Why Blacks Should Consider McCain

[BridgeTheGap]

(Note - I DO NOT agree with this article but feel that it should be made note of - btg)

Feb. 6, 2008 -- The old saying holds that in politics you don't have to win, you just have to not lose. But what the saying doesn't tell you is that sometimes what looks like victory is actually a step backward. And that will be the case for black folk should Hillary Clinton win the Democratic Party nomination and the presidency.

It was clear from the first vague rumblings of her presidential ambitions that H.C. would be the definitive establishment candidate. Her husband is likely the most powerful individual in the Democratic Party and his charisma, cache and connections are largely responsible for the aura of inevitability that surrounded her campaign early on.

Sen. Barack Obama's stunning Iowa and South Carolina victories, along with his strong showings during the other primaries, neutralized Clinton's argument that she was the most electable candidate. But, she has another unspoken advantage: The Democratic Party nominating system includes 800 "super-delegates" who can, theoretically, vote however they choose but are most likely to back the candidate most favored by the party establishment. If it comes down to the super-delegates deciding the nominee and Clinton emerges victorious, you can count on the 2008 Democratic Convention looking a whole lot like the one in 1968.

The Clintons have thus far run one of the most underhanded and bitter political campaigns in recent history. And while there is no reason to suspect that they are racist, they are clearly willing to play upon the sympathies of whites who are--which is probably worse. This was evident by the twin "accidents" in which Clinton staff member Billy Shaheen and that pillar of the booty-shake community BET founder Bob Johnson attacked Sen. Obama for his youthful dalliances with drugs. Any lingering doubt about who they were playing to was erased when Bill Clinton essentially dismissed Obama's South Carolina victory by comparing it to Jesse Jackson's wins there in 1984 and 1988.

http://www.theroot.com/id/44666?GT1=10936

[mrreowwr_kittty]

1. Duly noted

Any doubt that the Clintons were racebaiting and that it did have a troubling effect should be removed. I don't understand how people can sit there with a straight face and act like they didn't know what they were doing. The GOP is going to be all over this in the general, using the Clinton's behavior to drive wedges between whites, blacks, and Hispanics.

[Demeter]

2. Not To Worry--Hillary Will Be Out on Her Shell-Pink Ear

And only crazy people will vote for Bomb-Bomb McCain.

[comfycouch]

3. You pretend you don't agree with the article, which is nothing but right-wing crap

And the DU should ban you along with the anti-Democratic crap you post.

This is the Democratic-Underground, not the vote-for-a-republican-if-my-candidate-doesn't-make-it underground.

That betrays the purpose of the Democratic Underground.

[BridgeTheGap]

7. You ignore your enemies at your own peril!

But you obviously see me as the enemy for posting this. I will occassionaly post something from the "enemy" for the sake of knowledge. The vast majority of my posts are not even close to anti-Democratic.
If your hatred prevents you from ever considering the other sides argument, you will never be in a position to refute it. Read the "Art of War."

[ejbr]

4. As a black American,

I would rather castrate myself than vote for a non-minimum wage raisin', Katrina ignorin', tax cut for the wealthy given', non-poor carin', Trent Lott huggin' Republican! And today's Republican party has lost its fuckin' mind to boot!

[classysassy]

5. May

I second that?

[BobTheSubgenius]

6. On edit....

I got over it.

[Demit]

8. So your rationale for presenting this is: Oh I myself don't feel this way but I'm draw attention

to it anyway out of my love of knowledge & my lack of hatred for considering the other side's argument.

Do I have that right?

Sorry, that sounds exactly like the way a person who wants to spread a rumor, or some kind of malicious information, starts off—"Mind you, I don't believe a WORD of this, but..."

I think you should rethink what your motives are for publicizing this piece here, on Democratic Underground.

[BridgeTheGap]

9. No, you don't have it right.

I posted it because I had not encountered this point of view and thought people here might want to be aware of it. Why? It's an indicator of a possible strategy that could be implemented in the general election and a reasoned response might be in order. It should be considered from the perspective of: can the point of view expressed in this opinion piece have an impact? If it can, it needs to be countered.

[Demit]

10. And you think deep thought ahead of time is required to counter a wacky point of view?

Do you anticipate encountering many black Democrats who will feel that voting for a Democrat is a step backward? And that therefore the natural remedy—especially after living through the last eight years which have been SO wonderful—is to vote for the Republican? I don't know the origin of this website you're linking to but I bet Clarence Thomas is a huge fan.

The reasoned response you're looking for is right in post #4. ejbr has nailed it for you. LOL! I suggest you copy, paste, and memorize.

[BridgeTheGap]

11. I found the article posted at MSN.com

And I used to think like you, but I have seen poor people vote against their own economic self-interest and that has changed my mind.
In Alabama, just a few years ago, there was a ballot initiative (fuzzy on specifics) that was going to curb corporate power in that state in a way that would have directly benifited the poor. Even the Repub governor pushed for its passage. The corporate pr machine went to work and the initiative was voted down. Polling indicated that many poor people voted against it and hence their own economic self-interest.
Possibly you've noticed that race has become an issue in OUR primary. I don't like that fact, but if HRC ends up as our nominee, look for the repub attack machine to attempt to use this to their advantage in the G.E. We should be prepared for it.