Stop the presses!
Black Democrats in Prince George’s County, Maryland, have endorsed Republican Michael Steele for the U.S. Senate. More from the Washington Times.
My guess is that these black Democrats were a bit upset because the state party chose the lesser known and white Ben Cardin over the better known and black Kweisi Mfume, former head of the NAACP.
One quote was particularly hopeful. Democrat David Harrington, a Prince George’s County council member, said that choosing Steele was “a way to say, ‘Don’t leave Prince George’s out, and don’t leave African Americans out’… There needs to be a diversity of voices in the room.”
Diversity of voices and not just skin color. From the mouth of a Democrat! Refreshing, indeed.
This endorsement is a stunning move, but I don’t think it necessarily will translate into a win for Steele, who is still trailing Cardin. Somehow, I don’t think it matters much. In this case, the message the endorsement sends is more important than a victory.
What say you, black liberal readers?
In other news, a waste-of-money study finds that mainstream media coverage of mid-term elections favors Democrats. No s***, Sherlock!
And the Jackass Blogger of the Year award goes to anonymous white liberal blogger “Billmon.”
Update: A commenter points out something I need to clarify. I didn’t mean to imply that the Maryland Democratic Party made the decision that Cardin would be the Democratic candidate. I know Democratic voters chose him in the primary. I thought the state party endorsed him over Mfume. I have no source for this impression. If I’m wrong, let me know.
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The only regret I’ve had over leaving Maryland is that I can’t vote for Steele. He’s one of the few politicians running right now that I have any respect for.
I am a black that grew up in PG County in the 70s. I first heard about Michael Steele in 2005 while watching Q&A on C-SPAN. I was stunned to see a black republican in state government. He had not decided to run for the Senate at that time. When I heard he was running I thought “and people think miracles ceased”. I found out later that he spoke during the 2004 Republican National Convention.
I left Maryland in the late 70s to attend college and never went back there to live. I subscribed to his email mailing list as soon as I found out he was running. His campaign ads are sensible and communicate well his positions. I would definitely vote for him if I was still living there. If he wins next week I will scream with joy.
I once lived in Prince George’s County where wealthy blacks and whites live in racial harmony, far from the cocktail chattering-class inane psychobabble of Montgomery County “liberals” who are all appendages of the US government sugar-daddy in D.C.
The Maryland Dems are dependent on the black vote, but throw only occasional political crumbs to their single largest constituency. The unions and old-time Baltimore white nabobs control the party, and have selected one of their hacks, a party-line white limousine liberal, instead of a qualified black who was narrowly beaten in the primary.
I hope Steele pulls out a victory, as the hypocritical smug stand-patism of the liberal Maryland Dems needs a shake-up very badly.
I believe Steele is a solid guy. He’s been railroaded by the Dems– “the party of Blacks and all the downtrodden.”
Many blacks don’t support Steele because he’s really not black…how can he, he’s not ghetto enough, he speaks normal English, and he’s Republican…goes the conventional thinking.
If he were thuggish and slummy–and not the classy guy he is– Jesse and Sharpton would be right there with him.
People think I’m nuts to be a Conservative… why, how could I? Hearing liberals espousing reasons why I should be like them, you’d think It’s my Hispanic duty to be a Lib. I don’t think so. Thank you Reagan.
Sorry, I meant, liberals spouting–not espousing.
“Many blacks don’t support Steele because he’s really not black…how can he, he’s not ghetto enough, he speaks normal English, and he’s Republican…goes the conventional thinking.”
Regretfully the above quote is a stereotype, of the worst kind. Granted, there may reluctance of “some” black Democratic’s to vote across the political corridor. To suggest that their reasons for not doing so is because we expect our representatives to be “ghetto and speak improperly” is to equate those lower standards to what it means to be black, Democrat and American. It’s lacking a complete, total assessment of our experience and intelligence.
It’s as offensive and hurtful as suggesting that white Republicans are dismissive of white Liberals because they are not in KKK. It’s a stretch of the imagination and a distortion of reality.
For the quote to be taken for truth we could not have and would have to ignore Barack Obama, Harold Ford, Cory Booker, Anthony Williams, Booker T. Washington, WEB Dubois, Marcus Garvey and many other political Black American luminaries.
No Way!!!
