She's Not Quayle; She's Thomas

"I got a woman," John McCain is singing, "way over the continent," and she's good for me, oh yeah. . . . Yeah she's a kind of friend I need."

The Republican presidential nominee-to-be had to alter a few of Ray Charles's words to adapt the song. But he's got his woman, first-term Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. Contrary to what some critics of the selection are saying, McCain didn't want just any woman. She had to be qualified. Not qualified to be president, obviously; but qualified by being right--extremely right--on all the right-wing issues.

Unlike Ray Charles's woman (and many regressive women and men), Sarah Palin doesn't "know a woman's place is right there now in her home." But that's one of the few areas where this woman who opposes abortion in all cases, even rape and incest, who is a Creationist, who doesn't think human activities contribute to global warming . . . (the list goes on and on) parts company with the extreme right.

There has been much talk of Sen. McCain's choice of Gov. Palin as something akin to the 1988 pick by George H.W. Bush of Indiana Sen. Dan Quayle to be his running mate.

Like the senior Bush's choice of not-ready-for-prime-time Quayle, McCain's choice of Palin (who, as just one example of her total lack of qualification for the presidency, says she hasn't "really focused much on the war in Iraq"), came, as the saying goes, out of left field--except that in both cases the picks actually came out of right field--the deepest part of right field.

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But the far more apt parallel for the choice of Gov. Palin is an even worse nomination made by Bush the Elder three years after his selection of Quayle.

On July 1, 1991, the first President Bush announced the nomination of Clarence Thomas to replace Thurgood Marshall on the Supreme Court. Like Palin now, Thomas then was indisputably far less qualified than numerous other possible candidates, and was chosen entirely on the basis of demographics and ideology--an ideology shared by Thomas and Palin that opposes choosing people on the basis of their demographic group.

The parallel between the Thomas and Palin selections is almost exact:

1. An attempt was being made to replace on the Court Justice Marshall, one of the leading figures in advocating civil rights, with a person who shares his complexion but is his polar opposite on civil rights issues.

2. An attempt is being made to persuade women to replace in their affections Senator Clinton, one of the leading figures in advocating women's rights, with a person who shares her hormones but is her polar opposite on women's rights issues.

Neither women nor African Americans are, of course, of one mind when it comes to political and social issues, and some women are in tune with Sarah Palin, as some African Americans are in agreement with Clarence Thomas. But the women who agree with Gov. Palin are already Republicans. Sen. McCain's cynical ploy is aimed at winning over women who voted for Hillary Clinton.

A woman who supported Hillary Clinton in 2008 but would vote for a female whose choice made Dr. James Dobson and the rest of the Jesus Thieves of the so-called "Christian Right" ecstatic would be as foolish as a black civil rights advocate who would approve an African American Supreme Court nominee whose choice thrilled the "Religious Right" and the right-wing in general in 1991.

A second X-chromosome is no more a sufficient qualification for being women's choice for the vice presidency than dark pigmentation was for being African-Americans' choice for a seat on the Supreme Court.

And mention of seats on the Supreme Court brings the parallel between Clarence Thomas and Sarah Palin into even sharper focus. The election of McCain and Palin would assure the appointment of more justices who share Thomas's ideology and would guarantee the overturning of Roe v. Wade along with many other progressive and pro-woman and pro-civil rights decisions.

How many supporters of Hillary Clinton would have voted for Margaret Thatcher? How many would vote for Phyllis Schlafly? That's exactly how many should vote for John McCain and his new help-mate.

So while John McCain is happily humming "I Got a Woman," the rest of us need to sing -- no, scream -- the lyrics of another song from the 1960s, the Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again":

Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
Don't get fooled again
No, no!

If the voters do allow themselves to get fooled again, as they were fooled by the Republican politics of fear and lies in 2004, the nation will find itself with John McCain as president and Pete Townshend's closing lines of that song tell us exactly what that would mean:

Meet the new boss
Same as the old boss

The song combined with images of Thomas and Palin, Bush and McCain, Karl Rove and a quick clip of a 2004 swift boat ad would make a great television commercial.

{Historian Robert S. McElvaine is Elizabeth Chisholm Professor of Arts & Letters at Millsaps College. His latest book is Grand Theft Jesus: The Hijacking of Religion in America .

Read more reaction from HuffPost bloggers to John McCain's selection of Sarah Palin as his running mate

Comments

[LeeScho]

Clarence Thomas was far more qualified to be a justice of the U.S Supreme Court than Dan Quayle was qualified to be a potential POTUS. The role of a Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court is mitigated by eight other justices and trumped by the Chief Justice. The POTUS role is mitigated by no one.

