Sound Politics: The soft bigotry of low expectations

October 26, 2006

The soft bigotry of low expectations

My good friend Josh over at The Stranger blog is falling in line with other media Democrats who are claiming that the Republican video against Tennessee Senate candidate Harold Ford is racist. The ad itself is here.

The allegation of "racism" is about the young white woman who hints that she met Ford at "the Playboy party". Huh? The ad itself is humorous and although the part about the Playboy party is the weakest bit (Ford apparently attended a Playboy Super Bowl Party once. Whoop-de-do), I fail to see it being racist. It merely suggests that Ford, who campaigns as a church-goer is also, hypocritically, a bed-hopping bachelor. I personally think that criticism is lame (it's not like, say, he's sleeping with other people's wives and fiancees), but I don't think it's racist. Those who are alleging racism are upset that the woman is white. So what? This is 2006, not 1926. I think Americans have accepted interracial relationships to the point that NOBODY CARES about what color someone's girlfriend is. Those who are alleging racism are merely demonstrating, through their implication that they expect very many people might be upset about interracial sex, their own bigotry about the Tennessee electorate.

Posted by Stefan Sharkansky at October 26, 2006 04:45 PM | Email This

Comments

1. Since when do Democrats feigning outrage or making excuses need to be truthful? With a media focused on Republicans and ways to hurt them, Democrats know they can allege just about anything and if they say it enough, people will believe it.

...and more often than they should, the MSM jumps in and sides with their bogua charges.

Posted by: MJC on October 26, 2006 04:49 PM

2. The ad is hilarious! My favorite part is "Let Canada take care of N. Korea--they're not busy!"

Run the ad and have a good time. Nothing whatsoever racist about it. That's just another attempt to paste a label on somebody in hopes that it will shut up discussion about the issues the ad brings up (soft on terror, etc.). LOVE IT!

Posted by: Michele on October 26, 2006 04:50 PM

3. Great commercial!!

When one is faced with obvious hypocrisy, the use of ridicule is devestatingly effective.

Each spot makes fun of Harold Ford's loonjob stand on issues....

The Playboy/blonde one is particularly funny..Actually it more ridicules dumb blondes than anything else.........

This calling anyone, who comments in any way on a black candidate, a racist is really wearing thin.....

He is toast......

Posted by: Hank on October 26, 2006 04:50 PM

4. I think it's a hilarious video. The RNC however should have known better than to give the humorless left a chance to play the race card. I understand Ford's opponent Bob Corker has asked that the ad be pulled. Don't expect the media to report that. The RNC can't afford to forget for a minute the media machine that they're up against. I hope they don't have more stuff out there like this that will play right into the Dems and their media buddies hands.

Posted by: Bill Cruchon on October 26, 2006 04:54 PM

5. Rush made a good point, today. When they pick on Michael Steele with ACTUAL racist attacks, they don't seem to have any problem with it. DOUBLE STANDARD ALERT! (Btw, you GO, Michael Steele! We're pullin' for you all the way!)

Posted by: Michele on October 26, 2006 04:55 PM

6. Remember, when all intellectual debate fails for Dems, the only recourse for them is to cry "racist!"

Ford started it by filming a campaign ad/flyer in a church and by telling everyone what a good churchgoer he was. Corker simply pointed out that they don't have pews at Playboy parties. Does this matter to Dems that Ford is so blatantly hypocritical? No. They don't like churchgoers anyway.

Posted by: Yo yo on October 26, 2006 04:56 PM

7. Hey Michelle, you make a great point. Where's Steny Hoyer telling Bob Corker that he's "slavishly" being a "token" to the GOP? Apparently Hoyer can only manage this when referring to Steele, because Steele is black. Of course Hoyer didn't mean anything by this. It was an accident.

Don't get me started on the inherent racism of the Dems - stating voter suppression because people need ID to vote? Do these same people drive cars, cash checks, buy prescription drugs, fly on planes, or anything else that you need ID for? It's funny how Dems try to win votes from minorities by saying basically "we love you, but you're too stupid to get an ID because you're a minority". Next in line with the soft bigotry of low expectations is minority capabilities in the workplace or schools. According to Dems, all of these people are stupid until proven different. Right-minded people know that it's up to the individual to decide how successful they want to be. No amount of coddling will help someone to be successful - it will only help them to keep sucking at the public teat into eternity.

Posted by: Yo yo on October 26, 2006 05:02 PM

8. I will give Harold Ford Jr. some credit. Today On the Hannity radio show he did say that he did not think that it was racist just silly. You would think that would be the end of it, but I'll bet it wont be.

