Yes, There Are Racists in the GOP

To help get these clowns out of Congress, chip in to help their eventual Democratic challengers.

And in other news, the sun came up this morning.

When I (James) went on MSNBC two weeks ago to talk about immigration reform, I didn't think that I had anything that outlandish to say. Contessa Brewer, the daytime host, asked Republican strategist Ben Porrit and me if we thought we were going to get immigration reform passed and I said frankly that we won't, because there is a segment of the Republican party that is racist and will stand in the way of real reform. Simple enough, right?

Well, after my turn at the 1:25 mark, when I said that within the Republican Party there is a segment of that group that is very anti-immigration, and essentially racist, Contessa and Ben reacted as though I had insulted one of their mothers (or both). When I finished, I immediately called Max Bernstein, who co-chairs dotPAC with me, to ask if I had said something really out of line because I got cut off and everyone had their mouths agape with shock that I could say such a thing. He certainly didn't think so, and with good reason.

Yes, total shock at the idea that there is a racist segment of the Republican Party. The distribution of the Barack the Magic Negro song by a candidate for the RNC Chairmanship and former leader of the Tennessee Republican Party? The SoCal mayor who made and sent a postcard of the White House lawn with watermelons sprouted all over it? Macaca? The 24 hour news cycle makes for unbelievably short memories, clearly.

Those examples aside, there is a segment of the GOP that brings that attitude to the immigration debate, and it's made up of House members, not the aforementioned marginal figures in the Party. To start, here's Dana Rohrabacher, the Congressman from the pristine beach communities in Southern Los Angeles and Northern Orange County on Real Time with Bill Maher:

"ROHRABACHER: It's bad for the American people to have so many people coming in from overseas, bidding down the wages of our average person, taking - and at the same time, a lot of employers aren't giving the same kind of benefits. So we end up with less tax revenue. We end up with our education system under - collapsing under this pressure. Our health care system collapsing under the pressure.

MAHER: You're blaming all that on the Mexicans?

ROHRABACHER: Yes, I am. Yes, I am."

Next up, we have Houston congressman John Culberson. Culberson is known for being on the cutting edge of his use of technology and social networking, but when it comes to the viewpoint behind the tweeting and Qik-videoing, he falls somewhere between the age of internment camps and the McCarthy era. Observe:

"A concern that I continue to see is that a lot of those scientists from communist China, my impression is, and correct me if I am wrong, come here and learn as much as they can, and then leave. And I'm not really all that much into helping the communists figure out how to better target their intercontinental ballistic missiles at the United States. They basically steal our technology for military applications. And they are red China, let's not forget."

We can't forget this one either:

"A large number of Islamic individuals have moved into homes in Nuevo Laredo and are being taught Spanish to assimilate with the local culture."

The context here is how, to quote the Twittering idiot, "Al Qaeda terrorists and Chinese nationals are infiltrating our country virtually anywhere they choose from Brownsville to San Diego." Yes John, those brown people just learn Spanish and all of a sudden no one can tell them apart, as they assimilate with the rest of the local brown culture.

Then we have James Sensenbrenner, who authored a piece of paranoid legislation that had it become law would have subjected all Hispanics in America to ritualistic profiling and relentless eligibility and citizenship tests in all aspects of their everyday lives. If you have 15 minutes and feel like losing your appetite, go read the bill.

And we can't forget Michele Bachmann of Minnesota:

"One amendment [to a MN legislature budget] was offered that said that drivers license tests should be in English only, and that amendment failed. It's an outrage, it's unthinkable..."

Nevermind that this was in response to a tragic and fatal car accident where the perpetrator was an undocumented immigrant with a phony license, and having an English requirement for a drivers license would send the fake ID business through the roof. Bachmann's unmatched abilities to match bigotry with mere poor logic were also on display last September when she plamed the entire subprime mortgage crisis on the fact that banks didn't just stick to lending money to white folks.

So yes, Ben and Contessa. There is a segment of the Republican party that is clearly racist and will block real immigration reform by appealing to the xenophobic wing of their constituency that keeps them edging past their opponents every two years.

That's why dotPAC is raising money for each of these bigots' eventual Democratic challengers on ActBlue, and running ads in each of their districts on Facebook highlighting their indecency. Give a few bucks to the eventual Democratic nominees and show these bigots that they have no place in mainstream politics, let alone the halls of Congress.

