Really, you have to admire the chutzpah of it all. You have to really be impressed by the brazenness of the GOP, the party that was just a few weeks ago canonizing Jesse Helms, now accusing the black guy of using race in electoral politics:
John McCain told CNN Thursday it is fair for his campaign manager to claim Barack Obama is playing ‘the race card.’
“I’m sorry to say that it is. It’s legitimate,” McCain told CNN’s John King. “And there’s no place in this campaign for that. There’s no place for it and we shouldn’t be doing it.”
Earlier Thursday, McCain campaign manager Rick Davis lashed out at the Democratic presidential candidate over his comments that Republicans are making an issue of his race.
“Barack Obama has played the race card, and he played it from the bottom of the deck. It’s divisive, negative, shameful and wrong,” Davis said in a statement sent to reporters.
And the media will let them get away with it. Again, it is just impressive. They have no shame, the media has no clue, and we are going to have to deal with this crap for the next few months.
demkat620
Sorry John, but if the media has its way, we’ll have to deal with this crap for the next four years.
Incertus
Oh, the real chutzpah came when No Quarter and Talk Left and Taylor Marsh and all the others accused Obama of doing it during the primaries, because Democrats are supposed to be above all that shit. You should expect it from Republicans.
Its me again
We certainly have our work cut out for us, don’t we. I hope BOH can put this sleezeball in his place at the debates.
DFD
The sad part is they don’t point to any specific Obama comment. They just pulled this out of their asses and said, “See, he played the race card!”
Pa-the-tic
cleek
look, reporters are busy. they don’t have the opportunity, like bloggers, to steal their employers’ time researching and following stories and thinking about things. instead, they have to spend their time hard at work finding just the right way to turn what they read in the RNC press releases into 60 second he-said/she-said stories.
give em a break!
ThymeZone
Remedy: Contribute to the campaign. Work for the campaign. Participate in GOTV operations in your area in November. Support your candidate.
It’s them, or us. We win by outnumbering them, outworking them, outcontributing them, and outvoting them.
Stop grumbling and start working. We have about 95 days left to do this. The Republicans are going to use every trick in their book. Let’s defeat them.
Calouste
Headlines on ccn.com at the moment:
Can’t see a win there for McCain. The headlines all suggest that McCain is a mean bastard.
TR
Agreed. Donate time, donate money.
cybergal619
If nothing else, our beloved media hacks sure are obedient little parrots.
DougJ
The big question, the only question really is this — how fucked are we? Our political discourse has been destroyed by a combination of Rovian tricks and Broderian idiocy.
Can we function as a society when our head has been lopped off?
Litlebritdifrnt
I am doing that very thing Thyme, the Obama campaign headquarters is based in my office in lil ole Jacksonville, NC. They have free run of the place, offices, phones, copiers, printers, puters, fridge full of munchies and sodas and me (well to a degree you understand, answering phones, greeting people etc., etc.,) ALL gratis. Its the least my boss and I can do to ensure that BHO ends up in the White House. That’s what people don’t realize about the organizational abilities of this campaign, they have all these volunteers in all these offices in obscure places (there are two guys in my office one from Illinois and one from LA) and they are registering people to vote, putting the word out. They are walking door to door in neighborhoods registering people. They are sitting outside Wal Marts and Targets, setting up registering stations in Churches Chicken locations. This is the stealth campaign that no-one is talking about cause for the most part no-one knows about it. Considering NC is thought to be a red state and we have a huge military contingent here in Jacksonville (supposedly all solid republican) I haven’t seen zip of the McCain campaign. Nada. NC could very easily go blue come November it is my dearest wish.
Just Some Fuckhead
Cafferty was particularly eloquent this evening about Congress (and Pelosi more specifically) refusing to hold this administration accountable to law.
Just Some Fuckhead
New Flash: Dobbs has a segment about Mexicans.
J.A.F. Rusty Shackleford
I think McCain played the refs successfully at the end of last week and now he’s seeing a return on his investment of whining. The press and pundits are sticking it to Obama partly because they want to avoid any more accusations of favoritism and partly because Obama doesn’t show them enough love.
In the last week Obama has been attacked by McCain and accused of being willing to lose a war to win an election, being the reason why gas prices are so high, unwilling to meet with the wounded troops, as nothing more substantial than a pop starlet, as “arrogant” and “presumtuous,” and as playing the race card. All either completely false or entirely insulting. Yet the pundits take each of these accusations/themes and workshop them exhaustively.
Yet every gaffe and flip-flop McCain performs is quickly discarded after a brief ackowledgement, never to be exhaustively discussed for days on end.
