Republicans and race
A wretched hoax was perpetrated last week by a female John McCain supporter.
She pretended that she was insulted, attacked, and robbed by a large African American man, a supporter of Barack Obama.
She told police that the attacker carved the letter “B” into her skin. It was a lie. A toxic, vicious lie.
The ugliness of the deception drew a sharp line between this election and the dangerous politics of race.
The McCain campaign pounced on the event. Fox News executive vice president John Moody penned a blog-entry called “Moment of Truth.”
“[S]ome voters may revisit their support for Senator Obama, not because they are racists (with due respect to Rep. John Murtha), but because they suddenly feel they do not know enough about the Democratic nominee.”
The connection between an alleged assault and Barack Obama? Mr. Moody doesn’t say. But he did add this:
“If the incident turns out to be a hoax, Senator McCain’s quest for the presidency is over, forever linked to race-baiting.”
This incident — with its eager propagation on conservative websites (Drudge, etc.) and right-wing talk radio — point to the hard choices conservatives still face when it comes to race in America.
The truth is, the right has become far more inclusive. A movement that was once limited to conservative white Protestants now includes Jewish members, Roman Catholics, along with small numbers of African Americans and Hispanics.
The “Southern” strategy, with its Willie Horton winks and nudges, has faded. And for all his failings, George W. Bush constructed the most diverse cabinet in American history.
The vast majority of rank-and-file Republicans aren’t racist.
But evidence is widespread that many conservative commentators and leaders are still struggling with race.
When long-time Republican Colin Powell crossed party lines recently to endorse Barack Obama, he was joining more than two dozen senior military officials who’ve publicly supported the Democrat.
He articulated a reasoned (although debatable) set of motivations for his choice. But right-wing pundit Pat Buchanan wasn’t having it.
“Would Colin Powell be endorsing Barack Obama if he were a white liberal Democrat?” Buchanan said, during an interview on MSNBC. “It is naive…to suggest that [race] had nothing at all to do with his decision.”
In similar fashion, a wide range of conservatives — including vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin — have argued that there are essentially two Americas competing in this election:
One is a “true” and “real” America that happens to be predominately white, rural and conservative. The other America is urban, increasingly multi-ethnic, and Democratic.
At times during the campaign, conservatives have seemed almost eager to flirt with toxic language and racial innuendo.
When William Kristol wrote his lead editorial for the most recent issue of the Weekly Standard, the flagship conservative magazine, he began with this sentence.
“It is always darkest before it goes totally black.”
Really? An African American appears poised to become the first man of his race to serve as President of the United States…and you go with that opener?
The last couple of weeks, I’ve blogged occasionally about the challenges that face the GOP, if their losses next week are as cataclysmic as some are predicting.
Well, here’s Job One for Republicans.
By mid-century, whites will no longer be a majority in the U.S. Whites will be one of many “minorities” in the weave of our national fabric.
Without sacrificing their conservative principles, Republican leaders need to find ways to engage the complexity and richness of that modern, multi-ethnic society.
It won’t be easy. Race is never easy in America. But the party of Lincoln (and Powell) has overcome bigger hurdles.
