PDA

View Full Version : (09.17.09) Question: Can We Really Have an African-American President? -- Rush Limbaugh


Kbentleyis
09-17-2009, 01:50 PM
This is the subject matter that Rush has been bombarded for. I think it's important to have the actual content instead of race-baiters damning someone for something that is usually taken out of context--on purpose. It's those race bating remarks that cause a divide.

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT


RUSH: I have a question I want to pose, and I fully expect this question to be taken out of context, I expect my comments to be taken out of context. This is a question that many people will think is too hot to ask. It's a toughie. But this question is a legitimate question, and it came to me just by the headlines and watching television and listening to the State-Controlled Media shout racism everywhere. I mean we've even got a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, Hank Johnson, listen to this, audio sound bite number five.

JOHNSON: If I were a betting man I would say that it instigated more racist sentiment feeling that it's okay, you don't have to bury it now, you can bring it out, talk about it fully. And so I guess we'll probably have folks putting on white hoods and white uniforms again and riding through the countryside intimidating people. And, you know, that's the logical conclusion if this kind of attitude is not rebuked and Congressman Wilson represents it, he's the face of it.

RUSH: So here you have Hank Johnson, he is a congressman, Democrat in Georgia, member of the Congressional Black Caucus saying the Klan will ride again. Republicans are Klansmen and Joe Wilson is the leader. Keep in mind that the only member of the Ku Klux Klan ever to serve in our government is a Democrat, Robert "Sheets" Byrd. He was a grand Kleagle of the Ku Klux Klan. And in fact let's go back and listen, audio sound bite number six, March the 28, 1968, Robert Byrd talking about Martin Luther King.

BYRD: Martin Luther King fled the scene. He took to his heels and disappeared, leaving it to others to cope with the destructive forces he had helped to unleash. And I hope that well meaning Negro leaders and individuals in the Negro community in Washington will now take a new look at this man who gets other people into trouble and then takes off like a scared rabbit.

RUSH: That's Robert Byrd, Democrat senator, West Virginia, talking about Martin Luther King, and yet here's Hank Johnson saying that Joe Wilson of South Carolina represents the new Klan, people gonna put on their white hats and robes and be riding horses through the countryside. So here's my legitimate question. Our president is the leader of our country and before he gets that title, before he gets that position, you used to have to earn it. All presidents have had to earn their position with scrutiny of their resume, scrutiny of their background, scrutiny of their past performance, scrutiny of the way they campaign, scrutiny of what the candidate says and how he says it and how he performs under fire. And then even when he's elected to the office, the president of the United States of America, he is heard, he is watched, he is listened to, he is questioned, he is analyzed, he is scrutinized, he is given the media anal exam. That's the way it used to work. None of this scrutiny has occurred with President Obama.

There was no scrutiny of his resume. We still don't know some of the records, haven't seen some of the records from where he went to school, just like we didn't see Clinton's medical records. We have not seen scrutiny of his background. There was no scrutiny of his past performance. He's got five-minute career, essentially, 185 days working in the US Senate. There was very little scrutiny of his campaign. There is very little scrutiny of what he says. There was a lot of praise for how he says what he says, but there was never any scrutiny of what he said, and there isn't today. So when any of these checks and balances are MIA, whenever this scrutiny of a presidential candidate does not take place, our nation is headed for trouble. And we are in trouble. When all of these aspects are ignored, when none of this scrutiny takes place, we are in deep, deep trouble, and that's where we are.

I have no quarrel with a president of any race. Obama is not black to me. He's not half black, half white. He's president of the United States, and as such, given his agenda, he poses a grave danger to the American I believe in. And that's all that matters to me. I couldn't care if he's a hermaphrodite. I don't care who he sleeps with. I don't care where he eats. I don't care what he eats. I don't care how he drives. I don't care about any of that. I don't care about his haircut. I don't care whether he's getting gray. I don't care about his tie. I don't care about any of this. I care about his intent to remake this country into a country unlike any of us have ever seen. I have serious concerns about today's media and their new standard, which is this: Any criticism of an African-American president's policies or statements or misstatements is racist, and that's it.

