"'Macaca' Has Made It A Whole New Race In Virginia" (WaPo via Americablog)

[Hissyspit]

http://americablog.blogspot.com/

Macaca has made it a whole new race in Virginia
by Joe in DC - 8/18/2006 11:33:00 PM

The dynamics have changed dramatically in Virginia according to the Washington Post:

But Allen's remarks to S.R. Sidarth, 20 -- which included saying "welcome to America" -- are generating new support for the Webb campaign and energizing Democratic activists....

Political analysts also said they sense a more competitive race.

"If the race wasn't on Democrats' radar screen before, it is now," said Charlie Cook, editor of the Cook Political Report.

A week of national headlines -- none good for Allen -- has the potential to change the Virginia campaign from a Democratic long shot to one that could help decide which party controls the U.S. Senate next year, political analysts said. But only if Webb, who has struggled in his first run for office, can translate the temporary boost into lasting momentum.

Independent polling confirms that the race has tightened. The latest Rasmussen Poll has Allen leading 47% - 42% -- not a good place for an incumbent.

[w13rd0]

1. Republicans and Virginians...

...should be eager to distance themselves from Allen. Do they really need to give the rest of the nation an excuse to continue to stereotype them as small-minded, undereducated bigots?

[mitchtv]

17. Ha , their anti gay laws have already done that

Proving "Virginia is for Haters" Allen will win in that backwater state

[benny05]

2. Gosh I hope so n/t

[bluestateguy]

3. I'm sorry, I just don't think anything will happen to Allen

Maybe this will shave off a few points from his victory margin, but I don't see it putting Webb over the top. In the privacy of the voting booth people are free to be racist without fear of consequences.

[Hissyspit]

4. Can be hard to unseat incumbent senators.

Regardless of whether they are a shame to the office.

[progdonkey]

5. unfortunately, you're probably right...

A lot of people may publicly express shock at this, but since it's a "foreign" racial epithet (ie. you have to be told it's a racial epithet, not just a stupid word made-up on the spot), it's not something that will really make a difference for many Republicans in the voting booth (being a Virginian, I know this; we have very strong liberals and progressives in this state, but we're surrounded by idiots).

"He may have called that immigrant a monkey, but at least he's not a baby-killer!" or some similar BS.

That being said, the real impact of this is that it effectively destroys any chance of his being a viable presidential candidate. It's not just that he's going around using an obscure racial epithet that identifies him squarely with the Stormfront crowd, but that his campaign has handled it so poorly, and that's what's unforgiveable in the eyes of the GOP power brokers. Had he responded to this scandal with a quick mea culpa and left it at that, the powers in the GOP would be more forgiving, but every few days his campaign has just been breathing new life into the scandal by coming up with yet another, more tortured excuse for it.

The GOP certainly has absolutely no problem harboring unabashed racists, but what it can't stand are candidates who manage scandals so incompetently.

[depakid]

7. And much of Virginia is every bit as racist

as other parts of the South.

[sandnsea]

8. Webb worked under Reagan

He's pretty conservative himself. There's lots of Republicans who are pro-choice, pro-gay rights, pro-stem cell, pro-environment etc. And a lot of them are against the war or at least unhappy with how it's being conducted. Webb can pick up those voters who are really going to be unhappy with this episode of Allen's. I think it's possible for Webb to win now, he's got to grab this spotlight and make it pay though.

[Stinky The Clown]

9. I think many people, in the heat of spouting rhetoric, forget that ......

Jim Webb, in another time, would be a Republican. In fact, until just a little while ago, he was. Everyone here knows that. But what must be kept in mind is that he's more like the average Virginian than is G. Felix Allen, Junior. He's quite conservative. So much so that, if he wins, he could easily become a man derided by his own party for some vote he will no doubt cast or some position he will no doubt take.

He has the bona fides to trounce Allen with the not inconsiderable military vote in Virginia. He's a native son. He speaks 'Virginian'. He knows the people. I think he strikes the right balance for many Virginia Republicans, while holding sufficiently caring positions to appeal to almost all Dems.

He will never be the darling of the left. He could well be the darling of Virginia .... if only he can mount a crdible groud offense against the offensive Allen.

