By Illinois Review
During a Wednesday morning staff meeting, outgoing Republican National Committee Chair Ronna Romney-McDaniel gave a tearful and emotional goodbye – even slamming fellow Republicans in her final address to the organization that she has led for the last seven years.
“We’ve gone through a lot these past four years or seven years. We had everything against this building, especially people in our own side. And that’s the most unfortunate part about it,” said Romney-McDaniel, the niece of Never Trumper and Utah Republican U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney.
Romney-McDaniel said she was proud of what the RNC team accomplished – under her leadership, over the last seven years.
“I’m so proud of what we’ve done. And I’m holding my head high. All of you should hold your head high. We don’t win elections without a strong RNC and anybody who says otherwise is wrong.”
Under the leadership of Romney-McDaniel, Democrats have dominated at the national level – defeating Republicans in key races in 2018, 2020 and 2022. Conservative attorney and Townhall columnist Kurt Schlichter summarized her chairmanship in a column, writing,
“Five rounds of elections – three cycles and two Georgia primaries – and not a win among them.”
Romney-McDaniel has also come under fire for reports that showed the RNC spending millions of dollars on private jets, limousines, luxury retreats and Broadway shows since her election as RNC chair in 2017.
Financial records also showed $100,000 being spent for Romney-McDaniel’s hair, makeup and dry cleaning services for her television appearances.
And in the midst of a string of election losses, Romney-McDaniel had her salary increased. In 2017, according to Federal Election Commission reports, her salary was $122,582. In 2020, the year Joe Biden took office and the Democrats regained control of the US Senate, Romney-McDaniel’s annual salary was $410,640.
And just recently, the RNC reported its worst fundraising year since 2013 – raising only $87 million in 2023 compared to the Democrats who raised $120 million during that same time. So far in 2024, Democrats have $21 million cash on hand, while the Republicans sit with just $8 million.
The outgoing RNC chair has also taken some heat for not being better prepared during the 2020 election – especially surrounding election integrity issues and her failure to deploy an army of lawyers into key areas around the country to monitor the counting of ballots.
Two weeks ago, President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for President of the United States, issued a statement and announced his pick to lead the RNC in a move that was meant to force the current chair out.
Michael Whatley, the chair of the North Carolina Republican Party received Trump’s endorsement to lead the RNC in large part because of his work on election integrity issues in his home state where he deployed hundreds of lawyers to stop Democrats from cheating during the 2020 election.
(Jonathan Drake/Reuters/File)
Romney-McDaniel’s resignation is effective on March 8th at the RNC Spring Meeting in Houston, Texas.
