At this point in time, he's appealing to the GOP base, despite having initially shown what the Republicans consider to be an inappropriate response to the Rick Perry "Niggerhead Incident" - first he was, rightly, offended; then, not so much so, after having been called out by his Party betters. Then, he alleged that African Americans were brainwashed into voting Democratic, which was a remark that was highly insulting to African Americans, implying that they are incapable of thinking on their own.
Then, he got into a bit of a kerfuffle with Lawrence O'Donnell last week in an interview which only served to reveal O'Donnell's white privilege and left Cain looking the victim.
I'm Southern. I'm white and I'm a Democrat, but even I thought O'Donnell verged on race-baiting when he presumed to tell Herman Cain how Cain's father should have reacted during the era of Civil Rights' struggle.
You can watch the interview and judge for yourself:-
Well, Herman Cain was in Richmond, Virginia, this weekend, addressing the conservative Family Foundation group.
Of course, Cain has to stump Virginia. It's a state the Republican party want to retrieve in the 2012 election. It's a pivotal state, a swing state; and our Senatorial election will garner almost as much attention as the national election will as a whole.
Which leads me to another anomaly about Herman Cain.
Cain may very well get the nomination. I know the RNC's wet dream (or damp nightmare) might be Mitt Romney, but this time four years ago, everyone assumed Rudy Giuliani would lead the GOP into the 2008 election. But the electorate, in caucuses and primaries nationwide, thought otherwise. Cain is resurgent at the moment, and if he keeps the momentum up, there's no reason why he shouldn't get the nomination.
As nominee, during the campaign proper, of course, Cain will be required, from time to time to appear on the trail with various incumbents/candidates vying either for re-election or to be elected and capture a seat.
And, for Cain, this would mean appearing on the campaign trail, in Virginia, with George "Macaca" Allen.
It was a monumental achievement for a black Republican Presidential candidate to appear as a guest of a conservative organisation in the old Confederate capital this past weekend, but - should he be the nominee - Cain is not only going to have to campaign with, but endorse, a man who is on record during his last Senate campaign of 2006 as shouting out racist ad hominem to a supporter of the rival candidate:-
Not only did Allen say that, but since his adolescence in Southern California, his cars sported Confederate flag decals. His Senate and gubernatorial offices, variously, were decorated in Confederate flag memorabilia and, also, allegedly, a noose.
And then, whilst a U S Senator, George made his film debut:-
That's right. Whilst a serving U S Senator, an elected official who swears to uphold the Constitution of the United States of America, George Allen donned the uniform of a traitor to appear as an extra in a Civil War film - a film, which basically glorified the exploits of Stonewall Jackson.
Think about that. Herman Cain, as the Republican candidate, will have to share stages and attend campaign functions with George "Macaca" Allen, who desperately, desperately wants to be a U S Senator again. I honestly don't know how Cain can honour the memory, not only of his father, but of his ancestors, people George Allen obviously thinks of as second-class citizens, people who were enslaved by the types who wore the fancy dress uniform Allen donned for the film.
And after all that, how can he claim that African Americans are brainwashed into voting for the Democratic party when he will have to endorse publically the candidacy of George "Macaca" Allen?
I know that there are people in Virginia who had been raised in Democratic kitchens, who voted for John McCain in 2008 because they couldn't bring themselves to vote for a black man, couldn't live with a black man as President of the United States. I'm ashamed to say that one of them is a cousin of mine, who hasn't spoken to me, to his Democratic aunts and cousins and to his youngest brother today because we voted for Barack Hussein Obama in 2008.
I guess he'll just have to stay at home, then, if Cain gets the nomination; but I know if I were Herman Cain, I'd have to ask myself if I'd be able to sleep at night after sharing anything with the likes of George Allen.
IMHO, Cain is playing an extremely dangerous game in thinking that he can have it both ways. He seems to think that he can get one third of the nation's black votes, and that he can pander to the far right by denying that racism still exists in the 21st Century at the same time. This tells me that he has an egocentric way of viewing the world, and that he's a political neophyte. I don't think that he would have the courage to make a speech on the issue of race the way that candidate Obama did when he was campaigning to be POTUS. Just the fact that he felt compelled to walk back his comment that the (former) choice of Niggerhead for the Perry family's hunting lodge was insensitive is very revealing. When it comes to issues of race and racism, instead of standing up for what is right, Cain will "cave" in order to please the far right, many of whom appear to be in deep denial about the racism that exists within their ranks. Cain compounded his problems with his comment at the Values Votes Summit that he reached the heights of corporate America without benefit of the millions who put their lives on the line during the civil rights movement and by saying essentially that at the present time America is in its post racial phase in its history. Also, he didn't help himself by taking a negative view of the Occupy Wall St movement participants as being anti-capitalism rather than Americans who are frustrated over the stranglehold that Wall Street has over our politicians on both sides of the aisle.
ReplyDeleteAs to the warm reception Cain seems to be receiving from many on the far right, I would urge him to beware. They have already launched a "mandatory behavioral compliance" salvo in response to Cain's response to the Niggerhead issue, and Cain heeled. This indicates that Cain will only remain "acceptable" to the far right as long as he follows their pre-ordained script. Micheal Steele learned this when he became the target of the right after it was made public that he was not a fiscal conservative as chairman of the RNC. One of his first moves was to play the "race card" and say that he was treated differently because he is a black man. Today, he is no longer the chairman of the RNC, even though he still carries water for the GOP. He learned pretty quickly that if he displeased the GOP, his position as chairman of the RN was toast. I think it will only be a matter of time before Cain does something that causes him to fall out of favor with the far right, and I'll react to his downfall the same way that I did to Michael Steele's: Oh, well, what do you expect when you sell your soul to the devil for personal/political gain? Take your bitter pill and don't bother me with the problems you created for yourself by kowtowing to the demands of others for personal/political gain. Now, go away.