Posted on 09/19/2015 5:20:41 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Trump continues to appeal to the lowest and most vile common denominator with zero repercussions.
I’m old enough to remember when, in 2008, a rather nervous and disheveled-looking woman stood up at a John McCain town hall meeting and told the Republican nominee that she didn’t trust then-Senator Obama because he’s “an Arab.” Even though it would’ve been politically expedient for McCain to follow the advice of author and MSNBC analyst Mark Halperin who suggested McCain present Obama’s “unusual name and exotic background through a ‘Manchurian Candidate’ prism,” McCain immediately debunked the woman’s unfounded accusation, saying, “No ma’am. No ma’am. He’s a decent family man citizen who I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues and that’s what this campaign is all about.”
When a similar exchange happened this week involving Donald Trump and one of his rabid supporters, no such decency or rationality was displayed by the Republican frontrunner. Because of course it wasn’t. Instead, Trump continued to act as a principal architect in perpetuating the myth that President Obama was born in Kenya (he wasn’t) and is a Muslim (he isn’t). In fact, it’s easy to forget that back in 2011, Trump dispatched investigators to Honolulu to unsuccessfully track down evidence indicating that Obama wasn’t born in Hawaii and that his birth certificate was a fake.
In keeping with his past, and contra McCain, Trump did nothing to invalidate his supporter’s racist observations about the president or the man’s insistence that we get rid of all Muslims. Were it not for Trump’s personal wealth and success, he’d really be nothing more than another Birther sleazebag like Jerome Corsi or Orly Taitz.
(By the way, while we’re talking about ridiculous conspiracy theories, someone should seriously ask Trump about chemtrails and shapeshifting lizard people from outer space, too. We deserve to know where Trump stands on Bigfoot and Area 51.)
For Trump’s disciples, it simply doesn’t matter that there’s no evidence whatsoever to prove that Obama wasn’t born where he and official documents say he was born. (Jesus, I can’t believe we’re actually talking about this again.) And Trump is nothing if not completely savvy when it comes to knowing his audience.
Strategically speaking, there’s simply no way Trump will ever disavow his supporter’s remarks or his own reaction to them. By now, it ought to be completely evident that he doesn’t apologize for anything. Sure, he might try to candy coat the issue like he did with Carly Fiorina, perhaps by saying, “Obama’s a good man personally. He’s a terrific Dad. But he’s a terrible president and I don’t apologize for anything.”
And he won’t. Not just because it’s not his style, but also because the numbers show that birther views are still quite popular among Republicans. Rewinding a few weeks, the latest PPP poll revealed the following brain-melting facts:
Our new poll finds that Trump is benefiting from a GOP electorate that thinks Barack Obama is a Muslim and was born in another country, and that immigrant children should be deported. 66% of Trump’s supporters believe that Obama is a Muslim to just 12% that grant he’s a Christian. 61% think Obama was not born in the United States to only 21% who accept that he was. And 63% want to amend the Constitution to eliminate birthright citizenship, to only 20% who want to keep things the way they are.
Trump’s beliefs represent the consensus among the GOP electorate. 51% overall want to eliminate birthright citizenship. 54% think President Obama is a Muslim. And only 29% grant that President Obama was born in the United States. That’s less than the 40% who think Canadian born Ted Cruz was born in the United States.
That’s right, 61 percent of Trump supporters think Obama was born in Kenya, while 66 percent believe he’s a Muslim. And these people vote. They’ve been so completely misinformed by this overpaid carnival goon and the other conspiracy theorists that they still believe after all these years that the birth certificate is fake and that Obama’s parents perpetrated a hoax — somehow knowing he’d one day run for president. Worse yet, only 29 percent of Republicans overall think Obama was born inside the United States.
Conversely, and this is a salient point, 40 percent believe Ted Cruz was born here, even though he was born in Canada.
Yet the black guy with an “exotic” name who was absolutely born in the United States really wasn’t born here and is lying, according to the same nincompoops. If you need any further proof of virulent racism on the right, especially among Trump people, there it is.
As long as it’s politically advantageous for Trump to pander to this nonsense, he’ll absolutely keep doing it. It doesn’t matter to him how badly he’s flamed on Twitter or how brutally he’s excoriated on MSNBC. As long as the vast majority of Republicans wrongly question Obama’s origins, he’ll stand by all of it. His entire campaign is built upon telling Republicans exactly what they want to hear regardless of how horrendous it sounds to everyone else. And as of right now, it’s working.
