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Why Richard Cohen Is The Perfect Metaphor For The GOP: It’s Not Me, It’s You

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By far, the top story today, discussed on every cable news show, reported on several times by every major news organization is Richard Cohen’s racist opinion column in the Washington Post.

LOOK: Washington Post Writer: Interracial Couples Make ‘People With Conventional Views’ Vomit

For the sake of the few who might not have read it yet, allow us to present the relevant paragraph at issue. The bolding is ours:

Today’s GOP is not racist, as Harry Belafonte alleged about the tea party, but it is deeply troubled — about the expansion of government, about immigration, about secularism, about the mainstreaming of what used to be the avant-garde. People with conventional views must repress a gag reflex when considering the mayor-elect of New York — a white man married to a black woman and with two biracial children. (Should I mention that Bill de Blasio’s wife, Chirlane McCray, used to be a lesbian?) This family represents the cultural changes that have enveloped parts — but not all — of America. To cultural conservatives, this doesn’t look like their country at all.

The Atlantic’s Ta-Nehisi Coates explains exactly why this is “horse-shit.”

“The problem here isn’t that we think Richard Cohen gags at the site of an interracial couple and their children. The problem is that Richard Cohen thinks being repulsed isn’t actually racist, but  ‘conventional’ or ‘culturally conservative.’ Obstructing the right of black humans and white humans to form families is a central feature of American racism. If retching at the thought of that right being exercised isn’t racism, then there is no racism.”

Richard Cohen is the perfect metaphor for today’s GOP. He just cannot grasp that America no longer thinks like he does. And even if you buy his argument that he was merely giving voice to those in the Tea Party who do think like that, his previous works really eviscerate that claim.

Which makes it all the more troubling that Cohen’s bosses at the Washington Post not only defended his column once it was clear it was being attacked in seemingly every major news outlet across the nation, but extolled it before the backlash began, as “brilliant.”

Here’s a tweet from the Publisher of the Washington Post, late last night:

 

The Post’s editorial page editor, Fred Hiatt, offered to take the heat.

“Anyone reading Richard’s entire column will see he is just saying that some Americans still have a hard time dealing with interracial marriage. I erred in not editing that one sentence more carefully to make sure it could not be misinterpreted.”

Well, that’s false. Let’s look at that again.

“Anyone reading Richard’s entire column will see he is just saying that some Americans still have a hard time dealing with interracial marriage.”

No, what he said was, “People with conventional views” want to vomit when thinking about interracial couples.

And then, there’s the comment that Chirlane McCray “used to be a lesbian.”

Did Hiatt err in not editing that one sentence more carefully, also, to make sure it could not be misinterpreted?

No, I’m pretty sure the Washington Post erred by not firing Cohen by now, and I’m pretty sure that if they opened their eyes and realized that it’s not 1950, they would see just how wrong Cohen is.

Because the fact is that biracial, or interracial couples, today are the norm. President Barack Obama, by the way, is the offspring of a biracial couple.

The dated idea that any of us is “Black” or “white” at this point is a joke — with the punchline being the news yesterday that a white supremacist found out — on TV — that his DNA proves he is fourteen percent African.

“People with conventional views,” Richard Cohen claims, “must repress a gag reflex when considering the mayor-elect of New York — a white man married to a black woman and with two biracial children.”

No, actually, people with unconventional views may — but people with conventional views surpassed racists and bigots many years ago.

Apparently, Richard Cohen doesn’t understand this — and thinks that — at least what seems like — the vast majority of Americans who today are calling him a racist, are mean.

“The word racist is truly hurtful,” Cohen told the Huffington Post. “It’s not who I am. It’s not who I ever was. It’s just not fair. It’s just not right.”

“I didn’t write one line, I wrote a column,” he added. “The column is about Tea Party extremism and I was not expressing my views, I was expressing the views of what I think some people in the Tea Party held.”

“I don’t think everybody in the Tea Party is like that, because I know there are blacks in the Tea Party,” he said. “So they’re not all racist, unless I’m going to start doing mind reading about why those black people are there.”

