the elephant in the election

[CBWx2]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Racial attitudes have not improved in the four years since the United States elected its first black president, an Associated Press poll finds, as a slight majority of Americans now express prejudice toward blacks whether they recognize those feelings or not.

Those views could cost President Barack Obama votes as he tries for re-election, the survey found, though the effects are mitigated by some people's more favorable views of blacks.

I think this about sums it up. To assume that anyone who doesn't vote for Obama is doing so because of race is just as ignorant and asinine as assuming that no one who doesn't vote for Obama is doing so because of race.

Some on the left act as though there are no other reasons one would oppose Obama other than the color of his skin. This ignores certain ideological differences that exist between conservatives and liberal administrations. To those with ideological differences, I suspect race is completely irrelevant.

Equally, some on the right act as though there is no other reason that minorities would opt to vote for Obama other than the color of his skin. This also ignores certain ideological differences that exist between liberals and conservative candidates. I've said this before and I'll say it again. Even if Herman Cain were the Republican nominee and not Mitt Romney, I highly doubt you would see any significant shift in the minority vote. The Republican party has collectively either alienated or flat out ignored minority voters for decades, and then want to cry foul when vast majorities of them opt to vote for the other guys.

That being said, some on the right act as though there is no such thing as racism, and that there isn't anyone who is choosing not to vote for this president simply because he is black. That is absurd. But I think that is the extreme minority, and one that is unlikely to sway any election.

[Dolorous Jason]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Racial attitudes have not improved in the four years since the United States elected its first black president, an Associated Press poll finds, as a slight majority of Americans now express prejudice toward blacks whether they recognize those feelings or not.

Those views could cost President Barack Obama votes as he tries for re-election, the survey found, though the effects are mitigated by some people's more favorable views of blacks.

I think this about sums it up. To assume that anyone who doesn't vote for Obama is doing so because of race is just as ignorant and asinine as assuming that no one who doesn't vote for Obama is doing so because of race.

Some on the left act as though there are no other reasons one would oppose Obama other than the color of his skin. This ignores certain ideological differences that exist between conservatives and liberal administrations. To those with ideological differences, I suspect race is completely irrelevant.

Equally, some on the right act as though there is no other reason that minorities would opt to vote for Obama other than the color of his skin. This also ignores certain ideological differences that exist between liberals and conservative candidates. I've said this before and I'll say it again. Even if Herman Cain were the Republican nominee and not Mitt Romney, I highly doubt you would see any significant shift in the minority vote. The Republican party has collectively either alienated or flat out ignored minority voters for decades, and then want to cry foul when vast majorities of them opt to vote for the other guys.

That being said, some on the right act as though there is no such thing as racism, and that there isn't anyone who is choosing not to vote for this president simply because he is black. That is absurd. But I think that is the extreme minority, and one that is unlikely to sway any election.

Nothing you said here is necessarily untrue  . Point is , if you are going to write an article playing the "racism" card , it strikes me as hillarious that you wouldn't start with the race that is voting nearly 100% in lock-step for the same candidate...who just happens to be of thier same race.

[TheChronicHotAir]

Obama "claimed" to be The Uniter in 2008.

Pretty sure there hasn't been a recent Pr3sid3nt as DIVISIVE as him.

Good riddance to him on November 6th, hopefully.

[Durango 95]

Over 230 + years there have been 42 white men as president and zero black presidents.

How could it be that some people actually think racism has played some part in all this........That's crazy talk!

Of course all that unpleasantry is in the past and doesn't exist anymore.

[JavaRay]

Over 230 + years there have been 42 white men as president and zero black presidents.

How could it be that some people actually think racism has played some part in all this........That's crazy talk!

You cannot seriously be that dumb.

[CBWx2]

Over 230 + years there have been 42 white men as president and zero black presidents.

How could it be that some people actually think racism has played some part in all this........That's crazy talk!

Of course all that unpleasantry is in the past and doesn't exist anymore.

of course it doesn't. racism ended for white people after the civil rights act was passed. now only black people are racist.

[JavaRay]

now only black people are racist.

They may be more racist than whites are, but there are still some racist white people as well.    Just a smaller percentage.    Go watch any black comedian and 100% guarantee they bring up race during their act.   The same will not happen with white comedians.   This country has quite a way to go to get rid of racism, but the focus must now be on the minorities not being racist rather than the majority not being racist.   I don't think most whites are racist these days.

[Durango 95]

Over 230 + years there have been 42 white men as president and zero black presidents.

How could it be that some people actually think racism has played some part in all this........That's crazy talk!

You cannot seriously be that dumb.

You're a novelty act.

Hey everybody gather 'round and watch Java wake-up in a brand new world each and everyday.Haha...

