The Elephant in the Room is a Racist
Politico’s lead article discusses, in cautious tones, Democratic leaders saying, in cautious tones, that some people are telling them, in cautious tones, that maybe some of the opposition to Obama is fueled by race. Rather than pretending that the problem might go away if we ignore it, let’s just state explicitly what everybody knows: much of the most vehement opposition to Obama is fueled by racism.
This argument has never sit well with me (neither has calling Obama a racist). It seems to me that usually the person making this argument is projecting some of their own feelings about race on the person disagreeing with Obama. Maureen Dowd’s recent column is a good example of this. (I picked this up from James Taranto who writes the Best of the Web daily article for the WSJ Online)
Most of what I am hearing from the right is a disagreement with excessive government spending and an expansion of government powers. Whether or not this argument is hypocritical considering the spending habits of our last president is certainly a good question. However, simply chalking up dissent to racism is a lazy way of invalidating a charge, and doesn’t achieve that goal in my mind.
What? You don’t support the war in Iraq and Afghanistan? You’re un-American!
What? You don’t want to pay for other peoples healthcare and expand government powers in the space? You’re a racist!
They’re both bullshit.
