As the McCain campaign ratchets up the intensity of its attacks on Barack Obama, some black elected officials are calling the tactics desperate, unseemly and racist.
“They are trying to throw out these codes,” said Representative Gregory Meeks, a Democrat from New York.
“He’s ‘not one of us?’” Mr. Meeks said, referring to a comment Sarah Palin made at a campaign rally on Oct. 6 in Florida. “That’s racial. That’s fear. They know they can’t win on the issues, so the last resort they have is race and fear.”
“Racism is alive and well in this country, and McCain and Palin are trying to appeal to that and it’s unfortunate,” said Representative Ed Towns, also from New York….
….Ms. Palin told donors in Englewood, Colo.,…. “This is not a man who sees America like you and I see America,” she said. “We see America as a force of good in this world. We see an America of exceptionalism.”
An Associated Press analysis characterized those remarks as “unsubstantiated” and carrying “a racially tinged subtext…..”
“Some may say their true colors are showing,” said Representative Yvette Clarke of New York. “Others may say they’re just not being thoughtful. But certainly a lot of the language I’ve heard I consider to be incendiary. I believe it is meant to generate a certain sentiment within their base that engenders fear and certainly appeals to a group of people within our society who would pursue this along racial lines.
“It’s very clear,” she said.
Ms. Clarke also found a racial subtext in Ms. Palin’s repeated appeals to “Joe Six-Pack” and “hockey moms.”
“Who exactly is Joe Six-Pack and who are these hockey moms? That’s what I’d like to know,” she said. “Is that supposed to be terminology that is of common ground to all Americans? I don’t find that. It leaves a lot of people out.”
New York State Senator Bill Perkins, an early supporter of Mr. Obama, said, “They are obviously playing on people’s fears and prejudices in a desperate way. While not explicitly relating to race, they are clearly creating the opportunity for those inclined to come to those conclusions. I think it is going to become more explicit as we move forward. It’s subtle now, but not so subtle as to be mistaken.”
And Kevin Parker, a New York state senator from Brooklyn, said, “If you have to remind people that Barack Obama is African-American, you have reached the bottom.”
I have a very serious question…
Have all the Democrats that drank the Obama koolaid become paranoid schizophrenics? I really wanna know. If you tell me yes, it will make me feel much better.
I will understand that they have a mental illness that they can’t help… the delusions of persecution from an oedipal female mother figure archetype would just be the product of a disease and not what these people REALLY think…
Or perhaps they all share a strikingly similar form of Tourette’s Syndrome where “code words” and “racist” gets blurted out at nonsensical times…
I don’t know, but this bullshit is friggin crazy, it is incredibly irresponsible, and to be honest, it is incredibly dangerous.
Add this to the coments of other Democrats of all races that have screamed the word “RACISM!!!” and pointed their fingers at everyone from all the Republicans to Bill Clinton of all people!!! (Holy God, was that some serious dumb.)
Regardless… This is only further dividing our society and creating a dangerous sentiment of suspicion and anger… and in this case, it can create a very different situation where, if these irresponsible politicians and the media that perpetuates their message continue to push this idea that there is rampant racism in white America and that racism could be the only explanation as to why Obama would not win the election… we could very well see irreparable damage done to race relations in the country AT BEST, and at worst we will see racial violence and rioting.
It’s almost as if that is what they want? They may not, but they are definitely not hiding the fact that violence and repercussions are what they are threatening.
The anger these people are toying with is real, it is dangerous and it is explosive. There are historical precedents to situations with much less gravity than the Office of the President that have sparked violence that we can point to, so we know the threat is real.
The saddest part of this whole thing is that it is THE standard campaign tactic in Obama campaign manager David Axelrod’s playbook. Axelrod has done this same thing many times before, and in many campaigns, even as recently as the primary versus Hillary Clinton.
Inciting racial hatred and suspicion to gain power is what these people do. This is quite literally David Axelrod’s niche in political campaign management. This is his job and this is why Obama hired him.
This is dangerous and they need to stop. It is wrong and irresponsible.
.
Am I saying racism does not exist, no I am not. It does still exist, regrettably.
But the vast majority of Americans are not racist, and when they cry racism in an undeserved context, they are actually diminishing not only themselves but the one they sought to defend.
When these people cry racism in such situations, they remove the humanity and the complexity of the man that Barack Obama is and reduce him to his skin color.
There are a great many reasons to love Barack Obama, just as there are innumerable reasons to really dislike him.
When they reduce the reasons why people feel about Obama the way they happen to down to just skin color, THEY are the ones dehumanizing him, not Palin, not McCain.
When they reduce Obama to his skin color, THEY are the ones that have issues with race, not Palin, not McCain.
McCain campaign spokesman Peter Feldman said it best:
“It is disappointing that Barack Obama and his supporters continue to play the race card from the bottom of the deck. This is a tactic that the Obama Campaign has used before, and which McCain campaign manager Rick Davis correctly called ‘divisive, shameful, and wrong.’ It is legitimate for John McCain to ask questions about Barack Obama’s relationship with the unrepentant domestic terrorist William Ayers because Senator Obama has not been truthful about this relationship. Many Americans want these questions answered. Despite the fact that Barack Obama has been running for president since joining the Senate, many Americans are still wondering, ‘who is Barack Obama?’ These comments are a sure sign of a flailing campaign that refuses to be honest with voters and that is bordering on desperation.”
Instead of Obama bringing us together like he promised to do when he gave his rhetorically brilliant yet somehow empty speech on racism, it seems his sole aim is to divide us as much as possible to gain a political advantage.
He wants power so bad, he is willing to wreck America to get it.
Hell No, No Bama, No Deal, No Friggin Way.
Country First.
.
UPDATE: I woke up this morning and turned on CNN and guess what was on… a special about Union activists campaigning door to door in PA and OH, and their struggle to deal with racism against Obama…. Nice, right?
So I listen for a while and then it peeks it’s head out in one of the comments… a canvasser talks about how he has run into the problem “a few times.” Well, as a canvasser you can visit hundreds of homes a week… and in a predominantly white, blue collar, working class, heavy union neighborhood, they run into the problem a “few times?”
And this justifies a CNN special report why? Oh yeah, it’s spin and bullshit. That’s why.
And then there was the statement from Obama… I am doing this from memory, but this is what he said almost word for word…
I don’t think race is a problem in the race. Look, I am ahead in the polls… that means that the American people are basically good. They are judging me on my policies and on what I want to do, not my skin color.
Ok, on first pass, not a bad statement, right?
But we have to look at the more subtle meaning of what he said…
“Look, I am ahead in the polls… that means that the American people are basically good.”
He subtly hints that if he were behind in the polls or that if people were to vote against him, then they would not be good and they would be racist.
Those are code words. Real code words.
Palin’s comment about terrorists… not code words.
Filed under: Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Ism's, John McCain, Racism, Sarah Palin Tagged: | Clinton, Code words, Hillary, McCain, Obama, palin, Racism











Interesting clip, here, for your consideration:
Published February 10, 2007
Asked on 60 Minutes Sunday if his color would hinder his chances, Barack Obama said, “No. If I don’t win this race it will be because of other factors – that I have not shown to the American people a vision for where the country needs to go.”
Some 10,000 attendees at the “State of the Black Union” conference last weekend at Virginia’s Hampton University greeted Obama’s presidential announcement with mixed reactions.
The subject came up several times during the annual two-day symposium, which examines progress the African-American community has made in this country and the problems that continue to exist.
“I think the identity politics should not be based on race,” said the Rev. Al Sharpton, a 2004 presidential candidate. “It should be based on agenda and policy – who stands for our best interests. We cannot put our people’s aspirations on hold for anybody’s career, black or white.”
Some blacks wonder if Obama’s mixed-race heritage hampers his effectiveness on African-American issues. Others complain he didn’t earn his political stripes in the 1960s civil rights movement. Others wonder about his Ivy League education and upscale Chicago address.
In fact, a CBS News poll last month showed Hillary Rodham Clinton ahead of Obama among African-American voters, 52 percent to 28 percent.
Without naming Obama, Sharpton added that “just because you’re our color doesn’t make you our kind.”
