Why would he have more sway than even Trump when it comes to the RNC? Because Marcus not only donates a whole lot of money to the RNC and various PACs, but he also influences other GOP megadonors. So his endorsement of Harmeet Dhillon for RNC Chair over three-term incumbent Ronna Romney McDaniel may be the most consequential endorsement in a very long time.

Wow! I’m incredibly honored to have Home Depot founder Bernie Marcus’s support for RNC chair! He is one of the most prolific, loyal & important donors in the conservative movement. If elected chair, I have pledged to raise & spend donor funds with the utmost care and integrity. pic.twitter.com/ScvAfX4ehs

— Harmeet K. Dhillon (@pnjaban) January 11, 2023

As Marcus wrote in his letter to RNC Members:

“You have one of the most consequential decisions to make when you vote later this month for the next chair of the Republican National Committee. I am supporting Harmeet Dhillon to become the next chairwoman of the RNC because America’s path forward is at stake.

“Liberal elites have made it clear that they want to replace America’s founding principles of free market capitalism and limited government, among others, with globalist social welfare values, including big government socialism. Liberal elites seem content to manage America’s decline. I continue to believe that our best days are ahead of us unless liberal elites win the battle for America’s future. This battle will be waged not only at the ballot box but in state and federal courts, the media, the court of public opinion, our schools, and our streets.

“Harmeet Dhillon is a fighter in our courts, in the media, and elsewhere. The RNC needs someone with her real-world experience, tenacity, and toughness. Please join me in supporting Harmeet Dhillon for RNC Chairwoman.”

The 168 members of the RNC should heed Marcus’s not-so-veiled warning. He isn’t just implying that Dhillon’s experience handling media and waging lawfare are crucial for the GOP going forward, though that is clearly true. He could have easily made that argument to them directly and more effectively; all of them would take his call due to his clout among megadonors.

By putting his name behind Dhillon’s publicly, members of the RNC will hear the message loud and clear that this “most consequential decision” will impact his future funding as well. He has been vocal about needing change ever since supporting President Trump in 2016 and 2020. He has been unhappy with the ways the RNC and Mitch McConnell’s PACs have failed miserably since the 2016 election. It appears he blames McDaniel for the failures, at least in part.

Republicans have underperformed in all three election cycles since McDaniel took over as Chair.

RNC members will vote for the next Chair on January 27.

McDaniel is not Trump’s ally. She has repeatedly blamed the lack of a 2022 “red tsunami” on “poor candidates,” and while she has not directly attached Trump’s name to the candidates that he supported who lost, the insinuation is crystal clear.

One can argue that she, more than anyone else in the party, is responsible for three consecutive losing campaign seasons, including the one in which Trump had his victory stolen. So why won’t he denounce her? Why won’t he engage in one of his famous attacks against her? Is he scared that if he goes after her and she wins, that he will lose credibility? Yes, but it seems to be bigger than that. It appears that whoever is advising him has made him believe that he needs the RNC in order to win the GOP nomination in 2024. This isn’t true, but he’s playing nice nonetheless.

When given the opportunity to side with Harmeet Dhillon or Mike Lindell over McDaniel, Trump remained uncharacteristically neutral. According to Breitbart:

“Harmeet is a lawyer for me you know,” Trump said when asked about the two candidates. “Harmeet is my lawyer.”

When asked whether that means he favors her or McDaniel—the current chair whom Trump selected after his 2016 White House victory and backed again in her subsequent reelection as chair—he declined to pick a specific candidate.

“I think they’re both good,” Trump said. “I like them both. It’s like when I asked Queen Elizabeth when we were together: ‘Which president did you like the best?’ She said: ‘I liked them all.’ ‘Which one did you like the best?’ ‘I liked them all. They’re all great.’ I said, ‘But didn’t you like Ronald Reagan the best?’ She said: ‘No I liked them all. I liked Ronald Reagan very much, but I liked them all.’ Then I said: ‘Which prime minister did you like the best? Was it Winston Churchill?’ ‘I like them all. I like every one.’ Then I realized how smart she was. I said, you know that’s why she stayed there for 75 years.’”

Dhillon has worked for him directly. Lindell has been the most unabashed and consistent corporate supporter throughout Trump’s presidency and beyond. Romney has done nothing but lose since taking the helm in 2017, during which time she squandered two slam dunk elections to voter fraud and fecklessness. This is a no-brainer. He needs to help give her the boot. He doesn’t have to support Dhillon or Lindell necessarily but coming out against McDaniel would be a powerful move.

Instead, we get the weakness of neutrality in the most important decision for the Republican Party from now until the primaries begin. That’s not okay. Support for McDaniel is waning. Trump could hammer the nail into the coffin by making a bold statement that she has failed miserably for three terms and does not deserve a fourth. It could be enough to finally remove the RINO. Even if it isn’t enough and she wins anyway, denouncing her now would allow him enough time to “play nice” and mend the fence before the primaries if he chose to do so (though I would hope he wouldn’t).

The RNC could be an important piece of the election puzzle in 2024. It has been absent in the last three elections, doing nothing that has been effective and some things that have been counterproductive. Trump needs to get off the fence on this one.