Therefore the question: Can this nation really have an African-American president? Or will the fact that we have an African-American president so paralyze politically correct people in the media that the natural scrutiny and process through which all of our presidents are put through and vetted do not occur because of the fear in the State-Controlled Media of themselves being called racist and the desire to be able to call everyone else racist. In other words, we have a blank slate. We have a president here who is not scrutinized, who is not examined. There is no attempt to be suspicious of power anymore. So is it possible that we really have an African-American president? Or does having an African-American president paralyze the process by which people with that kind of power in our representative republic are kept, quote, unquote, honest? I have a brief timeout here at which time I'm either going to explode in rage or I'm going to fix this audio problem, because I already started out in rage. This racism stuff has got everybody boiling mad because it's such a lie; it's such a cheap shot; it's so dishonest.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: This is Kelly in Fairfax, Virginia. Great to have you on the EIB Network. Hello.

CALLER: Hi, Rush. Thank you for taking my call.

RUSH: Yes, ma'am.

CALLER: I wanted to take a stab about answering that question whether we can have a black president and I think that the answer is: Yes, if they're conservative, because conservatives don't traffic in the politics of race. So you wouldn't see this happening, if Condoleezza Rice, for example, were president and coming under criticism, you would not need George W. Bush or George H. W. Bush going on TV and saying, "Oh, this is about race."

RUSH: Well, okay. Good point. However, if we had a conservative... You're talking about a black conservative --

CALLER: Yes.

RUSH: -- African-American president?

CALLER: Yes.

RUSH: Well...

CALLER: I think you'd feel a lot less criticism from the left.

RUSH: Wait a minute. Any such candidate who might emerge will be destroyed by the Drive-By Media in the campaign process.

CALLER: Well, because that's the double standard of the left. If it's a conservative, like Michael Steele, he gets Oreos thrown at him. But if it's a liberal then they circle the wagons and say it's about race.

RUSH: Right.

CALLER: They have it both ways.

RUSH: Right. Well, the point of all this is that the racism in this country exists primarily on the left.

CALLER: Exactly.

RUSH: Victimization of people, grouping people, condescension toward average Americans exists primarily on the left. They're projecting. You know, this is a great illustration of projection. They're accusing us of behaving exactly as they do. They are accusing us of thinking exactly as they think.

CALLER: Well, if I man, Rush, look at the way -- you know, Barbara Boxer I think got caught twice doing this. She spoke to the head of the Chamber of Commerce and brought in a study to the NAACP that wasn't relative to it; and I remember her talking to Condoleezza Rice and being very condescending to her to the point that Rice actually said I think you're impugning my integrity and she I think said that she couldn't understand the death of soldiers because she was a single, childless woman.

RUSH: Right.

CALLER: That's -- that's --

RUSH: Not to mention the Aunt Jemima cartoon panels that the left's editorial cartoonists drew.

CALLER: They're brutal. They're so brutal when it's on the other side.

RUSH: I know, totally brutal. It's what we're up against -- and when they're losing, and when they're losing control, is when they get even more brutal, and that's what all this means.


END TRANSCRIPT

Read the Background Material...

• Real Clear Politics: The Left's Answer: It Must Be Racism - David Harsanyi
• Wall Street Journal: Obama's Postracial America - Best of the Web
• National Review: The 'Racism' Canard -Victor Davis Hanson
• Real Clear Politics: Carter Claims There Is "Racist" Tone Against Obama
• AP: Jimmy Carter: Wilson Comments 'Based on Racism'
• American Thinker: Jimmy Carter Says You're a Racist
• Sweetness & Light: Carter Said What Racists Wanted To Hear
• NewsBusters: ABC: Obama Critics 'Driven By Refusal to Accept Black President';
NBC Trumpets Carter's Racism Charges
• HotAir: House Democrat: If We Don't Censure Joe Wilson, the KKK Will Ride Through the Countryside

Spang
09-17-2009, 01:57 PM
Can We Really Have an African-American President?

