NYT, Herbert,The Ugly Side of the GOP: "I'd like a million angry protesters marching on the RNC."

[DeepModem Mom]

Op-Ed Columnist
The Ugly Side of the G.O.P.
By BOB HERBERT
Published: September 25, 2007

I applaud the thousands of people, many of them poor, who traveled from around the country to protest in Jena, La., last week. But what I’d really like to see is a million angry protesters marching on the headquarters of the National Republican Party in Washington.

Enough is enough. Last week the Republicans showed once again just how anti-black their party really is. The G.O.P. has spent the last 40 years insulting, disenfranchising and otherwise stomping on the interests of black Americans. Last week, the residents of Washington, D.C., with its majority black population, came remarkably close to realizing a goal they have sought for decades — a voting member of Congress to represent them. A majority in Congress favored the move, and the House had already approved it. But the Republican minority in the Senate — with the enthusiastic support of President Bush — rose up on Tuesday and said: “No way, baby.”...

At the same time that the Republicans were killing Congressional representation for D.C. residents, the major G.O.P. candidates for president were offering a collective slap in the face to black voters nationally by refusing to participate in a long-scheduled, nationally televised debate focusing on issues important to minorities. The radio and television personality Tavis Smiley worked for a year to have a pair of these debates televised on PBS, one for the Democratic candidates and the other for the Republicans. The Democratic debate was held in June, and all the major candidates participated. The Republican debate is scheduled for Thursday. But Rudy Giuliani, John McCain, Mitt Romney and Fred Thompson have all told Mr. Smiley: “No way, baby.”...

This is the party of the Southern strategy — the party that ran, like panting dogs, after the votes of segregationist whites who were repelled by the very idea of giving equal treatment to blacks. Ronald Reagan, George H.W. (Willie Horton) Bush, George W. (Compassionate Conservative) Bush — they all ran with that lousy pack....

In one of the vilest moves in modern presidential politics, Ronald Reagan, the ultimate hero of this latter-day Republican Party, went out of his way to kick off his general election campaign in 1980 in that very same Philadelphia, Miss. He was not there to send the message that he stood solidly for the values of Andrew Goodman. He was there to assure the bigots that he was with them....In 1991, the first President Bush poked a finger in the eye of black America by selecting the egregious Clarence Thomas for the seat on the Supreme Court that had been held by the revered Thurgood Marshall....Republicans improperly threw black voters off the rolls in Florida in the contested presidential election of 2000, and sent Florida state troopers into the homes of black voters to intimidate them in 2004. Blacks have been remarkably quiet about this sustained mistreatment by the Republican Party, which says a great deal about the quality of black leadership in the U.S. It’s time for that passive, masochistic posture to end.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/25/opinion/25herbert.html?em&ex=1190865600&en=7424e951a3de1367&ei=5087%0A

[acmavm]

1. There is NO 'pretty' side to the GOP for any of us but the rich.

[Cha]

8. And not just the rich..but the

ugly greedy ilk who are bushits..there are plenty of rich people who are saying out loud that they don't need their tax cuts.

[bunkerbuster1]

2. I'd gladly get my white ass to DC to lend support of such a march

Herbert raises an excellent point: I don't know why civil rights groups haven't specifically targeted the filthy RNC as yet. How much crap should one group tolerate?

[Cha]

9. Timing! Hopefully this

will be the seed we all need. Someday, someone like Dan Rather will make this suggestion only on the corporatemediawhores because that's another scourge on America that needs to be massively Marched ON.

[EffieBlack]

11. Why wait for the civil rights groups to do it?

Why don't people organize something?

Whenever civil rights groups and civil rights leaders call these things out, they're accused of race-baiting, etc., often by some of the very people who also criticize them for supposedly not doing anything.

Civil rights leaders have long been speaking up about the failure of our political leaders and presidential candidates to address our issues, but they walk a fine line when it comes to talking about electoral politics. For example, the NAACP and Urban League leadership have blasted the Republicans for failing to participate in candidate forums at their annual conventions. For example, Urban League President Marc Morial wrote in a column entitled: "Message to Giuliani and Romney: Just Say No to Drive-By Politics,"

"Giuliani may have served as the top government official of the nation’s largest and most diverse cities but that doesn’t mean he’s obliged to address the issues near and dear to his former constituents’ hearts. It’s so ironic that America’s Mayor would turn down an invitation to speak in front of the nation’s largest organization devoted to urban issues. But then again, he cannot possibly depend on us to pull him through to victory in the GOP primaries. He needs to do what every other red-blooded political candidate seems required to do – court white evangelicals, an increasingly influential and populous sector of the electorate. In 2006, they made up 24 percent of the electorate, up from 23 percent in 2004, according to exit polls . . . The days of white men governing a mostly white population are over. I realize that African Americans tend to support Democrats but does that mean Republicans like Giuliani and Romney should write us off so early in the campaign? The Democratic presidential contenders must also realize that our support is not a given.

