After Obama whined to David Remnick of The New Yorker that part of the reason for his bad poll numbers was because racist racists hate him because racism, some on the left are called foul, and protested that Obama had never… ever… in his whole entire life… ever … leveraged the melanin content of his epidermal layer for political gain (i.e. played the race card). And, gee, it seems like they are right, Obama never has played the race card.
- Except in 2008 when he said that Republicans would use his race to stir up fear in white voters. (“They’re going to try to make you afraid of me. He’s young and inexperienced and he’s got a funny name. And did I mention he’s black?”)
- Except in 2009, when… after admitting he had no knowledge of the case other than that the cop was white and the suspect was black.. concluded that the Police had “acted stupidly” in arresting Professor Henry Louis Gates and went on to add, “race remains a factor in this society.”
- And except in 2010 when he told guests at a dinner party that the Tea Party only opposed his policies because of racism.
- And except in 2013 when Obama inserted himself into another local crime story by asserting, “Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago,” and “There are probably very few African-American men who have not had the experience of walking across the street and hearing the locks click on the doors of cars. That happens to me – at least before I was a senator,” and “If I had a son, he’d look like Trayvon.”
- And except when M’Chel Obama said, “as a black man . . . Barack can get shot going to the gas station.”
- And except in Dreams From My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance, when “he” quoted Rev. Jeremiah Wright, “White folks’ greed runs a world in need.”
- And also except in Dreams From My Father: “That’s just how white folks will do you. It wasn’t merely the cruelty involved; I was learning that black people could be mean and then some. It was a particular brand of arrogance, an obtuseness in otherwise sane people that brought forth our bitter laughter. It was as if whites didn’t know that they were being cruel in the first place. Or at least thought you deserving of their scorn.”
- Also… “Junkie. Pothead. That’s where I’d been headed: the final, fatal role of the young would-be black man.”
- And when he told Essence magazine, “I don’t believe it is possible to transcend race in this country. Race is a factor in this society. The legacy of Jim Crow and slavery has not gone away. It is not an accident that African-Americans experience high crime rates, are poor, and have less wealth. It is a direct result of our racial history.”
- And when he attacked the “racism” of the grandmother (“a typical white woman”) who raised him.
So, you see, by a fair reading of the evidence, Obama doesn’t really exploit the theme of race any more than the producers of Glee exploit the theme of gay.