Yes, we have one right now and he's doing an excellent job.

tracker
09-17-2009, 02:00 PM
Yes, we have one right now and he's doing an excellent job.

Rush is wrong on this. GWB for one didn't earn the position he occupied for 8 years. But that doesn't excuse Obama either.

try_to_be_honest
09-17-2009, 02:14 PM
In both the Webster dictionary and Wikipedia, a mulatto is defined as:

“Person who has one Black parent and one White parent... Popularly, any person with mixed Black and Caucasoid ancestry.”

Given this, why all the fuss over a Mulatto President, i.e. Barak Obama (BO)? Mr. Obama fits the criteria in the definition. As far as we know one of his parents is Black and one is White. Thus he is of mixed race, unless we have all been duped, and he is either 100% White or 100% Black.http://amyking.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/barack-obama-parents-kenyon-father-white-mother.jpg

Ikasu
09-17-2009, 02:19 PM
^^ *shakes head*

tracker
09-17-2009, 02:21 PM
In both the Webster dictionary and Wikipedia, a mulatto is defined as:

“Person who has one Black parent and one White parent... Popularly, any person with mixed Black and Caucasoid ancestry.”

Given this, why all the fuss over a Mulatto President, i.e. Barak Obama (BO)? Mr. Obama fits the criteria in the definition. As far as we know one of his parents is Black and one is White. Thus he is of mixed race, unless we have all been duped, and he is either 100% White or 100% Black.http://amyking.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/barack-obama-parents-kenyon-father-white-mother.jpg

It is convenient to celebrate him as the first black president and I suppose how he looks is more important than his actual ancestry. It's also a convenient shield for race baters who blame all criticism of him on being racist!

NoFear
09-17-2009, 02:35 PM
It is convenient to celebrate him as the first black president and I suppose how he looks is more important than his actual ancestry. It's also a convenient shield for race baters who blame all criticism of him on being racist!

It's also convenient for racist that like to shield their racism by using the fact that he's half white. What most people don't understand is that phenotypically, the man is black therefore he has been and always will be looked upon as a black man.

Ikasu
09-17-2009, 02:42 PM
It's also convenient for racist that like to shield their racism by using the fact that he's half white. What most people don't understand is that phenotypically, the man is black therefore he has been and always will be looked upon as a black man.

Yes, why do people always bring up that he's "half white, half black"? It's obvious.

And he's also not half black, he's 92% Arab and 8% black. Or something like that. Have you heard that one?

try_to_be_honest
09-17-2009, 02:48 PM
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_j99VUrX25a4/SbDWdCO9ZwI/AAAAAAAAEMs/GNcZC-uu3DE/s200/confused.jpg

NativeSun
09-17-2009, 03:09 PM
The caller made a good point about Condoleeza Rice. If she were President, the Democrats would be hounding her left and right. Now would that be because they were racist too? Or better yet, would these "racists" attacking Obama now be attacking her as well?

LadyLazarus
09-17-2009, 03:10 PM
It's also convenient for racist that like to shield their racism by using the fact that he's half white. What most people don't understand is that phenotypically, the man is black therefore he has been and always will be looked upon as a black man.

Completely agree.

And while I'm not sure exactly why people focus so much on the fact that he's half white, except to use it as a cover for racist discourse, I'm also not sure why some seem so preoccupied with arguing that he's African-American. Both practices seem to insert race into the dialogue for particular agendas.


Given this, why all the fuss over a Mulatto President, i.e. Barak Obama (BO)?

And FYI, "mulatto" or even "quadroon" was a word used to support the institution of slavery in this country, as any person who was even 1/32 black and thus a "mulatto" was considered to be a slave-- not a free person in slave-owning states. Moreover, the word is considered to be racist now (or at least radically unenlightened), like "Oriental" or "Indian" instead of "Asian" or "Native American." Persons who are of mixed racial heritage are generally referred to objectively as "bi-racial" not "mulatto."

