KATRINA FLAP SPURS RESIGNATIONS AT BLACK REPUBLICAN ASSOCIATION

By Robert "Rob" Redding Jr.

Editor & Publisher    

    WASHINGTON, Sept. 13, 2005, 8:15 a.m. - More than half of the newly formed National Black Republican Association's executive boards walked out over the weekend, following a news release commending President Bush for doing a wonderful job responding to Hurricane Katrina.

    The Washington Times buries deep in Tuesday's editions that board members had "questions surrounding approval of the latest news release issued by the NBRA, praising President Bush's leadership after Hurricane Katrina."

    "President Bush is to be commended for deploying all of the resources of the federal government to help the refugees," the paper quoted a news release from the organization as saying. (View the Bush/Katrina release).   

    Redding News Review first reported on Monday that seven out of 10 board members were leaving the NBRA causing a split. (See the story).

    Christopher Arps, NBRA's now former communications director, wrote in an e-mail Sunday that he and six others resigned because "the organization and it's current leadership is heading down a much different direction than was envisioned by myself and the other board members."  

    Frances Rice, chairman of the fledgling 100 member NBRA, said only Arps and five others resigned because they did not want to sign a form pledging their loyalty to the group, following the Bush/Katrina news release and a similar release on Supreme Court nominee John Roberts. She said one of the five members of the executive committee quit, and Arps and four others on the inactive board of directors resigned.

    "When we prepared the press releases they said they did not openly want to support Republican Party," said Rice, who stressed that the members are "perfectly free to resign."

    Bush has come under fire for his administration's slow response to Hurricane Katrina, a storm in which many blacks died. FEMA Director Michael Brown Monday resigned from his top job taking the blame for the slow response.  

    NBRA was founded on Aug. 15, to increase the number of Black Americans who vote Republican and are active in the Republican Party. 

    Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman once said: "In reaching out to African Americans to give them a choice, what the [the association] is doing is more important than what I am doing."

    Officials at the Republican Party have not returned a call to comment.

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