The return of Rudy's master strategy?

Rudy Giuliani's campaign manager is hired at the RNC, raising a certain uncomfortable question.

Published March 7, 2008 6:36PM (EST)

The Republican National Committee announced a few new hires today.

One in particular stood out: former RNC political director Mike DuHaime.

DuHaime, of course, went on to manage Rudy Giuliani's presidential bid (which, you may recall, spent $54 million to win one delegate).

Will John McCain now skip the first few states in the general election?

The other additions were longtime fixtures in McCain's political universe. McCain's campaign is slowly, but steadily, taking over the RNC, which will function essentially as a branch of his operation for the fall.

Lobbyist Frank Donatelli will take a leave from his job at McGuire Woods to be the RNC's deputy chairman and liaison to McCain's staff. He worked on campaigns for Ronald Reagan and both Presidents Bush, and now has clients ranging from defense contractors to the Boy Scouts. Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, who endorsed McCain early in the GOP primary fight, will head the RNC's "Victory" committee, which funds its grass-roots organization. Former Goldman Sachs partner Lew Eisenberg, who raised money for McCain's campaign, will be in charge of bringing in cash to pay for the Victory work.


By Mike Madden

Mike Madden is Salon's Washington correspondent. A complete listing of his articles is here. Follow him on Twitter here.

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