In some ways, I wouldn’t mind Hillary being on the ticket, just for her ability to attack. Bill, too. Nothing short-circuits Republicans faster than the Bill and the Hill.
PaulW
Every election cycle… every time this sh-t starts up I keep asking “why doesn’t the Democrat sue the SOB Republican for defamation/libel? Lying isn’t protected f-cking speech!”
I mean seriously, when was the last time we saw a libel case? Even John Dean wondered back in 2004 why Kerry didn’t take the GOP and the Swift Boaters to court. Sue them, take every f-cking penny they’ve got, hurt them where it hurts the most their f-cking wallets, and then we’ll see this sh-t stop.
Steve V
I have a feeling this is going to be the month Obama breaks the $100 million contribution barrier. Even if he doesn’t, I think it’ll be an amount that shames McCain back into his hole for, I don’t know, half a day or so.
Steve V
PaulW:
Lawsuits just won’t work for people in the position of a presidential candidate. The evidentiary hurdle is just too high — most complaints would be dismissed right after they’re filed on the basis that the statements aren’t “provably false” assertions of fact but are instead protected opinion; the PR effect is mixed at best (lots of risk of blowback for trying to stifle public debate); and the lawsuits take years to resolve so it isn’t like you’d get vindication when it mattered. It’s just an all around loser. I can’t think of a time I’ve heard about an elected federal official, much less someone at the presidential level, even filed a defamation lawsuit much less prevailed (this may be from pure ignorance of course).
RSA
See, Obama is allowed to be black (barely), but he’s not allowed to say that he’s black.
colleeniem
I’m so f**king pissed right now. I don’t see how the media can get away with claiming that Obama politically attacked in the same tenor as McCain. I don’t know why I’m surprised. I think…I’m just proud that my naivete seems to be boundless.
RSA
Thinking about this a bit, I find the phrase “playing the race card” really irritating. Historically, in a lot of areas of the U.S., playing the race card could win you a burning cross or a noose. Now it’s supposed to be off limits? WTF for? It reminds people that the U.S. has a shameful history in race relations? Tough shit.
Zifnab
Admiration? Really? I was waiting for a bit more fanfare and pomp for this particular announcement. You can’t just walk into a meeting and say, “Oh, by the way, Obama has been playing the race card.” There’s no build up. There’s no jazz. There’s no sexy.
This is when it has become clear that McCain’s Rovian playbook has begun fraying around the edges. We should have seen a drum roll up to this from weeks back. Reporters should have received an annoymous report from an undisclosed source that certain people at the NAACP are worried Obama was playing the race card. Then reports should have started questioning it over and over again. “Is Obama playing the race card? Will he play the race card? Has it been played? What is the history of the race card? Can you have more than one race card in your deck? Can race cards be played in pairs? How racey can the race card get?”
There should have been a massive polling drive conducted by the new 527 group “African Americans for a Racially Secure Society” to find out what people in Peoria thought. White surrogates from California to Kentucky should have demanded apologizes for all the times they’d been race-baited in the past.
And then, finally, in a major address to the public, John McCain’s future cabinet of something or other – preferably a black man, but just as effectively a white woman – should announce that the shoe is going to drop on all of Obama’s race card playing. And with that, McCain would – amid massive personal protest – be awarded the mantel of Protector of Racial Harmony in America, and he would announce an inclusion in the GOP party platform that he would see to it racism and race-baiting would be brought to an end in this, our glorious yet humble United States of America Under God Flag Mom Apple Pie America America.
And that’s how a pro would have done it. McCain’s just an upstart hack. This is why he never made it in 2000.
jnfr
We’ve been dealing with this since Nixon years, and we’ll be dealing with it til the day we die. These few months are nothing special in that regard.
Tax Analyst
GOOD! I agree that NC is still in play and could go for Obama in this GE. I saw several polls that only show a 3%-4% spread there and with a strong push from folks like you it’s quite possible that could be turned around. I just took a look and was a bit surprised (and embarrassed) to note that NC has 15 electoral votes now – my old and addled brain was thinking it was maybe 10 or 11 – that was probably 20 years ago. That would be a real nice bag for Obama.
J.D. Rhoades
There’s a perverse part of me that still thinks John McCain has a shred of honor left, and that’s why when he tries to run a dishonorable Rovian campaign, he sucks so badly at it. There’s something in him that just won’t let him do this well.
Which means, in the end, he’s still going to lose. So it’s all good.
Just Some Fuckhead
The North Vietnamese broke John McCain’s honor, my friends.
lurker
And part of what you can do with your time is to WRITE.
Write letters to the editor of your local paper.
And write an op-ed.
