“quasi-racial appeals”
May 3, 2008 by John Rich
It starts. Racial name-calling in the general campaign. The black candidate, formerly the candidate who happened to be black, Barack Obama, is now off-limits for Republican political ads. Now that Obama has become the presumptive Dem nominee, local Democratic candidates will be linked to him.
As well he should. But this is wrong, bordering on if not actually racist. At least according to this pronouncement by one Melvin Watt (D-NC), according to the WaPo:
“It’ll be very interesting to see how people react to these kind of subtle, or not so subtle, quasi-racial appeals,” said Rep. Melvin Watt (D-N.C.), a former chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus and an Obama supporter.
Four words: Kitchen. Heat. Get Out.
If Obama is to be the nominee, and, barring a political tsunami in North Carolina next Tuesday he remains almost certain to be the nominee, then he is fair game. The only racism would be the not-so-soft racism of lowered expectations for a black man: Obama should not be picked on; he’s black. He’ll cry if you pick on him.
Watt, not so bright he, despite his name, is one reason that explains Obama slippage in polls of late. It’s of a piece with Jeremiah Wright’s worldview: blacks can’t possibly compete in the white world; the deck is stacked against them, so why even try?
If Obama believes he can’t compete, perhaps he should concede to Hillary now. And save Democrats the embarrassment of losing an election that should have been a dead-solid lock.
