Why Willey Won't Vote For Hillary in November
I've known Willey since the time my parents abandoned Detroit's run-down East Side for the less-run-down West side. I was ten and Willey was in his early 20s, but wise beyond his age and ninth grade education. We often talked in the backyard over the fence about civil rights, Vietnam, the Supremes, Marvin Gaye and voting. Willey embraced the ballot box like the cross on a chain he wore around his neck every day plus Sunday. I called Willey this week to get his take on the travails of Detroit's beleaguered mayor, Kwame Kilpatrick, but he wanted to talk instead about the primary election. Willey, now in his 70's, has never missed an election, to my knowledge. He has awful pulmonary problems but hopes to live to make it to the polls in November. He's been praying to cast a ballot for Barack Obama. But he had no problem voting for Hillary. That is, until Ohio. That's when he said he saw "some really ugly things." By ugly he was not referring to the widely distributed photograph of Obama in traditional Somali dress replete with a turban. It was the racial-religious imagery that leaped from that photo which had Willey breathing harder than he should have over the phone. The picture was linked to the Clinton camp, according to the Drudge Report, which first published it.
Exit polls taken in the aftermath of the Ohio primary found that race played a significant role in how people voted. And last Sunday on CBS's 60 Minutes a white worker interviewed by Steve Kroft said his hesitancy in voting for Barack Obama stemmed from "the fact" that he is a Muslim. Kroft corrected the man but Hillary did no such thing. When Kroft asked Clinton about the rumor she said it was not true "as far as I know."
That just about sealed it for Willey. And after Hillary's refusal to call for Geraldine Ferraro's resignation after she told a California newspaper that Barack had been successful only because he is a black man, Willey's no longer wavering. Ferraro did finally step down, but there's nothing to indicate that she was pushed. Moreover Clinton's initial impulse to defend the former Democratic vice presidential candidate's peculiar notion of black advantage does not inspire confidence in people like Willey.
Ferraro's comments reflect the mounting anxiety of many ethnic whites especially, who have come to believe that there are built-in advantages to being black or Mexican or another so-called minority. But the assumption of privilege based on black or brown skin color seems illogical. Just ask all those African Americans left stranded on rooftops and in the squalor of a football stadium in New Orleans after just about everyone else had left the city. And studies on affirmative action in education like Bowen and Bok's seminal "Shape of the River" found that really deserving white kids are more likely to be passed over by lower-scoring white athletes or the children of wealthy alumni than some smart black kid, like Barack, who was ushered into the Ivy League only partly because of the color of his skin.
Ferraro, Ohio and Bill Clinton's comments leading up to the vote in South Carolina have been too much for Willey, and it will cost Hillary at least one vote in November if she clinches the nomination. Even her apology to a group of black community newspaper executives may have been too late for Willey. He sees her primary season mea culpa as strategic not heartfelt. But there's also no way in hell that Willey would ever vote for a Republican. Yet, he also does not want Clinton Democrats to assume that the black vote is automatic. And divisive race-baiting tactics make the delivery of that vote less likely.
"God willing" says Willey, he will go to his polling station in the fall but only to check off the list of state and local races. The problem for the Democratic Party is clear: If loyal voters like Willey demur from casting ballots in the 2008 presidential election, the Clinton campaign would have succeeded in suppressing the black vote more than Karl Rove could ever have dreamed.
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1. At this point there is no way I could ever vote of Hillary. The dishonesty of the Clinton's, the tear down strategy of their chief campaign manager Mark Penn, the lies and failure to release the tax returns, etc. are just too much politics as usual.
2. Hillary has proven yet again what a divisive, say anything, do anything candidate she is. I'd much rather have a John McCain who is at least clearly a conservative and stands for something; rather than Clinton whose only principle is to win. The divisive Clintons have broken the coalition that could have prevailed in November. Let's have McCain win get his four years over with and get Obama elected in 2012!
I'll be voting a Democratic ticket in November, but I will not vote for Hillary Clinton. Not now. Not ever.
It is evil and insulting for her and her cohorts to suggest that Senator Obama got where he is and is going where he's undeniably headed simply because he is African-American.
I've been impressed by his leadership, his programs, and his vision, and his strength, thoughtfulness and facility in putting it all out there. Who he is, in his entirety, brings us all these gifts.
The conversations in my family, early in the election, were that he probably could not be elected because of the historical and continuing racism in this country, but his success so far seems to indicate that racial prejudice is far less over than it used to be. There is still a long way to go, but his transcendence in the election so far says there is real hope. So, that's the thrill.
But, at the base of the discussion, here is a person who could be making millions on Wall Street, but who has put himself and his ideas and his abilities out there in service of the country. With his attributes, every one of them, well, I get seriously emotional thinking that he and we could actually turn this country around.
So, GO! Obama!