It’s hard to get these published in major national and regional newspapers, but there are scores of smaller papers that don’t get much content flowing in the door and are DELIGHTED to publish something literate.
Litlebritdifrnt
Tax I think that is what is most impressive about the Obama campaign. During the primaries they arrived in Jax a good three weeks ahead of Hil. They borrowed our office, the sole worker (helped by a bunch of local volunteers) didn’t stay in a hotel, he was put up by a local supporter. When the hil gang arrived they rented an office, had a big flashy “grand opening” had campaign staff staying in hotels. Again for the general as far as I know the workers are recruiting volunteers, they are being put up in homes by local supporters, they are relying on democrats with the means to help out with office space, etc, they are INCREDIBLY thrifty and it is incredibly disciplined, they are spending money ONLY where they need to spend money and other than that they are relying on the good will of just your every day folks who WANT BHO in the White House and are are willing to do anything to make that happen. That is how this thing is going to play itself out, it is not going to be about national ad buys, it is going to be about the little people, like you and me, like my boss, like the two workers in my office with their gang of volunteers who are ready for change and are willing to give time and effort and resources and money to make this thing happen.
Mnemosyne
Admiration? Really? I was waiting for a bit more fanfare and pomp for this particular announcement. You can’t just walk into a meeting and say, “Oh, by the way, Obama has been playing the race card.” There’s no build up. There’s no jazz. There’s no sexy.
I think it’s because that dog whistle we lefties were seeing in the Obama/Britney/Paris commercial really is there, and now the McCain campaign has to try and claim that, no, Obama’s the one going all racist before people catch on. The old “blame the other guy for what you did” trick so beloved of Republicans.
Perry Como
Race card.
John Cole
I didn’t see anything racial in the Brittany Spears commercial. Just thought it was stupid.
Litlebritdifrnt
“We are the ones we have been waiting for” We ain’t waiting for Brittany Spears, we ain’t waiting for Paris Hilton, we are waiting for a candidate who can actually go into DC and kick ass.
cleek
yeah, me neither. and frankly, i’m a little embarrassed for the people who insist it’s there (Josh Marshall, i’m talkin to you).
Fern
He doesn’t have to say anything – he’s just out there, shamelessly showing his brown face in public.
Ricky
My friends, let me weigh in just like I did during the New Yorker cartoon controversy. The Britney race angle was too subtle, as was the “presumptuous” meme, so little Jakey Tapper of ABC reached into his back pocket for the matches.
IT AIN’T THE RACE CARD, IT AIN’T THE CAMPAIGNS, ITS THE MEDIA.
Yesterday the media manufactured a controversy out of an unsourced Obama quote Dana Milbank of the WaPo twisted into a comment that meant exactly the opposite of what Obama actually said. It became the story of the day for the media sheep who bleated about it all day as if it was a true quote. Obama would have to be as stupid as our pundit corps to have said what Milbank attributed to him. Few people are that dumb. Obama is not one of them.
Today ABC’s Jake Tapper, who once implied Obama was untrustworthy because he smelled what he thought was cigarette smoke on Obama, launched this whole affair at his ABC blog. Check it out. He said something to the effect that Obama’s statements yesterday were racist and xenophobic accusations against McCain. All other networks carried Obama’s comments. None of them made the connection Jake did. He took words Obama said on the campaign stump and placed them as if they were given as an answer to a question Obama was asked about McCain’s ads. Shades of CBS and Katie Couric. Then his ABC colleagues ran over and asked Rick Davis at the McCain campaign for a response to Obama accusing them of racism. This is exactly what ABC did to Obama with the New Yorker cartoon. They kept badgering them until they commented and the story blew up.
You may want to believe this is all the McCain campaign’s doing. It is the press. You need to join me in calling them on it. Tapper dealt the race card. Others played their hands.
Church Lady
When Obama repeatedly says, as he did yesterday in Missouri, that “they’ll say he doesn’t look like the other President’s on the dollar bills…”, to what could he be referring to besides race? Yes, he is playing the race card, just as he did against Hillary Clinton. If I had to guess, Bill (our first black president) and Hillary Clinton are probably the least racist white people most of us will ever come across. If McCain had the balls to do it, he should say he doesn’t look like the people on our currency either.
HRA
Yes, the press dealt the race card. They are having a problem deciding where to look for it’s origin. So far I have heard two different origins by the MSM. Both of them are twisted.
They say Obama dealt it when he said “I don’t look like those on the dollar bills” (I am paraphrasing here) It’s kind of weird to note they (McCain and his drones) waited till today to bring it up when Obama said it 3 times in 3 different settings yesterday in Missouri.
