Economic class issues doomed Romney, Oklahoma GOP chief says

Speaking to the Tulsa Republican Club, Pinnell said the party won some key voting blocks in the presidential election, including senior citizens and independents, and that it should still have the advantage on some big issues going forward.

But, he said, the GOP must address weaknesses in certain demographic groups - particularly low-income - as well as strategic and tactical shortcomings.

"Let's start with Politics 101," said Pinnell. "We kept saying, 'Barack Obama is spending his money too early. He's going to run out of money.' It turned out to be a very good decision. He defined Mitt Romney: A rich white guy with Cayman bank accounts. He was beating up and defining Mitt Romney ... and there was very little money on the other side to define Mitt Romney."

In Pinnell's estimation, organization and tactics accounted for more than much-cited demographic trends. "We didn't lose Ohio because of the Hispanic vote," Pinnell said. "Ohio was ground game and infrastructure.

"Obama never left Ohio" after the 2008 election, Pinnell said. Instead, he kept hundreds of paid staffers in the swing state supported by an unprecedented information and technology system.

"The Obama campaign in '08 was the most tech savvy campaign in history," Pinnell said. "We probably caught up to where they were in 2008, but they added five times the staff and over $100 million to what they had in '08."

Pinnell also credited the stimulus, which he called "a big wet kiss for Ohio" for Obama's victory in Ohio.

Pinnell said the biggest demographic problem for Republicans is not race or gender but economic class.

"We got killed among those making less than $50,000 a year," he said. "In many cases, income is a far better determinant of voting than race.

"That does not mean we should not be reaching out to the Hispanic, African American and youth vote."

Also Friday, state Rep. Fred Jordan of Jenks outlined the direction he thinks the upcoming legislative session will take. Jordan said workers compensation and tax reform are likely to be high priorities for the House and Senate.

"Not everybody in our caucus sees eye-to-eye on everything," he said, "(but) guys, at the end of the day, the Democrats in the state House really don't have a lot of influence any more."

Original Print Headline: GOP chief: Party has work to do

---

Randy Krehbiel 918-581-8365
randy.krehbiel@tulsaworld.com

Source: http://www.tulsaworld.com/site/articlepath.aspx?articleid=20121117_16_A10_CUTLIN639460&rss_lnk=16

kim kardashian flour bomb hunger games box office xavier joan crawford joan crawford john goodman kendall marshall