President Bush this week is again bypassing an NAACP convention. He has not attended an NAACP event since becoming president.
Instead, he'll be attending the Black Expo in Indianapolis, along with our governor Mitch Daniels- his former budget director.
I applaud the president for sticking to his guns on the NAACP. This former civil rights organization has long since turned into an openly partisan wholly owned subsidiary plantation of the Democrat Party. After, for one thing, the infamous evil demagoguery of the James Byrd ads this organization sponsored on black radio during the 2000 election, why should the president lend them legitimacy by attending their functions and acting as if he had any chance of talking rationally with them?
Also, in particular, screw Julian Bond, chairman of the NAACP. Speaking of the president and his party during the re-election campaign last year, he said "their idea of equal rights is the American flag and the Confederate swastika flying side by side." Why should the president lend the prestige of his office to this kind of hostile nonsense?
The immediately politically expedient thing would probably be for Dubya to choke it down, and go talk to these jackasses. NOT going gets him endless criticism that he supposedly doesn't care about black people, or even that he's openly hostile to blacks. It'd be easier to go, and say that he tried.
But it wouldn't be right. I'm no supporter of the president, and I cuss him up one side and down the other on a fairly regular basis. Nonetheless, he's doing the right thing here. By simple benign neglect, he's marginalized an organization that has clearly long since outlived its usefulness.
It's not like he doesn't talk to black folk, starting with, uh, his Secretary of State. He'll certainly be talking to some black Hoosiers this week. I would particularly encourage him to seek out the advice of black businessmen, as they might have more useful and legitimate insights than some hack politicians. He meets with black leaders frequently- just not this one discredited organization.
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Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - billy
simply because the far rights doesnt like the NAACP and thinks it is not useful does not make it so. Every time the right tries to trash or do a hit piece on the NAACP or bypass it for some sham organization they just dig their hole deeper with blacks. they will not get more than 10% of the black vote in the future by doing hit pieces on their leaders, snubbing them, then making insulting references to black organizations, like being on the "domocrat's plantation".
2 - Marc
"Every time the right tries to trash or do a hit piece on the NAACP or bypass it for some sham organization they just dig their hole deeper with blacks."
Really? Is that why Bush had a higher percentage of black voters than any other Republican president in 2000?
Is that why the percentage went up again in 2004?
As for your 10% figure that's some number you pulled out of your ass and have no way of foretelling the future. As long as the NAACP is an openly partisan organization vice the protectoer of civil rights it once was it shoud be snubbed.
3 - billy
damn marc, ok i admit it, they got 12%. wow you should really be proud of yourselves. what a diverse, non-white christian party they are building. and once again my point is proved, a likely white right winger trashing the NAACP and thinking that will help them increase the black vote. keep trying. you will probably garner less votes next time.
4 - Marc
"a likely white right winger trashing the NAACP"
Just like your post you missed the target. I have never voted for a Republican, or Democrat for that matter.
And yes they are "building a "non-white christian party" as you call it.
Perhaps you don't understand the term "building"
5 - Al Barger
Also Billy, black folks not voting Republican does not constitute evidence that the Republicans are racist or non-inclusive.
6 - Sister Ray
Billy "...some sham organization ..."
From the Indianablackexpo.com website:
"Indiana Black Expo, Inc., (IBE) was founded in Indianapolis in 1970 by a group of religious and civic leaders. In 1971, the same group created an exposition at the Indiana State Fairgrounds that showcased the achievements of African-Americans in the areas of culture, art, history and economics. The first exposition was a major success, due to the collective efforts of a dedicated, all volunteer team of community workers.
IBE continually upgraded the quality of programming at the exposition and ultimately outgrew the state fairgrounds. This growth inspired IBE to relocate the exposition to the Indiana Convention Center where the Summer Celebration flourished to become the largest and longest running exposition of its kind in the nation.
Today, Indiana Black Expo, Inc. is a year-round, multifaceted community service organization with 11 chapters around the state of Indiana. IBE is governed by a board of directors comprised of individuals and community leaders from around the state of Indiana and employs a full time staff of 19."
7 - RJ
"I have a modest proposal for how the president can make up to black folks for these NAACP snubs: a Supreme Court appointment. Specifically, he should name federal appellate judge Janice Rogers Brown to the SCOTUS. A major Supreme Court appointment surely means more than a speech."
I'm with you 100% here, Al. :)
8 - RJ
billy:
Bush could attend every meeting of the NAACP, and still not get more than 10-12% of the black vote. He stands nothing to gain by pandering to a group that clearly hates him.
9 - billy
that is the problem with republican and why they do so bad with the black vote. not to mention trashing and snubbing the naacp, but not recognizing its importance to blacks and liberals and then not meeting with them because "it probably wont help get more votes anyways." sometimes principles are more important than pandering for more votes. bush doesnt get this. he snubs mlk and all the other civil rights leaders because "it wont get him more votes" instead he should meet with these people b/c it is the right thing to do.
