With so much at stake, and time running short, Frederick did not feel he had the luxury of subtlety. He climbed atop a folding chair to give 30 campaign volunteers who were about to go canvassing door to door their talking points -- for instance, the connection between Barack Obama and Osama bin Laden: "Both have friends that bombed the Pentagon," he said. "That is scary." It is also not exactly true -- though that distorted reference to Obama's controversial association with William Ayers, a former 60s radical, was enough to get the volunteers stoked. "And he won't salute the flag," one woman added, repeating another myth about Obama. She was quickly topped by a man who called out, "We don't even know where Senator Obama was really born." Actually, we do; it's Hawaii.
This is an actual campaign official urging his troops to go out and not use innuedo, not insinuate, not rally, but to actually lie to voters. Last night I was out with a buddy (here in Chicago again, damn I love this town) and we got to talking about McCain whipping up the troops. I made the point that McCain wasn't a bigot. My buddy responded that McCain is using the tools of bigotry, and so functionally, what is the difference? I think we've given enough rope.
The Beautiful Struggle: A Father, Two Sons, and an Unlikely Road to Manhood 
ta-nehisi, this was pretty much the john lewis point: if you stir up these kinds of passions, you are part of them.
as for the mccain camp and a reporter from time: they care only about the base at this stage. the base hates the media and wouldn't believe an account in time magazine anyhow.
This is who these lying mofos have always been. Period.
I think the language used to describe the lies was telling. The TIME author says that the stated connection between Obama and bin Laden is "not exactly true." I suppose that's one way of saying it. But how about "patently false"? Equating a presidential candidate and a terrorist leader isn't a distortion of existing facts, it's an insult to reason.
This is who these lying mofos have always been. Period.
Right. This is the modern Republican Party, at least since Nixon. It's in starker relief because they're cornered with the economic collapse, Iraq Invasion, and what have you, plus the Republican oppponent is a black man. But it's been there since Nixon. Now that even some Republican water carriers are admitting that it's there now, perhaps they'll admit that it's always been there.
Given the blatant strategy, I think the campaign strategists were glad to have TIME there to report on it. They really believe this strategy will work.
It's not contradictory to say that McCain has lost control of his campaign and to say that he is responsible for it. It's entirely predictable that you will have some ugliness out there, but that means that you plan for it and make provisions against it. Not only did McCain not do that, he poured gasoline on the flames, and expressed surprise when he got a big fireball. And now he has insubordination within his campaign.
Apart from the obvious things that this says about McCain's character, this underlines how McCain is incapable of strategic thought. He impulsively decides on a course of action without any thought about what could happen and what the next step will be. We're fortunate that McCain sunk his campaign before he had the opportunity to sink the country.
They are who we thought they were.
Ed and others are right: this is who the republican party is (at least a big chunk of their voters).
McCain must be just foaming at the mouth over the fact that everybody in his party has been using these tactics for decades but it's only he who's gotten called on them.
Boo Hoo Hoo.
Those are the same people who wore Purple Heart BandAids at the 2004 Republican Convention. They're horrible. This is the Republican Party since Nixon. Let's not let others (cough, McMegan) pretend otherwise.
On a quick side-note, does it not say something about the ineptitude of McCain's campaign that this guy said this in front of a reporter from TIME?
That's actually not surprising. A big part of the McCain "strategy," which is really just an extension of right-wing strategy for the last thirty years, is to run with the idea that the press is the enemy. To the base, everything the traditional media says badly about Republicans is a lie, and every baseless rumor about a Democrat that doesn't appear is a cover-up. Of course Frederick said it in front of a reporter from Time--it's a no-lose situation for them.
Good lord, man, how many e-mails do we have to send you about his secret birth in an Indonesian cabal of militant vegan origamists before you admit their truth? The agents of KAOS were everywhere in the 60s, everywhere!
"On a quick side-note, does it not say something about the ineptitude of McCain's campaign that this guy said this in front of a reporter from TIME?"
Well,maybe he thought Karen Tumulty is in the mould of TIME journalists like Michael Scherer who seems to work overtime to find excuses for McCain's strategy. I mean, discussing whether McCain is really "serious" about the Ayers attack in a national newsmagazine? As if "seriousness" or "unseriousness" somehow exculpate McCain from responsibility.
Maybe the guy thought Ms Tumulty was going to write heart-wrenching piece about how horrible this must be for the poor man, how tormented he is etc etc. I guess that's why they called the media love affair for McCain "mancrush" - female reporters seem immune to it.
Glad you love Chicago, man. City of the Future!!!
No, John McCain is not a bigot.
John McCain is a man who, when it was his duty to stand straight up to bigotry, wasted a week before pushing back.
John McCain is a man who, when he had every reason to know bigots would show up at his rallies, didn't choose a staff committed to pushing back when it showed up.