Comments

[althusius]

What's your point? There are racists in the Democratic Party. I remember when Gov George Wallace ran for President in the Democratic primary in Michigan. George Wallace placed second.

[typhanie]

How many years ago was that were you? Even born yet, because I really doubt I was. We are talking about Presently. (of course there were Racist back in the 40's and 50's )

[typhanie]

OOPS! I meant: How many years ago was that. Were you even born yet, because I know I wasn't. We are talking about PRESENTLY. (We all know there were Racist back in the 40's and 50's and even 60's). So what was your point?

[Glocksf21]

Sen Robert Byrd?

[mitsie]

You are correct there are elements within the GOP that are racists, and some are sexists as well. I have read the posts on some tea party blogs that would make alot of us ill. They were inviting the KKK to attend and speak at these gatherings.

[NoSandwiches]

The don't believe they are being racist, and that is why the jaw drops. They look at any one of those satements and think, "I am just being a patriotic American," and "It has nothing to do with race!"

The subtlies of your arguement escape them.

[nee]

Being anti ILLEGAL ALIEN isn't racist. ILLEGAL ALIENS are made up of many races. ALL ILLEGAL ALIENS no matter where they come from should be deported. Those who hire ILLEGALS should be jailed and heavily fined. We need to enforce the laws already on the books. Our educational and health care systems are being sucked dry by people who are her ILLEGALLY. We need to use the BILLIONS of dollars that we currently spend on ILLEGALS on our own CITIZENS. This isn't racist it is logical!.

[MichB1]

That would be so neat if it was true, but it isn't. Do research somewhere other than NewMax.

[nee]

I don't need to do "research" I live in s. CA. I live it. ILLEGALS ALIENS are clogging our health care system and they don't pay into that system. Their children are in our classrooms taking too much of the teacher's time and once again they are not paying into that system. We spend BILLIONS on ILLEGALS and we should be using that money on our own citizens. ALL ILLEGALS need to go back to their own countries and live off of them.

[typhanie]

It is not the Illegals that are SUCKING us dry it is GREEDY POLITICIANS ( from both sides of the aisle), who use OUR TAX MONEY as if it were theirs to do with as they please.

[nee]

Do ILLEGALS use our educational system without putting money into that system? YES! Do ILLEGAL ALIENS us our health care system without putting money into that system? YES! Enough said.

[Gidster]

Blaming illegal aliens for all of your troubles is racist. Wanting to stop illegal immigration itself is not. The two get confused in the rhetoric.

Illegals that draw a paycheck, pay into Social Security and FICA, yet have no claim to it.

[nee]

ILLEGALS are usually paid in cash therefore they do not pay into those systems. All who hire ILLEGALS should be jail and/or heavily fined. I am not blaming ILLEGAL ALIENS for ALL our troubles - the politicians who do not enforce the immigration laws are a big part of the problem. There are many things that we need to do in this country to get it back on tracek - DEPORTING ILLEGAL ALIENS is one. LEGAL immigration is welcomed in our country - the invasion of ILLEGAL ALIENS isn't.

[Glocksf21]

what a croc. I work with unions and they are strongly against imigration, so the democratic party is racist also. almost every union in the country backed democrats in the last two major elections.

[Skepticat]

Nobody looks good at the end of the day.
Southern democrats in particular played the race card ever since the South lost the civil war and were rewarded by their base of florid white voters - until the 1964 Civil rights bill when white bigots abandoned ship. Between 1968 to about '72 the Republicans carefully cultivated the bigot vote as part of a Southern strategy which worked for nearly 40 years. You saw it with "dog whistle" politics appealing to the most ignorant. "Obama isn't a real 'merkin - he's a secret muslim, born in a furrin' country - and Blaa-aack. Just who were the GOPpers pandering to anyway? Certainly wasn't for to;erance and goodwill was it?
Unions oppose immigration because they fear loss of jobs to a new exploited workforce, the could lead to reduction in wages and loss of benefits. The race of the immigrants doesn't really matter - it's the perceived economic threat. A more accurate description might be xenophobia - fear of strangers, rather than racism.

[mitsie]

I don't think he was talking about just immigration, he was talking about the idealism within the GOP that admit are the No party.

[tel8034]

And to think ..........­.. Contessa reports the news for MSNBC on a daily basis and should have been able to cite example after example of racist comments that have been made by republicans in congress..­..........­. After all these racist comments were covered (in a loop) by MSNBC when they occurred.

