Unless you live off the grid, you have probably heard that a leaked video of a Romney fundraiser has the GOP presidential candidate in hot water with 47 percent of Americans. Watch the entire video at Diversity Inc and read the accompanying article by Luke Visconti. Mr. Visconti arrived at the conclusion that the following statement by Romney is not a statement rife with veiled racism.
“There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe that the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to healthcare, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That…that’s an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what … These are people who pay no income tax.”
Jeremiah Goulka of the Huffington Post has a different take on Romney’s remarks. “No matter how much Republicans deny playing the race card by talking about welfare and "dependence," much of the point of talking about it is to trigger pictures in Republican heads. Let's be honest. For most Republicans, the mental image isn't of a lazy white kid in front of an Xbox. The "freeloaders" are always people of color, usually black.”
It is fairly clear that Romney’s remarks delighted the white billionaires in the room. One, who introduced himself as the oldest member of the Grand Old Party, bragged that he had been involved in the Barry Goldwater campaign of the early 1960’s. He had a suggestion which followed Romney’s outburst again the “victims.” “You have Eric Holder who’s probably the most corrupt Attorney General we’ve ever had in American history…and I think that is something that…that if we spin it the right way and in simple terms, can actually resonate with the American people. See this clip from the same clandestine video as shown on The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell.
This is an odd comment at best, considering that two Attorney Generals in the Nixon administration were prosecuted and sent to jail for crimes committed while in office. Although Eric Holder has an illustrious background for the job, it was still easy for this elderly Republican to vilify him without hesitation. As O’Donnell points out in his commentary the only thing different about Mr. Holder is that he is the first black Attorney General.
So let’s lay all the available evidence out on the table and see what we come up with. Here we have a bunch of GOP money men who want to see Obama defeated, all coaching their nominee to assure a November victory, and their main strategy is to attack black people at every level in our society. Watch the videos and listen carefully. Do you hear the racial dog whistle? It is loud enough to hurt your ears.
Is this just another avenue for Romney to sneak in racial digs at the people, most of whom may be black?
Stay tuned, on Monday September 24, we will post the second part of this article focusing on President Obama's response to the Romney video.
Comments
No, I don't feel that it is.
No, I don't feel that it is. the "47 Percent" could and does mean more than just white people in general. Think of the well off people from different races that support Romney. I feel its arrogant to think that this statement is related to race. It seems that the media now attacks Romney at every turn and chance they can. To go this far and to call his statement racist is idiotic. Yes, what Romney said about 47% was a stupid thing to say and he should explain himself but to go as far as call this a racist statement is a stretch.