Posted on 08/05/2014 3:32:38 PM PDT by maggief
Republicans say a GOP lawmaker’s comments that Democrats are waging a “war on whites” is just what the party doesn’t need to deal with ahead of the midterm elections.
With a Senate majority in sight, party strategists say their office holders need to avoid a distracting battle on the polarizing issue of race, which could gin up Democratic voters and turn off independents.
“There's no part of what he said that was helpful,” one GOP strategist groused of Rep. Mo Brooks's (R-Ala.) comments. Brooks made the “war on whites” comments during an interview on conservative radio host Laura Ingraham's show, which focused on immigration and the border crisis.
A day later, he doubled down on his accusation in an interviews with USA Today and Newsmax.
“It is repugnant for Democrats time after time after time to resort to cries of racism to divide Americans and drive up voter turn out,” Brooks told USA Today.
“That is exactly what they are doing in order to drive up their vote, and they are doing it when there is no racial discrimination involved.”
In a separate interview with Newsmax, Brooks asked, “What is the one race that can be discriminated against? … All whites.”
He said that under federal law, minority groups have protected status, while whites “are treated differently.”
GOP strategists said the comments aren’t helpful in the fight to win the Senate. Republicans need to gain six seats to take over the majority, a high bar, but one that appears in reach.
GOP strategist Bettina Inclán said Republican leaders should push back more aggressively against comments from individual lawmakers that don't necessarily represent the whole party.
“I think it's important for us to say, ‘Look, that is not representative of who we are as a party or as a country,’ ” Inclán said.
More broadly, strategists say the comments could hurt a party that wants to win back the White House in 2016.
The electorate for the midterms is expected to include a higher proportion of white voters than in a presidential year, which could help Republican candidates. That will be reversed in 2016.
GOP strategist Ford O'Connell said Democrats are likely to use comments like Brooks’s to paint Republicans as intolerant of minorities.
“It may not catch up with Republicans in 2014, but I can bet you that Democrats will use it against them in 2016,” O'Connell said. “It's what I would do.”
Inclán argued that it is Democrats who, at times, have injected race into the midterm elections on issues like immigration.
“I'm not defending what [Brooks] said, but I think what he was trying to say that is that Democrats do use race as a way to scare voters for vote for them,” Inclán said. “Democrats aren't bending over backwards to get something done because it's easier to make Republicans the boogeymen.”
Democrats have rejected charges that they are intentionally using the issue of race to gin up their own voters.
Nonetheless, Democrats have warned Republicans that inflammatory rhetoric and votes, such as rolling back the Deferred Action for Child Arrivals (DACA) program, would hurt their appeal to Hispanic voters.
“If you tell people you think they're criminals, you think they're simply bringing diseases; they're bringing drugs; if you treat them as invaders … they're going to think you don't like them,” said Rep. Luis Gutiérrez (D-Ill.).
After the Repubs are running the plantation....according to Hillary!!
We can’t bash Democrats and this administration because it’s “not helpful”, but the RINO’s can bash conservatives all day long and that is fine.
when in doubt, tell the truth. It seems to work for normal people.
How dare anyone mention reality!
Truth be told, I missed my first vote in 32 years. Just don’t give a damn anymore the Pubs are just as bad as the Rats. When the shooting starts, I’ll be ready.
They don’t like the victim card turned around on ‘em eh? I predict whites will become relevant again when WE become the minority and tipping point that wins elections ...: )
That is just it...isn’t it...
Who is running the plantation?
Not whites, but ANY person who works for a living.
Democrats have created a war on Prosperity.
Didn’t Rush Limbaugh cite some NY SLIMES article from 2012 as to how Team Obama was CONSCIOUSLY abandoning white voters????
Why would the GOP even mention this? Big time losing issue.
"GOP CONGRESSMAN ACCUSES DEMOCRATS OF WAGING WAR ON WHITES" (POST #14)
Aren’t there some white democrats.
It never occurs to the RINOS to fight back against the democrats, they prefer to attack the Tea Party conservatives.
That's because shooting a man in the back is the safest way to kill him.
Odo: You'd shoot a man in the back?
Garak: It's the safest way, isn't it? But then I thought, "oh, no, I can't fight all these Klingons by myself." So I let him live.
Odo: And now you regret it.
Garak: Ah, my dear Constable, before this day is over everyone on this station is going to regret it.
Oh my. The GOPe consultant class is all in a tizzy.
Mustn’t do anything to rock the boat or endanger that paycheck now.
It is not a war on “Whites” per se, but a war on “Cultural Whites”....
Asians who work hard are now considered “white” by liberal colleges...
Blacks who are or become Conservatives are considered “Oreos” (white on the inside) by liberal race baiters.
There is even derogatory terms for Hispanics that “act white” that the PC left has made up to try to force them into their balkanized groups...
“White” is a Cultural thing in how the left demonizes it. “White” is essentualy “Americana: the Culture” as seen as “Evil” by the left that itself is evil and what evil sees as evil is more than likely the absolute good.
It is not a Race thing it is more a cultural standard of behavior that the left is attacking.
They have no appeal to Hispanic voters.
Some Americans of Hispanic descent agree with Republican ideals and vote Republican. Most, pragmatically, don't and don't.
The notion that the GOP has an Hispanic future is absurd, and I presume most GOPe consultants and elected officials who say it does are outright lying.
Increase their share of the white vote by 10%, they will never lose another election.
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