With friends like these Friday open thread

by liberal japonicus

An Illinois Republican official resigned Thursday, after writing a vicious attack on a biracial, female congressional candidate–calling her the “love child” of the Democratic National Committee, destined to work for “some law firm that needs to meet their quota for minority hires.”

The target was Erika Harold, a former Miss America and Harvard Law graduate who is seeking the Republican nomination for the 13th congressional district in central Illinois.

Link is here, and you may want to check out the rant at the bottom, printed in full. Ouch.

Comments

[russell]

haters gotta hate

[Slartibartfast]

*facepalm*

I'm guessing that daddy didn't give affection, no.

[Countme-In]

Or maybe too much of the wrong kind.

In lj's link, notice this quote from Reince Priebus:

The astonishingly offensive views expressed by Chairman Allen have absolutely no place among the leaders of our party at any level,” said Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Preibus.

Yes, let's keep those offensive views down on the farm among the base, where they can be Atwatered at arm's length.

One wonders where these people got the idea in the first place that such views would find a home in the Republican Party.

I blame Lyndon Johnson, who admittedly had a mouth on him like Paula Deen's, but ultimately discovered the right recipe.

See, Strom Thurmond would have been more subtle in his approach to Ms. Harold's candidacy. He would have embraced her ... probably from behind with his clammy hands busy working overtime.

What the Republican Party needs to right itself on race issues is a jagoff of a different color:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/20/ew-jackson-slavery-government-programs_n_3469892.html

THAT latest piece of work once said the Founders were justified in allocating only 3/5ths of human status to his forebears, and he was pretty sure that one fifth of THAT was an early precursor of affirmative action.

[wj]

If the majority of my party (and especially its supposed leaders) is going to get away from spouting this kind of nonsense, one thing is going to have to happen. They are going to have to believe, really believe deep down, that saying it will seriously damage their chances of winning elections. And pretty clearly, that believe hasn't penetrated. The belief among the party leaders frequently seems to be that there are enough bigots among the voting population (especially in the primaries) that there is a net benefit from saying these things. It remains to be seen how long they continue to see that as at least arguably correct.

Getting people's opinions (as opposed to just what they say in public) to change will be a longer term effort. But changing what is said in public is a very impiortant part of making that change happen. When you rarely hear an opinion voiced, you are much less likely to feel like it is the way all right-thinking people believe.

[Countme-In]

"They are going to have to believe, really believe deep down, that saying it will seriously damage their chances of winning elections."

I would rephrase that to read "They are going to have to say out loud, for all to hear, that believing it will seriously damage their chances of winning elections."

Either way, following the purge of the believers and the sayers, that would leave maybe five decent Republicans in the country, four among the commentariat here at OBWI and a fifth yet to surface.

[russell]

They are going to have to believe, really believe deep down, that saying it will seriously damage their chances of winning elections. And pretty clearly, that believe hasn't penetrated.

Maybe the reason they don't believe it because it is because isn't true.

Getting people's opinions (as opposed to just what they say in public) to change will be a longer term effort.

400 years and counting.

[Countme-In]

400 more if they get their way:

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2013/06/whatcha-gonna-do-about-haters.html

[Donald Johnson]

Different subject, but the NYT Sunday Magazine has a superb article on the Syrian civil war--it'd be fascinating to hear how Obama and McCain think it's going to be able to give weapons to some faction and ensure that they won't be used to kill civilians.

link

[debbie]

Self-righteousness can be very blinding.

[cleek]

remember when the IRS was a political arm of the administration?

about that...

[Countme-In]

Following the links, more on that:

http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2013/06/27/19171531-in-the-wake-of-a-discredited-scandal