[T]here are a handful of Trump-orbiting GOP operatives pushing West's helter-skelter, supposedly independent campaign for president. According to CNN, one such operative with ties to the Trump campaign, Lane Ruhland, has filed paperwork to get West on the ballot in Wisconsin.... West cannot win the election. He's missed too many deadlines to get on the ballot in too many states. But he could be a spoiler for President Donald Trump's reelection by siphoning off key portions of the Black vote in select states like Wisconsin and Ohio, with filing deadlines this week. The artist who once declared that former President George W. Bush "doesn't care about Black people" (and who former President Barack Obama once called "a jackass") appears to be being played by conservative operatives....Oh! If a conservative made that inference — that West is an ignorant pawn — there would be accusations of racism. Give the man the respect of presuming — when you need to make a presumption — that he understands how things work.
Remember: West briefly went full MAGA, praising Trump for the economy and their shared "dragon energy" -- an evolution that paralleled his embrace of evangelical Christianity, which inspired his last album. A messianic streak also fits the impulse to run for president, but there isn't anything holy about this run....Yes, that's why it makes more sense to assume that he's purposely helping Trump! How is he being played? Another way to look at it is that he accepts that he may help Trump because he doesn't believe the Democrats deserve the black vote, which they take for granted. That corresponds to what he's said about his run. That's not "being played." Being played! That's so insulting!
This is not an insurgent independent campaign -- this is dirty tricks from the slice of the white-bread conservative establishment that had posters of the infamous late Republican operative Lee Atwater on their walls growing up. West may feel that he's on a mission from God rather than the recesses of GOP operatives. This conservative-backed attempt to draw away voters from the left always seems to lure in enough "useful idiots" to make it worthwhile.Who are you calling idiots?! Is CNN saying that unless black people vote for the Democrats, they're idiots?
I know "useful idiot" is a stock phrase. It has its own Wikipedia article, but CNN is not using it in the classic sense:
In political jargon, a useful idiot is a derogatory term for a person perceived as propagandizing for a cause without fully comprehending the cause's goals, and who is cynically used by the cause's leaders. The term was originally used during the Cold War to describe non-communists regarded as susceptible to communist propaganda and manipulation. The term has often been attributed to Vladimir Lenin, but this attribution is unsubstantiated....
In his 1947 book, Planned Chaos, Austrian-American economist Ludwig von Mises writes that the term "useful innocents" was used by Communists for liberals, whom von Mises describes as "confused and misguided sympathizers".
Writing in The New York Times in 1987, William Safire discussed the increasing use of the term "useful idiot" against "anybody insufficiently anti-Communist in the view of the phrase's user"...
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75 comments:
If you don't vote for Kanye, then you ain't black.
This is too easy
Sure West is naive and gullible, because he's black...What? Is West on coke or something? For Black people I prefered ones like Obama, clean and articulate, cared about his appearance, with that crisp crease in his pants...he always sent a tingle down my leg.
Ha! I’m sure this person — who is claiming that black people are too stupid to know they are being played by crafty white people — considers itself a Goodwhite unlike those awful racists who take for granted that black people can manage their affairs and make decisions without a white puppetmaster.
Who are you calling idiots?! Is CNN saying that unless black people vote for the Democrats, they're idiots?
Michelle didn't call blacks idiots for not voting for her husband, but she was very close. When asked about polling that showed young black men not being in the 90's, she assured the interviewer "they would come around". Because we all know blacks aren't smart enough to evaluate candidates positions and make their choice. They must listen to their betters, White Democrats, and vote the party line.
"Is CNN saying that unless black people vote for the Democrats, they're idiots?"
Yes. All democrats say that. CNN is democrat. Corruptocrat central. Clinton News Network.
this is dirty tricks from the slice of the white-bread conservative establishment that had posters of the infamous late Republican operative Lee Atwater on their walls growing up.
Posters of Lee Atwater? I’m sorry you mistake conservatives for the weirdo progressives you knew growing up. The ARE no posters of right wing operatives. There are no such children that would buy them, hang them or keep them on a wall. If this idiot writer knew who the GOP establishment are he would know they didn’t even like Atwater, much less force their children to worship a hack.
