Court Choice Pushes ‘Identity Politics’ to Forefront
By PETER BAKERWASHINGTON — In the heat of his primary battle last year, Barack Obama bemoaned “identity politics” in America, calling it “an enormous distraction” from the real issues of the day. Many thought his inauguration as the first African-American president this year was supposed to usher in a new post-racial age.
But four months later, identity politics is back with a vengeance.
Um, November wasn't that long ago...maybe it's me, but I have seen no break in the identity politics.
...A president who these days refers to his background obliquely when he does at all chose a Supreme Court candidate who openly embraces hers. Critics took issue with her past statements and called her a “reverse racist.” And the capital once again has polarized along familiar lines.
Like I said, I saw no break in the identity politics.
The selection of Judge Sonia Sotomayor brought these issues to the fore again for several reasons. Mr. Obama’s selection process was geared from the beginning toward finding a female or minority candidate, or both. Only one of the nine vetted candidates was an Anglo male, and all four finalists he interviewed were women. One of Judge Sotomayor’s most prominent cases involved an affirmative-action claim. And her comment on her Latina background shaping her jurisprudence provided fodder for opponents.
Mind you, Alito made the same statement...and it's funny because he did it to escape the consequences of joining an openly racist organization at Princeton.
“He didn’t pick a post-racial candidate,” said Abigail Thernstrom, a leading conservative scholar on race relations and the author of a book called “Voting Rights — And Wrongs: The Elusive Quest for Racially Fair Elections.” “She’s a quintessential spokesman for racial spoils.”
...says the heifer that sat on the Civil Rights Commision...
Look...losing a bit of white privilege doesn't mean we're post racial. All you have to do is watch conservative commentary to see that.
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Bigotry By Another Name
No, she isn't but this is America and in America everybody is supposed to get a chance to feed at the public trough. The Thernstroms of the world no longer control the keys, the gate or the validation stamp for tickets to the merry-go-round. They need to get over themselves.
I was wondering if you could hold out :-)
The NY Times alone seemed to have about 50-11 new items on this fictitious flap. Maybe it's not that many, but there are a couple of good summary articles that link to so many others as everyone vies to get their 2 cents in. There'd be a lot less if we just ignored the bozos who start with the premise that judges are NOT drawing on their own backgrounds and cultures. Don't even engage, just run Rachel Maddow's summary clip listing the sitting justices' (plus Sandra Day O'Connor's plus Bush I's) own statements that proudly proclaim everything Sotomayor has been picked on for saying. Cognitively dissonant phrases like reverse racism? Just run the video. Somebody doesn't want a Latina to be a Latina? Just run the video.
BTW, speaking of the cognitively dissonant: racial spoils, either as its own term or as modifier for system, seems to be this week's attempt to denounce civil rights without coming out and saying so directly. Thernstrom and Krauthammer are the main sources of this usage on Google news but they're being reprinted enough that it might spread.
Actually, if it wasn't for
Actually, if it wasn't for the Alito bit, I wouldn't have mentioned Sotomayor.
I, too, was wondering how long you could stay away
mainly because I miss your dead-on, but smart up the ass retorts.