I think it is more than skin color. IMO the victims must be dependent upon the government. Most people help themselves and there is no political hay to be made from that.
Louisiana was and is a "toss-up" state and so was the nexus of the blame game. I bet Missouri, which has also been toss-up lately, gets a lot of attention. Unless my theory is wrong (which it might be). Are there any tight US Senate races coming up in any of these states?