Not Long ago, Rand Paul embarrassed himself and his party with a condescending attempt to paint the GOP as attractive to Latinos. Yesterday he was outright insulting, when he embarrassed himself and his party to black students at Howard University. Republican minority outreach has one problem. To succeed, Republicans must convince minority communities that obviously racist GOP policy is not at all racist.
So now we know the basis of Kentucky's libertarian Sen. Rand Paul's strategy for expanding the Republican Party's appeal to African Americans: amnesia.
That's the only conclusion I can reach after watching the C-SPAN broadcast of Paul's 52-minute appearance today at Howard University. He deserves credit for appearing before a potentially hostile audience to make the case for conservative policies with which most black voters utterly disagree. But he also deserves strong criticism — even derision — for pretending that there's any mystery about why most black folks are so skeptical about the GOP. He wants us to forget the party's recent history — and his own.
So in his speech today, he asked, "How did the party that elected the first black U.S. senator, the party that elected the first 20 African-American congressmen, become a party that now loses 95 percent of the black vote? How did the Republican Party, the party of the Great Emancipator, lose the trust and faith of an entire race?"
He went on to argue that blacks began to switch their long-standing allegiance from Republicans to Democrats during the Great Depression. "The Democrats promised equalizing outcomes through unlimited federal assistance, while Republicans offered something that seemed less tangible: the promise of equalizing opportunity through free markets," Paul argued… [emphasis added]
Inserted from <The Root>
Rand seems to think that he gets to make up a history different from what actually happened. He insulted black people by accusing them of moving to the Democrats during the great depression, because they prefer welfare to opportunity. Horse feathers shit! The Republican Party came to be as the progressive party that freed the slaves and, after the war, fought for their equality. The Southern Democrats, aka Dixiecrats, were the racists that opposed them. In the 1960s, Northern Democrats and moderate Republicans combined to pass the Civil Rights Acts and Voting Rights Acts. In a play for political power, the Republicans adopted the Southern Strategy, in which they adopted the Dixiecrats racist policies. The Dixiecrats switched to the Republican Party and became its base. Until that time, black people were overwhelmingly Republican. Only after the Republican Party adopted racism as policy did the majority of black people change their support to the Democrats. That's what really happened. Idiot, son of Idiot, named after Idiot spread more BS than an agricultural spreader.
Rachel Maddow demonstrated, in no uncertain terms, that Rand Paul also lied when he claimed he has never been against the Civil Rights Act.
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Like his racist father, Paul has said he believes that businesses have the right to racist discrimination.
I believe that the Republican Party is committing slow suicide. Because demographics in this country are shifting, they will need successful minority outreach to survive. However the only they can do this is to abandon racism and bigotry, but if they do, they lose their base, without which they cannot survive. When they adopted the Southern Strategy, they sold out to hate to gain power. Now they can’t let go of it.
20 Responses to “Why Republican Minority Outreach Fails”
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Most RepublicanT outreach fails becasue intelligent people can see through their blatant insincerity like you can see through a clean window. Can you say "LIARS"?
Alternate spelling: REPUBLICANS.
Will lies ersuade low information voters???
Exactly, Richard!
I suppose the fact that Rand Paul was able to complete his talk without wearing a pointy-headed white hood or burning a cross does show some progress in the Repubican's "Minority Outreach" program.
But I bet he secretly wanted to wear his white hood and have a cross burned in the background for dramatic effect. I mean, we are talking about Rand Paul.
If he did, they couldn't tell him from the local Republicans.
Nameless I wish I had your gift for a pithy sentence – that was gorgeous!! TomCat – thanks for the precis on how Democrats and Repuglicons came to their current positions re race and the Civil Rights Act.
I can't mention Rand without steam coming out of my ears – nasty little man!
Seconded!
You're most welcome Pat, and I agree about Nameless.
St. Ron of Paul and Rand the Lesser think they're being clever to try and disguise their support of segregation and inequality with vague talk about the "freedums." It doesn't seem credible to most of America and it never will.
And anyway, the LIbertarians promised us that they were going to secede from the union when Obama won again in November. Why did they go and disappoint me by changing their minds? What? No cable hook up with reruns of Jerry Springer and Fox and Friends in the new promised land?
I do wish they would!
ROFL!!!!!! He actually tried to rewrite History at Howard University?!! I'm surprised he didn't wear black-face to help him "relate"!!!!!!
LOL! Excellent Yvonne!
He is a sanctimoneous racist pig—a poor excuse for a Man—The students were very kind–
Well said, Phyllis!
I find this entire outreach programme by the Republican/Teabaggers to be nothing but an attempt to buy minority votes! Were I an American minority voter, I'd say show me a track record of minority inclusiveness. Talk is cheap and actions speak louder than words.
Wasn't it Rmoney who accused Mr Obama of buying votes with financial incentives (social programmes) during the campaign?
The Republican/Teabaggers have a lengthy record of trying to rewrite history. Pig shit has less stink than the Republican/Teabagger minority outreach programme.
Exactly!
It was!
Amen!
Rand Paul is one of the most insufferable republicans out there – and that's really saying something. Thank God for Karma.
It makes me laugh that this little no-nothing 1930's racist wants to be president. What's sad is that the more insufferable he becomes while campaigning, the more republicans will love him for it. Thank God (again) that there are more of us than them.
All I can add is that it embarrasses me, as a Kentuckian, and liberal, to have to admit that he represents my state. I promise, it is not my fault.