# # #
That’s right, Hillary Clinton with a 24 point lead among African-Americans before OBAMA, not Bill Clinton (this is what Axelrod does), played on race and turned Barack Obama’s election into a referendum on their own history to black people (at least that was the intention and, so far, it’s worked very well).
I sincerely believe (based on the quotes you set out above and the most unbelievable conversation I had tonight with a frothing-at-the-mouth Obama supporter — couldn’t tell me why, mind you, only that I was probably a KKK member for saying negative things about his qualifications) that, if I were to say I wasn’t voting for Obama because I don’t like people over 5’5″ tall, the Obama Choir would rise in unison to shout me down as obviously racist for uttering such a “racially tinged” comment.
Mass national hysterical blindness.
Keep digging. Keep plugging.
The Million Shovels Movement.
A Million Shovels, though small, can move a mountain.
A race war would certainly please several of Obama’s friends and mentors-
Ayers and Farrakahn and Wright- wonder how the arab friends would view it?
Yeah, the overall chaos would please them too. A win all around!
Blue,
I am not talking about an all out war…. i dont think it would go that far. But I do think that there is propensity for violence and these people are only putting more kerosene next to the tinderbox…
the anger and resentment is real, and these people are feeding it for their own gain.
it is wrong and irresponsible, not to mention shameful.
Zogby has Obama up by only two today.
This has nothing to do with the debate. It is the result of Sarah’s hammering on Ayers.
PLEASE Mac & Sarah…. go for the jugular. It is your only chance! You must ignore the race card and call it like it is!
More on Ayers…
I Found This Tidbit When I Wasn’t Watching the Debate….RE: Ayers/Obama Early Relationship
http://insightanalytical.wordpress.com/2008/10/08/i-found-this-tidbit-when-i-wasnt-watching-the-debatere-ayersobama-early-relationship/
Buried, but another bit of indicator of how close Ayers and Obama must have been early on…in Ayers book!! (includes hat tip to the site I found it on….send them some love!)
I’ve been through an era similar to this once in my lifetime. Then, false accusations of “communist!” were slung around irresponsibly. It was called McCarthyism.
It is very sad to see one candidate and one campaign dispense hatred against so many people by labeling them falsely as rac ists while also particularly trashing women in the most vile way. I will never understand how people can vote for Obama after what we have seen (not to mention the voter fraud, caucus fraud, Democratic Party roll call fraud, the monopolistic media control of the airwaves, and the frightening foreign and domestic ties of his campaign.)
They no longer even seem to be making much pretense that the word “racism” actually refers to anything like its normal meaning. Instead it’s simply a talisman to be brandished at any criticism, like a cross thrust in the face of a vampire, to intimidate all dissent into silence.
For a long time now the Obama cult has looked to me like some sort of Body-snatchers-pod-people-type phenomenon. Bloggers who always seemed rational and open-minded have morphed into talking-point robots (when not actual pathological haters, where Palin is concerned).
A ways back I posted a link on my site to that bizarre North-Korean-style video of little kids singing praise to Obama. The comments I got were from Obama followers who insisted there was nothing bizarre or disturbing about it.
I’ve been hoping that Obama’s defeat on November 4 will shock these people back to their senses. Now I fear that, if he wins, this — syndrome, that’s the only word for it — will become an established fixture of American politics.
I hate the term “race card.”
If you are not black, then you have no idea what the experience, interactions and perspectives are forced upon you as a black person.
I am an educated, successful, professional black woman in my mid thirties, and yes, I have experienced and experience racism. It comes in the form of divisive remarks, inside jokes, condescending attitudes, feelings of entitlement that many white progressive and conservatives hold onto, etc.
I ask you… If you are not black, then how do you know really.
Shut up, until you walk a mile in my shoes!
Ms. Ebony,
I would ask you not to presume what race I am. I will only say that whatever you guess, you are probably wrong.
I think that it is wonderful that you are who you are… good for you.
I do understand where those remarks come from, and I am acknowledging that they exist…
What I am saying is that the comments coming from the politicians and the media are manipulating those feelings for their own gain… and that is terrible thing to do.
good day.