So such a sentence that stops me in my tracks to laugh at this stupid column, also raise questions? WTF for one. Who actually DOES worship sneaky political tricksters? Maybe the TV bookers who keep putting Carville, Brazille, Rove and the whole griftermensch Lincoln Rejects gang. There’s your weirdo operative worshippers right there. You couldn’t find a statistically relevant sample of Americans who would even know who Atwater was.
Learned from the experts:
"What was not often acknowledged in Trump's heated race against Democrat Hillary Clinton, however, was how her campaign fueled his rise to power. An email recently released by the whistleblowing organization WikiLeaks shows how the Clinton campaign and Democratic Party bear direct responsibility for propelling the bigoted billionaire to the White House.
"In its self-described "pied piper" strategy, the Clinton campaign proposed intentionally cultivating extreme right-wing presidential candidates, hoping to turn them into the new "mainstream of the Republican Party" in order to try to increase Clinton's chances of winning.
"The Clinton campaign and Democratic National Committee called for using far-right candidates "as a cudgel to move the more established candidates further to the right." Clinton's camp insisted that Trump and other extremists should be "elevated" to "leaders of the pack" and media outlets should be told to "take them seriously."
https://www.salon.com/2016/11/09/the-hillary-clinton-campaign-intentionally-created-donald-trump-with-its-pied-piper-strategy/
"implication", not "inference"
THEOLDMAN
#CorrectWordsMatter
They ARE calling them idiots. But that's the NICE thing. They also call them traitors.
What is interesting about the Republican support for West is their assumption, and a correct one I believe, is that majority of black voters will not vote for Trump, and any effort to switch black voters away from Biden is worth the money.
Democrats are worried black people will vote for the black man because they’re not racist.
If lefties would stop whining about "Lee Atwater" every election, conservatives would have no idea who the man was.
2020 has demonstrated, as Malcolm X told the nation decades ago, the White Liberal is the real racist. The wolf in sheep's clothing.
I smell projection and not a little bit of privilege.
And flop-sweat. It's creeping in, as reality can only be held back by printed words for so long. The next hundred days are going be a circus.
an aside: I was given both flop sweat and flop-sweat by the spell checker. I really wanted the concept as one word, flopsweat. Thoughts?
“Is CNN saying that unless black people vote for the Democrats, they're idiots?”
That’s always the MSM message, usually more subtle than that but .... yeah. That’s exactly what they’re saying.
What they don’t get is how insulting and paternalistic that is, to every person, of all colors and races. Deciding you need to think for someone else based solely on their race is racist, by definition.
The media is far more racist an institution than “white people” are as a class. So are Democrats as a party. It’s baked into the cake.
See, that is exactly why you can’t let them go to town.
No one has ever explained to me why the Black vote changed between 1932 and 1936, even though Blacks were largely excluded from the New deal and the Democratic Party was still enforcing Jim Crow laws in the South.
Does the GOP have an ulterior motive? Of fucking course they do. Is helping someone get on the ballot a "dirty trick"? What is possibly "dirty" about giving voters more choices?
The real problem is that Kanye could be a viable alternative to Biden for some voters. But that's not Kanye's fault or the GOPs fault.
Anyone who didn't guess that, before now, is s-l-o-w.
Trump spent the '80s and '90s in rap clubs - he's not your boy - he's OURS.
there isn't anything holy about this run, CNN claimed without evidence.
Independent candidate viewed as helping Trump:
West cannot win the election. He's missed too many deadlines to get on the ballot in too many states. But he could be a spoiler for President Donald Trump's reelection
Independent candidate viewed as hurting Trump:
Evan McMullin seeks to provide conservatives and Republicans who don't want to vote for Clinton or Trump another alternative, in addition to Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson, who sits at about 10% in recent polling. Here's why he could be worth watching during the final three months:
Kanye is over the target. He is being painted as a mentally ill crazy freak. Of course his crime is Holy
Spirit lead Christian preaching. Nobody can deal with that without resorting to calling it a mentally ill craziness. And God laughs.
"...the white-bread conservative establishment that had posters of the infamous late Republican operative Lee Atwater on their walls growing up." Alex Keaton?
COndi Rice's comment the other day about blacks being told how they are supposed to think was 100% correct.
"West ain't black," is the shorter version all these stories that popped up this morning.
CNN? That's not a good source for honest information.
