Calling the president a racist used to be controversial
April 27, 2010 11:37 am ET by Jamison Foser
Remember when Kanye West said George W. Bush "doesn't care about black people"? Of course you do; it was kind of a big deal. Such a big deal that when then-Senator Barack Obama appeared on ABC's This Week a few days later, he was asked about it. There was an avalanche of media coverage, including predictable outrage from conservative publications. A New York Post headline blared "WHERE DOES KANYE WEST GET OFF," while National Review sneered "'Racism!' They Charged - When don't they?" Jonah Goldberg blasted West's "self-indulgent diatribe" and insisted "He should be ashamed." Goldberg went so far as to argue that even if West was right, he should have kept his mouth shut: "Assume for the sake of argument that West's rant was accurate. Was this really the time to say so?"
Conservatives were certainly not alone in rebuking West; many liberals did so as well. To pick just one example, Richard Cohen -- the ostensibly liberal Washington Post columnist who supports torture and opposes affirmative action -- leapt to Bush's defense.
In short: suggesting the president might be a racist was widely seen as a Big Deal -- and widely condemned.
So I was startled to see how casually ABC's The Note quoted Rush Limbaugh calling Barack Obama a racist this morning:
Rush Limbaugh, not a fan of the efforts to restart the campaign engines: "This is the regime at its racist best," he said, per Politics Daily's Lynn Sweet. "He is asking young people, African-Americans, Latino and women to reconnect, to fight who? Who is this fight against?"
Now, Rush Limbaugh isn't a rap star like Kanye West -- but he is one of the most influential leaders of the conservative movement and the Republican party. And The Note quoted him calling the president a racist as casually as it would have had quoted him saying "I find the president's fiscal policies lamentable."
Maybe journalists have become dulled to statements like Limbaugh's because of the frequency with which they come. Conservatives have been calling Obama, and those around him, racist since he took office. Longer, actually. Today's Washington Examiner reinforces those allegations with a headline taking up much of the front page: "Obama disses white guys."
Meanwhile, I'm still waiting for the first Richard Cohen column defending President Obama from charges of racism.
If you're on Kanye's S*** list, big deal.
But, if you get on Rush's S*** list, you're on the S*** list of the entire right wing.
Of course, if something bad actually happens as a result of his rantings, he just claims it's the other side's fault and goes on his merry way. Or if that doesn't work, he simply falls back to the age-old right-wing position of "But I was tricked or just following orders! I'm so sorry that you found out. But since I've apologized, you can't get mad at me, and it was't my fault anyway, it was all THEIR fault!!!"
Just like global warming. When it's actually shown beyond even the remotest shadow of a doubt that the actions of the people on the planet are affecting the climate negatively, what will be the response of the right-wing deniers? If you can find any that aren't lying about it and claiming that they never denied it in the first place? "But I was tricked! I never knew! You can't blame me!!!"
Pathetic.
Since this is the case, a powerful black man must defend himself against charges of racism, and do it all alone, even if the charge is false. However, a white man must be defended against such charges, even if they are true.
This is the dynamic that made America great, Bubba!
Oh, I get it, this is that Overton Window thing Beck is always babbling about.
He is prejudiced [he prejudges based on no facts] beyond doubt.
And, of course, you completely ignore the context of the remark you're paraphrasing, which would disprove everything you just wrote.