[JavaRay]

You're the genius who thinks people can easily go from slaves to President of the country.   That has nothing to do with racism.   That has everything to do with wealth, influence, and power.

[Dolorous Jason]

Over 230 + years there have been 42 white men as president and zero black presidents.

How could it be that some people actually think racism has played some part in all this........That's crazy talk!

Of course all that unpleasantry is in the past and doesn't exist anymore.

Probably because blacks spent more time blindly voting for whichever rich white pandering puppet the Democrats paraded in front of them than they did running thier own candidates.  Show me the elections were african-americans voted in majority outside the democrat party for a minority and I'll say you have a point. How can a minority become president if minorities weren't even voting for minorities ?

 Maybe the Democrat party should have been a little less racist throughout the years and given blacks more blacks to vote for  ?

[Morgan]

MIAMI—With Mitt Romney holding a narrow edge in Florida, black clergy in the state mounted a push to get worshipers from the pews to polling places on Sunday so they could cast their votes early.

In Sunday sermons, Florida clergy invoked Biblical parables and the civil-rights struggles of the 1960s to persuade congregations to vote during the eight-day early-voting period that ends next Saturday. Pastors at black churches in Miami, Orlando and Jacksonville arranged caravans of buses to help people get to the polls after services ended.

"I do not feel that there's anything right now more important than us marching as a church to the polls today," the Rev. R. Joaquin Willis said in his sermon Sunday morning at the Church of the Open Door, located in a poor neighborhood in Miami.

Anything that boosts African-American turnout is a boon for President Barack Obama's re-election campaign. A recent Wall Street Journal-NBC News poll showed his support among black registered voters was 92%, compared with 5% for Mr. Romney.


WSJ.com

[CBWx2]

Over 230 + years there have been 42 white men as president and zero black presidents.

How could it be that some people actually think racism has played some part in all this........That's crazy talk!

Of course all that unpleasantry is in the past and doesn't exist anymore.

Probably because blacks spent more time blindly voting for whichever rich white pandering puppet the Democrats paraded in front of them than they did running thier own candidates.  Show me the elections were african-americans voted in majority outside the democrat party for a minority and I'll say you have a point. How can a minority become president if minorities weren't even voting for minorities ?

 Maybe the Democrat party should have been a little less racist throughout the years and given blacks more blacks to vote for  ?

Read a history book, smart one. It wasn't the Dems pandering to blacks that lead to them abandoning the Republican party, it was the Republican party actively courting white racists that did. Up until FDR, African Americans voted majority Republican, and even Eisenhower and Nixon got about 40% of the African American vote. It wasn't until the Republican Party started adapting the Southern Strategy as a means of picking up the southern racist voters who were alienated by LBJ passing the Civil Rights Act that blacks began abandoning the Republican party. The fault, dear Jason, is not in our stars, but in themselves.

Also, where did you pick up that nifty habit of referring to the Democratic Party as the Democrat Party? Did Rush teach you that, or was it Sean?

[olafberserker]

how many asian-american presidents have we had?  female?  hispanic?

[Dolorous Jason]

Over 230 + years there have been 42 white men as president and zero black presidents.

How could it be that some people actually think racism has played some part in all this........That's crazy talk!

Of course all that unpleasantry is in the past and doesn't exist anymore.

Probably because blacks spent more time blindly voting for whichever rich white pandering puppet the Democrats paraded in front of them than they did running thier own candidates.  Show me the elections were african-americans voted in majority outside the democrat party for a minority and I'll say you have a point. How can a minority become president if minorities weren't even voting for minorities ?

 Maybe the Democrat party should have been a little less racist throughout the years and given blacks more blacks to vote for  ?

Read a history book, smart one. It wasn't the Dems pandering to blacks that lead to them abandoning the Republican party, it was the Republican party actively courting white racists that did.

I'm not a Republican , my object here is not to defend them . It's too ask the obvious questions that lead from this ridiculous political "racism" argument.
 
So, what you are telling us : It has nothing to do with the pandering of today ? Something that happened 70 years ago is the only reason blacks continue to vote lock-step for a party that has been so racist it's only given them one black presidential candidate in all that time?. Because having no black president is a true sign of racism , you and Durango said so yourselves. That responsibility would fall directly on the democrats since they are the obvious party choice of the African American.

Explain to us why the DEMOCRAT party has this racist history ? From slavery , to denying civil rights , to not nominating a single minority presidential candidate until 2008. Feel free to look for the answers in your "history book".

[Dolorous Jason]

how many asian-american presidents have we had?  female?  hispanic?

None ....and zero  ever even nominated by our benevolent DEMOCRAT party. ... Racists.