[sandnsea]

10. I agree

I wasn't thrilled about Webb in the primary, he would certainly come under fire by the left pretty quickly as a Senator. I think if there were no political parties, Webb would win in a landslide. He is just sooo Virginia. I've been surprised he hasn't been able to get more traction. As much as people like to lamblast Kerry, it was 48-45 in July 2004 and he did end up with 46% in the end. That's more than Webb has been able to muster until this latest gaffe. In any event, I think the votes are there if people can just be convinced Democrats aren't going to have orgies in the street or invite Bin Laden to a state dinner.

[spooky3]

12. He needs financial support. Allen has 10X the budget.

[IndianaGreen]

14. Webb is no more conservative than Bob Casey Jr.

But just as Casey is running against the despicable Santorum, Webb is running against an equally despicable and racist George Allen Jr.

There is no doubt as to who should we vote for in those two races!

[Stinky The Clown]

15. I hope I didn't imply I'm opposed to Webb. I'm strongly FOR him.

I was thrilled when he beat Harris for the nom. I liked him when his name was largely unknown.

Do I agree with all his positions? Probably not. But he's **exactly* of the right tenor and temperment to win in the South. On the essential points this go-round, he's fine. Pro-choice and anti-war. Under those two main headings, his other stances are kinda of the same ilk.

As Senator from Virginia, I'd be very happy to have him. As, let's say, a presidential candidate ...... way to early to know and, at this point at least, probably not.

[IndianaGreen]

16. I don't disagree with you, Allen is a total racist jerk

and someone like Webb can be elected as a Dem from a red state, just as Evan Bayh can in Indiana, although Webb has far more gravitas than Bayh.

[Telly Savalas]

22. I welcome the prospect of deriding him for his votes in the Senate.

[Cosmocat]

23. Good post ...

I agree ...

SAME that the system is so rigged/geared toward helping to keep incumbants, even lunkheads like Allen, in office ... I think if people REALLY gave Webb a look, they would see what you are pointing out ...

[flpoljunkie]

6. Link to Jim Webb for United States Senate...

http://www.webbforsenate.com/home.php

[greenman3610]

11. Prewar, Webb had it nailed

"Do we really want to occupy Iraq for the next 30 years?
...In Japan, American occupation forces quickly became 50,000 friends. In Iraq, they would quickly become 50,000 terrorist targets.... Nations such as China can only view the prospect of an American military consumed for the next generation by the turmoil of the Middle East as a glorious windfall.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&node=&contentId=A34847-2002Sep3¬Found=true

[timontheleft]

13. What really stinks . . .

is that even if he comes out with a full-fledged acceptable apology (if that's possible at this point) he has still managed to convey what he really thinks to his racist base.

[Cha]

18. Thank you..Karma of felix the

arrogant Senator from Virginia who beat Chuck Robb in 2000. Wonder what allen's campaign smear of Robb's was?

The thing is ..ya don't have to smear republicons..just get the truth out about 'em. Yeah, thanks corporate media :sarcasm:

[SaveElmer]

19. If Macaca is a racial slur...

Should we really be repeating it so freely...which I think it is

How bad of a word is it compared to others?

[Hissyspit]

21. It comes from the French word for monkey. It is incredibly racist.

This is a forum based on free speech. We need to make use of the word in order to discuss it. I put it in quotes.

"Macaca is a French racial slur, derived from the word 'macaque' (monkey) and is used against dark-skinned people of North Africa. 'Well, surely it's just a coincidence,' you're thinking. 'There's no way the good Republican Senator from the great state of Virginia would know a French racial slur from Northh Africa, he was just making up a goofy name.' George Allen's French-speaking French mother hails from North Africa." -- Mobtown Shank

[kdpeters]

25. Am I the only person who thinks "Welcome to America" was as bad as "macaca

It seems to me we're so distracted in analyzing a word not often used in this country that we're ignoring the significance of some less obvious race-baiting. These lame explanations for the "macaca" slur should be followed up with a question asking him what he meant when he "welcomed" an American to America, a Virginian to Virginia. While most Americans have no context to know what he meant by "macaca", "welcome to America" quite clearly means just the opposite. Even a racist would more likely assume a person of any color spending his summer working for a local Senate campaign is himself a local. Allen knew the young man was American. He singled out the only non-white face and delivered a perfidious, backhanded, insult telling him he didn't belong and wasn't welcome in Allen's America. He drew the attention of the all-white audience to this brown skinned man and asked them if they want America to look like "them" or "us" and vote accordingly. You can't get around the racial implications. To even claim ignorance, is to associate "American" with white just by assuming someone who looks different comes from someplace else, and thus, have ulterior, anti-American motives for interest and involvement in local politics.

