Joe Biden accused by Rick Santorum of playing 'race card' after 'chains' remark

[alp227]

Source: The Guardian

A prominent Republican has accused vice president Joe Biden of "playing the race card" over remarks suggesting Mitt Romney's plans to loosen bank regulation would put people "back in chains".

Rick Santorum, a conservative who ran against Romney in the primaries but has since fallen behind his party's nomination, led the renewed attack on Sunday by describing the comments as further evidence of dirty tactics by the Obama campaign aimed at pitting Americans against each other.

On Tuesday, Biden told an audience in Virginia, which included African Americans, that less bank deregulation would harm ordinary people. "They're going to put y'all back in chains," he said.

Santorum said that Biden's use of "y'all" was an inappropriate attempt "to develop an affinity with the group that you are speaking in front of" – taken to mean African Americans, most of whom are descendants of slaves.

(...)

Rudolf Giuliani, the former New York City mayor, said Biden's comments, on top of a series of other gaffes over recent years, suggested he is not up to the vice presidency and therefore, implicitly, the presidency as the man who would take over the White House if Obama could not serve.

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/aug/19/biden-accused-santorum-race-chains

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Santorum, who said "I don’t want to make black people’s lives better by giving them other people’s money," calling Biden racist? Sure.

[MADem]

1. Let's just pretend it wasn't the GOP that used the "shackle" word in terms of the economy in the

first place, mind!

Santorum...what, is he hoping he might make it on the ticket if Ryan implodes?

[YOHABLO]

2. Lets ask the African Americans what they think.

Do you think African Americans took offense with that comment? I honestly didn't take it the way the Right is portraying it; that is, making reference to slavery. We're all in chains with credit card debt and house foreclosures, high interest rates, and all the other fees they tack on to banking "services". Words can mean a lot of different things to lots of different people. This isn't even red meat for Republicans to chew on .. I think we get it.

[whathehell]

8. Agreed...The faux outrage is worse than stupid. n/t

[JohnnyRingo]

3. What took him so long?

Did he have to think about it for a few days, or hasn't he been checking his party email box for instructions?
Hahahaha... I wonder if he wants to comment on Romney's trip to Israel or what he thinks about Paul Ryan as veep.

[ashling]

4. Santorum: "Now if he had said that they would

put blah people in chains . . . "

[whathehell]

9. My thought precisely. The shameless hypocrisy of these people can't be underestimated.

[cyclezealot]

5. What the banksters did to the American people in 2008

equates to economic slavery.. Little different from slavery, slavery. Both chain you to the company store.

[SemperEadem]

6. kinda late to the party, aren't you skippy?

Biden's comments weren't racist. They were on the mark and in context to what he was discussing. And skippy sure isn't in any position to lecture anyone on how to esteem African Americans after his idiotic remarks about them.

[madrchsod]

7. "none of us are free...none of us are free...

it`s not about race it`s about freedom for everyone

[bullwinkle428]

10. Yes, Frothy...we all know how much the "blahs" love you!

[Jennicut]

11. So Santorum comes out of hiding for this?

Repubs really have nothing to run against Obama on if this is all they keep harping on. Pathetic.

[goclark]

12. I'm African American and Biden's comments

were OK with me .... I am pretty sensitive.

There were AA's in the audience - right?
Did they boo? If they did I didn't hear them.
If they didn't express their outrage .... and I didn't see them speak on television, then maybe they feel like I do.

If I had been there I would be shaking my head "YES" because that is exatly what I believe they want to do to us - take us back to SLAVERY.
In fact, they want to take the Democratis of ALL RACES and make us ALL SLAVES.

[Retrograde]

13. I really don't think the GOP wants to abolish the 13th Amendment

After all, one was expected to maintain slaves in their old age and sickness, well after their profitable lives. But if they could figure out how to bring back indentured servitude....