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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsBen Stein Thinks Obama Is “the Most Racist President” in American History
Ben Stein, the author and pundit who will be forever best known for intoning the name Bueller in a 1980s high-school comedy, is outraged that Democrats are trying to persuade voters of color that the Republican party isnt looking out for their best interests. He took his frustration to a friendly place, Fox News Americas News HQ on Sunday, and said these words (emphasis added):
What the White House is trying to do is racialize all politics and theyre especially trying to tell the African-American voter that the G.O.P. is against letting them have a chance at a good life in this economy, and thats just a complete lie . . . I watch with fascinationwith incredible fascinationall the stories about how the Democratic politicians, especially Hillary, are trying to whip up the African-American vote and say, Oh, the Republicans have policies against black people in terms of the economy. But there are no such policies. . . .
Its all a way to racialize voting in this country . . . This president is the most racist president there has ever been in America. He is purposely trying to use race to divide Americans.
Whoo-boy, Mr. Stein! Where to start? Twelve American presidents owned slaves (Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Jackson, van Buren, Harrison, Tyler, Polk, Taylor, Johnson, Grant), eight of them while in office. Richard Nixon, who had plenty of theories when it came to race, believed that the Jews are just a very aggressive and abrasive and obnoxious personality, and that, when it came to black Americans, what has to happen is they have to be, frankly, inbred. (Stein, of all people, should have remembered Nixons curious racial theorieshe was a lawyer and speechwriter for the president, and remains one of his biggest defenders.) The recorded history of racism among American politicians is too long to delineate here, so lets end by including just one more illustrative example. Lyndon Johnson, the man who became a champion of equality when he signed the Civil Rights Act, once had this to say to his sometimes chauffeur, Robert Parker, according to Parkers memoir, Capitol Hill in Black and White: As long as you are black, and youre gonna be black till the day you die, no ones gonna call you by your goddamn name. So no matter what you are called, nigger, you just let it roll off your back like water, and youll make it. Just pretend youre a goddamn piece of furniture. Were sure he meant well.
full: http://www.vanityfair.com/online/daily/2014/11/ben-stein-obama-most-racist-president
Gloria
(17,663 posts)It was an event to plug a financial management firm, but I wanted to see the guy I had been listening to on webcasts...
When they trotted out Stein, I nearly wretched. I was sitting right up front and as he launched into a few right wing comments,
he noticed my grimacing. I was just not approving of his crap....asshole.
nilesobek
(1,423 posts)on Israel to suit Mr. Stein.
Adenoid_Hynkel
(14,093 posts)a visionary, friend and peacemaker.
-- Ben Stein, on his mentor Richard Nixon
"Henry, let's leave the n----rs to Bill and we'll take care of the rest of the world"
-- Southern Strategy pioneer Richard Nixon, from the Watergate tapes
Journeyman
(15,024 posts)and discernment and rational thought have been abandoned in favor of raw hate and foaming sputters.
I guess Obama can take heart in the knowledge that they have so little to base their criticism upon they must resort to delusional hyperbole right from the start.
kelliekat44
(7,759 posts)merrily
(45,251 posts)Thing is, the right buys into this kind of bullshit--or pretends to.