by David Safier
Don't judge a candidate by a despicable supporter. Don't judge a candidate if some website across the country pushes his/her campaign.
But man, when you see so much support from frighteningly racist, violence-prone and violence-promoting people and organizations being given to Republican candidates, it's gotta give you pause.
The latest is Robert Stacy McCain's support of Ruth McClung. R.S. McCain has made some out-there statements about how white people have a right to feel a "natural revulsion" when they see interracial images and how the civil rights movement is responsible for increased criminality. Is this McClung's fault? No. Does she agree? I imagine not. But she hasn't repudiated the support either.
Then there's the racist depiction of Grijalva with a ridiculously large, droopy mustache on some material supporting McClung. I don't remember McClung publicly condemning the depiction.
Then there's the endorsement of Jesse Kelly by ALIPAC after Kelly filled out a questionnaire where he pledged,
"I will use the full power of my office, including impeachment if necessary, to insure the Executive Branch secures America's border immediately and begins to adequately enforce the existing immigration and border laws of the United States . . ." [boldface added]
That's far more serious than McClung reacting passively to R.S. McCain's support.
Then there's Russell Pearce, who once forwarded a vile, racist email to his supporters, later apologizing, saying he hadn't read it. Clearly, he read some and liked the way it sounded enough to forward it. Is Pearce's apology related to the content of the email, or is it because he got caught? Pictures of Pearce with white supremist J.T. Ready, and having him as a friend on Facebook? Pearce said he didn't mean it. But if you read the emails Pearce has sent recently to supporters — and I have — they're chilling.
Then there's the Rand Paul campaign volunteer who stomped on a MoveOn activist outside of Monday's Senate debate.
Then there's the journalist who was handcuffed and held by Alaska U.S. Senate candidate Joe Miller's private security detail for following Miller and continuing to ask questions, and holding the reporter until the police came and released him.
This scratches the surface of the connections, direct and indirect, between the right wing of the Republican Party — I won't simply use the term "Republican Party" out of respect for those who abhor the direction their party is heading almost as much as I do — and hateful, racist, violent people. The support of the extremist candidates and the Tea Party by these kinds of people and groups is both telling and frightening.
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What we are seeing is a lot of frightened people who can’t accept that a Black man is President. That just isn’t their idea of how things are ‘posed to be. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again – the battle is against minorities, including Blacks, and against women. There are a lot of people in this country who are threatened by a Black person who achieves – achieves just about anything above the place of a shuffling “yassuh” stereotype. And there are a lot of people who believe women should submit to men – intellectually and otherwise. For these people, their sense of well being is threatened. Unless until wiser, respected heads step forward and say “Now, children,let’s not do this anymore” we’re in for worse than a woman having her head stomped at a rally – and bystanders who don’t stop what is going on and shriek out in horror!!!!!!!!