10 - Dave Nalle
Principles are important? I think that's the point Bush is making by snubbing the NAACP. The only principle of the NAACP is to advance the fortunes of their leaders by keeping the black population poor and dependent on government handouts. They deserve to be snubbed because they are an inherently racist organization whose goal is to ghettoize the black population for their own advantage.
Dave
11 - Al Barger
Thank you Sister Ray. Billy could stand to do a little thinking before speaking.
Plus, he immediately jumped to taking our Indiana Black Expo group as some kind of opposition to the NAACP, which it certainly is not. I'm sure that many of the Black Expo folks are card carrying NAACP members. The NAACP just happened to schedule their event at the same time. But see how quickly he went to bad mouthing them with absolutely no knowledge.
RE: comment #9, you're getting it exactly backwards, from what I can see. It's exactly a matter of principle that he should NOT associate with this seriously corrupted organization.
Plus, you're probably also getting it backwards on the politics. That is, going to the NAACP would probably be superior politics for him. It doesn't seem to make much difference to his standing with black folk one way or the other- he's not getting much support either way. In the short run though, he opens himself up to bad appearances as regards to appealing to, say, moderate white suburbanites.
If I wasn't clear enough before, I'm saying that Bush is doing the better thing for his party, black folks, and the country as a whole to take the heat for not enabling the dysfunctionality of the NAACP.
12 - bily
no one trashed the induiana expo, but if they are meeting with bush they are likely a sham.
this quote sums up exactly why the gop doesnt get it on race
"If I wasn't clear enough before, I'm saying that Bush is doing the better thing for his party, black folks, and the country as a whole to take the heat for not enabling the dysfunctionality of the NAACP."
in one sentence you have trashed the naacp and made the big blunder all gop members make. you believe that to be "enabled" the black org needs bush. when will bush "free" those poor dysfunctional black folk? the gop needs the naacp more than they need him. trashing the naacp doesnt make it not the most important and oldest civil rights organization in the country.
13 - billy
no one trashed the induiana expo, but if they are meeting with bush they are likely a sham.
this quote sums up exactly why the gop doesnt get it on race
"If I wasn't clear enough before, I'm saying that Bush is doing the better thing for his party, black folks, and the country as a whole to take the heat for not enabling the dysfunctionality of the NAACP."
in one sentence you have trashed the naacp and made the big blunder all gop members make. you believe that to be "enabled" the black org needs bush. when will bush "free" those poor dysfunctional black folk? the gop needs the naacp more than they need him. trashing the naacp doesnt make it not the most important and oldest civil rights organization in the country.
14 - RJ
"no one trashed the induiana [sic] expo, but if they are meeting with bush they are likely a sham."
Open-minded, aren't we? ;-P
15 - Sister Ray
Billy: "...but if they are meeting with bush they are likely a sham."
If meeting with Bush makes IBE a sham, why is it so important for the NAACP to meet with him? Wouldn't that be a sham, too?
Or are only certain black people allowed to meet with the president? Isn't that discrimination?
16 - billy
no, any black people that want to meet with bush are allowed to. that is not discrimination. the problem is "who do most black people want him to meet?"
meeting with a black group just to make an appearance on stage with them is not a gift to people when you are snubbing the people "they" want you to meet.
17 - Dave Nalle
>>trashing the naacp doesnt make it not the most important and oldest civil rights organization in the country.<<
You left out 'most corrupt' and 'most destructive'.
Dave
18 - RJ
M-F-U-ME Queefie for President! ;)
19 - Al Barger
In my own defense, note that I voted for Al Sharpton for POTUS last spring, and fought unsuccessfully to get my vote counted.
And did I get any support from the NAACP? Nooo...
What good are they?
20 - Sister Ray
I still don't get the "sham" part. Since Bush has not met with the NAACP (or has snubbed them, if you prefer), any black group that does meet with him is "likely a sham?"
As in...selling out? Is the NAACP that much head-snd-shoulders over all the black organizations in America with whom he could possibly meet?
I'm just asking.
21 - Marc
Billy as your so quick to defend the NAACP I suppose you woun't mind when, and if, they succeed in raping your wallet for things done 150 years ago via reparations for slavery they now support.
Or will you be a duplicitious fool and cry to high heaven?
22 - andy marsh
billy says - "sometimes principles are more important than pandering for more votes"...but some how it's wrong for the president to NOT pander to this group of racists?
23 - andy marsh
Al - just think how much fun this would be to read if MD was still around!!!
24 - Nancy
There are good & honest Republicans out there, but none of them are working for this current administration: Smirk wouldn't know a principle if it jumped up and bit him on the balls.
25 - Dave Nalle
Regardless of your feelings about Bush, the choice not to kowtow to the NAACP at least appears to be an action of principle. In the absence of any other explanation I think we can err on the side of giving him credit for making the right decision here.
Dave