My Support for RebuildTheParty.com & RNC Technology Plan for 2009

[Mike Duncan]

Yesterday, I met with representatives from www.RebuildTheParty.com. We had a very positive discussion and we both learned a lot from each other about where the Republican Party stands technologically and where we need to go.

Based on the results of our meeting, I’m pleased to add my name to the list of those who have endorsed the principles proposed at www.RebuildTheParty.com.

We’ve all seen technology revolutionize the business of politics and we all agree that the Republican Party must use every resource at our disposal to share our message with voters and modernize how we run campaigns.

We also all agree that we cannot win elections without a consistent, conservative message and principled candidates for elected office. No amount of technology or innovation can replace these basic building blocks of politics. However, we must leverage the new tools that technology offers to spread our conservative message, raise funds for Parties and candidates, and get our supporters to the polls.

At the RNC, we’re using these tools now to reach out to grassroots supporters with www.RepublicanForAReason.com. Conservatives from across the country have visited this site nearly 170,000 times and shared more than 8,200 recommendations on the next steps we need to take as a Party.

Part of the RNC’s technology mission must also focus on sharing resources with State Parties to reduce their costs through economies of scale. We did this in 2008 by offering State Parties web hosting and email platforms at no cost. I commit that the RNC will continue to provide new technology tools to assist our State Parties.

Looking to 2009, let me share with you where we stand now and my vision for growing our technology capabilities:

Our Voter Vault and Voter File continue to be the cornerstones of the RNC’s technology efforts. This year, we introduced VoIP phones to reduce costs and enable volunteers to input voter data in real time, improving the Voter File with every call. We will continue to keep Voter Vault and our Voter File on the cutting edge of industry innovation.

Another Voter File innovation this year allows the RNC to serve targeted online advertisements to 40 million likely voters across the country, micro-targeted by geography and party affiliation.
For example, in Senator Saxby Chambliss’ run-off election in Georgia, we delivered 78 million targeted messages to 600,000 likely Republican voters via banner ads and search engine marketing. We’ve also used this initiative to support Republicans in Congressional and gubernatorial races. We’re looking forward to expanding this initiative to support more candidates and issue advocacy in 2009.

In the past two years, we grew our email list by six hundred percent to over 12 million names - - about the same size as the Obama campaign. We will continue to grow and refine this list in 2009.

We’re also going to focus on specifically growing our list of mobile subscribers. In 2008, we targeted minority and young voters with Spanish-only communications on their mobile devices - - and we saw very impressive results. We’ll commit significant resources to reaching young voters on their mobile devices in 2009. We’ll also be inviting volunteers to create applications to compliment our mobile efforts.

In this past election cycle, we witnessed the explosion of social networks in the political world. Whether one used Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn or something else, the ability to connect and share ideas with others was a huge leap from previous campaigns. To fill the need for a Republican social network with specific political tools, we revamped MyGOP and have added more than 110,000 new users in the past year.

We are working with the best and brightest online vendors from across the country to develop new applications and tools for MyGOP so that, in 2009, MyGOP will transform into a more open, vibrant conservative network for political discussions, fundraising, and grassroots organizing.

On the communications front, our Online Communications team worked aggressively in 2008 to reach out to online media. We maintained a database of more than 5,000 bloggers, representing the full political spectrum. We even had more bloggers in Minneapolis for our National Convention than the Democrats had in Denver.

In 2009, we’re going to expand this outreach to support the Center for Republican Renewal and conservative policy initiatives. Our Speakers Bureau will expand the opportunities for guest bloggers and working with Republican surrogates to post ideas and engage with interactive communities.

One last comment on technology: we need to change the way we think about campaigns to accommodate the benefits that technology offers. We need to develop a new model of allocating campaign resources that reflects the new media world that we live in. This isn’t about resources and lists; this is a shift in campaign philosophy to embrace ALL the tools at our disposal.

I look forward to continuing to work with RNC Members, Republican technologists, and conservative grass-roots activists to build our Party with all the tools that technology has to offer. I also invite you to visit my campaign website at www.MikeForChairman.com to learn about my vision for the future of our Party.

With warm regards,

Mike Duncan

[John]

Time for Duncan to go. The party has floundered under his leadership and lost its principles. Things need to change in the GOP and Duncan is first to go.

[River Jones]

Are we still waiting for answers from Mr. Duncan? It's been a couple weeks Mr. Duncan, are you interested?

[Brittney Caan]

that looks good on paper, but we need to a new chairman to turn it from the old right to the new right! Rove wanted Duncan, but its time for a change and a new chairman!

[Randy Covington]

I tried 2 times to institute an account on MyGOP. I never got a response and my account was not activated. I am degreed in CIS. From my perspective the site is broke.I am not sure that anyone is managing the technology stack at RNC.

[Andy]

Does Mike Duncan need to step aside? #TCOT co-founder thinks so! Ouch!

[Dan Schwartz]

RNC chairmen are like dirty diapers:
Both need to be changed often, and for the same reason!

[Dan Schwartz]

Andy, I already read the article by Shawn Steel: He gets it, and you get it. It's time for Duncan to "spend more time with his family," a la Mel Martinez.

[Dan Schwartz]

Sorry Mr. Duncan: It's time to go. You failed as a party leader on many fronts, refusing to see the work Howard Dean did in rebuilding the `Rats.

By the way, where the hell were you on TV during your tenure as GOP Chairman? You didn't even bother to show up on Fox News! Ed Rendell, Terry McAuliff, and Howard Dean were always available to go on-camera on any network that would turn the camera their way.

Putting a technology smiley face :) on a disoriented message is no better than thousands of "dot bomb" businesses did in 1997-2000 with a "Let's raise some venture capital and put up a website" with most any cockamamie, hair-brained scheme.

The reason why the `Rats succeeded this cycle was that they tightly coordinated their campaigns, leveraged through the "Web 2.0" technology. But, simply adapting Web 2.0 without the marketing and management strategy behind it is no different than Pets.com... Destined for failure.

Case in point where you failed to lead the GOP: Øbama won big in Kalifornia; but the margin was reversed for Proposition 8.

Also, don't sprain your arm patting yourself on the back over Saxby Chambliss' win in Georgia: It was Sarah Palin making several campaign appearances that drove the base to the polls, while Øbama stayed in Chicago recording a couple robocalls.

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By the way, Duncan wrote "In 2008, we targeted minority and young voters with Spanish-only communications on their mobile devices" Hmmm, something is wrong there.

[Andy]

And this one from RedState.

[Andy]

On the subject of Chairman Duncan... This article is worth a read!