"That's so insulting! . . . ! Is CNN saying that unless black people vote for the Democrats, they're idiots?"
It's a shame! They should do better! It's like progs don't believe what they are saying! It's like they just use words as tools! Are they cynical or something?
"But there are a handful..."
One handful is; two or more handfuls are.
Hammond raises seat arming handles, squeezes ejection seat trigger.
Haha I knew it, Kanye didn't know about all those state filing deadlines and stuff.
He needs help. He needs a Paul Manafort.
Being played! That's so insulting!
Sure. But if he knows what he's doing then he's to blame. This way conservatives are to blame. And since the left believes whatever is necessary to conclude conservatives are to blame "being played" is their answer.
Attributed to Lenin "without substantiation" = too lazy to Google.
One way a reporter can make himself look smart, or minimize any damage to his political side is to state some well-know quote is attributed to a famous person WITHOUT EVIDENCE. This makes it appear like its all a mystery. Where DID the quote come from? Gosh, its just UNPROVEN. But people who think Lenin said it, are WRONG.
But we know it was a well known commie phrase, and of course, because it makes the Commies look bad, they immediately began to deny IN PUBLIC that they used it and originated it. You really wonder why the Commies haven't taken over the world, since you the gullible boobs who ALWAYS fall/fell for their techniques and traps.
CNN is so pro Democrat you wonder why they aren't changed with a campaign finance law violation.
I DON'T BELONG TO YOU!!!!
CNN is arguing exactly the point Kanye West is running to repudiate: the idea that the Democrats are entitled to the votes of black Americans. No better justification for his campaign can be imagined.
Blogger mezzrow said...
I smell projection and not a little bit of privilege.
And flop-sweat. It's creeping in, as reality can only be held back by printed words for so long. The next hundred days are going be a circus.
an aside: I was given both flop sweat and flop-sweat by the spell checker. I really wanted the concept as one word, flopsweat. Thoughts?
I think flop-sweat is more appropriate. In addition to flop-sweat, I think that I also smell a soiled adult diaper, looking at you Biden. But, that could be the DNC for pushing the senile, basement-bound idiot as the nominee.
CNN and the entire marxist far left, which includes the FakeCon LLR-lefty Bulwarkian grifters, were very very VERY supportive of the Egg McMuffin (Evan McMullin) Presidential campaign in Utah in 2016.
Very, very supportive of it..
....a one state campaign by a pro-Hillary FakeCon running as a "conservative" in republican state to try and throw it to Hillary...
History began anew this morning for the lefties and LLR-lefties.
Republicans assume black people are stupid enough to vote for a clown like Kanye West. That’s racist.
Kanye's a big boy (racist?). He'll be rolling in hundreds of millions either way.
He's the kind of man I've always admired. He's worked hard in his life, earned his just rewards, and no longer gives any fucks. Good for him.
We need more like Lee Atwater. The Republicans have long ago lost their killer instinct.
R/V is not far from the truth although I doubt he understands it.
Republican support for West is their assumption, and a correct one I believe, is that majority of black voters will not vote for Trump, and any effort to switch black voters away from Biden is worth the money.
Yes and a 20% black vote for Trump will sink the Democrats out of sight.
I don't know what the dems are worried about. They tell us everyday black people can't figure out how to register to vote anyways.
Prediction: Kanye will poach black votes from Biden and narcissist votes from Trump, and in the end it will be a wash.
"Trump spent the '80s and '90s in rap clubs - he's not your boy - he's OURS."
You could make the argument that Trump is one of our least racists presidents. He was loved by Sharpton and Jackson back in the day before he became an evil Republican.
I've read a lot about the man, and it seems that he is very appreciative of the 'little people' that work for him. Too many stories about him knowing the names of janitors and welders for it to be bullshit. Sure he's a rich guy and acts like a rich guy, but I don't think he's a Bush, blue-blood country club asshole.
"Republicans assume black people are stupid enough to vote for a clown like Kanye West. That’s racist."
You are correct. If you vote for Kanye, you ain't black.
C'mon man!
The BIG question is who is going to replace Biden on the ticket!
What is interesting about the Republican support for West is their assumption, and a correct one I believe, is that majority of black voters will not vote for Trump, and any effort to switch black voters away from Biden is worth the money.