Posted by: TrueSoldier on October 26, 2006 05:10 PM

9. Lose a debate? Can't make a coherent argument?

Cry "Racism"!

Posted by: Shaun on October 26, 2006 05:16 PM

10. ..and come on, Ford filming an ad in a church with that cross in the background--JUST LET A REPUBLICAN TRY THAT. We know the leftist screeching we'd hear: "YOU CAN'T DO THAT! THAT'S MIXING CHURCH AND STATE! HE WANTS A THEOCRACY!"

Posted by: Michele on October 26, 2006 05:16 PM

11. I think it is a bit naive to NOT see the obvious pandering to the lowest form of Tennessee bigot in the ad. I'm sure a white woman hitting on a black man hits a nerve with a certain element in rural TN.... and I'm sure that the creator of the ad knows that.

The GOP has always come up with the most affective political ads in my opinion. I don't know why the Democrats are crying about it though. If they were smart, they would just hit back even harder. I heard Dan Savage suggested that Ford run an ad coming clean that he was "a proud heterosexual", and that if people had a problem with that, they should not vote for him. Make a reference about the GOP being the party of closeted pedophiles, hitting on 16 year old boys, and then ask the voters to decide.

The Democrats probably don't have the balls to do it, but if they were smart, they would hit back instead of whining about it.

Posted by: Splinter on October 26, 2006 05:22 PM

12. It's also funny to note that Ford tells an interviewer "I've never been to a party at the Playboy Mansion."
Splitting hairs--this party was in Jacksonville with the girls and the lingerie. You know what this reminds me of? "It all depends on what the meaning of the word 'is' is."

Posted by: Michele on October 26, 2006 05:23 PM

13. Face it, the dems want this ad off the air because it is TOO truthful about Ford's soft-on-terrorism, tax-hiking, etc. ways. And THEY CAN'T HAVE THAT! What would voters think??

Awww, this ad is just too good. So ripe for so much comment and smiles.

Posted by: Michele on October 26, 2006 06:03 PM

14. Ha Ha The democrapic way....Loved it!

Posted by: GS on October 26, 2006 06:16 PM

15. """The Democrats probably"""-----but if they were
smart they would hit back""""
Democrats in Tennessee might want to avoid talking about or hitting back on closeted--
Right now.
http://terryfrank.net/?p=965

Posted by: pagar on October 26, 2006 07:01 PM

16. Cute ad that summed up Ford's stances in a nutshell. I did notice the distinct absence of any picture of Ford or mention of his race, so until the demoCraps raised a great hue and cry over this, most of America would never have known.

The MSM had no problem with running front page photos of Bubba toting a coffee table size Bible, but heaven forbid a conservative even mentions faith. Hypcrites. I think we are hearing the death throes of a dying medium.

Personally I think the MSM is quite annoyed with the fact the "unwashed masses" are using YouTube, blogs, and other media outlets to get the full story out to the public. The nerve of these peasants trying to get at the truth!

Posted by: Burdabee on October 26, 2006 07:05 PM

17. I found the ad humorous. The only reason that racism is being cried is because the ad was funny and it pointed to many of Ford's weaknesses as a candidate.

Splinter, Ford may well be heterosexual, who knows. What we do know is he has tried to show that he is a pious serious candidate, a good church going Tennessean. Sounds like he is of the Clinton school of "go to church when you need to appeal to the values voters" type politician. He can claim that he is happily a bed hopping democrat and see how many of the values voters want him representing them in Washington DC.

The Ford family has a long history in Tennessee and it isn't a favorable one according to friends that live there.

Ford Jr. is a photogenic, conservative-lite democrat who apparently likes to party. The voters just need to know what they are sending to DC.

Posted by: Skeptic on October 26, 2006 07:19 PM

18. The racism charges begs a simple question: the stereotype of a Playboy bunny is a blond, white woman. Why WOULDN'T the ad use such an actor to make the point about his attendance at the party in question?

Posted by: Eric Earling on October 26, 2006 07:27 PM

19. They should have shown an ad that talks about how 3 members of the Ford family have either resigned or were driven from office for bribery and scandal charges and when his sister ran for office last year won by a total of 13 votes until it came to light how many dead people voted for her.

By the way... Harold Ford Sr. owns a mortuary with his significant other (the one he got caught with instead of his wife) so he had ample opportunity to find dead people to help vote. Ford Sr also argued that he shouldn't be responsible for child support of children that he fathered, but isn't living with.

