saul anuzis board chairman of the rnc and i wish that you would all follow me. as one of a handful of state female chairman, i would like to say that saul anuzis is someone that females can go along with. he works well -- not just because he is key [laughter] cute. [laughter] he understands the problems we face and has always been respectful and helpful. as a young person and a member of the young republicans, he can lead this grand old party into a new day that will take the rnc where it needs to go in 2012. thank you. >> since there are no other nominations that qualifies under role5b, nominations are now closed. >> the voting began with 85

votes needed to be elected chairman. after four rounds with the winner being declared, rnc chairman michael steel announced he was dropping out of the race. his remarks are six minutes. >> thank you very much. how are you all doing? [laughter] i just wanted to check a [laughter] . two years we had a good time. we built the party. it is clear that the party wants to do something a little different. and hopefully a little bit

better. i appreciate all the hard work that all of you have brought to the table. i said that earlier this morning. that is a message from the heart. this is tough because it is what it is. i hope you do not forget as the process unfolds that unification moving forward with building and growing wins. our target, our ground game, our opportunity breasts with the people of america. -- our opportunity rests with the people of america. i thank you for the two years that i have had. at this time, i will step aside for others to lead. in so doing, i hope you all appreciate the legacy.

despite the noise, we have had a lot of noise. despite the difficulties, we won. [applause] sit down. sit downdown. sit down. sit down. [applause] please, please, as probably many of you figured out, i am a fighter. i am a little bit obstinate. but i am because i believe in the fight.

i am because i believe that the greatest gift we can give to the people politically as our service to them. as i said this morning, that is your charge. you took that charge seriously. we raised money. $192 million, no asterisks. we won 63 house seats, 21 state legislatures flipped d fromto r. we won in places we have not won in a long time. it was not because of white did or whatjan did, it was what you did. i will step aside because i think the party is ready for something different. at this time, i released my supporters and i ask them to stand with me in supporting maria cino as next chairman of the rnc. [applause]

all the while, it is up to all of you to decide. we have been through some big storms, some small storms, but this storm you cannot allow to continue. we must heal ourselves and go forward together and we must win. barack obama's agenda is not good for america. we fired policy. perlosi. let's take the senate, let's take the white house, let's kill america and make a better and broader. as we are today as republicans. unified and moving forward. it is important. i thank you for the opportunity to serve and to lead.

now, i exit stage right. [applause] >> after six rounds, candidate ann wagner dropped out of the race after seven rounds, a winner was declared.

>> in descending order, preibus -- 97. [applause] anuzis -- 43, cino -- 28. one more time -- the chair recognizes kevin dewine. >> i make a motion to reflect the vote was a unanimous selection of reince preibus as the next chairman of the republican national committee. >> i would like to second the motion. >> thank you, it has been moved

and seconded. is there a discussion? and the discussion? all those in favor, aye. all those opposed thosenay, the ayes have it. congratulations. [applause]

[applause] >> wow, thank you. thank you very much. i am going to keep this really short. i just want to thank god. i want to thank jesus for this moment. i am so blessed and i said that to you so many times, just for

being a little kid growing up in kenosha. on my first date with my wife, this should tell you something about me, i have to tell you that with two great kids, we can't wait to get to work here in the party and rebuild this party, move on to conservative candidates. i want to thank the republican leaders from my home state of wisconsin including steve king, mary bustrin, scott walker, ron johnson, scott duffy, and paul ryan. thank you very much. [applause] i want to thank all the candidates to step up and offer themselves to this tall task. i want to thank chairman steele

for his leadership over the past two years. thank you. [applause] i want to thank all the rnc members who believed in my vision, who understood that some significant work that we need to do on the committee has to get done. we have to get on track and together, we can defeat barack obama in 2012. together, unified as a committee. [applause] with the election over, now is the time for the committee to unite. we mu come together. for our common interests. for the betterment of our party and our country. with that in mind, i want you to know that i am here to earn the

trust and support of each and everyone of you. i told you i would serve in humility and work hard. i will start working right now as your chairman. we all recognize that there is a steep hill here ahead of us. the only way we will be able to move forward if we are all together. we must never forget why we all do this because as ronald reagan said, "our nation is the shining city upon a hill and we must work to keep it that way." we recognize that the democrats have taken this country on the wrong path. it is not going to be easy or glamorous, but together, we must lead the way to a better committee and a better america. i have spoken to most of you and

you have seen my plan to move this committee forward. it starts right now on day one. it is now my duty to implement this plan and communicate it to the american people in a real clear term. you all are the board of directors. while i may be the ceo, we must all remember that each of us, everyone of us is still an employee to republican voters. it is our job to fulfill the mission of the rnc and we will start by putting a solid business plan in place to operate effectively and efficiently, to begin to restore the faith of our donors. we will work to develop a new line of communication with state parties. the new speaker of the house, john boehner, senate republican leader mitch mcconnell, and

newly elected republicans across the nation. with this new focused leadership, the rnc will move forward by restructuring our financial operation, reviewing our current plans of action, and hiring top notch staff. i understand the challenges that lie ahead of us go well past raising funds. we must know how to spend these funds effectively, to aid in our redistricting efforts, to support our 2011 candidates, to hold a world class convention, and to be sure that our republican presidential has the organization in place to be to barack obama. -- to beat [applause] ]