La Shawn, I think I told you a while back that I used to live in PG county. I remember having conversations with a few black friends of mine who were much more politically active than I was. They were also extremely suspicious of G.Bush, even to a level of paranoia, because he was white and Republican. (They wouldn’t really talk to me about why, I guess because I’m ::whispers:: also white)
I remember after 9/11, when I was just becoming “aware” of the political world around me, how reluctant they were even then to be supporting the prez. (although they did- with much trepidation)
To be honest, since moving to VA I haven’t been keeping too close tabs on the local politics of MD, so I don’t know how conservative Steele is on the issues. (is he prolife? Pro-marriage? Pro-Iraq?) It would be interesting to do a side by side comparison of Steele and Bush on the issues and then ask my friends what exactly it is about Bush’s positions that they dislike, that they in turn like about Steele. (assuming, of course, that they both agree w/ these folks from PG county.)
Ben Cardin won the Democratic primary against Mfume in a fair vote. Prince Georges County has 350,000 registered Democrats, 76 percent are black. Mfume lost by less than a 4 percent margin. Mfume obviously didn’t appeal to Maryland Democratic voters, black and white. Cardin has spent 8 terms in congress, so, his name and experience won him the nomination.
It appears to me they’re endorsing Steele because he’s black. To switch party positions solely on the basis of race is racism.
I am black and an independent in MD and I am supporting Steele. He may not be as conservative as many conservative Republicans may like but in all actuality, if people listened to what he had to say they would see that he has a lot in common with most “thinking” black people. By that I mean the ones who know something about something and don’t tow the Democratic line and don’t know why or don’t vote to begin with. I have recommended to the black folks around me that they learn something about the people they claim to love or hate by visiting websites (not just looking at the news) and at least consider voting for Michael Steele. He may be a Republican but he is also his own man, that for any party is refreshing.
@Tafaraji – I hear what you are saying, but I have to beg the differ. How many times have I heard other blacks, especially black women, call Condolezza Rice Bush’s whore, slut, or mistress, And to say that she isn’t “black enough”. I think the prejudice comes from within our own community of what we accept is or is not black enough. A white woman said to me just the other day that she doesn’t like Ms. Rice because “she’s not black enough”. Does society think that every black woman has to be hoodish. Oprah got an earful from our own community too for not being “black enough”.
We’ve got to start cleaning up our own house. Ebonics is NOT A LANGUAGE.
But aren’t they supporting him cuz he’s black? It’s not cuz his ideas are better.
hramsey:
Saying that someone is “not black enough” is completely different then suggesting automatically, that “being black enough” infers one speaks bad English, or, involves themselves in any of the other negativity associated with routine stereotypes. Don’t you see a small possibility of there being a distinction?
Now if the people you were speaking with spoke to you in “Ebonics” no wonder you drew that conclusion.
Ebonics is a dialect–they assigned a name to something that existed for a while.
I don’t talk to people who speak Ebonics nor engage in it myself. Black folks need to stop putting the sheet over the ignorance that exists within our very own commnunity which fuels the stereotypes.
Ebonics is looked at as if it is a language in some of our communities. But to those of us that know better…..we pull the sheet back and call it like it is. A cycle of racial pandering excuses, low expectations and tolerance.
Re: Billmon, don’t you know, La Shawn, that liberals are allowed to make racial slurs since they “give at the office” by being more racially sensitive than conservatives the rest of the time? Is that the way they think? Seems like it…. Keep up the great work.
c’mon lashawn………dems. ARE the ones who give everyone the chance to speak…..not like the “IT’S MY WAY OR THE HIWAY REPUBS”!!! When’s the last time a repub. voted for a dem……hmmmmm NOT gonna happen right? Lashawn your are a closet dem. it’s ok, go ahead and admit it…it’s ok…..
I’m white and live in Kansas; however, woke up in the middle of the night a couple of nights ago and the debate between Steele and Cardin was on c-span so I watched it. Steele would definitely get my vote if I was a Maryland resident. The man had honest answers, he was convicted and he explained some conflicting statements he had made over the course of a few years on the basis that the situation had changed and so his assessment changed. Isn’t that what we expect our leaders to do? I think so. I hope he wins.
t-jack… I am a Republican who votes for our Democrat Supervisor of Elections during every election, and will continue voting for him as long as he wants the job… because he is a GOOD Supervisor of Elections.
