Divided RNC Ready to Pick Chair Today

David Weigel: “There’s intense media interest in a race that most Republicans don’t think will be close. Why? One reason is the (very) slim chance that McDaniel, who for the first time doesn’t have Donald Trump’s endorsement for this job, could lose.”

“A bigger reason is the way that pro-Trump conservative activists and media mobilized behind Dhillon — from mega-donors like Richard Uihlein to Kirk’s Turning Point USA network to Steve Bannon’s ‘War Room’ podcast. Their involvement has made the contest more acrimonious and raised the stakes on the results, which are now a heat check for the grassroots right after a midterms in which their favored candidates took plenty of criticism.”

Playbook: “While McDaniel remains the favorite, Dhillon’s team has been working overtime since they arrived, and there are unmistakable signs she’s made headway. Just days ago, she had fewer than 30 of the 168 RNC members publicly endorsing her compared to more than 100 who had backed McDaniel in an open letter after the midterms.”

“The race’s new fluidity comes as members wrangle with one big question in increasingly urgent tones: What does this race say about Donald Trump’s hold on the GOP?”