Massachusetts: Rnc

Republican National Committee chairman Michael Steele has reportedly hired Gentry Collins to be the party's new political director. Could be a sign of Romney making inroads with Steele. Collins has been a Romney guy for several years.

Back in 2005, when Romney became chairman of the Republican Governors Association, he made a strategically savvy move in hiring Collins as RGA political director. Why so savvy? Because Collins hails from Iowa, the most important state in Romney's 2008 Presidential plan. Collins was executive director of the Iowa GOP, and ran the statewide campaign for the gubernatorial candidate there in 2002. He was one of the best possible people to have running Iowa's caucus for a GOP candidate, and Romney scooped him up early.

A couple months back I suggested that Maine Senator Olympia Snowe should jump over to the Democrats. I swear the Republicans are trying their damnedest to make her do it.

Last week, RNC chair Michael Steele said on FOXNews that he would consider denying funds for, or backing primary opponents against, the three moderate Republican Senators who voted for the stimulus bill -- Snowe, fellow Mainer Susan Collins, and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania.

The three Senators were reportedly a bit peeved, as you can imagine. Roll Call reported that a furious Snowe approached Steele and demanded: "You didn't really mean that, did you?"

If Steele was conciliatory to her at the time, that quickly changed; perhaps something to do with Rush Limbaugh showing him exactly who's boss -- and how hard-line conservative you've got to be to keep the boss happy.

Mitt Romney is still the man, at least among the mostly young, mostly rabid conservatives at CPAC; he won the conference's straw poll for the next Republican Presidential nominee with 20 percent of the vote. That's three years in a row for Mitt.

As CPAC closes out to the dulcet tones of the right's dear leader, Rush Limbaugh, I have decided to update my ranking of the 25 most likely people to win the 2012 Republican Presidential nomination, made two months ago. I'll get to that below.

Just to wrap up for now about CPAC, however... The message from what I've seen is: Republicans -- and particularly George W.

--Obama: "I've done more in 30 days than most Presidents do in a full term, and I'm going to do a million more things in the next few months." Jindal: "Remember how incompetent Republicans were when we were in charge?"

--I know we're all angry at fat-cat financial execs, but that's no excuse for someone stealing Mitt Romney's wife's jewelry.

--Speaking of the Mittster, quick question: if he was governor of Massachusetts today, would he refuse the federal stimulus money?

--Oh, by the way Bobby J, you were one of those Republican congressmen who you say pissed away the party's goodwill.

--RNC chair Michael Steele: civil unions is crazy-talk.