Allen's not that ignorant. He knew exactly what he was doing. It was sick, underhanded, and aggressively hostile -- all delivered with a cheerful smug smile on his face. *shiver* I thought my opinion of Republicans could get no lower, but this just left me in shock. That man is dangerous.

[Cosmocat]

26. Absolutely ...

He knew EXACTLY what he was doing ... He just overplayed it, and it got some legs under it ... But, he was trying to send a "subtle" send up to the "base" that he was still their guy ...

With the grin ... This is why I think the guy is like Bushco ... I don't think he is blowing frogs up by sticking firecrackers in their rear ends bad, but cut from the same cloth ...

[globalvillage]

28. Worse than torturing frogs, Allen tortured family members.

At least according to his sister's book.

Senator George Allen’s racial remark to a 20 year old Indian man last week, has re-highlighted accusations that the Senator is a bully and a bigot. Senator Allen’s sister, Jennifer Allen, documents many cases of her brother’s bullying in her book Fifth Quarter: The Scrimmage of a Football Coach's Daughter. Read the excerpts below.
Explaining why she is scared of heights, Ms. Allen writes that “Ever since my brother George held me over the railing at Niagara Falls, I’ve had a fear of heights.”
Referring to George’s relationship with one of her boyfriends: “My brother George welcomed him by slamming a pool cue against his head.”
Referring to George’s early leadership skills, Jennifer wrote: “We all obeyed George. If we didn't, we knew he would kill us. Once, when Bruce refused to go to bed, George hurled him through a sliding glass door. Another time, when Gregory refused to go to bed, George tackled him and broke his collarbone. Another time, when I refused to go to bed, George dragged me up the stairs by my hair.”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2006/08/16/gop-senator-george-allen_n_27382.html

[gulliver]

20. There's an opening. Webb needs to generalize relativity here.

The macaca incident shows us the real Felix Allen... an embarrassment to Virginia, a spoiled Junior, a racist, a Bush clone.

[LibDemAlways]

24. macaca is a gift to Webb

It opens many cans of worms. I hope Webb can be convinced to go for the jugular. Allen is one of the dirtiest campaigners around and his advisors are scumbags. He also has tons of baggage just waiting to be opened and inspected. Webb has the momentum. He now needs to show Felix he's in for a hell of a fight.

[NJmaverick]

27. Webb will not get support here! DU is too busy attacking

Democrat Joe Lieberman!

[mucifer]

29. There is no "democrat" Joe Lieberman

there is only joe lieberman's joe lieberman.

[acmavm]

31. You still haven't caught on? No matter how many people have tried

to explain it to you?

Are you one of Joe's relatives or something?

[Lasher]

30. Here's an interesting writeup from Rasmussen

Virginia Senate: Allen’s Lead Shrinks After Controversial Remark
Allen (R) 47%, Webb (D) 42%
August 18, 2006

Senator George Allen's alleged slur of an opposition campaign worker of Indian descent, recorded on video, has provoked a furious controversy in the state. In the wake of the controversy, support for Allen has dipped to its lowest level of the year.

The latest Rasmussen Reports election poll in Virginia shows that Allen has lost a few percentage points of support and Democrat James Webb has gained a few. The incumbent now leads 47% to 42%, a six-point decline in his lead over Webb since July.

In April, Senator Allen had enjoyed a 20% lead, which shrunk to ten points after Webb secured the Democratic nomination in June.

Based upon this latest poll, Rasmussen Reports is shifting Virginia from Republican to Leans Republican in our Senate Balance of Power summary.

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/2006/State%20Polls/August%202006/virginiaSenate.htm

Their new Senate Balance of Power summary is pretty good, check it out.

[Cha]

32. Good, now maybe more Virginians

will take a closer look at James Webb who stands well under scutiny.

http://www.webbforsenate.com/biography/