Yet another step backwards for Mehlman’s African-American outreach initiative

March 10, 2006

It was less than a year ago when Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman starting getting serious about political outreach to the African-American community. One problem, however, is that Mehlman characterized the Republicans’ race problems as a thing of the past — and they clearly remain a part of the GOP’s present.

Consider, for example, a state lawmaker in Colorado who sent around an email that accused “welfare-pampered blacks” of waiting for the government to save them from Hurricane Katrina.

Rep. Jim Welker, a Republican, said Thursday morning that he forwarded the article [written by someone else] because of its message about society victimizing people by making them dependent on government programs. He said he didn’t agree with everything in the essay.

One passage says, “President Bush is not to blame for the rampant immorality of blacks.”

Welker, who is white, backpedaled yesterday and said sending the email around “showed poor judgment on my part.” He also added — I swear I’m not making this up — “Some of my best friends are of different skin color.”

The mind reels.

Ah, but he said “of different skin color.” See? If he were just some lame-o resorting to CYA cliches, he would’ve said “are black.” You just don’t get Republican subtlety.

  • Note that the author of the original email is black himself; perhaps he counts himself as one of the “friends” to whom the honorable Rep. alludes. A friend of greed is a friend indeed…

  • “President Bush is not to blame for the rampant immorality of blacks”.

    But, on the other hand, Bush is entirely to blame for his own rampant immorality.

  • How about the attack on Harold Ford? Would the GOP run a site like FancyFord.com if it pointed to the lavish excesses of white guys like DeLay or Cunningham? With those guys, criticisms are baseless, mean spirited and partisan. Seems they think this black guy doesn’t know his place.

  • This was my favorite passage in the story:

    “Some of my best friends are of different skin color, like Ed Jones,” said Welker, referring to Sen. Jones, a Colorado Springs Republican who is black.

    Jones said that he and Welker are friends, but not best friends.

    Let’s be clear: They are not best friends. It’s not like they have play dates or anything. And if Jones were having a tea party with Mr. Snuggles and Floppy Bear, he MIGHT invite Welker — but only if Molly were not at home. ‘Cause Jones and Molly are really bestest friends. Everyone knows that.

  • So does he have friends who just happen to have different skin color (don’t we all?), or are they his “different skin colored-friends? People you call up when you want to look “diverse”.

  • Don’t forget, “different skin colored” could mean:
    Sick, as in jaundiced (yellow)
    Angry, as in red-faced all the time
    Dead.
    There are so many possibilities.

  • Damn! Morbo beat me to it.

    I would have like to have seen the look on Jones’ face as a reporter corners him at the Capitol and asks if he was “best friends” with Welker. Instead we get the very diplomatic and tactful, “We’re friends.” That relationship must truly be something special …

    I also like this paragraph:

    “Welker last year took heat from his own caucus for saying he feared that if gays were allowed to marry, then people might eventually marry their animals. Republicans said they were embarrassed by his comments.”

    But didn’t you know? Some of his best friends are animal lovers!

  • One of the burdens of a two party system is one side is going to get the white racists.

    The Democrats had them in the 1950’s. The Republicans have them now.

    Sadly, they can’t seem to repudiate them effectively enough to keep them out of Congress.

  • Swing away all who disagree. RACISM IN AMERICAN POLITICS

    Pre 1948: South Hates anything Republican because of Civil War. Democrat Party is party of choice for racism because alternative was Republican Party- heaven forbid.
    During this time, I am saying that if you were a racist and wanted power, the Dems were the only way in the South because of lingering Civil War hatred made the Repug party enemies of the old south. Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying all Demos were racist( I lknow there were more good Dems than this sick wing of the party), but if you wanted regional or national power, being a racist Repug was not going to get you anywhere.

    1948: Dixiecrats split from Democrats to run Stom Thurman as a presidential candidate. Thurman didn’t like the trend of integration in the military and spoke his racist mind to America. The Dixiecrats carried the South, but the Democrats won the election. Repugs are still nowhere on the Southern electoral map.

    1952-1956 were Repug landslides and they finally carried the southern states, although proportionately the south dominated what few electoral votes the Democrats won.

    1960: Reverts to heavy Democratic prescence in south for Kennedy election. Kennedy carried a majority of the electoral votes from the south.

    1968: Fracture in the Democtatic party dominance in the south. The Repugs carry the south. We can say that this is because of the division caused by Viet Nam.
    The real cause of this initial fracture was the passing of the Civil Rights Act. Without the help of northern Republicans, the southern Democrats could have killed the bill, and don’t think the southern dems didn’t try. It was a division of northern Democrats and national Republicans versus southern dems on wether the bill should pass. Well, 1968 was the first time for the southern population to speak their mind on what was happening and they did: Nixon carried the south, Dems lost heavily in congress in the south, and party dynamics were quickly changing in the south.

    Post 1968: The south is the tail waging the dog of the Repugs, Most, if not all, of the racists are now members of the Repugs. Civil rights legislation did what 100 years of memories couldn’t do: Dems who support civil rights are worse than the northern Repugs who tried to free their slaves.

    Racism lives and thrives in the Repugs of the 21st century

  • Basically, there have always been three parties in America – the two national left/right parties, and the Southern party. This goes back to before the Constitution. The Southernists have never been able to have control in their own name, so they attach themselves to whichever of the national parties will accommodate their “peculiar institution” (southern racism). Then, allied to a national party, they assume majority power in the federal government through their one-party politics, thus allowing their representatives to gain sufficient seniority to run things. This has been going on since 1789. So long as Southernists hold the balance of presidential power through the Electoral College, and congressional power through seniority, they have themselves “in.” Even we have to kowtow to them by nominating “moderate” Southerners for President. Do go look at the 43 presidents, and notice how many come from the South.

    Another good reason to get rid of the Electoral College.

  • Like all similar efforts before it, this one is doomed to failure. They say they are reaching out then they do shit like this and the “Ford is a pimp” website the Liddy “US Senator for North Carolina” Dole set up. Sure they want the money and votes that might come their way but gasp, African Americnas may want the GOP to – I don’t know – talk about and actually do something about the issues they feel are important to them. And since the GOP only talks about “those” issues when it is forced to and only then in a condescending manner, is it any wonder that snarky comments and rolling of eyes aren’t far behind.

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