The National Urban League promotes issues that are just as important to middle-class Republican NASCAR dads as to single African American mothers struggling to make ends meet. All Americans want to get better jobs, own their own homes, send their children to college and prepare for their own retirement. Our message of economic empowerment is universal: it cuts across all lines. Everyone has a desire to make their lives better for themselves and future generations.

That is why I’m urging our presidential contenders to cease and desist with the practice of drive-by politicking. To be an effective president of this nation in the 21st Century, they’ll need to reach out to all groups equally. They cannot just drive by and wave. To ensure a better future for our nation, they’ll have to engage a wide range of viewpoints no matter what kind of bang they think they’ll get for their campaign buck on Election Day. So, Rudy and Mitt, I urge you to reconsider – not just for us but for the future of the United States."
http://www.bendweekly.com/Opinion/3434.html

The civil rights leadership IS speaking up. But it where was everyone else? Where were the DUers? Did anyone here support their efforts?

It's not enough for people to insist that the civil rights groups do something. They're doing plenty, but they need the support of the people on the ground!

[HowHasItComeToThis]

3. REPUBLICAN SOUTHERN STRATEGY.....

IGNITE A RACE WAR.

[intheflow]

7. Yes, the old Southern Dems are the new Southern Repukes. n/t

[againes654]

4. K&R

for the truth

[hedgehog]

5. Well said.

I've tried to add something to this, but I can't.

[Cha]

6. I'm so glad Bob Herbert brings this

out in the many acts of hatred the gop has in their ugly history..

"....In 1991, the first President Bush poked a finger in the eye of black America by selecting the egregious Clarence Thomas for the seat on the Supreme Court that had been held by the revered Thurgood Marshall"

Do you think it might come to what Bob Herbert is suggesting? That and millions marching on cnn as the corporatemediawhore extraordinare?

The gop have been sticking their collective finger in all our eyes for a long time but especially Black America! I can't wait for DC to have representation in Congress!

[DeepModem Mom]

13. At least, Herbert has taken a step. Sometimes that gets something into...

somebody else's head and they write about it, or there's something on TV, or a candidate, or activist, says something. Here's hoping it's a start toward opening some eyes, and then maybe more.

[Cha]

23. Exactly! It's gotta

start somewhere and this looks like an exciting, embryonic, seedling of an entire new way to do things!

[Bitwit1234]

10. Republicans consolidate and attack

that's something the democrats have never learned to do. They should, and I really mean it, stop attacking each other within the ranks, and consolidate. If the democrats all worked together regardless of the many different ideas they have the republicans would never ever have a chance. WE represent the real core of America. WHY can't we realize that and take the upper hand. FIRST WE HAVE ....HAVE....HAVE TO TAKE BACK THE MEDIA...UNTIL THIS SPINELESS GUTLESS CONGRESS STARTS TO FIGHT BACK WE ARE NEVER GOING TO GET ANYWHERE.

They are so sure they are going to win the next elections they are coasting. But they better make sure that they are really going to win. America might revolt and vote for someone else to take their place in the congress. They might not even get to run for office much less win the post.

[Kurovski]

12. K&R. (nt)

[AZBlue]

14. K&R

[beaconess]

15. K&R - a must read

[DeepModem Mom]

22. Maybe a good sign: This piece is the second most e-mailed at the NYT tonight. nt

[Grandrose]

16. K&R

Brilliant!:thumbsup: :kick:

[beaconess]

17. It is - but it's a shame this thread has gotten so little response & has to be kicked to stay alive!

nt

[Grandrose]

19. So true!

Seems bashing our own Democratic candidates is more important than the enemy....MSM and the Republics! :grr:

[beaconess]

20. Exactly!

Although, I have a sneaking suspicion that if the Republicans en massed boycotted every forum coordinated by - oh, let's say - white folks, DU would be lit up like a Christmas tree about it!

[bemildred]

18. Word. nt

[beaconess]

21. Kick - I'll try again