BillDemo
09-17-2009, 06:26 PM
And FYI, "mulatto" or even "quadroon" was a word used to support the institution of slavery in this country, as any person who was even 1/32 black and thus a "mulatto" was considered to be a slave-- not a free person in slave-owning states. Moreover, the word is considered to be racist now (or at least radically unenlightened), like "Oriental" or "Indian" instead of "Asian" or "Native American." Persons who are of mixed racial heritage are generally referred to objectively as "bi-racial" not "mulatto."

I don't really agree with this part of your post. I think that a lot of words related to race have fallen out of favor because they are presumed to be racist...

For example - "negro" was used for years without any negative connotation. Somewhere along the way, people decided it was racist to use the word "negro". There's no logic to it.

I would argue that it is not the words themselves that carry any connection to slavery or oppression. It is people's reaction to these words. People decided, through flawed political correct thinking that these words were unacceptable...

Example: Consider these two sentances:
"Jerry Seinfeld is a Jew"
"Jerry Seinfeld is Jewish"
Both mean the same thing but one of those sentances is socially unacceptable today in many circles, even though it carries no negative connotation. :)

IMO our society's obsession and preoccupation with race and political correctness is way out of control.

NativeSun
09-17-2009, 06:30 PM
I don't really agree with this part of your post. I think that a lot of words related to race have fallen out of favor because they are presumed to be racist...

For example - "negro" was used for years without any negative connotation. Somewhere along the way, people decided it was racist to use the word "negro". There's no logic to it.

As a latino, I totally agree. What do you think that they call blacks in Spanish? It's the same word with a different pronounciation. The other word they use is moreno, which is a solid shade of brown.

Ikasu
09-17-2009, 06:37 PM
IMO our society's obsession and preoccupation with race and political correctness is way out of control.

Your alternative?

tracker
09-17-2009, 06:51 PM
It's also convenient for racist that like to shield their racism by using the fact that he's half white. What most people don't understand is that phenotypically, the man is black therefore he has been and always will be looked upon as a black man.

I disagree. I think people object to the fact that some time ago (don't know if it is still in vogue) blacks on talk shows like Oprah and elsewhere and in other venues stated that if a person has even the tiniest bit of black blood, he is black! A superior race? Racist statement? I don't know.

I just think that when people point this out, they are aggravated that black trumps white in these type instances.

Why is he not equally a white president? Just asking!

Sure, there are real racists out there from all sides but I don't think this is a valid argument for most people!

Spang
09-17-2009, 06:55 PM
Why is he not equally a white president?

Does he look white to you?

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b35/Loompy/Official_portrait_of_Barack_Obama.jpg

LadyLazarus
09-17-2009, 06:57 PM
I don't really agree with this part of your post. I think that a lot of words related to race have fallen out of favor because they are presumed to be racist...

lol. Does that mean you agree with the other part?

Okay, seriously, I have to run to an appt. now and can't discuss the history --etymology and morphology--of the word "mulatto" in depth, but you need to trust me when I say that the word was used incessantly in racist discourse in the 19th century and directly prior or after Jim Crow. It was a word created to identify and define a subjugated group of people.

For example - "negro" was used for years without any negative connotation. Somewhere along the way, people decided it was racist to use the word "negro". There's no logic to it.

There's pleny of logic to it, and I hope an African-American on the board will chime in here. The logic is that white people traditionally called African-Americans "Negroes" and after the Civil Rights movement when African-Americans were able to have a say in how they were denominated, they "opted-out" of the word "negro." Language is always subject to the conditions of those who are in power.

Hopefully, I can address this better later on if no one else on the board explains it.

foxyladi
09-17-2009, 07:12 PM
Rush is always talking.:rotfl::rotfl: