Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus called the party’s crop of 2012 presidential candidates “solid” even though several big names have recently opted against running.
During an interview with The Daily Caller in his Capitol Hill office, Priebus said the party donors he speaks with aren’t worried about how the field is shaping up.
“I honestly don’t hear a lot of that,” he said.
Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and Gov. Mitch Daniels of Indiana have all declined to get in the race. And no one candidate has harnessed the conservative energy yet and united the Republican Party.
Priebus speculated that “the field will be set” by the end of the summer.
“I don’t know if there’s going to be more people jumping in. I certainly hear rumors that I’m not going to get into right now,” he said.
Asked if he’s spoken with former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin about mounting a White House bid, he simply said: “No.” What about Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan?
“I talk to Paul Ryan all the time. He’s one of my best friends,” he said. But Priebus said he’s not making an effort to lure any candidate into the race.
“I’m not seeking out people. I don’t call people up on the phone and try to talk them into or out of running,” he said. “I’m going to let the field take shape over the summer.”
Priebus dismissed polls showing President Obama defeating Republicans in head-to-head hypothetical match-ups.
“I think comparing an incumbent president against hypothetical candidates for president who are concentrating their efforts in Iowa and New Hampshire and South Carolina is a worthless activity to a president who has already won a general election and spent $750 million in the first election and is going to spend a billion more and has been president for three years,” he said. “That’s a silly comparison.”
He said Obama is vulnerable because “he’s completely botched the economics of this country.”
Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich are eyeing a run.
Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, businessman Herman Cain, Texas Rep. Ron Paul and New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson are also running or contemplating a campaign.