One of the reasons the Republican Party is moribund is the RNC's almost total lack of strategic planning and long-term commitment to developing candidates, grooming them for many years, and supporting them with vigorous PR whenever they are attacked -- just as they should have done for George Bush, since he was so completely reluctant ever to defend himself when attacked. For example, they should have had political talk show guests and a basement full of twitterers climbing all over the "bigoted" response at Johns Hopkins University recently when it allowed its leftie students to reject Ben Carson as commencement speaker. RNC needs reams of talking points, workshops to educate every GOP candidate and activist in the first principles of republicanism and federalism, and they need to take responsibility for their utter failures to stay organized. Their decision to trash Palin instead of finding ways to use her strengths and keep her in the circle -- even if they would have had to tell Romney's people to STFU -- was disastrous. They need to vet every person who gains power in the National Committee and make sure they are fighting the same war with the same enemies, and avoid the friendly fire casualties on our side.
Not since Reagan has any GOP leader understood the dangers of shooting into the circle, as the last election's disastrous primary debates illustrated. All the angry little GOPs took turns trying to destroy each other's campaigns while the Dems laughed.