Reince Priebus has dubbed the report a 2012 'autopsy.' RNC: Voters see GOP as 'scary'

The Republican National Committee concedes in a sprawling report Monday that the GOP is seen as the party of “stuffy old men” and needs to change its ways.

Among the RNC’s proposed fixes: enacting comprehensive immigration reform, addressing middle-class economic anxieties head on and condensing a presidential primary process that saw Mitt Romney get battered for months ahead of the general election.


The committee also proposes major improvements to the party’s voter database and digital technology, which paled next to that of the Democrats and contributed to the party’s losses last year.

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The suggestions are among dozens the committee makes in what RNC Chairman Reince Priebus has dubbed an “autopsy” of the party’s 2012 failures and a roadmap forward. Priebus unveiled the 98-page report at a news conference Monday morning at The National Press Club.

“There’s no one reason we lost,” Priebus said. “Our message was weak; our ground game was insufficient; we weren’t inclusive; we were behind in both data and digital; our primary and debate process needed improvement. … So, there’s no one solution: There’s a long list of them.”

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The report devotes many pages to the need to better connect with minority, female and young voters. Comprehensive immigration reform is a critical first step, it says.

“It doesn’t matter what we say about education, jobs or the economy; if Hispanics think that we do not want them here, they will close their ears to our policies,” it states. “In essence, Hispanic voters tell us our Party’s position on immigration has become a litmus test, measuring whether we are meeting them with a welcome mat or a closed door.”

( See also: Full RNC report)

Post-election focus groups with voters drove home the party’s shrinking demographic appeal, the report says.

“Asked to describe Republicans, they said that the Party is ‘scary,’ ‘narrow minded,’ and ‘out of touch’ and that we were a Party of ‘stuffy old men,’” it states.

Though it steers clear of the gay marriage debate, the report also says Republicans need to be more tolerant of gays if it is to have any chance among younger voters. People younger than 30 cast 5 million more votes for Barack Obama than Romney, it says.

“Already, there is a generational difference within the conservative movement about issues involving the treatment and the rights of gays — and for many younger voters, these issues are a gateway into whether the Party is a place they want to be,” it says.

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The report is long on lists of ailments, but shorter on specific fixes. There are recommendations for better outreach and more focused efforts, but little discussion about the policies and specifics that the party would sell while reaching out to different types of voters.

Beyond immigration, it barely touches on policy. That was by design, according to the report, because it’s not the RNC’s purview. Still, policy is no small part of the GOP’s internal debate now, which underscores the limitations of what a party committee can do.

For instance, there are no references to abortion or Planned Parenthood — or any of the issues that were at the heart of the battle for female voters last year. The report says the GOP lost the “war on women” messaging but doesn’t make clear how the party should be on offense going forward.

Other suggestions are likely to meet with some chuckles, such as one related to doing better with younger voters: “Establish an RNC Celebrity Task Force of personalities in the entertainment industry to host events for the RNC and allow donors to participate in entertainment events as a way to attract younger voters.”

It was only a few months ago that the party repeatedly hit Obama for fundraising with celebrities.

The study also includes a declaration that the party shouldn’t get involved in primaries. It’s a nod to new GOP heroes like Sens. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, both of whom were opposed by many establishment Republicans.

But it is at odds with the call for a shorter, more committee-managed presidential nomination process — which critics say would make it harder for insurgent candidates to gain traction.

The report also delves into campaign mechanics. One section on polling recommends a summit, to be held by April, to discuss issues like sample weighting and inclusion of cellphone-only users. The National Republican Congressional Committee is already doing something similar, as POLITICO reported recently.

And the RNC looked at Obama’s ad campaign spending, his campaign’s field operation, and the data and analytics elements of the president’s reelection effort that were vastly superior to the GOP’s.

Not all areas on that list get equal treatment. There are pages devoted to improving outreach to Hispanics, African-Americans and Asian voters, as well as to how the glut of debates has increased exponentially in the past two presidential campaigns.

Other areas get shorter shrift. A section on vendor selection, an issue that has been a source of complaints from a number of Republican operatives and activists, gets a mere three paragraphs. There is nothing in the report suggesting a method of accountability for vendors, for campaigns and for the committee itself.

Most controversial with activists is likely to be the call for fewer debates and a nominating convention in June or July. It was that protracted process that allowed the insurgent candidacies of Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum to last into the spring.

Both of those candidates were also aided by the proliferation of super PACs, and the report makes plain that the situation has weakened the RNC.

Parts of the report is spent talking about messaging and the need for a kindler, gentler GOP. Some of the suggestions for bringing in new voters are as simple as not seeming hostile.

The report calls for a platform for data-sharing across a variety of parties and groups. A major section is about voter contacts and suggests a handful of upcoming races this year could provide key tests.

“We need to look at our methods of contact and test each — mail, phones, door-to-door, and digital efforts, and fundraising appeals — to determine what provides the best quality of contact and most likely conversion to actual votes,” the report says.

Priebus said at The National Press Club that he had input from more than 50,000 people in the process, although he and the report don’t quantify that data precisely. The survey also says the group did a survey of 227 political professionals for certain metrics.

“The report minces no words in telling us that we have to be more inclusive. I agree,” Priebus said. “Our 80 percent friend is not our 20 percent enemy. We can be true to our platform without being disrespectful of those who don’t agree with it 100 percent. Finding common ground with voters will be a top priority.”