While it seems a bit blown out of proportion - for the wrong reasons - a recent flap perhaps gives some clues about where the party stands. You do need to read the text (and I have only found parts of it) and ignore the pictures (which appear to be selling quite well).

GOP taking cues from Tea Party?

Secret memo depicts Obama as Joker, Dems as 'Evil Empire'
BY Neil Nagraj DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Thursday, March 4th 2010, 12:01 PM via the Washington Post

Included in the presentation was the above slide¹, which was published on the Web site of the Washington Post. The Republican Party's battle plan for victory this fall may be steeped in the Tea Party movement's aesthetics.

A secret GOP fundraising document urges the party to fill its coffers by playing on donors' "fear" of Barack Obama and a pledge to "save the country from trending towards socialism," Politico.com reports, complete with an image depicting Barack Obama as the Joker.

The strategy was presented by the RNC's Finance Director, Rob Bickhart, and Finance Chairman, Peter Terpelk, to fundraisers at a GOP retreat in Florida, the Web site reports.

Included in the Power Point presentation is a slide titled 'The Evil Empire' depicting Sen. Harry Reid as Scooby Doo and Nancy Pelosi as Cruella DeVille, along with the Joker caricature of Obama.

Politico reports the document also appears to heap scorn on the very hands feeding the GOP, with slides accusing the party's donors of being "reactionary," "ego-driven," and driven by "peer pressure."

A Democrat gave the 72-page-document to Politico, saying it had been left behind at Boca Grande's Gasparilla Inn & Club, the site of the retreat.

The RNC "reacted with alarm to a question about it," Politico reports, and quickly began emailing donors in an attempt at damage control.

A spokesman for the party hastily tried to distance the party's embattled chairman, Michael Steele, from what he called an " unacceptable" depiction of President Obama. Steele was reportedly not at the event.

[end quotes from that article]

¹ You'll have to click the link to see the picture.

Although the spokesman makes reference to the "unacceptable" depiction of President Obama, it would seem that what really horrified the core of the party was the content of the slide show that depicted small donors in what must be mildly described as "unflattering terms." (albeit perhaps accurately?)

For those using short-range electrons for their web browsing, a very similar article appears at:

Republicans embarrassed by 'evil empire' Obama smear

Posted by Richard Adams
Thursday 4 March 2010 17.40 GMT
guardian.co.uk

The document also contained a wealth of embarrassing details about Republican fundraising tactics. Politico reported: "The small donors² who are the targets of direct marketing are described under the heading 'Visceral Giving.' Their motivations are listed as 'fear;' 'Extreme negative feelings toward existing Administration;' and 'Reactionary.'"

The document also mentions the $80,000 (£53,000) price tag for donors wanting to join an official RNC visit to meet British Conservative party leader David Cameron in September – after the UK general election, when Republicans hope he will be Britain's prime minister.

[end quotes]

² Was the minimum ticket price for admission to the latest tea party set at $500 per seat to avoid having "small donors" hear about what the party thinks of them?

It would be interesting to find the whole 72 pages of the pitch, although since it was a Power Point presentation it's unlikely to have included any "intelligence." Even the US Pentagon at least briefly banned Power Point as "incapable of providing any useful information" a few years back. (Since the military has its own definitions of "intelligence" it may have crept back in, of course.)

John