John McCain is a man who, with a full Annapolis training in taking responsibility for those under your command, has staffers and surrogates out making shabby, whiny excuses about what they can't control.
It is his job, his duty, his role as an American leader to be ready for this stuff.
John McCain is not a bigot. He's a white man who has had 72 years to be ready for this specific variety of filth, and he's not ready.
The party of Abraham Lincoln is now the party of Steve Sailer.
Through a combination of demographic shifts and changing generational attitudes, the racist voters that the Republican party are swiftly becoming the minority. So by all means, McCain and co., keep it up. You are poisoning your brand, and it couldn't happen to a nicer bunch in my opinion.
The N-bomb will be dropped anyday now, it's inevitable. They really can't help themselves.
Deborah is hilarious. Which is helping improve my mood. Bonus: watching Hillary and Joe on TV right now talking about the lying liars and the lies they tell. I'm almost feeling good enough to go have a beer.
Coates,
I don't care what your title references, you need to clean it up. Your profanity is unhelpful. It sings, You can take the N out of.... This is not Hip Hop, it's the Atlantic. You are a part of a discourse community. You are black. I guess I'll just be Du Bois to your McKay. Do you think that you are white bloggers' favorite new Negro simply because you are the best writer? No, you are here because you are "authentic" and "real" in some obvious and disturbing ways that does not upset the established hierarchy. I suppose you already know this. I guess you don't care.
C'mon Kay, say "credit to your race." You know you want to...
I made the point that McCain wasn't a bigot.
Um, no. He is a bigot. We are talking about the same John McCain, right? Because the John McCain I'm thinking of said during a press conference that he "hates" Asians and would hate them all his life. (Though he didn't use the word "Asians," he used an ethnic slur for 'Korean' which I will not repeat.)
I know that the accepted thing to say about major political figures is that they "aren't bigots but…" but in this case, it's just a matter of public record.
Kay,
I appreciate your point. I just disagree. But thanks for reading. I hope you don't stop.
I got you. Love the title to this post, T.
To the question posed, ofcourse it reflects poorly on Mac's camp. I believe Mac is just showing us, in his handling of his campaign, just how he'd handle his administration. Lukewarm party backing, terse if not jeering support (if at all) from dems. We'd have gridlock like we've never seen in DC. The jury is out on a Mac administration governance model. Has he thought that far out yet? Nah, just taking it day by day i guess...wingin' it to the White House and lead the country by a prayer in crises. I'd prefer policies that make sense, actually. Just me..
So what if he is or if he ain't a bigot. We do not personally know the man, but of all we have seen fly out from under the Mac camp umbrella we could easily deduce that Mac is not actually a bigot himself. Although we could just as easily conclude that he sure is behaving quite bigot-Ish.
And bless kay's heart, if you'd actually kept that quote verbatim. All for the broader audience. Keep it real! Toot toot.
Heh, that was the censored version, but I guess not censored enough.
"McCain is using the tools of bigotry, and so functionally, what is the difference?"
It's worse because he retains (almost) plausible deniability. A lot of the people (the ones who aren't shouting epithets and threats) coming to these rallies wouldn't show if McCain were up there being George Wallace, much less David Duke. But as it stands, he gets to have it both ways--he riles up the idiots and maintains some respectability.
Can someone provide specific examples of what they mean by McCain "using the tools of bigotry"?
peace
On a quick side-note, does it not say something about the ineptitude of McCain's campaign that this guy said this in front of a reporter from TIME?
You know what it made me think? The Republican party is so far gone that those people are all they've got left.
Nixon nailed these people to his party, and ensured a whole generation would be able to keep anger at black people at the core of their political values. And it's festered for a generation. Now that everyone with a lick of sense has abandoned the party that from Iraq to Katrina to the economy has led us off a cliff. So we're left looking at a very twisted and angry party, whose remaining members' loyalty is built on their seething rage. It's the know-nothings.
I actually think John McCain was surprised at how fast things got so vile. As in so many things, he's not malicious, just sheltered and with little natural empathy--unable to understand what he has not personally suffered.
McCain really didn't know what John Lewis did, that he was playing with fire. I think everyone owes John Lewis a thank you, because he knocked some sense into that man.
Sarah Palin, though, she's a dangerous one. She doesn't care if how big the fire gets, because she's gonna ride it. She really is like a French Revolutionary--she really believes her own BS, that she's going to remake man. She's incredibly dangerous. I hope she goes back to Alaska and is never heard from again after this.
"The Republican party is so far gone that those people are all they've got left. "
My mom tells me that she's seen a couple pairings of Obama/Biden and Susan Collins signs in Maine.
Pretty interesting -- not least because it takes real effort to split-ticket your yardsigns.