It's not that Black people won't vote for Trump (He gets the same percentage of the Black vote as other Republicans), it's that Black people haven't voted for Republicans since 1936. I predict that Trump will actually get more of the Black vote this election than is usual for a Republican.
“Haha I knew it, Kanye didn't know about all those state filing deadlines and stuff.
He needs help. He needs a Paul Manafort.”
————————————-
True, West needs help, from some mental health practitioners. Republicans are using a mentally ill black man. That’s pretty low. As for Paul Manafort, he’s got several Paul Manaforts, at least he does in Wisconsin. In other states he has similar support by Republican Party operatives. Black people won’t fall this this, they voted in droves for Joe Biden. It’s laughable to think that enough black people will be swayed from their vote for Joe Biden by this ridiculous ploy. Republicans must consider black people pretty dumb.
“The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel also reported that at least five other people connected to Mr. West’s Wisconsin bid are active in the Republican Party or are Trump supporters.
Several other people active in the party are connected to Mr. West’s candidacy. One operative, Mark Jacoby, is an executive at a company called Let the Voters Decide, which has been collecting signatures for the West campaign in Ohio, West Virginia and Arkansas. Mr. Jacoby was arrested on voter fraud charges in 2008 while he was doing work for the California Republican Party, and he later pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor.“
NYT
Dr. Althouse: Is CNN saying that unless black people vote for the Democrats, they're idiots?
Serious question: is this a serious question?
"What is interesting about the Republican support for West is their assumption, and a correct one I believe, is that majority of black voters will not vote for Trump, and any effort to switch black voters away from Biden is worth the money."
Well, that would be interesting if not for the last 60 years...
Of course, West is doing this to help Trump and, of course, West doesn't expect to win the Presidency. I do think he's interested in the ways you can bootstrap political power and this is his in, his beginning.
Is helping someone get on the ballot a "dirty trick"?
You bet it is. Just like highlighting an opponent's negatives is now considered (at least when a Republican does it) voter "suppression," which seems to be the new formulation among journalists.
"Republicans assume black people are stupid enough to vote for a clown like Kanye West. That’s racist."
But voting for corrupt, demented, old White man Biden? Power to the People, Right On!
I think Black people see the game clearly enough, regardless of whatever self-interest informs their vote. And that's what terrifies Democrats.
nga said...
Republicans assume black people are stupid enough to vote for a clown like Kanye West. That’s racist.
Hilarious. The white lady in the all - white suburb knows what's racist. Meanwhile, she had her lefty friends assume blacks will vote for the party of the KKK, like they have since 1936.
Ross Perot swung a presidential election because he hated the Bushes. If he could do that with his straight-talking twang, why couldn't African Americans?
I've never understood why Black voters, who have more interests in common than Perot voters ever did, don't play our two (awful, awful) political parties against each other to get what they believe will be good for African American people -- charter schools/vouchers, incentives for the relocation of companies with many jobs to majority-black cities, better access for Black young people to internships in the skilled trades or longshoremen jobs that pay in the six figures and typically are passed down among friends and families.
Seriously. Good-faith promises could generate enthusiasm and swing elections.
What is interesting about the Republican support for West is their assumption, and a correct one I believe, is that majority of black voters will not vote for Trump, and any effort to switch black voters away from Biden is worth the money.
They better free Hidin’ Biden from his basement banishment. Only he can eloquently highlight the cynicism involved.
Trump earns 12-15% of the black vote.
Trump earns 40% of the latino vote.
Trump earns 90% of the vote from the subcontinent-Indian vote.
Kanye earns another 10-20% of the black vote.
Each of those votes is half a vote for Trump if you are glass full person.
Or half a vote lost by Biden if you are a glass half empty person.
The path to victory for Biden is difficult to see.
Cheating is the best Democratic hope.
https://mobile.twitter.com/stillgray/status/1291381986469150721?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1291381986469150721%7Ctwgr%5E&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Face.mu.nu%2F
Biden doesn't think blacks should (do?) have diversity of thought.
Imagine what Kanye will do with that messaging.
Why did Perot hate the GW Bush so much?
>Ross Perot swung a presidential election because he hated the Bushes.
Blogger Michael K said...
R/V is not far from the truth although I doubt he understands it.