The ad should show how the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

Besides, aren't the Dem's trying to paint every Rep as a Bush clone? I believe family ties are much stronger.

Posted by: Ken on October 26, 2006 08:32 PM

20. Josh Feit was born a poooor black child....

Posted by: Mr. Cynical on October 26, 2006 08:59 PM

21. You should hang out with me and my friends sometime, I can think of only 1 couple that isn't interracial.

Of course, they get to make all the jokes about him being the only guy that likes white women....

Posted by: H Moul on October 26, 2006 09:25 PM

22. Freakin' hysterical. Nice to see the R's running hard-hitting stuff like this instead of all the usual soft, touchy-feely, "bipartisan" BS. I can't quote him verbatim, but I believe it was the 20th Century American philosopher Bull Halsey who said, "Hit 'em three ways: HARD, FAST and REPEATEDLY!" Run that thing 24/7.

Posted by: TB on October 26, 2006 09:57 PM

23. Good point, H Moul. My parents were of different ethnicities. Does that make them racist??

Posted by: Michele on October 26, 2006 10:07 PM

24. There is nothing racist about it. Perhaps they meant racey and were misquoted. Liberals have some nerve after they did to Black Republican Gov Michael Steele.

Posted by: pbj on October 26, 2006 10:14 PM

25. Odd how many crickets are chirping in this thread from our usual suspect leftists. Where's stilwell, goldy, particle man? HHmmm.... the silence is deafening!

Posted by: Hinton on October 26, 2006 11:32 PM

26. Joel Connelly rightly points out that the part about Canada is offensive. Canadians are dying in Afghanistan.

Posted by: Luigi Giovanni on October 27, 2006 05:18 AM

27. No, it isn't offensive. N. Korea isn't Afghanistan. Two different situations. The commerical could just as easily said "Let Britain deal with N. Korea..." It would not an insult;just another illustration of the Left not taking things seriously that SHOULD be taken seriously, and trying to criticize an effective ad. Did Connelly criticize any democrat ads?

Posted by: Misty on October 27, 2006 10:33 AM

28. The only thing one needs to do to be labled 'racist' is be conservative. If a conservative states the sky is "up" that's grounds for labeling him/her a racist.

Posted by: katomar on October 27, 2006 10:45 AM

29. All Corker needs to do is change out that one scene. Instead of a single blond white girl, add a black girl to the scene as well. You can't tell me that he was only hit on by one girl at the Playboy party - this would also solve the "racist" issue.

Posted by: Yo yo on October 27, 2006 10:48 AM

30. If a black portrayed the bimbo then the moonbats would scream "RACIAL STEREOTYPING!!!!"

Posted by: Tyler Durden on October 27, 2006 11:55 AM

31. Shaun at #9:

Lose a debate? Can't make a coherent argument?

Cry "Racism"!

...or cry "Hitler!" or "Nazi!"

Liberals do that too when they start losing the argument.

Posted by: ferrous on October 27, 2006 01:59 PM

32. Candidates go to parties all the time, that's where they get money from supporters. His handlers should have known better than to send him to a party sponsored by Playboy. Can't be any worse an offense than sharing a Sky Box at the Superbowl with Jack Abramoff.

Posted by: Cato on October 27, 2006 02:36 PM

33. The problem wasn't the party, it was filming a campaign video with him sitting in a church pew, implying that he was all morals and family values. And of course there's his changing stories
(words in quote marks are paraphrased):

"I didn't go to that party" (with that woman).

"I didn't go to a party at the Playboy mansion" (what is the meaning of "is?").

"Yes, I did go to the party," (of course I did, I like girls).

Made Ford look like a lying hypocrit (which he is).

Posted by: Obi-Wan on October 27, 2006 03:58 PM

34. This is a great ad -- funny and effective! Anyone who says it's racist is clearly full of sh*t...

Posted by: anonamouse on October 27, 2006 07:28 PM

35. A black man in the South, in a sexual situation with a white woman? There is no way the makers of that ad intended to evoke a racial reaction. In fact, it's racist to suggest that they did. That blonde, white actress wasn't cast because she was white and blonde. She was probably just the first actress who showed up. The guys who wrote that ad are progressives, and are truly color blind. They probably never read To Kill a Mockingbird, or saw the movie, though. Otherwise, they might not be so shocked(!) that some people think the ad is designed to appeal to an old racial stereotype.

Posted by: common tater on October 28, 2006 12:32 AM