Former Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel has a new gig — as an on-air commentator for NBC News.
After stepping down from her post atop the GOP earlier this month after former President Donald Trump became the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, soured on McDaniel's leadership, and looked to more closely coordinate activity between his campaign and the RNC. Now, McDaniel will offer commentary on the campaign and presidential politics in appearances on NBC and MSNBC as a political analyst.
"It couldn’t be a more important moment to have a voice like Ronna’s on the team," NBC News' SVP of Politics Carrie Budoff Brown told the New York Times on Friday. She said McDaniel will provide NBC and MSNBC viewers "an insider’s perspective on national politics and the future of the Republican Party" and is expected to appear on the networks' election night broadcasts. McDaniel's debut as a commentator will be this Sunday's installment of "Meet the Press."
The longest-serving RNC chair since the Civil War, McDaniel was first tapped by Trump to lead the Republican party after then-Chairman Reince Priebus left to be White House chief of staff and subsequently re-elected to three more terms at the helm of the GOP.
More on who McDaniel joins at NBC News from the Times' report:
Other prominent Republican commentators at NBC News include Marc Short, who served as chief of staff to former Vice President Mike Pence, and Brendan Buck, a former top aide to Paul Ryan and John Boehner. NBC’s Democratic commentators include former Senator Claire McCaskill and David Plouffe, Barack Obama’s former campaign manager.
Since the start of the Biden administration, MSNBC has hired Jen Psaki, President Biden’s first press secretary, and Symone D. Sanders, a former chief spokeswoman for Vice President Kamala Harris.
The RNC is now led by Michael Whatley, who chaired the North Carolina GOP until taking over the RNC after being endorsed by Trump as the former president looks to defeat Biden in November's rematch and return to the White House. Trump's daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, is the RNC co-chair.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
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