On Middle Names
The Republican National Committee has warned off the Tennessee Republican Party from using Barack Obama's middle name in a press release.
The Republican National Committee this afternoon scolded the Tennessee Republican Party over their use of "Barack Hussein Obama" in an official press release and warned the state party that they will be denounced by the national committee if they use the Democrat's middle name again, said a GOP official close to the RNC.
"The RNC has notified the Tennessee GOP that they do not support or agree with their approach," said this source, requesting anonymity to discuss the private conversation between a staffer in the national committee's political department and a top aide at the state party. "If they don't refrain from doing so again, they will be publicly repudiated by the Republican National Committee."
This source said the national committee did not ask the Tennessee party to retract their statement, but effectively put them on notice for the future.
Monday, Tennessee GOP spokesman Bill Hobbs penned a press release attacking Obama on Israel, using his Muslim-sounding middle name in the process.
And yes, the Bill Hobbs in question is that Bill Hobbs. The Tennessee party has since backed down on this issue.
Look, I am well aware of what Barack Obama's middle name is. But using the name like this is a bad move on many levels. It is playing directly into the hands of those who routinely use identity politics as a weapon. They will use it to call racism and intolerance and every other victim card they can get their hands on. And the media will dutifully repeat whatever the victimologists charge, That game is completely rigged in favor of the people playing the victim cards.
The only way to win a rigged game is to refuse to play. That is what is required here. There are real, profound issues at stake in this election. And there are real, profound issues that Barack Obama can be attacked on without allowing him to shelter under a cloak of victimhood.
Some people are not going to like this advice. But I think it is the only way to win here. Barack Obama's middle name is a sideshow – it is counterproductive to use it, it is not necessary and it allows the opposition a smokescreen. We have enough real issues that should scare hell out of voters. Like this one, or this one and believe me, there will be plenty more. All real issues, all substantive, all worth attacking. Without providing a smokescreen for Obama to disappear behind.
Refuse to play the game. They want you to play it; don't fall into that trap.
By icrutchfield, February 28, 2008 @ 6:49 am
This was a stupid move; nobody should be insulted because of a name. It was not Obama’s doing, the name was given by his parents.
I can only hope, that republicans won’t stoop as low as Hillary, I expect more of maturity by republicans.
By syn, February 28, 2008 @ 7:33 am
Poor John Sidney McCain, has there ever been a president who has won by campaigning hate against his own party?
Just so you know BO doesn’t like to be labled a ‘Liberal." I do expect the RNC to issue a press release stating not to stoop so low as to call OB a Liberal.
JSM hasn’t a prayer in the world of defeating his opponent. Not a prayer.
All these years and the majority of Americans still do not understand just how vicious is the Left; even after all that was said and done to GWB, all that was done to Republicans/Conservatives, all that was said and done about our troops, all the movies/books/music portraying an evil America worthy of hate and disrespect.
THe RNC is doing exactly what the progressive Left wants them to do.
Until you undertand just how vicious is the progressive Left you will never be able to defeat them; I say this becasue I once of part of them, they hate Americans, republicans/conservatives,troops, puritians etc et al and will destroy word by word.
By Anthony (Los Angeles), February 28, 2008 @ 7:43 am
Agreed 100%.
By Aaron, February 28, 2008 @ 10:04 am
they hate Americans, republicans/conservatives,troops, puritians etc et al Do you mean "Puritans" rather than "puritians?" For all I know they may be one of the primary objects of the progressive Left’s hatred, but they haven’t really been around since the 17th century…
By iaintbacchus, February 28, 2008 @ 12:39 pm
All these years and the majority of Americans still do not understand just how vicious is the Left; even after all that was said and done to GWB, all that was done to Republicans/Conservatives, all that was said and done about our troops, all the movies/books/music portraying an evil America worthy of hate and disrespect.
Free your mind, Syn. "the left" isn’t any more viscous on the whole than "the right". Both sides have their attack dogs and on balance the right has more of them and better forums for theirs.
There are a great many people in this country who honestly disagree with just about everything that Bush has done over the last 7 years. That doesn’t make any of them viscous. And every one of them loves their country just as much as you do. They aren’t suffering from Bush Derangement Syndrom, they don’t want the terrorists to win and none of them are interested in the violent overthrow of the United States Government. That was the Montana Freemen back during the Clinton administration. And regardless of what Clinton said, you can too love America and hate your government. The trouble with the right is that they’ve taken Clintons words to heart and pretend that everybody that doesn’t love their party must hate America. Grow up.
The weakness of the right at the moment is that you turn on even your own if they don’t subscribe to party orthodoxy. John McCain is a perfect case in point. I’ve read far more vitrol pointed at him from "wingnut" sites then I have from "moonbat" sites. And yet I predict that most of you will hold your breath and vote for him in November as the lesser of two evils. Just like we all had to in 2000 and 2004.
By John Ryan, February 28, 2008 @ 3:34 pm
The Democrats always referred to Romney by the name he chose to use, Mitt, never by his given name Willard.
By Mockinbird, February 28, 2008 @ 6:01 pm
I agree with Gaius.
By chaosdrew, February 29, 2008 @ 2:29 am
I couldn’t agree more, iantbaccus. Our current Republican party seems less and less like the party of Buckley and, even more frightening, less self-aware of how its more extreme elements mirror and often overshadow the extreme elements of the Left.
By ts, February 29, 2008 @ 10:54 am
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But I don't get you. Isn't this what the Republicans do? George Bush spreads rumors that McCain has an illegitimate black child. Everyone spreads rumors that Hillary is gay. Karl Rove spreads rumors that John Kerry was a coward. Various conservative columnists like O'Reilly and Coulter just out-and-out call for the brutal murders of anyone on the left. I could go on and on.(For all the faults of the Left, their main players are singularly polite, probably too polite.)This is what this team does. Karl Rove is admired precisely for his dirty tricks! This aren't going to stop now – the team bonds over worlds like "moonbats" and "libtards" – it's the Party of Fear, not the Party of Reason.By ts, February 29, 2008 @ 11:20 am
(sorry for the formatting and grammar mistakes – I wrongly assumed there’d be a preview stage…)
By Lyn, February 29, 2008 @ 3:37 pm
This is a good article and an accurate assessment of Obama’s "protected class" status as a candidate.
You can find fault with Obama – there’s plenty there to find fault with. Obama does not have integrity nor substance. All that he has is an "image" of being nonthreatening and populist. The real Obama is something America doesn’t need and wouldn’t want if they understood it. And Obama is not a real candidate anywhere outside the shady back-room politics of Chicago.
There really is too much at stake to play games. Don’t treat Obama with kid gloves. And don’t worry about being seen as a racist; you can’t change some people’s pathological, paranoid tendencies to claim that they are victims and that the rest of the world is racist.