Ticket-splitting happens all the time.
La Shawn wrote, but I don’t think it necessarily will translate into a win for Steele”
I disagree. I believe Steele will win !
I think Steele will win as well.
Just the other day I had commented elsewhere that with Steele, the inverse of the 15% rule regarding polled support converting into actual votes would apply.
In this case, since Blacks are the ‘majority’ bloc in MD, it would seem that Steele could easily capture 50+% of the black vote, instead of the 10% ~ 13% crossover.
As classy as Steele is — vis a vis his ads that continue to peel Cardin apart, layer after layer, down to his rotten liberal & bigoted core — you might as well stick a fork in Cardin. I dare say that post-election, Cardin will be formally relegated to the ash-heap of DNC history.
Ebonics is a dialect associated with poor english skills. It is legit in that it is a dialect of english, not as another language.
The main reasons why black seem loyal to the democratic party is because it is the party that seemed to be resolved to the problems of the poor, oppressed, and left-behinds. I don’t know where the change-over happened. Republicans were the force behind ending slavery and jim crowe, but some where along the way Republicans became symbols of white, upperclass, religious intolerant, and just plain intolerant elitism. That seems to also be changing but Republican is still seen as support of big money and people with big money, and ‘Too bad, its your own fault your that way” to everyone else.
LaShawn: “My guess is that these black Democrats were a bit upset because the state party chose the lesser known and white Ben Cardin over the better known and black Kweisi Mfume, former head of the NAACP.”
The ’state party’ doesn’t choose who’ll be the nominee; the Democratic primary voters do. If (going by the stats provided from an above post) 76% of Prince George’s county’s 350,000 registered Democrats are black, that’s 266,000 registered black Democrats in the county. Mfume won 75,000 votes in Prince George’s, but Cardin won 20,000. If the black Democratic leaders from Prince George’s who are defecting to Steele had only effectively got out the vote on primary day, then Mfume would have won — he could have easily won, actually, it turnout was large enough.
The defectors did a lousy job getting out the vote for Stuart Simms in the Attorney General’s primary, as well: 54,405 of Prince Cty voters went for Gansler, while 39,714 voted for Simms (who is black).
So these five guys who are defecting to Steele, complaining about the Democratic party because there are no black Democratic candidates at the top of the tickets for the Senate and AG, ought to be feel pretty dumb for pointing the finger at anybody else but themselves.
I didn’t mean to imply that state Dems made the decision that Cardin would be the Dem candidate. I was under the impression that it endorsed him over Mfume. – Admin
It appears to me they’re endorsing Steele because he’s black. To switch party positions solely on the basis of race is racism.
One of the things that has disappointed me is that Steele is now appealing to Blacks based on race. When he was MD GOP chair, he appealed to Blacks based on ideas.
I am black and an independent in MD and I am supporting Steele. He may not be as conservative as many conservative Republicans may like but in all actuality, if people listened to what he had to say they would see that he has a lot in common with most “thinking†black people.
He’s mjore conservative that GW Bush.
For the quote to be taken for truth we could not have and would have to ignore Barack Obama, Harold Ford, Cory Booker, Anthony Williams, Booker T. Washington, WEB Dubois, Marcus Garvey and many other political Black American luminaries.
And Mfume, Jesse Jackson, JR, Tavis Smiley…
I don’t talk to people who speak Ebonics nor engage in it myself.
If that’s not silly I don’t know what is.
Black Democrats in Prince George’s County, Maryland, have endorsed Republican Michael Steele for the U.S. Senate. More from the Washington Times.
I guess LB missed when Black Dems in the Baltimore region endorsed Steele, including Mfume’s son and Kathy Hughes of Radio One.
People who comment on a post without reading the entire post is the main reason I sometimes consider disabling commenting on this blog. See the Update. – Admin
That’s the tough dynamic with the Democratic Party and Blacks. They need us more than we need them, but come election time, they convince us of the opposite. We vote for them, and they lose, then we expect Republicans to listen to our grievances, which is backwards considering they have been winning close elections without our vote
I think, in the 21st century, we need to get off of party loyalty, and focus on the issues like financial empowerment, community development, and helping people move out of poverty through education incentives. Who ever can address them with a plan gets my vote.