i am completely humbled to have the opportunity to lead this amazing party. starting today, starting now. , as a committee, let's come together and let's get ready to elect republicans and god bless the committee and god bless the united states of america. thank you very much. i appreciate it and i will turn your trust every day. thank you. [applause] >> sean miller of the hill, you have been watching this all day. what is your reaction? >> reince preibus @ whittled down support from his rivals. he took some votes away from chairman steele and we saw him

withdraw from the race and we saw ann wagner withdraw before the seventh round of voting started. he was basically able to wrangle the votes into his camp. he is taking the chairmanship with a little over 90 votes and came in and delivered a speech promising a humble, a new hard working year of. >> what is the strength of reince preibus with the republican national committee? is it his record in wisconsin? is it picking up house seats? what is it that sold the delegates? >> absolutely, i think you hit the nail on the head in terms of referring to the record in wisconsin. he came in as chairman of the wisconsin republican party in 2007. after that, he was able to build a significant organization out there.

they won daid obey's house seat and russ feingold's senate seat. they did that and a fairly blue states. they made significant gains in this last election. he promised to lead the rnc for it. >> what do think we will see? what you're looking for as we move into the jet -- chairmanship of reince preibus? >> he faces a fund-raising challenge. there were estimates before the vote happen that he will need to raise at least $400 million in the next few years to compete with president obama and senate democrats and the dnc. the other challenge he faces a the tea party movement. what we saw last couple of years was a movement, a decentralization of republican power into these groups, these

9-12 groups, activists and money were flowing away from the rnc and into this grassroots movement. he has to convince those activists and donors that the rnc is back and they are more viable and stable. they need to start putting their money in their efforts for the party. >> sean miller of the hill, we thank you for working with us today and we will talk to you again. >> the new rnc chairman, reince preibus, also spoke briefly with reporters following his election. this is just over five minutes. >> hi. first of all, my name is reince preibus. if you need some help with comedy central, i'm sure you can google it.

i'm so blessed to be elected as the chairman of the republican national committee. i promised the chairman i would work in humility and i would work hard every day to rebuild the committee and bring unity to our committee again. we need to raise a whole lot of money, come together as a party, build on the success and the victories that we have just had in 2010 and rebuild our credibility as a party, as the conservative party in america with the right answers to prevent our country from falling off the fiscal clip. we will do all that work together. we will all the principles of this party, raise the money that we need, put the money into the states, the ft barack obama in 2012, save our country, and in the process, save our party. with that, i will take any questions you might have carried i am actually running the meeting behind me if you have not noticed. i have to go back up but i will take a few questions.

>> how serious is the deficit in the party? >> obviously, we will probably be looking at $20 million in debts. we have a lot of work to do. we have to get our financial team to gather around the country. i will get to work on that tonight. i will reach out to our major donors and get them back on board and put this party back on their shoulders so we can have the money and resources and the people we need to rebuild the rnc. i would be remiss not to say thank-you to chairman steele for his leadership. we respect him and wish him well. i want to thank all the other candidates, ann wagner, maria cino, saul anuzis, michael steele, we appreciate their heart and efforts in this race. it is tough. these races are tough. >> are you now the voice of the

republican party? >> i am the chairman of the republican national committee and i serve 160 members of that committee from every state and its territories in washington, d.c. we are blessed to have speaker john boehner and senator mitch mcconnell as our leaders. we will work with them. we appreciate them. as chairman of the party, is part of my job to support them as well >>. >> you don't have a ton of experience doing something like this record. are you prepared for this? >> wisconsin is a targeted state and i have talked to many of you here. we are not unused to dealing with lots of press in a state that barack obama visits every other month.

i have talked to a lot of you already about some of the things we have done at the rnc. i am prepared for this but with god's help, anything is possible. >> [inaudible] >> that is the job of the republican national chairman. we will deal with that tomorrow morning. i just grabs the gavel to run the next election. we will bring a team together. we will take the executive committee of the rnc and we will be the transition team of this rnc. we will build unity on this committee and everyone will have a say. we will do this together and we will bring real leadership back in the building and get this train back on the rails. >> how relevant is the rnc? >> it is very relevant. we have to raise about $400 million over the next two years

and we will do that through regional finance directors. getting the finance chairmen around this country back on board and putting the rnc back on their shoulders and rebuilding this party will take hard work. i have no allusions about that. >> how to get state donors? >> a lot is at stake in this election and they believe in the republican party and they believe we need to save our country. they want to come on board. i have talked to many of them and they are ready to go to work. they want to rebuild the finances of this party and move on to 2012 for a great victory. i have to go back in and run this meeting. >> what about any divisions between the establishment and the grass roots? >> i don't think there is, not from the 168 that were there voting and certainly not from me. i am part of the grassroots

movement. our party is part of the conservative movement in this country. we're not in competition. we will do it right and we will do it together and we will win in 2012. thank you very much. >> this weekend on c-span 2 book-tv, former adviser to martin luther king jr., clarence jones with a behind- the-scenes look at the weeks leading up to the historic march on washington and the "i have a dream" speech. find a complete schedule at book tv.org and sign up to get our schedules e-mailed to you directly. >> this morning, jennifer rubin discusses the future of the discusses the future of the