Top Republicans blast Michael Steele over Afghan war comments

Three top GOP senators on Sunday sharply criticized the chairman of the Republican National Committee, increasing the pressure on him to step down for his recent remarks that the war in Afghanistan was “a lost cause.”

The Republican senators, led by John McCain of Arizona, the party’s presidential nominee in 2008, stopped short of calling for his resignation. But collectively their comments on the Sunday-morning TV talk shows signal a unified agreement that many in the GOP leadership no longer support the embattled chairman.

Michael Steele, speaking at a Connecticut fundraiser on Thursday, also called the nine-year war in Afghanistan begun under President George W. Bush one of President’s Obama’s “choosing.” He has since sought to clarify his remarks but has not apologized. Instead he has maintained his comments were justified because Obama is focusing more on Afghanistan than the war in Iraq.

“I think those statements are wildly inaccurate, and there’s no excuse for them,” McCain said on ABC’s “This Week.” “Chairman Steele sent me an e-mail saying that …his remarks were misconstrued.”

But, McCain said, “I believe we have to win. I believe in freedom. But the fact is that I think that Mr. Steele is going to have to assess as to whether he can still lead the Republican Party, as chairman of the Republican National Committee, and make an appropriate decision.”

On CBS’ “Face the Nation,” Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a former Air Force lawyer who now serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the war in Afghanistan was “America’s war” and that Steele’s comments were “uninformed, unnecessary, unwise.”

“The good news is Michael Steele is backtracking so fast he’s going to be in Kabul fighting pretty soon,” Graham added. “It’s up to him to see if he can lead the Republican Party after this comment. ... I hope he can get it behind him. We will see if he can get it behind him.”

Sen. Jim DeMint, also from South Carolina, went further on “ Fox News Sunday,” demanding an apology and calling on Steele to concentrate more on promoting Republican candidates in the elections this fall.

“Chairman Steele nees to apologize to our military, all the men and women who’ve been fighting in Afghanistan,” said DeMint, who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

“He needs to refocus on electing candidates who can stop this rampage of spending and debt in Washington. Whether or not he resigns is up to other people than me, but I need to see him focused on this November election, which is important. Because the Democratic Party is running our country into a ditch with the economy, our job situation, the debt situation. We need a chairman who’s focused.”

DeMint also acknowledged that the war was not the work of one political party begun after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, saying Steele’s remarks were “unacceptable.” He added: “A careless comment, obviously, and it’s inaccurate. This is America’s war. We are in Afghanistan because they attacked us.”

The Republican senators were joined by Sen. Joseph Lieberman, a Connecticut independent, who said on Fox that he was encouraged that the GOP appeared to be “taking the high road” on what do with Steele, whose tenure had long been marked by gaffes.

And the current dustup led North Dakota Republican Party Chairman Gary Emineth to say he was “seriously considering” challenging Steele for the national chairmanship after the November elections. “The 2012 elections are critical, and I feel there needs to be a new approach to the RNC.”

But Steele won support Sunday from Rep. Ron Paul, a Texas Republican who “congratulated” him for his remarks. “He is absolutely right,” Paul said in a statement. “Afghanistan is Obama’s war.”

richard.serrano@latimes.com