Oops. That's . . . maybe racial prejudice is "far less overt" than it used to be.
hillary clinton also could have used her yale law degree to earn big bucks. but she chose another course.
President William J. Clinton had an apparent fondness for bridges. "I want to build a bridge to the twenty-first century . . ." (a metaphor he used often in 1996). Senator Hillary Clinton's campaign apparently does not share this fondness for building bridges. Rather, they appear willing and at times eager to burn bridges.
I believe Senator Obama has the experience and has demonstrated the qualities of a leader. A leader who was ready before day one. I believe Senator Clinton has demonstrated the qualities of a manager.
For example (from a paper by J. E. Colvard):
A manager takes care of where you are; a leader takes you to a new place.
A manager deals with complexity; a leader deals with uncertainty.
A manager is concerned with finding the facts; a leader makes decisions.
A manager is concerned with doing things right; a leader is concerned with doing the right things.
A manager’s critical concern is efficiency; a leader is focussed on effectiveness.
A manager creates policies; a leader establishes principles.
A manager sees and hears what is going on; a leader hears when there is no sound and sees when there is no light.
A manager looks for similarities between present and previous problems; a leader looks for differences.
A manager thinks that a successful solution to a management problem can be used again; a leader wonders that if the problem set in a new environment might require a different solution.
I will vote for a leader. I will no longer vote for status quo.
Should unlikely future circumstances cause Senator Clinton to seek my support in Indiana she will find herself standing capriciously on a second bridge to nowhere.
I'm a middle-aged white guy and I, too, am with Willey. I haven't fought all my life for the rights of everyone, including women, in every sphere, including the boardroom, in order to have a contestant for the highest office attempt to steal this election on gender- and race-baiting. I haven't witnessed a bigger betrayal of our party, ever, and I've been paying attention since the mid-70s.
I was a huge Clinton. Hillary lost my respect by abdicating her role as a leader of the party between 9/11 and 2006. Bill lost my respect back the moment he began belittling Obama as if he were some Republican white trash. I regret the thousands of hours I've spent praising and defending the Clintons. I wish I could have all that time back. They didn't deserve my goodwill.
To the hell with the Clintons. The sooner the better.
I am a latino raised in a white culture and I do not vote the color of anyone's skin. I vote the content of ones' character. I'd vote for Barack even if he was purple.
I am an middleaged white guy, but I am right there with Willey
I'm with Willey--vote down ballot only, in the eventuality.
Everyone needs to take a couple of weeks and re-read David Roediger's _The Wages of Whiteness_ (the phrase is W.E.B. DuBois').
Tell Willey I'll be there, voting in November, for Barack as well! How interesting that Barack and Bill Clinton have VERY SIMILAR backgrounds, but those who have positive feelings about Clinton see him as 'self made' Those who hate Obama (and for no logical reason) see him as 'unqualified'. It's the classic, and racist, affirmative action argument.
Those who make the argument even discount ALL of Sen. Obama's achievements (as Sen. Clinton has) in order to make the argument. He's just some black guy who once gave a good speech, and he's not even close to being as qualified as the other candidates. NONE of that is ever accidental. That she would even see him as less qualified as McCain is the real rub.
Who is Hillary REALLY running against? http://www
Denni - I cast my first presidential ballot for Bill Clinton, and have referred to him as "my president" for many years (until the South Carolina primaries, actually). Barack Obama is my candidate this time around, and originally, it is because he affected me the same way Bill did in 1992. A friend and I were just talking about that very thing last night. So, people do recognize it. Unfortunately, the people recognizing the similarities are not Hillary supporters.
I think the people who are foaming at the mouth - calling Obama a charlatan, and discounting his accomplishments and experience are so vested in the concept of Hillary that they can't see him as a valid alternative. I don't understand that, as before the campaign actually started, I could see them both as valid candidates. Now, I would say differently, but again, that's because of Hill's actions during the campaign.
Spot on. You know several hundreds year ago a nasty ugly seed, slavery, helped build this country, and even though it has been removed from the ground some of it's roots are still entrenched deep in our minds. Those roots created all sorts of nasty effects in our society that can still be felt, In places that we can't even seem to see them in.I would argue that those roots laid the ground for our current corporate culture. Many would deny that those effects even exist and that they are in the past and that they have been removed successfully from our society. But they have not and they are there present ready to be exploited. They are exploited by the elite to herd us in one direction or another. where ever they see fit to move us towards. The Clinton campaign sought to use this to divide us,so they could win the blue collar white vote. But their clumsy attempt at race baiting has only left them looking opportunistic and power hungry. How ironic it would be if our republic dies because of that effects of that ugly nasty seed that seems to continue dominate the darkest recess of our minds.