I like Steele and wish I could vote for him. I also think more parity in the voting demographic among Blacks will force both parties to compete to address needs many Blacks feel are ignored, by surprisingly, both parties
man LaShawn you are too funny, “in other news, a waste-of-money study finds that mainstream media coverage of mid-term elections favors Democrats. No s***, Sherlock!” I guess i just didnt see that one coming. Keep up the good work,
cheers,
bucket
Thank you hramsey, I don’t mean to demean or stereotype anyone. I wanted to point out exactly what you experienced with the white woman.
Now, I think Obama, Ford, and the others mentioned by tafaraji are quite sharp and eloquent people, however, let them crossover to the Republican party and they too will be “oreo”, as the libs have labeled Mr Steele.
As long as you are in the party of the “blacks” then you are safe from the savage attacks of the Dems. Most of the time, this is the case. Remember Justice Thomas, condi, and Powell.
I,m Hispanic and when those in my community tell me “you think you’re white” It’s usually ignorant people who: 1. expect me to be a Dem. 2.Expect me to speak, behave and think like they do.
when I lived in the ghetto years ago, I was not of the ghetto. I think my whole family was in it, but not of it. We wanted better and we reached for it.
One need not deny their culture nor abandon who they are; I accept who I am, but to elevate my standing in the world does not make me a traitor to my race, that’s nuts. thanks for your comments.
hRamsey, I agree with comment 13. Trust me, I’m a New Yorker, now living in VA. I’ve mixed with all races and religions, I get along pretty well with people. Thanks for your insight.
I know Democratic voters chose him in the primary. I thought the state party endorsed him over Mfume. I have no source for this impression. If I’m wrong, let me know.
The party officially did not endorse anyone, but the state political leaders did a lot behind the scenes: they recruited Cardin to run after Mfume declared. After Cardin declared, and I mean within one day, “information came out” about Mfume and his dealings with a woman in the NAACP. On “Black talk radio”, some people politically collected claim Dem financial supporters were told not to support Mfume. This was also said on conservative talk radio.
I cannot think of a more appealing senatorial candidate any where in the U.S. than Michael Steele. Conservative, principled, well-spoken, and exudes a sense of leadership. In fact, if he were one of two on a Presidential ticket one day, rather than, say, the current media darling Obama, Steele would be hard to beat, especially where I come from.
i’ve gotta agree with neolibertarian: maryland dems endorsing steele “because he’s black” is racist. i know it’s easy to be hopeful and say maybe this is the first crack in the ‘dem/black’ monolith or “baby steps” or some such. but it’s still a sad sad commentary on our society when a blatantly racist act is hailed as progress. amazing times we live in.
how do i – a white guy born & raised in texas – dare say its racist? what the heck do i know about racism and the black experience and all that? not much.
i just know about the “reverse it” test. if a mostly white group from party ‘A’ endorses a white candidate from party ‘B’ – a candidate running against a black guy – everybody and his brother’d scream the “r” word at the top of their lungs. and they’d be right. ergo…..
I would think that Cardin was chosen over Kweisi Mfume because of the baggage he brought due to stupid, inflammatory comments he brought up while with the NAACP. Don’t think the Republicans would have missed the chance to bring them all up again.
On the other hand, I also think that the Democrats endoursing him now might also be a publicity stunt. After all, it does seem that Steele is going to lose, and at this stage the endoursement is nothing other than a chance to difuse the charges brought up that the Black community had turned it’s back on Steele just because he espoused conservative positions rather than the usual liberal one’s Blacks are expected by Democrats to hold. They are looking to the future, nothing more.
first. race matters. to factor it into a decision is not de facto racist.
second. steele has reached out and does have beliefs that are in line with a majority of blacks, on many issues.
third. maybe these 5 politicians are also making an intelligent decision. What do they have to lose? if steele wins he owes them; and the Dem Party also needs to win them back. They will have increased stature. If steele loses, its not like the Dem party can afford to ignore them. there is a very rational political reason for their decision.
again, just because it involves race, does not make it racist.
I’m pulling for Steele because he seems to be the better man in this contest.
What bitterly contested criterion is missing from the sentence above? Right. And it should be missing.
