RNC chair Reince Priebus sat down with a group of conservative journalists and bloggers this afternoon at CPAC, and he had some interesting things to say about the RNC’s experience with March for Life. The march coincided with the RNC’s annual winter meeting, so Priebus had buses carry attendees who wanted to participate to the march.
“The total appreciation that we got from life groups across the country was a little overwhelming,” Priebus said. “But it was the appreciation that sort of woke me up to say, Why are these folks so appreciative of something that I thought was a pretty easy decision to make?”
The decision seemed simple to him, he continued, but pro-life activists were surprised and pleased by a gesture that shouldn’t really have been surprising.
“So I thought to myself, if these folks are this appreciative of something so simple, maybe we need to start providing people of the core positions of our party more, so we can grow in places we are strong,” he continued. “To me it was sort of a wake-up call.”
Don’t expect gay marriage to get that kind of treatment, though. When asked if opposition to same-sex unions was a core party issue that might get more attention, Priebus said “there should be no confusion” about the GOP’s position. But that doesn’t mean it’s a position that’s going to be highlighted more.
“I’m not like walking around down the street, but if someone wants to ask me like you did, I didn’t dance for you,” he said after reiterating the party’s stance on the issue. “I mean, I answered the question head on, I’m very clear, and I think that’s what you should expect out of the party.”