Hubbard picks his man

By Jennifer J. Foster

Published: December 30, 2008

Alabama Republican Party Chairman Mike Hubbard has chosen his horse in the race for control of the national party.

It’s Katon Dawson, chairman of the South Carolina Republican Party. He’ll be remembered by most casual political watchers as the guy with the heavy accent who welcomed viewers to the Republican presidential debate sponsored by Fox News back in January.

SIDEBAR: If you watch that clip, check out how many times Brit Hume says “Fox News” in the intro. END SIDEBAR

Hubbard noted Dawson’s “successful leadership at the state level, adherence to the Republican Party’s core principals and his accomplished record of outreach to new Republican voters and candidates” in endorsing his fellow state chairman.

Dawson has been picking up some notable endorsements. But if he starts closing in on a winning number, the national press will bear down on at least one thing in Dawson’s history that could be an obstacle to continuing that party outreach at the national level: His 12-year membership in a whites-only country club in Columbia.

The (Columbia) State newspaper reported in September that Dawson resigned “as The State pursued an article on his membership in the club and his role in an internal push to admit African-Americans as members.“

Shortly after learning about the deed restrictions of the club, Dawson had written a letter to club members in August, informing them of his “intent to work to change the club practice that would exclude membership for anyone based on any specific ethnicity.“

It’s unclear how this issue would affect Dawson’s ability to lead the national Republican Party and its outreach efforts. Those who know him say his membership in the club is in no way a reflection of his personal beliefs about race.  The State quoted several people—black people included—who came to Dawson’s defense. And his supporters point out that under his leadership, the South Carolina Republican Party has seen the election of Glenn McCall, the first African-American to serve on the RNC, and Tim Scott, the first African-American Republican to serve in the South Carolina General Assembly since Reconstruction.

Before formally resigning his membership, Dawson said that he was concerned that the club issue could become a distraction to his efforts to lead the state party.

If he’s elected chairman of the Republican National Committee and sent to do political battle against the leadership of the first black president of the United States, it’s likely that the issue will at least come up.

Here’s the news release from the Alabama GOP:

Alabama GOP Chair Endorses South Carolina’s Dawson For RNC Top Post

Auburn, AL – Rep. Mike Hubbard (R-Auburn), Chairman of the Alabama Republican Party, announced today that he is supporting South Carolina Republican Party Chair Katon Dawson to become the next head of the Republican National Committee.

Chairman Hubbard cited Dawson’s successful leadership at the state level, adherence to the Republican Party’s core principals and his accomplished record of outreach to new Republican voters and candidates as reasons for his decision to support Dawson.

“Katon Dawson is an optimistic, outside-the-beltway Republican leader who will bring fresh, innovative ideas to the Party,” Hubbard said. “When you look at the accomplishments the Republican Party has achieved in South Carolina under his leadership, it is truly phenomenal.

“Katon understands what it takes to run a successful state party, which is critical,” Hubbard continued. “He has set records for fundraising, recruited quality candidates and dominated his state by electing Republicans at every level.

“In many ways, we have unfortunately become a ‘top down’ instead of a ‘bottom up’ organization. I believe it is critical for the Republican Party nationally to focus on all 50 state parties by providing support, tools and resources to create a top quality grassroots operation.

“I have no doubt that Katon Dawson has the knowledge, experience and leadership skills necessary to move our Party to new levels.” 

Hubbard, who serves as Minority Leader in the Alabama House of Representatives in addition to his role as Alabama GOP Chairman, will cast his vote for Dawson in late January when all RNC members will convene in Washington for the RNC’s Winter Meeting.