Republican support for West is their assumption, and a correct one I believe, is that majority of black voters will not vote for Trump, and any effort to switch black voters away from Biden is worth the money.
Yes and a 20% black vote for Trump will sink the Democrats out of sight.
Wait; are you predicting a 20% black vote for Trump? Let’s bet on that. Because I won a very nice bottle of Tanqueray the last time I bet on Trump’s black vote percentage with another Althouse commenter.
Chuck is out here trying to stir shit up, like he always does. Go away, Biden whore.
"charter schools/vouchers, incentives for the relocation of companies" etc
I don't think blacks give two shots about what Conservatism, Inc or the RNC thinks they'd want.
inducing an inferiority complex in their victims and swooping in to rescue them seems to be the liberal way for dealing with the voters they want to attract.
who former President Barack Obama once called "a jackass"
But I am certain Barry said it in a "wholesome" fashion, that likely brought a tear to our host's eye.
Why did Perot hate the GW Bush so much?
Because he recognized them for what they really were?
"never understood why Black voters, who have more interests in common than Perot voters ever did, don't play our two (awful, awful) political parties against each other to get what they believe will be good for African American people"
I think there's a very bad hangover from the 1930s, when northern black voters went for money being distributed by the Dems, while southern blacks were still being denied basic rights by the Dems. It's hard to square that kind of betrayal without creating some myth that you were voting against secretly evil Republicans.
"Who are you calling idiots?! Is CNN saying that unless black people vote for the Democrats, they're idiots?" My Magic 8-Ball says "YES".
"don't play our two (awful, awful) political parties against"
There are more than 2, however the laws that support the duopoly, and attendant propaganda lead the masses to this misbelief.
I have been a registered libertarian in CA since moving here from the DC area at the age of 18.
I hope after Trump wins, he decentralizes Federal administration to widely Distributed Locallity.
The BIGGEST impact Kanye West can make on politics is to run AND to take a lot of Black votes away from Sleepy Joe (Dementia Joe?).
Blacks who want to live "better lives", more like normal, average, American lives, would have better governments if more Black cities had policies that supported wealth creation.
Whatever two or three key polices West thinks would help Blacks the most - the Dems would be pushing them much, much stronger if they lose some 10-20% of the Black vote.
"“The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel also reported that at least five other people connected to Mr. West’s Wisconsin bid are active in the Republican Party or are Trump supporters."
West himself said that if Trump were not running, he would run as a Republican, so I fail to see the issue here.
If a white person ca NEVER EVER not be a racist, then why oh why can a black man putatively colluding with a Repub not really be a pawn, brainless .....
"helter skelter" = dogwhistle,
...or openly stated?
When the ballots are counted, the poll-workers are going to mark the written-in 'Ye' as a vote for Mr West, right?
Is CNN saying that unless black people vote for the Democrats, they're idiots?
Don't be ridiculous.
They're saying that anybody, black or white, who doesn't vote D is an idiot.
Curious, would those who like to tell people what to do rather that Kanye West simply endorsed and campaigned for President Trump? Would you like that? It would solve PDT's entertainment problems.
Forbes has interesting article based on an interview with KW in which he basically concedes he is doing this to hurt Biden's chances.
Nader was never the same after 2000, and he wasn't working with the Bush campaign. We'll see what happens with KW after November.
Wait; are you predicting a 20% black vote for Trump?
I would have before the recent rioting. Which is precisely why it happened.
I know I'm a day late but have any of you considered that there are those who will vote for Kanye because they care about abortion more than anything else?
He's the first prolife party candidate. And that appeal transcends race.
In a Harvard survey, conducted in April, 2020, Trump trailed Joe Biden with “multicultural” voters 36% to 51%. By comparison, Trump won just 21% of same voters in 2016, according to exit polls. If true, that's a sizable jump, and essentially blocks Joe Biden from the Oval Office. Democrats don't have enough 'White Voters' to offset this increase vs. 2016.
The Democratic path to the presidency looks hard without overwhelming Hispanic support, control of the Senate looks almost impossible. Furthermore, three recent polls (Emerson, Rasmussen and Marist) showed Donald Trump at 30 percent or higher with black voters. If this holds through November, it spells the death knell for Biden's chances, and a real problem for Democrats in the House and Senate.
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