Oregon Public Broadcasting

Oregon's Republican Party chair has been tapped to help his national party's new leader get started.

Michael Steele was elected Republican national chairman over the weekend -- the first African-American to hold the post.   He was the favorite choice of Oregon Party Chair Bob Tiernan.

Under his leadership, Oregon's delegates went for Steele early. Now Tiernan has been selected to run Steele's transition team. Tiernan calls Steele's election an important changing of the guard.

Bob Tiernan   "Our party is getting old and stale, and we have old ideas, and what we need to do is have a leader who's articulate and aggressive. He can do battle, he can articulate the issues."

Tiernan says  the party should hold to ideas of fiscal responsibility, and aspire to run the country like a business.

Tiernan is also new in his job. He was elected to lead the state party in early January.

He says Steele will be visiting Oregon soon.