Are you thinking what I’m thinking?

Regardless, let’s look again at that.

“I was not expressing my views, I was expressing the views of what I think some people in the Tea Party held.”

The only world in which that statement might make sense is if Cohen admits he himself has “unconventional views.”

So while all this “it’s not me, it’s you” excuse-making is swirling in your head, let me share something else with you.

My father was a Brooklyn-born Jew whose parents came from Poland and Lithuania — although we were always told Russia. I’m certain our last name was a lot longer before they landed here. I had relatives we’d see, rarely, on the Jewish holidays, who had numbers burned into their forearms. When I was young I asked why. And I was told we had other relatives who died in the Holocaust. My mother, who denounced the Roman Catholic church after moving to America to attend Columbia University — where my parents met — is from Central America. She has both Spanish and Mayan blood.

Frankly, I have no idea what I’m supposed to call myself.

My sister and I grew up in a household where we called our friends’ parents “Mr.” or “Mrs.” but our parents’ friends by their first names. It wasn’t until high school or college that I even understood that someone with the name Goldberg was probably Jewish. We just never were taught things like that.

I remember growing up, being told by my mother that a friend of hers, who was white, was forced to rent an apartment in her name because her husband was Black and no landlord in Connecticut would rent an apartment to an interracial couple. I didn’t understand how that was possible.

And I remember growing up just assuming that I could never marry because I’m gay.

Today, I’m happily married. My husband is of Irish and German ancestry.

Frankly, with all that “ancestry” sloshing around in our veins, I have no idea what we’re supposed to call ourselves. Bi-racial? Inter-racial? Metro-racial? Legally married will do just fine, thank you very much.

Today, Hawaii became the sixteenth state to extend marriage to same-sex couples. Last week, it was Illinois. Three other states also did this year. Top LGBT organizations promise marriage equality in all 50 states within five years. I suspect it will happen in less time.

Our neighbors down the hall are an interracial couple. I hesitate to use the term bi-racial because I have no idea what their DNA looks like. And I don’t care. They’re lovely people, probably two of the best parents I know.

What I’m certain of is that I don’t know a soul with conventional views who could look at them and their four-year old daughter — who is cute as a button — and be forced to “repress a gag reflex.”

I mention all this merely because, while I acknowledge that being a gay man of mixed ancestry married to a gay man of somewhat less-mixed ancestry, living in Manhattan, may make me, indeed, somewhat “unconventional,” I’m fairly certain there are more of “us” — people of mixed ancestry in interracial marriages and relationships — than “them” — people in monoracial (is that a word?) marriages or relationships.

This is an America that elected — twice — a Black president, an America in which for several years now, the majority has supported same-sex marriage. (“Should I mention that Bill de Blasio’s wife, Chirlane McCray, used to be a lesbian?”)

And this, dear friends, is why Richard Cohen is the perfect metaphor for today’s GOP. Today’s dying GOP.

Because they think being racist is when you call someone the “N” word. If you don’t, you’re not. Nuance eludes them.

They think everyone else thinks like they do, because so many on the right only watch Fox News, and so many on the right only read Tea Party columnists, and Breitbart, and Drudge, and listen to Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity.

And they haven’t a clue that it’s 2013 and they’re a dying breed.

Editorial note: A previous version of this article stated the Post had not reported on Cohen’s column, based on a search of the Post — which when checked after publication later turned up two pieces.

Image: Washington Post

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‘Misinformation’: Peter Doocy Smacked Down by White House Press Secretary

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12 hours ago

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October 7, 2024

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Peter Doocy‘s efforts to promote hurricane misinformation got smacked down Monday when Biden Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre blasted the Fox News White House correspondent.

Doocy began his for-the-camera claims by declaring, “President Biden is fond of saying, ‘show me your budget and I will tell you what you value.’ If he’s got money for people in Lebanon right now, without Congress having to come back, what does it say about his values? There’s not enough money right now for people in North Carolina who need it,” Doocy declared.

