Posted on 01/15/2010 6:31:14 PM PST by Diana in Wisconsin
I hope his prehistoric perspective and unfortunate choice of words regarding Mr. Obama's complexion and diction does not cost the majority leader his seat in the Senate. Despite a substantial war chest and significant pork power, the four-term lawmaker may not have another six-year tenure in his future. Nevadans are not wild about Harry in his current re-election campaign, and races are lost on far less than front-page indiscretions. The senator from Searchlight must wish he hadn't been so frank with reporters Mark Halperin and John Heilemann during the presidential election campaign.
Though he must certainly not think so, his gaffe did serve a higher social purpose. In the era of post-Obama racism, Mr. Reid's comments about "Negro dialect" gave a great many people in the country opportunity to again attempt a respectful and honest conversation about racial identity with members of races with whom they do not strictly identify.
In our sisterhood of uppity women, we've been chattering amongst ourselves for some time now about the difficulty good-hearted people have starting principled discussions about racial biases, stereotypes and misconceptions across ethnic lines. Lately, thanks to Reid's realpolitik summation of the then-candidate's minority cred, it's nice to see that a lot of other people are joining the discussion.
I'm not saying he deserves a medal (as Lynne Adrine noted, "Harry Reid did speak the truth, but inelegantly and incompletely."). Nevertheless he got people talking. With health care as its capstone, Senator Reid will surely have a respectable legislative legacy to validate whatever consultancies, lobbying contracts or board seats await him in retirement.
For my part, I appreciate at the sunset of his political career the flourish with which the majority leader once more demonstrated both the salutary effect of sunlight and the ever present reverberation of unintended consequences.
Riiiiight. Just imagine her take if Dubya had said it.
The woman has twisted herself into a pretzel on this one.
Yea, he deserves a memorial plaque somewhere. Above a urinal in a public toilet would be my suggestion.
I think he deserves a plague for his public service.
I was thinking an orange jump suit and those sparkly silver bracelets they let you wear! :)
A plaque???
He’s expecting, at the very least, the Ambassadorship to English, or maybe Secretary of the Interior, or some such.
He’s taking a bullet for Obammer, and he’s expecting to be amply rewarded.
What? You didn’t think he was doing this on principle, did you???
Me too. Nancy Pelosi does to minus the botox treatments.
The urinal drain would be better.
LOL! I was trying to be nice. ;-)
“I hope his prehistoric perspective and unfortunate choice of words regarding Mr. Obama’s complexion and diction does not cost the majority leader his seat in the Senate.”
We could do worse... we might get a replacement Dem Majority Leader that is only half an idiot!
I wasn't. I'm glad you got a laugh out of it anyway.
As someone who has spent over 28 (ret.) years on a large metropolitan police department and have some retrospective and thoughtful expertise … I think I have a perspective on Lawyers above and beyond the average citizen. And for the most part I think most are bottom feeders.
You will get no argument from me.
I was thinking of the Bubonic Plague.
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