Posted by
Over the Kohls on Sunday, February 17, 2008 11:25:54 PM
I can understand how Black Americans would feel the urge to vote for Barak Obama. We are really starting to see this trend as the primaries roll out. From the last few primaries, we've seen 80% of black men and 72% of black women vote for Obama. In the Virginia Primary, 93% of black men voted for Obama while 85% of black women voted for him. On the other hand, we've seen white voters express a more enlightened view voting for Obama as though the racial component does not exist. In Missouri, 39% of white men and 38% of white women voted for Obama and in Virginia, 56% of white men and 45% of white women, voted for Obama.
If Obama is to win the Democratic nomination, this trend will have to hold. But my guess is that as the closeness of the Democratic race requires that the primaries continue and have meaning, the clearly racial component of the black vote will begin to offend white voters in this country and have a backlash effect. As we proceed through primary season, it really doesn't matter, to most white Republicans at least, who the Dems vote for. But if Obama beats Hillary with blacks clearly voting along racial lines, I think that many moderate, white Democrats and Independents will be offended with the expectation that blacks will vote for the black candidate but if whites were to do the same, that would be somehow frowned upon, that whites should in this case look the other way while blacks vote along racial lines.
I just don't think that is going to work for the blacks or the Dems. We have already seen what Slick Willie tried to do in South Carolina. He clearly made reference to the fact that blacks were voting in large numbers for Obama in S.C just like they did for Jesse Jackson years ago and indication that blacks were making racial distinctions in this election. Of course, Slick was reprimanded by many in his own party and by main stream media as well for such a rash statement. All Slick did was predict the future. Up to that time, blacks had not been a factor, as the early primaries were in Iowa and New Hampshire, states with very few black voters. As we now get into the states with higher concentrations of blacks, we see that they indeed are using the race card and I think that in the general election many white voters will see this for what it is and react in a way just the opposite of what Dems and blacks are hoping for in November.