The Fox News reporter was promoting part of the right-wing falsehood that alleges Vice President Harris offered just $750 to hurricane victims, part of the larger conspiracy theories put out by far-right wing influencers including Donald Trump.

“That’s not misinformation,” Doocy insisted.

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“Wait,” Jean-Pierre patiently urged. “No, that is, your whole, your whole premise of the question is misinformation, sir.”

After a heated back-and-forth, the Press Secretary exploded, “I just mentioned to you that we provided more than $200 million to folks who are impacted in the area, and I just shared with you that people are deciding not to, people are deciding not to, not to.”

Doocy, Jean-Pierre tried to explain, is conflating different federal government programs, all of which are vital to victims of Hurricane Helene, and likely will after Hurricane Milton hits Florida later this week.

“This is nothing new. Peter, this is nothing new. Congress comes together. They provide money, millions of dollars for disaster relief. We’re asking them to do the job that they have been doing for some time under the President Biden, doing for some time,” Jean-Pierre added.

Republican Speaker Mike Johnson has refused to cut the House’s vacation short and order Congress back into session to provide more funding for FEMA and other disaster relief agencies.

“The President’s letter is not misinformation. Would you agree?” he continued.

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“No,” she replied, “the way you’re asking me the question is misinformation. “There is money that we are allocating to the impacted areas, and there’s money there to help people who truly need it. There are survivors who need the funding, who need the funding, and it’s there.”

“I actually said we have the money available to help survivors of Hurricane Helene and also Hurricane Milton. Now there’s going to be a shortfall, right? Because we don’t know how bad it’s, Hurricane Milton, is going to be, and so we’re going to need additional funding. We’re going to need additional funding,” Jean-Pierre explained.

“Congress needs to come back and do their job and provide extra assistance, extra funding to Disaster Relief Fund,” she added after Doocy pushed back. “That’s what Congress needs to do and we’re going to continue to urge that, you may not want that, but that’s okay. That’s what this President wants and that’s what the Vice President wants.”

Watch below or at this link.

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‘Trafficking in Nazi Race Science’: Trump Blasted After ‘Vile Trifecta’ of Antisemitism

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14 hours ago

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October 7, 2024

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On the one-year anniversary of the Hamas terror attack on Israel, Donald Trump took a deep dive into antisemitic and Nazi rhetoric.

The ex-president—win or lose—near the end of his final White House run told right-wing political commentator and host Hugh Hewitt that immigrants have “bad genes” which make them more likely to commit murder. It is a charge some say is direct out of Nazi eugenics.

“Echoes of Nazi Germany,” declared former U.S. Ambassador to Russia, Michael McFaul.

Just hours later Trump unleashed a “vile trifecta” of antisemitism, according to Andrew Miller, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress and a former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Israeli-Palestinian Affairs.

“Israel has to do one thing,” Trump had told Hewitt. “They have to get smart about Trump, because they don’t back me. I did more for Israel than anybody. I did more for the Jewish people than anybody. It’s not reciprocal.”

Those words unleashed great anger and pain.

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“On anniversary of deadliest day for Jews post-Holocaust, Trump hits a vile trifecta,” Miller writes of Trump’s remarks to Hewitt. “1. Antisemitism: Israel and Jews are the same – dual loyalty. 2. Victim blaming: 10-7 is the fault of Jews bc they didn’t back him. 3. Narcissism: Forget victims’ families, it’s all about me.”

Trump campaign national press secretary Karoline Leavitt had also told Haaretz, Israel’s newspaper of record, that the “atrocities, including the slaughtering and capturing of innocent Israelis and Americans, that took place on October 7th would have never happened if President Trump were still in the White House.”

“For Americans and Israelis alike, it’s imperative that President Trump is re-elected so he can end the bloodshed caused by an emboldened Iranian terrorist regime, which is stronger and richer today from the Harris-Biden Administration’s incompetence and weak policies,” she claimed.

Halie Soifer, CEO of the Jewish Democratic Council of America blasted Trump.

