Mark your calendars: The Republican National Committee has just blasted out the 2016 presidential primary debate schedule.
The first debate will be hosted by Fox News sometime in August 2015. So far there are nine confirmed debates on the books -- and three others pending:
Today, at the Republican National Committee (RNC) Winter Meeting in San Diego, California, the RNC announced that it has sanctioned nine debates from August 2015 through March 1, 2016. ...
In other news, RNC Chairman Reince Priebus is sticking around:
Today at the RNC Winter Meeting in San Diego, CA, Chairman Reince Priebus was reelected to a third term. Chairman Priebus will become the longest serving Chairman in modern history and is only the seventh person to serve four years as Republican Party Chairman. Chairman Priebus was first elected Chairman on January 14, 2011, and reelected on January 25, 2013.
A brief excerpt from his post-victory remarks:
I want to make three things very clear today.First, 2014 was a historic year for Republicans, and the RNC made it possible.
Second, winning 2016 is going to take a lot more hard work.
And third, for the next two years, we’re going to be laser-focused on the White House—both its current occupant and the Democrats who want to occupy it.
Winning last November took a lot. It required an unprecedented investment in our field program—and a large and talented team. It meant using the best data we’ve ever had to guide the earliest voter-targeting operation we’ve ever deployed.
The RNC, as well as our sister committees and other groups, learned the lessons of the Growth and Opportunity Project. We adapted accordingly.
As I noted earlier in the week, the RNC Convention will be held July 18-21 in Cleveland, Ohio.