According to the new rules that the Republicans made, any connection to discredited conspiracy theories means that one is not fit for government service. So, how does the RNC justify its connections to both World Net Daily, the main pushers of the birther conspiracies, and Newsmax, who publishes a weekly column by John L. Perry? (John L. Perry wrote the column calling for a bloodless military coup against President Obama, see here and here.)
Here is what the RNC said when Jon Henke, a conservative blogger with The Next Right asked them about their connections with World Net Daily:
After I argued that credible organizations on the Right should not support the conspiracy peddling of WorldNetDaily, it was pointed out that the RNC appears to have rented access to the WND email list. So I emailed the RNC to inquire about it and encourage them to stop.
My question was: “Is the RNC really renting the World Net Daily email list?” This was the response from the RNC Press Secretary:
Nice to meet you. Pls note that we have already weighed in on the birther issue — weeks ago. Thanks.
The Press Secretary then appended a NYT story in which this was their response:
“Chairman Steele believes this is an unnecessary distraction and that the president is a U.S. citizen,” said Gail Gitcho, a spokesperson for the Republican National Committee. “He wants to move on and continue talking about real and immediate issues that are facing our nation, like health care and the economy. Chairman Steele has other issues to take up with the president having to do with policy, not a birth certificate.”
Basically, Steele ducked the question. The RNC also gives money to Newsmax, and uses their mailing list for fundraising purposes:
Last month, the Republican National Committee used Newsmax’s email list — probably for a fee — to solicit donations and support.
Newsmax — which published (and later unpublished) a column saying it’s not “unrealistic” that there may be a “military intervention” against President Obama — names the RNC as “our sponsor” in the email, which is signed by RNC chair Michael Steele.
The message, addressed to “Fellow conservative,” asks readers to take a health care survey and contribute “$1,000, $500, $100, $50 or $25 to help support our efforts to combat the Democrats’ attempt to impose ‘Obamacare’ on all of us.”