“One year since the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, & Donald Trump exploits our pain, presenting his support of Israel as completely transactional, conflating American Jews & Israelis. It’s ‘not reciprocal’ b/c Trump continues to issue depraved antisemitic threats,” she said.

Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs wrote, “Israel and the global Jewish community are mourning the anniversary of the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust. And Trump’s message is effectively “vote for me or else” — just as he is preemptively blaming Jews for a potential loss. This is so dangerous.”

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Dylan Williams, vice president for government affairs at the Center for International Policy observed, “Of the many times Trump has made something all about himself, this has to be one of the most unhinged and vulgar. You wouldn’t hire someone who said something this weird and gross for a job. You wouldn’t want them around your kids or friends. How can his supporters defend this?”

Attorney Daniel Miller wrote: “On a day when American Jews should be able to mourn the deadliest day for our people since the Holocaust, Trump is threatening Jews who don’t support him and trafficking in Nazi race science. As a Jew, I am alarmed not only for my own people, but for my country and the world.”

Miller also pounded Trump over his earlier remarks to Hugh Hewitt on immigrants.

“The fact Trump is trafficking in Nazi race science should be on the front page of every newspaper in America. Every elected official should issue a statement condemning this. Republicans should be asked why they remain silent. This is NOT OK. He might soon control our military,” Miller wrote. He also said, “Trump has promised to put immigrants into camps and is now trafficking in openly Nazi race science,” which “should terrify every single person with a conscience.”

READ MORE: ‘Judicially Executed Cover Up’: Experts Say Jack Smith Filing ‘Major Indictment’ of SCOTUS

 

This article has been updated to include Professor McFaul’s remarks.

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‘Trump Did This’: SCOTUS Blocks Biden Emergency Abortion Mandate in Texas

Published

17 hours ago

on

October 7, 2024

By

On the first day of its new term, the U.S. Supreme Court in an unsigned opinion upheld a lower court ruling that enforces Texas’ ban on certain emergency abortions. The Biden administration had sought to overturn the ban and enforce its policy requiring hospitals to perform the emergency, potentially life-saving procedures. The Court declined, allowing the Texas law, one of the strictest in the nation, to remain in effect.

The Biden administration had argued “that hospitals have to perform abortions in emergency situations under federal law. The administration pointed to the Supreme Court’s action in a similar case from Idaho earlier this year in which the justices narrowly allowed emergency abortions to resume while a lawsuit continues,” the Associated Press reports. “Doctors have said the [Texas] law remains dangerously vague after a medical board refused to specify exactly which conditions qualify for the exception.”

“Pregnancy terminations have long been part of medical treatment for patients with serious complications, as [a] way to to [sic] prevent sepsis, organ failure and other major problems,” the AP added. “But in Texas and other states with strict abortion bans, doctors and hospitals have said it is not clear whether those terminations could run afoul of abortion bans that carry the possibility of prison time.”

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Critics are blasting Donald Trump, who has repeatedly bragged he killed Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 decision that found a constitutional right to abortion. That ruling was overturned in 2022 by the Supreme Court in a 6-3 decision. Trump put on the Court three conservative justices after vowing to pick justices who would end Roe.

“Trump did this. These are his hand-picked justices,” charged former Fox News and CNBC contributor Julie Roginsky Monday morning after the Court’s ruling in the Texas case.

“Thanks to Trump overturning Roe, the Supreme Court just issued a ruling that woman bleeding out from a miscarriage or stroking out from pre-eclampsia can die on the ER table in Texas,” noted Democratic communications strategist Laura Chapin, adding: “Trump’s Republican Party wants women to die.”

“Trump’s Supreme Court just signed a death warrant for more Texas women,” warned Dem Socratic strategistAdam Parkhomenko.

Leigh McGowan, who runs the popular PoliticsGirl podcast, wrote: “SCOTUS confirms it’s the state’s right to let women die.

Neera Tanden, Director of the White House Domestic Policy Council responded to the AP report: “Let’s be clear that this means women’s lives take a back seat in Texas.”

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