Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele sent out a fundraising appeal today asking party faithful to help counter a prime-time appearance President Obama will be making next week on ABC TV. Steele is seen here giving a speech to GOP state party chairs in Baltimore earlier this month.

As we reported earlier, the president and the news network are co-hosting a town hall meeting that night on health care. In a statement about the one-hour telecast, ABC said Obama will be taking questions from an audience representing "divergent opinions" on the big debate, but Steele isn't buying that.

In his fundraising letter, the RNC chair said ABC has "turned over its entire programming" to "promoting Obamacare." Steele writes that the party is trying to raise $100,000 to buy airtime for a response.

Steele's letter comes one day communications strategist Keith Appell told reporters that ABC News is refusing to accept paid advertising from one of his clients, Conservatives for Patients Rights. The group opposes Obama's health care proposals; we've already told you about the ad campaign they've mounted on cable TV. CPR chairman Rick Scott called the network's decision "unfortunate and unusual."

We've called ABC for a response and will keep you posted.

Update, 12:29 p.m. ET: ABC has posted a response to the Republican National Committee's charges, which the network says are based on "false premises." Far from promoting the president's position, next week's prime time news event will be "devoted to exploring and probing the President's position and giving voice to questions and criticisms of that position," writes ABC senior vice president Kerry Smith.

As to the decision not to accept ads critical of the Obama health care proposal, that's in line with "a long-standing policy" of the network, says spokeswoman Cathie Levine. "ABC does not accept advocacy ads," she said.

Underlying the complaints is a feeling among conservatives that, as Steele put it in his letter, Obama is getting unusually "favorable coverage" from "the mainstream media." When John Harwood of CNBC and the New York Times asked Obama about his good press reviews earlier this week, the president pooh-poohed the idea.

"It's very hard for me to swallow that one. First of all I've got one television station entirely devoted to attacking my administration," said Obama.

Harwood asked whether he meant Fox News. Obama didn't directly answer, but continued:

"That's a pretty big megaphone. You'd be hard pressed if you watched the entire day to find a positive story about me on that front," the president said.

We've also put a call into Fox to see if the network has anything to say.

(Posted by Kathy Kiely; Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)