Race & Ethnicity
Related: About this forumHerman Cain, GOP Tool by choice, Apologist by Political Design
Last edited Fri Jul 12, 2013, 09:20 AM - Edit history (9)
A Short Review:(NOTE: First posted before the 2012 Presidential Election)
The following was posted before Herman Cain's self-destructive spiral of absurd behavior, in and out of the public eye, brought about an end to his candidacy, while he still maintained some tenuous possibility of success.
Media exposure of his history of abusive behavior toward female co-workers proved to be the "Final Straw", rendering the possibility of winning national support as Primary Candidate yet another "Absurdity", at best a subject of somewhat humorous disdain.
As we're all by now aware
But there are lessons to be learned from the process involved, the vast GOP political machine that brought about the Cain ticket deserves a second look, if only for purposes of defining the vaunted Republican Values brought to bear in that tribute to NATIONALLY BROADCAST "Absurdity".
GOP values and implied integrity of those candidates (lack of, essentially) deserve further review in the context of our current election cycle, with Mitt Romney now bearing the cross of that prevailing "Carnival" atmosphere.
Let's give him the deserved credit of having participated in that process, and he should bear his share of responsibility for it
POLITICAL TACTICS SUPPORTIVE OF HERMAN CAIN
Republicans are playing the same old HACK, they're accusing Libs/Dems of classic Right Wing race-based tactics, methods promoted and applied across the decades.
IE we're being accused of "Playing the Race Card" in support of the current President.
Toward that end, the GOP less "Fringe" center saw Herman Cain as an opportunity to dismiss the displays of intolerant Right Wing Fringe behavior we've all become familiar with, to distance themselves from those "Fringers" by promoting a minority candidate in the GOP primary.
For the express purpose of convincing the public that the Republican party has lately become "Inclusive".
But those of us who're inclined toward Historic perspective know better, we're not convinced of recent inclusive behavior.
Especially since non-minority GOP candidates have a long history of supporting those intolerant *Fringers* when they're running for local office, particularly concerning elections in Red States where the "Southern Strategy" STILL prevails, tho perhaps less blatantly than in times past.
And we mainstream "Moderate Voters" are supposed to forget history, we're supposed to forget all context and perspective as tho the Republican party is completely blameless for those *Race-Based* historical tactics along with recent "Dog Whistle" coded messages across the media since this President has been in office.
Think the Birther, Anti-Immigrant, Anti-Islamic, Black Man in the White House crazies have already vented out? Think they were just screeching that loudly across the last election cycle because of Mid-term Election Anxiety?
If so youre apparently not nearly cynical enough to appreciate where WingNut aggression can lead. Watch what happens as the 2012 election nears, youve not NEARLY seen how far the Fringe Right can push their rants.
So a review of recent Right Wing "TeaPublican" legislation is in order, right? Let's take a look at what they've promoted across the last election cycle related to long standing policies of "Inequity".
***Starting with Arizona SB1070.***
Righties wont admit that this less than NEW State legislation in Arizona was completely unnecessary, SB1070 was designed to be a political tool in support of the GOP agenda, the general goal being influence of Arizona local conservative voters by promoting false "Reform Measures" against immigrant workers, of course.
Enforcement of existing Federal laws would have made this hugely flawed legislation entirely unnecessary, and debate continues as to whether SB1070 is at all legitimate given that it conflicts with standing Federal Regulations.
Enforcement of National Federal Laws in Arizona (Hiring Practices) would require that Corporate interests be deprived of an unregulated cheap labor force, which of course would lead to compliance with MINIMUM WAGE standards and encourage the possibility of a Union-Based work force to fill the undocumented labor worker void, something those Corporate interests have no intention of allowing.
Neither will Local Arizona GOP organizers who know where their campaign money comes from, the above mentioned Corporate Constituents.
***What about Birth Right?***
TeaPublicans would never actually TRY to repeal the 14th amendment, theyre just using that POSSIBILITY as yet another political tool to rally support of the right wing "Fringe" base.
But several GOP Senators have vocally supported repeal of that amendment to promote their supposed "Illegal Immigrant" political postures while voicing alarm about the (contrived) looming threat of "Anchor Babies".
The intent being to provide "Red Meat" for the GOP "Red Neck" base.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/03/lou-dobbs-gop-immigration-14th-amendment_n_669760.html
Proposing repeal of that amendment as a further "Reform" measure that targets "Illegals" (Undocumented Workers, actually), encouraging the "Racial Profiling" behavior we've come to recognize as acceptable among the Conservatives.
***More examples of improper targeting of minorities?***
Senator Rand Paul states that hed not REALLY like to repeal the last 50 years of Anti-Discrimination policies and supporting legislation in the United States, only certain parts of it
Specifically, the parts that prevent private business from engaging in discrimination practices.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/20/rand-paul-tells-maddow-th_n_582872.html
Which serves to identify Senator Paul as supportive of "Regressive" political ideals, attracts them to vote in support of his cause.
Eventually Jim Crow law could easily Rise Again in Southern states, thanks to the GOP Right Wing fringe.
***There are many further examples of improper Republican activities, but let's review just one more.***
Meanwhile, legislations been introduced to Rewrite History in Texas, Louisiana, and several other states. Otherwise known as Revisionist History that would Downplay if not exclude (among other things) our history of near genocide and complete displacement of Native Americans and exclude any possible culpability of White/European Ancestry citizens.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/may/20/creationism-textbooks-louisiana-schools
As well as revising historical references to slavery and later (related) discrimination, and several other forms of institutionalized bigotry carried forward by U.S. History.
Nothing Offensive there for Minority People of Color, right?
***Back to Herman Cain***
But how many rational people think that promoting Herman Cain for the GOP primary is compensation for these "Race-Based" tactics we're all familiar with, used as recently as the last Mid-Term elections?
