An Uneasy Turn at the G.O.P. Retreat

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. â€" Well, that was awkward.

Speaking to reporters on the first full day of the House Republican retreat here, Representative Greg Walden of Oregon, the new chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, fielded a question about the party’s outreach to minority candidates and groups with aplomb.

“It’s an important priority for me as chairman and for our committee as a whole,” he said, noting that he had asked Representative Jaime Herrera Beutler, a Hispanic woman from Washington State, to serve as vice chairwoman to help on that front. He added that Representatives Tom Cole and Markwayne Mullin, both of Oklahoma, were “Native Americans and Republicans” and would be helping with “the Native American effort.”

He even dutifully noted that there were “50,000 young Hispanics reaching voter age every month,” and that the Republicans needed “to figure out how to reach out better effectively into those communities.” (President Obama, in defeating Mitt Romney in November, was supported by 71 percent of Hispanic voters, who increased their share among the voting population in crucial states like Colorado and Nevada, according to exit polls).

But the conversation became a bit sticky when, near the end, a reporter pointed out that “in the vein of bad communication,” a panel talk called “Discussion on Successful Communication With Minorities and Women” was being held on Friday in the Burwell Plantation Room at Kingsmill Resort, named after a former slave-owning family.

“First of all, I don’t pick the rooms we meet in,” Mr. Walden said,! pointing out that the House Democrats recently held their retreat here as well, presumably meeting in the same rooms. (Mr. Obama also spent three days here this fall, preparing for his second debate against Mr. Romney.) “I pick the Democrats we’re going to take out, and that’s my job at the N.R.C.C.”

But the reporters had a few more questions for him. Did Mr. Walden think that Republicans really needed a panel discussion on how to communicate with Hispanics and women, one asked.

“Yes, of course,” he said. “Why wouldn’t we have a panel on that”

But then why, a final reporter prodded, did this panel on communicating with women and minorities include three white men: Representatives Adam Kinzinger of Illinois and Scott Rigell and Frank R. Wolf, both of Virginia

Mr. Walden, who was not responsible for putting together the event, pointed out that the panel also included several women: “a woman from CNN” (Ana Navarro) and “Sean Duffy’s wife” (Rachel Campos-Dufy). Mr. Duffy is a congressman from Wisconsin; his wife is a television personality.

Also on the list was Ms. Herrera Beutler. But, unfortunately, her name was misspelled.