Anderson@Large

GOP Debate: Presence of Absence

The four empty lecterns at last night's presidential debate spoke volumes about blacks and the Republican Party.

I left the party in 2000. I announced my resignation in the weekly column I wrote for PoliticallyBlack.com:

Truth be told, the Republican Party left me some time ago. My switch (to independent) comes in the wake of a pattern of racial blunders that I cannot dismiss as mere "mistakes."

Make no mistake: The front-runners made a strategic decision to skip the debate. In doing so, they put the race card on the table.

Rev. Joseph E. Lowery, convenor of the Coalition for the People's Agenda, often says that black folks turn out to vote when they are "glad, mad or sad." The absence of the likely presidential nominee ensures that in 2008, black voters will be madder than usual with Republicans.

So get ready.

GOP Presidential Forum: Unreality TV

Tonight’s All-American Presidential Forum is four candidates shy of reality TV. None of the candidates on the stage have a real chance of winning the GOP presidential nomination.

Robert Cox, president of the Media Bloggers Association, has assisted PBS in identifying bloggers to cover the forums (disclosure: I'm included in the mix). The even-tempered Robert has unloaded:

The absence of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, Sen. John McCain of Arizona and former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson from what has been, so far, the only nationally televised debate to focus solely on topics of interest of black Americans sends a very clear message that not only is the Republican Party not interested in courting the "black vote" but is not even willing to engage on issues of importance to African-Americans.

This goes beyond any one campaign. It is nothing less than a disgrace for the entire country. Is it any wonder that when Kanye West blurts out "President Bush hates black people" on national television that many black Americans nod their heads in agreement?

OK, Barry Goldwater said candidates should "go hunting where the ducks are." And sure, Richard Nixon was the last Republican presidential candidate to garner more than 12 percent of the black vote.

But Republicans' minority outreach, the illusion of inclusion, was aimed at white swing voters. Their message: We're not your father's Republican Party.

I was puzzled by the front-runners' snub so I turned to my mentor Milton Bins, a longtime GOP analyst and activist, who now lives in Florida off vote-rich I-4.

Milton said with the partisan divide widening, the hunt for independent voters would not yield very many votes in the general election. So Republicans are concentrating their fire on the party's white conservative base.

So while they may look "stupid," Giuliani, Romney, McCain and Thompson are just keeping it real.

A GOP Blast from the Past

Alan Keyes, a not so golden oldie, is back. And he’s running for president – again.

When Keyes ran in 1996, he was arrested for trying to crash a Republican debate in Atlanta.

By contrast, Keyes may be welcomed with open arms to the presidential forum at Morgan State University, moderated by Tavis Smiley. Tavis won't have to squeeze Keyes in since there will be four empty podiums on the stage.

Meanwhile, the Republican frontrunners send their, um, regrets (and here).

GOP Debates

The Republican presidential candidates duked it out in New Hampshire last night. Like Fred Thompson, the newly packaged GOP savior, I skipped the debate.

But I don’t plan to miss the GOP debate later this month. In fact, I’ll be credentialed to live-blog the event which will be held at Morgan State University.

Given Republicans’ estrangement from black voters, it’ll be interesting to see who shows up. Hell, Rudy Giuliani might buck his own history of dissing black folks and make an appearance.

In the meantime, check out the latest video of the less than "perfect candidate" Giuliani debating, well, Giuliani.

Life Imitating Art

As a postscript to my coverage of the Democratic presidential candidates forum at Howard University, I attended a rare screening of “The Man,” a 1972 film starring James Earl Jones as the “first Negro president.”

Sen. Douglass Dilman (Jones), President Pro Tempore of the Senate, is thrust into the presidency after the president and house speaker die in an accident and the vice president suffers a stroke.

The script was written by Rod Serling whose TV series, “The Twilight Zone,” used to scare the bejesus out of me when I was a kid.

The film raises the issue of race, i.e., whether the “White House is white enough” with a black man in the Oval Office, and could a black man ever be elected president. Hmm.

At the same time, First Daughter Wanda, played by Janet MacLachlan bemoans “super aggressive wives with pretensions on the White House.”

The screening is part of the Afro-Punk Festival at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

The festival runs until July 7.  For more info, click here.

Overheard in the Spin Zone

The candidates and their surrogates are spinning the media. Listen in.

Barack Obama supporter Cornel West:

Enlightened self-interest is very important. Historically, black people have always have been concerned about converting self-interest into public policy. Black people infused their voices in the debate.

Harvard Law Prof. Charles Ogletree Jr.:

The forum was very effective in bringing out the core issues. Now it's impossible to have a Democratic or Republican debate without black input. The format was problematic; they have to figure out a way to get the candidates to talk to each other.

Gov. Bill Richardson was asked what he would do to rebuild America's image. Richardson's response:

I would have a Marshall Plan to build better understanding in the Muslim world. We need a structure for peace, reconciliation among groups. I would bring in Iran and Syria. We cannot start reconciliation until we bring our troops out.

Mississippi state Rep. Mary Coleman, immediate past president of the National Black Caucus of State Legislators and Joe Biden supporter:

Senator Biden did a great job answering all the questions that  were asked of him and showed his experience dealing with foreign affairs. His answers on education, HIV-AIDS were right on target.

I came across a heated exchange between Tavis Smiley and Washington Post staff writer Micheal Leahy.  Tavis to Leahy:

If I wanted to I could have asked all the questions. I wanted to showcase journalists of color.

Tavis then stormed off. I asked Leahy what that was all about. Leahy told me he had questioned Tavis about the way he handled the debate. Leahy then gave me an earful:

I asked Tavis why he mentioned his book. Did he feel upset that he spent more time talking about himself and his book than the candidates had to answer questions. He spent more time promoting his book and making a three-minute statement...When was the last time in a presidential debate the moderator had more time than the candidates? It was unprecedented.

It's getting hot in here. No, really. It's hot in here.

Party Like It's 1999

Hillary Clinton's repeated references to "the 1990s" makes me want to party.