GOP love means saying you're sorry

Be sure to check out today's column by Leonard Pitts Jr:

People keep asking, in the wake of two consecutive shellackings at the voting booth, what is wrong with the GOP. They have wrung their hands and hung their heads over Steele's goofy attempts ("off the hook") to bring street cred to the party of big business and social conservatism, over the way Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal seemed to channel Howdy Doody in delivering the GOP response to President Barack Obama's speech before a joint session of Congress.

But if you want to know what ails the elephant, you need look no further than the sight of its putative leader groveling before the throne of a radio talk show host and declaring his "enormous respect" for this "ugly" and "incendiary" fellow.

It must be crowded at the base of the throne. Steele is only the latest GOP official (Georgia Rep. Phil Gingrey and South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford preceded him) to find himself offering clarifications and apologies for making the mistake of speaking honestly about the party's bloviator in chief. It's a sign that, for all the talk about rebranding and reinventing, the party remains too reluctant and regressive to match its words with actions. And that bodes ill for both it and the nation.