Whats the prevailing thread in all of the above GOP driven legislation?
How did we arrive at this Perfect Storm of right wing policy that specifically targets minorities, that concentrates on people whose skin tone doesnt meet the definition of White?
Coincidentally having a black President in office, right?
What's obvious to most of us is that the GOP supports minority candidates as a "Political Tactic" to the extent that it works AGAINST their Democratic opposition.
Once this Primary election cycle is over Republicans will revert to their tried and true "Redneck" methodology.
***As Posted Recently Elsewhere:***
Regarding the influence of Color on National Elections:
Speculative comments about how many of us may have voted for President Obama based on his color are irrelevant besides being unlikely. Voters would take that into consideration but reasonable people wouldnt have voted for or against any candidate simply because he or she happened to be black or of ANY particular minority.
"Reasonable People" being equivalent to Libs/Dems, of course, or anyone to the left of Right Wing TeaPublicans, actually
Thats easily recognizable by lack of support for candidates in the GOP who cant gain traction regardless of their ethnicity, like Herman Cain.
The point being that Herman Cain isnt a VIABLE candidate for the Presidency regardless of his color, hes simply not marketable on the National Republican platform because of his lack of appeal to a broad cross-section of voters.
Hes a *Religious Bigot,* for starters, he openly offends most of us who can see beyond the All Muslims are responsible for 9-11 Right Wing propaganda.
Beyond that, hes not at all comfortable in front of the media spotlight and *(like Sarah Palin)* is prone to making outrageous statements that embarrass his party management. So, *(like Sarah)* he has to be carefully monitored and reminded to Stay on Message or hell self-destruct
On the issue of so-called Race-based Politics, no well informed self-respecting voter will EVER vote based entirely on color, period.
Which by definition admittedly excludes a large segment of the Right Wing
UPDATE:
BIGOTRY REMAINS A TOPIC OF NATIONAL CONCERN, MUST BE ADDRESSED IN THAT CONTEXT
But in the immediate Campaign Environment, claims of "Race Card" politics in support of our current president are so obviously without merit as to be ridiculous, those claims attempt to simplify and distort what the rest of us recognize to be complex issues into "Bumper Stickers", red herrings useful to Punditry on that edge of the political spectrum.
Desperation is the driving force behind the "Race Based" tactics mentioned above.
Those are serious topics which should NOT be reduced to "Talking Points" among the Republican Party Fringe, they deserve careful review outside of the election process, removed from the framework of impending elections where they are intended to subtract from our Presidential Election efforts (and are conversely diminished by that environment).
SEPARATING THE LEGITIMATE FROM THE ABSURD
Like "Anchor Babies", "Disease Carrying Illegal Immigrants", "Terrorist Mosques", "Welfare Queens", or pretense of Heath Care programs alleged to "Kill the Elderly", we reasonable members of the Public should recognize derivative nonsense when we hear it, commonplace as these complete distortions have become.
BUMPER STICKER mentality engaged on a national scale.
Whatever other Contrived Nonsense the right wing Echo Chamber chooses to inflict on the uninformed Republican Base, let's keep it in context of the above manufactured BS.
Given their record of complete Racial Bias (and/or Abuse) we should understand those claims to be just another distraction produced and approved by the lowest common denominator, GOP Talking Head Punditry.
So, once again, let's Consider the Source and move on. Above referenced Lies and Liars notwithstanding
We have an impending election to win, deserving of our attention. Absurd as the Mitt Romney candidacy has become, it's still a threat to our entire National Integrity.
Post Election Summary:
Since the above post, Romney has proven that failed GOP Candidate Integrity isn't even an issue as far as Right Wing approval is concerned. Thankfully, his loss of the Presidential election shows that National Public Opinion doesn't support those standards of "Integrity" (or lack of).
Apparently the right wing political machine isn't even geared toward Public Approval, that's secondary (unnecessary?) compared to what's considered to be their "Gold Standard" for viable Candidates.
Party Loyalty is the LITMUS of National GOP Support, they're less concerned about ANYTHING else, including US economic recovery.
Just ask Grover Norquist.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1091851
libodem
(19,288 posts)M Kitt
(208 posts)Suppose all the GOP primary "Candidates" were a collection of those (Tools) tho, so he wasn't an exception to that particular rule. As I've heard other people comment, I have to wonder if the TeaPublicans thought there was ever REALLY any chance of winning the 2012 election.
Even blowhard "Fringers" like Rush L!mpd!ck are questioning the current Right Wing leadership, he's recently pointed out that they'll never win National Elections while running on the completely Partisan nonsense "GOP Platform" that prevailed during the 2012 election.
Why would "Fringe" Right Wingnuts like Rush suddenly begin to make sense to the rest of us? He's been saying that TeaPublicans are TOO FRINGE to be able to win National Elections, what a surprise!
So by winning the Primary "Candidate" Election, by proving in Nationally Broadcast Debates how much MORE of a Fringe TeaBagger he could be as compared to ANY other candidate, by doing THAT Mitt Romney lost the National Election.
Having won the Primary, once Mitt Romney achieved Right Wing "TeaBagger" approval compared to the collection of "Clown" candidates in the GOP, their final "Selectee" Mitt was then forced to run away from all the Televised Rhetorical Cr@p he'd been producing across the preceding year.
Because of that, the rest of us (We the Sane Public) could easily determine that "Fringe TeaBaggers" have no place in our Presidential Elections process, couldn't possibly be elected to office.
And I've been forced to agree with Rush L!mpd!ck for the first time EVER. But as they say, even a stopped clock is correct twice a day.
For those who pay attention to stopped clocks
Thanks Again, appreciate the comments.