Cesca grew up in Washington, D.C. and Northern Virginia. He graduated from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor's degree in Political Science. In his personal life, Cesca is an avid bicycling fan. He estimates that he rides between 50 and 100 miles a week.[2]
Cesca has written weekly columns in The Huffington Post since August 2005.[2] He has also contributed to AOL's WalletPop blog[3] (Now DailyFinance.com[4]) and Manhattan Magazine.[5]
He began his career in media working as an intern for the Don and Mike Show in Washington, D.C. Later, he founded Camp Chaos, an alternative media production studio based near Philadelphia for which he animated and performed voices for the cartoon Napster Bad. He currently runs a new media production company called Snark Rocket.[6]
Cesca directed music videos for Iron Maiden, Yes, Everclear, Motley Crue and Meat Loaf. He also designed the album and sleeve for the Yes album "Magnification" and the DVD release "Symphonic Live".[7]
In 2003 Cesca conceived and produced ILL-ustrated, a VH1 animated comedy series which premiered in October of that year.[8] In 2006, Cesca edited and directed the animated series Kung Fu Jimmy Chow for Heavy.com.
About Cesca, Cenk Uygur of The Young Turks has said that "Bob's writing is totally fearless. That's what I love about it." [9] In 2013, after whistle-blower Edward Snowden revealed NSA overreach, Cenk said, "Bob is good guy, smart guy, I like him, but ... there isn't anything Obama does that [Bob] wouldn't jump to the immediate, enormous and 110% defense of."[10]
Cesca is currently host of the Bob & Chez Show, a weekly podcast, where he discusses news with collaborator Chez Pazienza.[11] Elvis Dingledein was the previous co-host of the show.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Cesca
That’s it Vet. You’re paying for my ulcer medication this month :)
I pass all of these things on to people in my family who turn to fox or cnn for info, and they are always shocked that such insanity exists.
“I’m old enough to remember when, in 2008...”
Seven whole years ago! My gawd, the wisdom that comes with age. If he’s talking to people not old enough to remember 2008, I’d suggest he use much smaller words.
It’s not racist saying that one doesn’t want a multitude of Muslims who adhere to the evil Islam, who’s thinking is still stuck somewhere in the 7th Century and eventually when they’re a majority will offer us all the choice of converting to Islam or they’ll murder us.
Heck it’s NOT as if the world are being offered an invasion by the Quakers....we’re having a group of people who belong to a psychopathic “religion” almost forced on us.
Yeah, sure John. It's too bad Zero wasn't a Conservative, you'd have not been spending the campaign season kissing his ass with gems like that and this: "“But I have to tell you, I have to tell you, he is a decent person, and a person that you do not have to be scared as President of the United States.”
“Trump continues to appeal to the lowest and most vile common denominator with zero repercussions.”
Somehow the author managed to badly misspell “Obama” in that sentence. Maybe an auto-correct issue?
Gee. I didn’t know illegal alien was a race.
Here’s the thing.... I’m not going to vote for a muslim. After Obammy I’ll NEVER vote for an african american. I’m not going to vote for a woman. Call it what you want... doesn’t matter. It is what it is. And it’s okay when blacks will only vote and turn out for other blacks... its okay when women vote for a woman just because she’s a woman....so its okay for me.
Even the Muslim Socialist Cenk Uygar thinks he’s an over the top Obama buttboy?
You really gotta be off the charts for that to happen.
Indeed.
The liberals want to run on anything but the issues.
“Trump’s xenophobic genius: GOP frontrunner will never give up racist pandering — it’s working”
It’s worked for Obama for seven years ...
“I’m old enough to remember when, in 2008”
So the author is how old? 13? 14?
Liberal black-no
Conservative black-yes
I wish I owned a copyright to that word “racist”. Every time a liberal uses it they have to pay me a penny. I think in about a weeks time I would become the worlds first trillionaire. They’re like freakin’ broken records, no matter what the subject, no matter what the comments here they go again “Racist racist racist racist!”
Muslim is not a race.
Either is illegal alien.
Stupid premise, stupid result.
There is nothing wrong with Americans standing up for the rule of law and their country.
Well they say the first memories people can remember is back when they were about 2 or 3 years old, so I would say the author is around 9 or 10.
yup- as per the left demanding that all are held accountable to the laws of this land is now considered xenophobic...
2016 = Go white, go right, or go home.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.