[...] Comments Texas Hill Country on Black Congressmen: Palin Is A Racist! She Uses Code Words!!!Ebony on Black Congressmen: Palin Is A Racist! She Uses Code Words!!!Infidel753 on Black [...]
So, let me get this straight. A African male can walk into a room and feel uncomfortable due to his hue which was made bad by whom? Sure wouldn’t have been the Africanthat made himself bad. Now that a African male is kicking a bigoted 25 year veteran that passed 38 bills in those years as opposed to 804 in 7 for Obama, you all are mad? What about the real issues? Not race. Palin will cost the redumicans the race with the help of the Ole good Ole boy network. Blame YOUR FAITHFUL( to his cronies,nazis,iran-contra,Haliburton) Pres of today. You all act as if bigotry doesn’t exist.
Hmmmm, so that means if Bush’s family had Nazis ties and is a decendant of the Queen who has “knighted him”, for a job well done, he has completed the worst act of treason and infiltration. That means he meant to throw the country under the bus. That shows why he has Osama ties, and Hussein ties. That also means that since McBush voted for Bush (like many of you) 95% of time, he also has his ties. So you are for all those ties…..Which means you don’t care about the country and are spreading lies to bring us further down…Wow, now that is REALLY bad.
Want to talk about ties? Can you say Hussein and Osama ties and the Bush’s are still doing Business with them! Keep trying. Old sheet die hard, don’t they?
About the people shouting racial slurs aren’t all that surprising seeing how this country was formed, they are the norm. I call those people “barbarians” and “thugs”. when one cannot refute or rebut a argument, they often refer to name calling and fists fights. I teach children that when you learn how to articulate your thoughts thoroughly, you cannot be “misunderstood” unless purposely done so. If one cannot get their thoughts understood they become bitter, start name calling and resorting to physical violence. Of course they are trying to derail any sort of change. How come two people, Hillary and now McBush, changed their platforms to change? Because they want to change their minds on their stradegy. Obama’s connection to Ayers is a smoke screen. He could easily bring up affiliations to BUSH. He has shown terroristic characteristics in all his years! McBush always has by the k-5 and the Nazis. By even voting 95% of the time with BUSH. War on poverty started first, nothing changed. War on drugs brought more drugs (yes Mcbush was involved-see Iran Contra Affair). Now we have the war on Terror? Yeah right. That means kill everyone that opposes you! You can’t kill people who don’t know you and tell their families that they’re the terrorists. To them, that’s their way of life. Humans are distructive. Not all but a very lot.
wow James, that was a long and difficult read.
please…. paragraphs and non-run on sentences help with comprehension. spell check helps too.
And no, I do not pretend that racism does not exist, it does and I have no doubts about that.
But to call the statements Palin made racist is ridiculous and akin to the boy that cried wolf.
they are unfair accusations that are intentionally inflammatory and irresponsible.
To James,
Do some real research, not Obama talking points, then come back and post. Also learn how to make a coherent sentence. I could hardly read your ramblings. Oh, and by the way it is 90% of the time McCain voted with Bush compared to Obama voting 97% of the time with his party. Real change there…. Reaching across that aisle, I could tell…. You also need to check on bills that were sponsored and co-sponsored by both candidates. Oh, but you won’t do that either I guess (too much work to find out the truth).
As for Ebony people like you will always assume white people are against you. I and a lot of people like me don’t care what color or gender you are as long as you do whatever job you are hired to do. Always looking for that slight. Get the chip off your shoulder. All most people are trying to do is pay their bills and have the best life they can.
I was born in NC in 1948 and lived there until 3rd grade. Although I never witnessed the violence of racism, I did see prejudice and bigotry everywhere. The white lines just in front of the back doors of city buses where signs posted read, “Whites only forward of the white line”. “Whites Only” signs on bathroom doors, in restaurant windows, above water fountains, in neighborhoods, real estate ads, and mutitudes of places. My childish mind did not understand it at all.
Luckily, my parents were not of that ilk and taught me differently.
In those days, racial slurs were obvious and despicable. Today, there seems to be no end to what is considered racist language.
What are the “code” words? Is there a list or book defining terms designated racist. If so, we need access to it so we can re-educate each other.
