Don't you just love it when racists try to accuse others of being racist? :think:
from AlterNet:
Posted by Joshua Holland at 4:58 pm
June 14, 2010
Wingnut Rep. Steve King: Obama ‘Favors the Black Person by Default’There are maybe a dozen or so Reps in Congress whose views are as extreme as they come, and whose filters appear to be nonexistent. They give us a window, of sorts, on what the edge of the conservative mainstream looks like.
Iowa’s Steve King is among the most reactionary:
Rep. Steve King (R-IA) appeared on the G. Gordon Liddy Show this morning to discuss Arizona’s controversial immigration law and accused Attorney General Eric Holder and President Barack Obama – both critics of the legislation – of harboring animosity towards white Americans. Specifically, he accused Obama of having a ‘default mechanism’ that favors ‘the black person.’
Media Matters noted that King based this on something Holder had said, but that he’d misquoted him. Ta Nehisi Coates writes:
…On the basic facts, King is simply wrong. More to the point, the charge that SoandSo is “favoring blacks” is not some new evolved tactic. The “favoring black people” charge is … native to the practiced racist …
He offers a few examples, and concludes:
The charge by white public figures that certain politicians favors blacks, and thus disfavors white is not merely “racial resentment” it isn’t just “racial discomfort,” it is an old and racist appeal aimed squarely at a particular citizen, nursing the most ancient of American resentments.
One final note, I’ve seen a lot of Tea Party folks taking exception to the charge that they are in anyway motivated by racism. Fair enough. I would humbly suggest that when you embrace political leaders who claim that the president “favors the black person,” or when your keynote speaker claims that “literacy tests” would have prevented an Obama election, you should not be surprised that your membership comes to the mall toting signs that claim Obama is supporting “White slavery.”
Meanwhile, we’re getting more emails like this:
Josh Holland. You are somewhat right about whites who despise welfare programs. And it is true that when most people here “the poor”, they think of “minorities”. Well, there is a reason for this. White working class people don’t want to be taxed any more than they already are, as they are struggling, and sure don’t want to see the money of our community go to NIGGERS that are bringing down our quality of life, driving out businesses, and squandering public funds!
It’s a dangerous time in America, and some of the most irresponsible rhetoric comes from the top and filters down.
http://blogs.alternet.org/speakeasy/2010/06/14/wingnut-rep-steve-king-obama-favors-the-black-person-by-default/