UPDATED PODCAST BELOW:

With the election of the next Chairman of the Republican National Committee looming later this month, I really hadn't given much thought to whom I'd like to see elected to the post. That all changed over the course of this week, but more on that in a minute.

It's much simpler to decide who shouldn't be elected--the incumbent, Mike Duncan. A "throw the bums out" mindset isn't just an angry, frustrated stance today, it represents a very a practical viewpoint; as Republicans, we won't be able to get down to the business of throwing out their bums until we first get rid of our own. And pardon my being so blunt, but Duncan's fecklessness makes him one of our bums (I can confirm the story linked to here because I was one of those in attendance).

So, back to that short awakening process, in reverse chronological order:

The player embedded just below on this page is an interview I conducted yesterday with Ken Blackwell, one of the leading candidates to take the reins at the RNC. Listen to it and I think many of you will hear the right combination of ideals and courage--crucially, the courage to hold a mirror up to fellow Republicans--that we vitally need right now. Personally, this interview confirmed what I suspected he'd be about based on one crucial statement he made during Monday's debate between the candidates for the RNC Chairmanship (click the icon to play audio):

The very title of this article is one of the great lines from the interview. It not only serves as a catchy turn of phrase, but accurately sums up what Blackwell believes is ailing the GOP, as many of us no doubt agree.

If you're still reading rather than listening for a moment, here's the statement he made during Monday's debate which got me so excited; it came in response to host, Grover Norquist's question, "who is your least favorite Republican president?"

Blackwell's reply: "Hoover because he opened the door to big government activism and I think that, unfortunately, President Bush in the last few months has opened up the door to Mr. Obama's big government activism."

Bingo.

This simple statement is so key because it shows not only a right-mindedness about Blackwell's economic philosophy, which has gone missing in our party in recent years, but the courage to call out Republicans when they fail. It was a fabulous--yet honest--moment.

At the same time, all the other candidates proved in their replies precisely why they're wrong for the job at this crucial hour: all the others, except one, expressed some trite version of, "I don't have a least popular GOP president because even the worst Republican is better than the best Democrat." The one other person who answered differently, by the way, said Warren Harding, which is certainly the safest and perhaps the most inane response of all.

But really, a "the worst Republican is better than... yada yada yada," pull-the-string reply? We simply cannot afford an RNC Chair who's going to treat us like koolaid-drinking idiots.

Our party today demands a leader with the courage and conviction to shove our train back onto the right tracks. I believe I've learned who that person is. Listen to the short interview above and decide if you agree.