Neither of my parents ever uttered a single racial slur or curse word. To this day, I can barely say s**t even in anger.
The US has the most diverse population in the world. One thing we all have in common is our humanity. That is the commonality upon which we must focus.
Call me an idealist-I still have faith in our future.
[...] Posted on October 13, 2008 by Texas Hill Country In a follow up to my post about the baseless accusations of racism on the part of Palin, Rep. John Lewis has made comments that indicates that he has lost his damn [...]
I try to read every side of these issues, from Kos to Kurtz, but I must admit that I have had a positive reaction to Obama almost from the first time I heard him (once I got past the name, that is. Before watching one of his speeches my sincere reaction was that no one could make it in US national politics with a name like “Barack Hussein Obama”) I know many in my family have had equally negative reactions to Obama from day one. I suspect that for the majority of us, gut reaction plays a much larger part in the selection process than logic does, no matter how much we imagine otherwise. Still, I (hopefully “we”) should to strive to make objective and honest evaluations of the arguments and assertions that are part of the campaign process. Cheer for your team all you want, but if you can’t see or admit their errors you certainly don’t do yourself, your party or your country any real favors. I can take a certain amount of guilty pleasure in “gotcha” moments, but I realize that they are mostly just empty “gotchas” Guess what? Phil was right – Americans really ARE turning into whiners. I never heard anyone really contest that too hard. And guess what? Many small town Americans really do cling to guns and religion. I have several hundred emails from my small town mother-in-law to back that up, all telling me how Christians and gun owners are under assault by everyone from Target stores to the U.S. Mint. I think it takes a little bitterness to pass on that many provably FALSE emails.
As to the Ayers connection, I have read just about everything that Kurtz and Diamond have published on the matter, and some of it is very compelling. But it is far from objective. I kept wondering – who else was on the board of the Annenberg Challenge? Who else was involved in the ABCs program in Chicago? Who is Annenberg? Try to answer those questions and the writings of Kurtz start to seem very different, like connecting two people because the are in the same yearbook. Why have we never heard any condemnation of Walter and Lenore Annenberg for their funding of an Ayers program? Is it be because they are lifelong GOP supporters? No. It is because it is a non story. The Annenberg Challenge was a legitimate, good faith effort to address educational issues, involving hundreds or thousands of people. The Ayers story is a cheap “gotcha” moment. Revel in it if you will, but don’t be fooled into believing it is a real story. If you get too comfortable believing everything you party says, you will eventually end up supporting a bogus story that gets real people hurt. WMDs anyone?
Speaking of people getting hurt, John Lewis has had some experience in that area I believe. I think McCain identifies with Lewis because they both have the scars to prove that they were on the front lines. While his comments were a bit harsh and definitely grating to my nerves, I think the basic point was not far off. The constant drum of “Who is Obama?” and “He’s not like us” and “pals around with terrorists” (plural was intentional) are intended to be divisive and win votes – it is a campaign after all – but they may be going too far. I think John McCain may have begun to see that on Friday. When people feel comfortable yelling “terrorist” or “kill him” in a public gathering, this is a signal for some grownup to put on the brakes and say “NO!” McCain did that on Friday, and in his own partisan way Lewis did, too.
Reality is that Obama has been picked over as closely as any candidate in history these last 30 months. We have read his wife’s college papers, seen interviews with his grade school teachers and classmates from half way around the world, tracked down half-siblings in Africa, and combed through every vote and moment of his entire political career. We pretty much know what this guy is about, like it or not. The “he’s not one of us” attack line may score some points at the polls, but I don’t think it is worth the risk that it poses. In the “best case” scenario (GOP wise) it helps lead to a McCain win and a level of congressional and public bitterness that we have not seen before. In the worst case scenario, well, I don’t want to be here for that.
God bless, and PLEASE remember that we are all Americans and we are all on the same team.
Thank you Hamilton! You have said it all. We should vote the issues and not the color of one’s skin. There will always be some sort of racism but as Obama has stated it is time for “CHANGE”!!!
I agree Kentucky… we do need to look past the color one’s skin, and I have certainly done that. And I agree with both you and Obama that we do need change.
For me, Obama is not the change I want… and that has nothing to do with skin color.