Florida's Martinez tapped for RNC chief

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Florida Sen. Mel Martinez, co-author of a bill to grant amnesty to illegal aliens, has been picked by White House strategist Karl Rove to be general chairman of the Republican National Committee, RNC officials confirmed yesterday.

Some RNC members greeted the news as another example of White House cronyism, reminiscent of President Bush's attempt to name his personal friend and general counsel Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court, a nomination withdrawn in response to outrage from the party's conservative supporters.

While the chairman is elected by the 165-member RNC -- which next meets in Washington in January -- the committee traditionally acts as a rubber stamp for a Republican president when the party controls the White House.

The surprise Martinez appointment, leaked yesterday to selected TV outlets and wire services, cut off a move by conservative Republicans to have Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele take over the national party chairmanship. Current Chairman Ken Mehlman announced last week he would step down at the January meeting.

While Mr. Martinez will remain in his Senate seat in becoming the public spokesman for the RNC as general chairman, committee members said, the RNC's current general counsel Mike Duncan -- a committee member from Kentucky -- will be named chairman to run the day-to-day national party operations.

Mr. Martinez "will do a first-rate job for the Republican Party," said Sen. Chuck Hagel, Nebraska Republican, who said he has "the highest regard for his ability and experience, and highly [supports] his candidacy."

An RNC spokeswoman said she could not officially confirm the Martinez-Duncan appointments and that an official announcement would be made in a couple of days. Mr. Martinez served as the Bush administration's secretary of Housing and Urban Development before narrowly winning a 2004 Senate race in Florida.

Some RNC members, already dismayed by last week's election that swept Republicans from control of Congress, expressed anger at the way Mr. Rove leaked his choice of Mr. Martinez immediately after a conference call in which the Florida senator's name was floated for the first time.

During the call yesterday with RNC members in which Mr. Rove, Mr. Mehlman and White House Political Director Sara Taylor participated, some members raised the names of Mr. Martinez and Mr. Duncan as possible successors to Mr. Mehlman, said an RNC member who was involved.

"But Rove and Mehlman never said they were going to name these people as chairmen, and we never voted or even gave our opinion," the member said.