The sham and the shame of Thomas on the court is verified by his performance there. The sham of Quayle never met fruition because Bush Sr. lived through his term and was denied a second. McCain asks America to take that chance again with Palin. America will do so not merely at its peril on that score, but at its peril of having McCain serve as President for any length of time.

[benne]

Thanks for bringing that one up -- yet another moment in which race trumped sex, as the good ol' boys, including Biden, had to shut the women up. I remember how Biden made sure that two witnesses that confirmed Anita Hill's story weren't allowed to testify. I also remember how Kennedy remained silent. We didn't have to have that guy on the Supreme Court if the Democrats weren't so committed to shutting women up. The parallels are too eerie for those of us who were and are paying attention.

[KaluMa]

I second that as another Black woman! Mc Cains choice plays into the simplistic perceptions that republicans have of Blacks and women. Just like they tried to get Alan Keyes to run against Obama in Illinois for his US Senate seat just because Keyes was black---Forget that he had never lived in Illinois until then. McCain chose her because she was a woman and he figured that should be enough. It is insulting. I have finally joined the ranks of my parents and have officially gone from Independent to full time Democrat.

[Katlen]

I like your comparison. I was thinking she was Harriet Miers, certainly in terms of qualifications for the job.

[Svendem]

And here I was, thinking she was a new Spiro Agnew.

[jean22]

You're absolutely correct!!!

[jeanrenoir]

Right, except for one factor: Palin is truly charismatic and the kind of woman average white American women LOVE, whether they are far right or not. So the best analogy may be Reagan himself. Palin may well be the left, and especially feminism's absolutely perfect storm: a female Reagan, ie, a figure seemingly perfectly crafted by Rove and Co. to charm a maximum number of brain dead voters who won't even exactly CARE about the specifics of her politics, since they'll just LIKE her so much. If Hillary doesn't bite the bullet and do her best to wipe Palin out very soon--which she probably won't do, for fear of alienating all those "hard-working, you know, WHITE" Appalachian voters she transmogrified herself to seduce in the first place--Palin will be to feminism what Reagan was to the New Deal. And Palin, not Hillary, will end up the most popular female political figure in America with the mass of ignorant white female voters. Which means she will CRUSH Hillary in their High Noon cat fight in '12. If Hillary doesn't wake up and deal with this, not just Roe but feminism itself will be under siege in America as it's never been before. Palin will say, of course, that she's a strong believer in a woman's right to do any job a man does, like being President. But it will be like electing Phyllis Schlaffly to the White House, with Creationism thrown in for good measure.

[Gidster]

All of your points a fairly valid, but the rush to worship seems a bit premature!
Palin sets back womens rights at least ten years, no access to birth control, no choice in abortion rights, McCain has already voted against equal pay for women....
It seems that if Palin is to feminism what Reagan was to the new deal.....then she will dismantle feminism!
Maybe I am getting the gist of your post wrong, but I feel American women are smarter than this.

[ThoughtAboutIt]

Neemni said
>> I said exactly the same thing yesterday....and my feeling is reinforced by this post.

[dollphingurl]

as a Black American with two X chromosomes, I TOTALLY AGREE WITH YOU, MR. MCELVAINE!!!

i'm feeling you, dude!!! you should be on Keith O with this )))smile(((.!!!

[S1m0n]

The women who already share Palin's ideology might already be republicans, but it's been an open question, ere now, whether they'd vote for John McCain. most, however, WILL vote for Palin.

[obamagirl1968]

The difference here is that the PEOPLE actually get to VOTE! We won't get fooled again, we won't get fooled again....

[darker]

This makes COMMON SENSE: "How many supporters of Hillary Clinton would have voted for Margaret Thatcher? How many would vote for Phyllis Schlafly? That's exactly how many should vote for John McCain and his new help-mate."

Palin PALES before Hillary Clinton who is a real achiever and contributor to women and people at large.
McCain is not a maverick, he is a fake "statesman" who does his handlers' bidding. How disgusting.

[Neemni]

I said exactly the same thing yesterday....and my feeling is reinforced by this post.

[vietveter]

Clarence Thomas was/is the 'anti' Thurgood Marshall.

I am happy to see that others recognize the joke being

re-pulled on the citizens of America

This woman is NOT Hillary Clinton

only the plumbing is the same... and that is all.

This is the ANTI Hillary.

[tainoaz]

I would use Hillary Rodham Clinton to go after her credentials and what she advocates.
Who is this person? I would grill Mr. McCain because I am certain all he knows of Mrs.Palin is that she will NOT get in his way IF he makes it to the Presidency.

[Joseph A. Palermo - Huffpost Blogger]

Yes, I agree -- check out my blog "John McCain Telegraphs His Misogyny"