Spot on. You know several hundreds year ago a nasty ugly seed, slavery, helped build this country, and even though it has been removed from the ground some of it's roots are still entrenched deep in our minds. Those roots created all sorts of nasty effects in our society that can still be felt, In places that we can't even seem to see them in.I would argue that those roots laid the ground for our current corporate culture. Many would deny that those effects even exist and that they are in the past and that they have been removed successfully from our society. But they have not and they are there present ready to be exploited. They are exploited by the elite to herd us in one direction or another. where ever they see fit to move us towards. The Clinton campaign sought to use this to divide us,so they could win the blue collar white vote. But their clumsy attempt at race baiting has only left them looking opportunistic and power hungry. How ironic it would be if our republic dies because of that effects of that ugly nasty seed that seems to continue dominate the darkness recess of our minds.
Amen-- I'm Jewish-- and these over 65 year old women must have short memories if they can't remember that when they were very, very young-- they too had ethnic slurs on the schoolyard grounds said by the then little bullies who attacked and slurred our ethnicity---
Wow, how bad does a Clinton hafta screw up to lose Black voters? And not just some black people, but damn near ALL the black people ! I'm white, myself, but I grew up in one of the most diverse parts of Florida (Tampa-St. Pete), and I've noticed a few things about black people. When a black guy says he's got yer back, he means it. Black people tend to be, in my expeirience, wary of white folks bearing gifts ( imagine that? ), but if you manage to gain their respect, then you've got people. And it seems like once you have that trust, you have to really f%$#k up to lose it. Here's hoping the Democratic Party isn't going to f%$#k up anymore.
Obama 08 \/
Truth be told!
Maggie Williams campaign manager (black) is with Clinton to the end. Magic Johnson, Bob Johnson, and Keyshawn Johnson all have Clinton's back.
Clinton has lost the black vote more than Obama has wone it.
Hey Kordo, I think you're pretty accurate with that. I was pretty young when Bill Clinton was first elected. And I voted for him in '96 too. A lot of Black folks really did believe he was as close as we could get to the first black president. We felt like he was down for us and by extension his wife too. When he moved his offices to Harlem we were proud. We supported Hillary in her Senate bids as well as her Presidential bid in the beginning anyway. I know of a number of black people, my family and myself included that had serious doubts about Obama before this campaign got under way. We thought he might be too young, he should wait, etc, etc. I don't anymore, but some in my family still do.
So to hear the racially tinged vitriol coming out of the Clinton campaign is sorta a slap in the face. Seeing how they're so big on loyalty I guess we as a group overwhelming voting for him is a slap in the face as well. What they don't understand though is that it's not because he's black that he's getting our votes, it's because he's not insulting us daily as her campaign is doing.
Thx, Violist :)
And does any Democrat seriously beleive we can take back the White House, and hold onto Congress, without the wholehearted support of African-American voters? What if they throw an election, and half of the black people stay home??
Well, I am white and I'm with Willey.
And with all of my African American friends, acquaintances, and colleagues. After many examples of using racially charged code words and phrases and surrogates to drum up support among the Reagan Democrats, she has burned the last bridge she had to them and to me.
I'm an Independent, who is "ethnic white", i guess. (I prefer the more generic term "human").
I won't vote for Clinton. (Pick your reason: Dirty politics, smear campaigns, scandals, racisms, sexisms, bad judgment, poor financing decisions, etc.)
I would only consider McCain, if he gets some phenomenal running mate - and even then, I'm not sure. (I think, we've had enough wars for this generation, and we need someone more concerned with healing this country, than destroying other ones.)
I will, however, vote for --- and campaign for --- Obama. He's consistently been the better leader.
The Clintons have burned a bridge with every single Black person I know. The sad part is that it didn't have to be this way...Blac
The funny thing is, while commentators and all these ignorant posters are marginalizing us at every turn and marginalizing Obama's accomplish
People forget that just two generations ago we were marching for civil rights, boycotting the buses, and we were a strong and defiant people standing up for our rights...t
All these racist Clinton supporters complaining about 90% of Black votes voting for Obama (as if anybody would be dumb enough to vote for someone who has degraded their race) will be wishing they had 90% of the Black vote for her like Bill Clinton, Gore, Kerry, and every other Democratic presidential nominee has had for decades. This election is showing us that no matter how much "progress" is made, we are going to be the first ones getting thrown under the bus. Clearly, Hillary has no more good intentions towards Black votes than McCain does...so if the choice is between either one, it makes no difference to me.
Bottom line: Underestimate us, denigrate us, and marginalize us at your own peril!
You're darned right. I see this disrespect as totally shameful.
And the really sad part is that at the debate where he was being pushed about Farrakhan, he said that he really wanted to rebuild the historic coalition between Jews and blacks. My family worked hard for the civil rights movement. He's absolutely right about that old relationship and the way it's gotten destroyed. I choked up.
I also saw an old interview with him on Tavis Smiley--October or November?--and he also said that Hillary was leading him in the polls.
i would be with you if obama hadn't thrown michigan voters under the bus. i was wavering until he did that.
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