Watts would not identify who is lobbying him to challenge the current chair. J.C. Watts for RNC chair?

Former GOP Rep. J.C. Watts says he is being “encouraged” by supporters to run for chairman of the Republican National Committee, a move he says could broaden the party’s appeal to minorities.

Watts is not formally entering the race, and he is not critical of current RNC Chairman Reince Priebus, who has already announced he will second term in the post.


( Also on POLITICO: Priebus tries to lock down RNC chair)

But Watts, an African-American conservative who served in the House from 1994-2002, said the GOP defeat on Election Day demonstrates that Republicans need to broaden their appeal to minority voters, and cannot continue on their current path if the party is to be successful in presidential races.

“My concern right now, and I don’t say this necessarily as a candidate [for RNC chairman], my concern is that as a Republican, every single Republican in America ought to be concerned about what has happened in 2008 and 2012,” Watts said in an interview with POLITICO. “In this business, if you’re not growing, you’re dying.”

Watts would not identify who is lobbying him to challenge Priebus, and reiterated that he has not made a decision to definitely jump into the race.

( Also on POLITICO: Republicans ponder their way forward)

Watts complained that Republican efforts to reach out to minority groups have not been sustained or consistent during his 20-plus years as a politician, but rather are executed on ad hoc basis - usually in election years. In Watts’ view, and that of many other Republican leaders and party operatives, if the GOP doesn’t dramatically improve its image with black and Hispanic voters, it will not be able to win back the White House.

“These old, tired, pathetic models of saying, ‘Okay, in the black [community], when there’s a presidential election, we will form an African-American Coalition for [Mitt] Romney or [Sen. John] McCain,’ I’ll never do that again. That is a joke, that is so tired,” Watts said. “It’s window dressing to say, ‘African Americans for Romney’ or ‘African-American Coalition’ or ‘African-American Advisory Council.’ That’s insulting to the people that they ask to do it when you don’t put an permanent infrastructure in place to give it credibility.”

According to exit polls, President Barack Obama won 93 percent of African-American voters, and over 70 percent of Hispanic voters, key blocs in his successful run for a second term. Such stark numbers are a major concern for GOP leaders as the party begins to think about the 2014 and 2016 battles for Congress and the White House.

Watts, 55, noted that coming out Romney’s defeat in the presidential election, “the only demographic going forward, based on the 2012 numbers … that we can be encouraged by and we’ve got some capacity [for growth] would be the evangelical, pro-life Catholics. Now your establishment Republicans don’t want to hear that. But that’s just the reality.”

The Oklahoma Republican insisted he wasn’t slamming Priebus personally, yet said prominent African-American conservatives weren’t used effectively by the Romney campaign or GOP to counter Obama’s appeal to black voters or other minority communities.

“I don’t know Priebus,” Watts said. “That’s like [Speaker] John Boehner saying, ‘I don’t know President Obama.’ Or Obama saying, ‘I don’t know [Sen.] Mitch McConnell.’ … For the first time since I’ve been a Republican in 1989, I can’t tell you who is in charge of trying to establish deeper relationships with non-traditional constituencies, especially in that black space at the RNC. I have no clue who it is.”

“We’ve so allowed the left to define diversity, that we don’t like talking about diversity, we don’t like talking about multicultural things,” Watts said. “To me, I take a biblical view on diversity and multicultural issues… We shouldn’t be afraid to discuss it.”

Since leaving Capitol Hill a decade ago, Watts has formed J.C. Watts Companies, which including a lobbying shop representing clients like defense giant Lockheed Martin Corp. and energy producers. Watts also owns several John Deere farm equipment dealerships, and he frequently appears on TV to discuss the GOP and minority issues.

Yet Watts faces a steep uphill fight - at best - for the RNC post if he decides to formally enter the race. Priebus, the former Wisconsin GOP chairman, took over the RNC in 2011 after ousting Michael Steele, the first African-American to head the GOP. Priebus is widely credited with helping rebuild the committee’s finances after a disastrous run under Steele. When Priebus took over the RNC, it was $22 million in debt, which has been eliminated.

Priebus has already announced that his seeking a second term as RNC chairman and looks to have more than enough votes wrapped up at this point to guarantee a win even if Watts does decide to formally challenge him. Of the 168 voting members who get to pick the RNC chairman, Priebus has at least 130 votes locked up, and possibly as many as 150, said party insiders.

Sean Spicer, RNC spokesman, would not comment directly on a potential Watts’ run for chairman. Spicer, though, said Priebus - and Republicans nationwide - know they face challenges winning support from minority groups and are determined to reverse that trend.

The RNC is scheduled to hold its winter meeting - where Priebus will face reelection - on Jan. 23-25 in Charlotte, N.C.

“The focus of the last two years was getting the RNC in a financial position to fund the most comprehensive ground game in our history and make upgrades that were necessary - digitally and otherwise - that had not occurred during the last couple years, and restoring the donor base of the RNC, which had been destroyed,” Spicer said. “As we head into this next cycle on much better financial footing, the RNC will launching the most comprehensive political and communications outreach effort in the history of the party.”

“There is no question [Republicans need] to do better” with minority voters, Spicer acknowledged. “There’s no other way to read the results [of Election Day.] The principles of the party are sound, but we have to do a better job of getting into certain communities and speaking to different types and getting back to our core message.”

Matt Pinnell, chairman of the Oklahoma Republican Party - Watts’ home state and where he was a star quarterback of the University of Oklahoma football team, said he was backing Priebus for a second term.

“Not only does Reince deserve another term, but he’s the best person for the job,” Pinnell said. “I think what he’s done over the last couple years to rescue the committee from where we were … not only from a financial perspective, but also his message skills. He’s done a very good job communicating to the 168 in these states. That’s a big part of his job.”

Pinnell added: “I know that the RNC is bringing a lot of people to the table to talk about where we need to go as a party, and where we need to go as a committee. That’s a very healthy process. I think Reince will do a very good job of that. I think he will bring a lot of people from all different walks of life to the table and will be very well prepared for 2014, and certainly 2016.”