So either she is a lousy journalist who refuses to do the research on the topic in question BEFORE she engages in a discussion with her guests, or she is simply exposing her political bias......­.. In either case, it is obvious that she fell down on the job.

[mitsie]

I agree with you. I use to like her but as far as I am concerned she has gotten to big for her britches. The same goes for most of the daytime hosts on MSNBC. They have been going to far to the right and protecting the GOP. Why in heck do they always have to have a Republican and Democrat on at the same time?

[Gidster]

Or is this what balanced journalism is? We have been denied it for so long.

They tend to offer both sides of the issue with only a smattering of their own opinion or bias, as opposed to the FOX crew that will openly ridicule Democratic talking points, while relaying Republican propaganda­.......

[moonflowerjewelry]

i think the chinese cursed us: we sure do live in "interesting times" and since the repubs won't take responsibility, we might as well blame the chinese (remember cheech marin in born in east l.a. ?)

[sasidechick]

duh...

[bo245f]

The old order of the GOP is racist .

[tel8034]

I guess you overlooked the NEW order who attended the McCain/Palin rallies and the recent teabag events.

The NEW order certainly learnt the lessons of racism extremely well from the OLD order, and in some cases have taken the lesson to even higher heights.

[mitsie]

The younger ones also spoke openly of racism and the KKK on the tea bag blog.

[peacegurl48]

Where are the white people who want to work in the fields breathing pesticides and ending up with melanoma?

More than racist the Republicans are exclusive and judgmental; diversity of any kind is rejected. I believe the viciousness of the Right's criticism ofObama is because he is #1 a Black man and #2 he threatens their worldview where the average person is held down while the rich prosper.

American racism is alive and well; that's why Obama's Race speech made so many uncomforta­ble...he spoke to all of us about the racism in our lives.

[citizensrus]

I think racism is something you are taught and thus can be untaught. Maybe I'm wrong. If someone beleives a stereotype about an entire group of people, how hard is it to prove that stereotype incorrect?

[papapj]

It has always been known and doesn't need to be proven.

The charade that is the zeitgeist of racism and the complementary White privilege can only be maintained by an Orwellian state of denial.

[truthartbeauty]

people take comfort in their bigotry. they are weak

[Narrowminded]

Are you referring to Jeremiah Wright or Obama?

When Obama made the statement that his grandmother was a "typical white person"
that certainly smacks of racism, and Wright's racist rants are too numerous to list here.

[typhanie]

It's not hard if you take the time to get to know SOMEONE.

I met a Man about 10 yrs ago who was raised in a Racist home. He went to the Marines and met Black PEOPLE for the FIRST time, and he hasn't thought like that since. I am a Black Woman and he is one of my BEST FRIENDS to this day. So I know it is possible to change if you are willing.

[Gidster]

Similar situation here!
I was raised in Little Italy in Chicago, I never saw anyone of ethnicity until I went to college.
You must experience diversity to be diverse in your thinking!

[somefool]

Not that it matters, nor do I think it gives my opinion any greater weight than any other, but so you know where I'm comming from, I'm Mexican-American, Chicano, whatever label you want to put on me. I agree that a lot of the immigration debate is fuled by racisim, not all of it, but I think a significant percentage. Having said that, I also believe though there are a lot of people that in good faith are against an open border policy.

Although I agree that your statement about the Repub party and racism is factually accurate, it's also pretty much is a conversation killer. I can't see anything getting done on this issue anytime soon, At this point we really aren't even close to being able to talk about it.

[Ohioan730]

There are plenty of racists in both parties. The difference in Reps is that they don't apologize for it. What they do is try to pass of a malicious incendiary comment about non-white people and then turn around and call you a racist for noticing. A Dem will at least try to make nice and retract it because they know they are the big tent party and they have no chance with the former "moral majority" group. Its all politics.

[StillIRise]

Very well said.

[BBC9nch]

Very astute observation, I couldn't have said it better.

[Raven]

"Yes, total shock at the idea that there is a racist segment of the Republican Party."

Well, James, I have to admit that I'm shocked.

Not that you think there's a racist segment of the Republican Party. That you think there's even the slightest element of the Republican Party that isn't racist.

And that you think they'll admit it.

That's like expecting the torturers to admit that they're monsters.

They are, of course. But they're never going to see themselves that way.

The shock would be if they did.

[SENCvoter]

You mean like those tea baggers who were all virtually white? Had those offensive signs, talking nonsense like "white slavery"?