I think some people are making race a different and additional issue because they are insinuating that blacks are going to vote for Steele simply because he is black. As someone else mentioned, given our history, I don’t think that that is all black people care about but for many that does hold some weight. My point is that, yes, a few may. But what I think and am trying to get others to think about is that to an extent, race does matter. After 40 or 50 years of legal equal rights, you can’t pretend that we all are going to be judged (by any other group) solely based upon our character. It would be nice, but it is not realistic to expect. All people make racial judgments or hold opinions or views that are tied to racial matters at sometime, even if it is just in the heat of the moment.
Anyway, Michael Steele offers Marylanders who are black, an opportunity to have someone who is not a “token” represent them. He is his own man. Sometimes, we as blacks, can be so beholden to the Dems that we don’t see that they use us as tokens as well. He presents a legitimate voice for people. He is reasonable enough that his views resonate with people of all races. Black people (in general) when they “think” about their personal views and not just a party line tend to be more moderate than the Democratic Party.
I have been asking people to just think. Black people want someone they feel represents them. Well Steele does, what’s great is that he also represents most of all of us (Marylanders). Here is “our” chance to have that, for everyone. It may be unfortunate but for some, it may take race to get them to at least consider him, then, like I said, I ask them to look at what he stands for before they make their decisions.
As for Mfume, while it may not be the party that elects, it was surely the party that put their collective weight behind Cardin. So much so that Mfume was seemingly reluctant to support him and I don’t think it was simple jealousy. As others have said, Democrats talk alot about diversity but when it comes to leadership and support they do less showing than Republicans seem to. That is why I love to ask the black folks I personally know their reasons for supporting Democrats after they wince when they hear that I am willing to vote for Republicans. I know why I vote for a person. Many people I know just look for the “D” and that is good enough for them.
I am hoping that Michael Steele surprises all of us on Nov. 7 or after they count all the absentee ballots.
Heather
Anyone who has paid attention has noticed Steele is flip-flopping.
He is also now appealing to Black voters primarily based on race. When he was Maryland GOP chairman he said he would appeal to Black voters based on ideas.
Anyone who has paid attention to Steele over a long period of time, as I have, should have wondered what happened to Steele in the Meet the Press debate.
I’m sorry about all the comments, but I live in MD and pay attention to all forms of media and I can’t see how Steele is flip-flopping? I also don’t see any special appeals that he is making to black people based on race.
Now, if people choose to recognize him based on race and a feeling of commonality, that is different. He is trying to win a race and I doubt that he would turn them away. What it seems he does is once he knows they are interested in him he presents his ideas.
I don’t know what exactly happened on Meet the Press, but he was great on the Situation Room on CNN on Nov. 2. People may have race concerns but none of his positions have changed. I also believe that as a black person it is impossible, even if you don’t want it for matters of race to come out. I don’t think he is seeking it but I think that it will be some type of an issue because race does not matter in “white” circles unless someone of another race comes into the mix.
Heather
I’m sorry about all the comments, but I live in MD and pay attention to all forms of media and I can’t see how Steele is flip-flopping? I also don’t see any special appeals that he is making to black people based on race.
Flip-flop: he said that mistakes were made in the war and that the troops should be brought home. He’s saying, now, bring them home only after the job is done. That wasn’t what he had said earlier.
Flip-flop: On voting on S.C. appointees, he first refused to address it saying it was gotcha politics as usual in D.C., then later said its something he wouldn’t have to deal with, then said he has no litmus test for him.
Flip-flop: when he was state GOP chair, on Black radio stations he said that race shouldn’t be a factor, what a person stands for and that person’s record and how that matches your beliefs/values, are what is important. Now, he has ads saying Dems disrespect Black Democrats so Black Democrats should vote for Steele.
When Steele was GOP chair and had a weekly show on Black talk radio station WOLB, I liked what he had to say. When he was Lt. Gov. and appeared on WOLB or WBAL, I liked what he had to say.
During the campaign? I hear him saying somethings that don’t match up and I’m taking notice.
I guess I should say I also live in MD.
I almost never support a politician wholeheartedly. Too much…. politics.
But whatever Steele says that I might not like, he is still, at the very least, the lesser of evils, and by a very wide margin. Fingers crossed for his victory.
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