Then I heard someone say the McCain ad was racist by having 2 white women (Britney and Paris) in it with a Black man. I guess they are likening it to an ad against Harold Ford Jr. when he last ran in TN. Maybe someone know about the anti-Ford ad. I don’t know the relevance.
Strangely, this afternoon a co-worker told about a friend who is unhappy in TN and looking for a job in another state. I will add I do not know TN and why it has any problems in the 21st century.
jake
Excellent new tag John. If you shortened it to “Mmmm” it would sound just like a bunch of reporters chompin’ on ribs.
Au contraire.
And further more.
Just imagine them looking a little more bloated.
cleek
he was mentioning the obvious fact that there are plenty of people who will say things exactly like that. the card has already been played – he’s just pointing at it.
Krista
It was beyond stupid. “Don’t vote for this guy — too many people like him.”
um…yeah. Okay then. ‘Cause if there’s anything that people hate, it’s rooting for the winning team.
Rick Massimo
C’mon John, Jesse Helms retired from the Senate almost six whole years ago. That’s almost a full senatorial term! when are you gonna let it go?
Adrienne
Here’s my question: Why in the hell is it considered “fair” to link Barack Obama to Ludacris for a song that Luda wrote about Obama to the point that Obama had to put out a statement denouncing him but it is out of bounds for Obama to link surrogates and other people connected to the McCain campaign to McCain? I mean it is clear that state Republican parties have used it and so have others connected to McCain and he hasn’t said or done a goddamned thing to stop the tarring.
Oh, I forgot. No one speaks for McCain or his campaign. Not even the damn candidate.
BLACK HIM UP SPARKY! You know. The darky. Otherwise known as Barack the Magic Negro.
J. Michael Neal
I’m trying to volunteer for the Obama campaign. Unfortunately, they keep calling asking if I want to go canvassing, despite the fact that I said on the card they had me fill out that, for neurotic reasons, I can’t go out and knock on people’s doors. I just can’t. I can’t make unsolicited phone calls, either, so phonebanking isn’t an option for me.
Until they come up with the idea of asking me to volunteer for the things I didn’t specifically say I can’t do, I’m out of luck.
ksmiami
Jeez I am so sick of McCain’s self-victimization!!!
How about this then: McCain is a crazy, warmongering, stupid and ugly old coot who doesn’t know jack shit about the economy, soft power, ethics or anything else. He also is like the old man you egg on Halloween. There, got honesty? That felt really good
ksmiami
Jeez I am so sick of McCain’s self-victimization!!!
How about this then: McCain is a crazy, warmongering, stupid and ugly old coot who doesn’t know jack shit about the economy, soft power, ethics or anything else. He also is like the old man you egg on Halloween. There, got honesty? That felt really good
ksmiami
Oope sorry about the double post. Seems like the submit is working kinda slow today???
Neo
Obama and white women .. “racially tinged” .. this is scandalous.
Tax Analyst
JMN – I’ve gotten some Obama solicitations about volunteering, but I have some of the same neurotic tendencies that you mentioned (and maybe a few more)…maybe we should form a “Self-Conscious Neurotics for Obama” organization. But I’m having trouble figuring out how we could get anyone to show up for the meetings (including me).
Anyway, I’m trying to do my bit by donating $$. I’m sending some in later today. I think that’s what you should do, if you can afford to part with the scratch.
Tax Analyst
PS – I did try the door-knocking/canvassing thing a number of years back, but found it a truly draining and horrifying experience. In my one evening of soliciting I somehow managed to get one donation; an elderly lady who perhaps felt sorry for me, because I was absolutely terrible at delivering the solicitation spiel and talking points (it was for an enviromental cause). After I got that I breathed a sigh of relief and just plain stopped and just killed time until the pick-up driver returned to get everyone at an appointed corner. I really couldn’t deal with it. If I hadn’t gotten the donation I probably would have put $5 or $10 in an envelope and just said someone else donated anonymously, just so as not to return with nothing.
I think I was out about 2 1/2 or 3 hours, but it felt like about a week.
Canvassing, door-knocking and cold-calling is not for everyone. The rest of us must just do what we can when we believe in something.
Koz
You haven’t hear the part about “I don’t look like all the other Presidents on the dollar bills”? BHO’s obliviousness is starting to rub off on his fans.
Koz
By whom exactly? This train of thought is a crock of shite. I defy you to name anyone associated with McCain or the GOP that we’ve both heard of who has been going after Obama for being black.
Clearly Obama has been working the race issue
1. to emphasize his postmodern coolness.
2. to preemptively discredit any kind of criticism.
Frankly, I could live with that even if there was something of substance in Obama or his campaign that was worth our attention.