Racial Entitlement Thinking Drives Romney Supporters
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Too many Democrats are flummoxed at Mitt Romney's rise in the polls, coupled with the possibility that he could very well be our next president. They shake their heads in disgust, muttering "But the guy is unprincipled and hollow." "Where are his tax returns?" "Obama swept the floor with him during the last two debates," and so forth. These incredulous Obama supporters are invariably white. Black voters know better, because their experience of America is more multi-dimensional.
Romney is getting at least half the nation's votes because he is a wealthy, white male. Period. He doesn't need to be honest or care about anyone other than the 1%. He doesn't need to identify which income tax deductions he would cut or what his plans are for the nation's future, because he is a wealthy, white male. This reality is called "entitlement." In the minds of Romney supporters, their candidate deserves the presidency because well, he represents the model of what an American president should look like. This way of assessing people by their "beingness" rather than by what they do is a lingering legacy of slavery. What do we think the Reverend Martin Luther King meant when he spoke of judging people by the "content of their character" rather than "the color of their skin?"
The entitlement factor pushing Romney's candidacy was not on display until after Obama flubbed the first debate. The reason is that Romney for all the lies he told at that forum, at least "looked presidential." Republicans were relieved that they were not dealing with a candidate as embarrassing and IQ-challenged as a Sarah Palin. But these voters would never have pulled the lever for Obama. They would simply have stayed home.
The fact that Romney has flip-flopped on such pivotal issues as abortion and foreign policy will not keep the Republican base from voting for him. Because there is an unspoken issue in this election that trumps all the usual social hot buttons. It is ridding the White House of this black president, an imagery as jarring to many Romney supporters as would be a billboard of Jesus Christ in high heels.
This is an extraordinary moment in American history. If Romney does win the election, this nation will continue the process of disintegration begun during the George W. Bush administration. But at least, in the minds of Romney voters, they will have purified the White House of its current contamination.
Too many Democrats are flummoxed at Mitt Romney's rise in the polls, coupled with the possibility that he could very well be our next president. They shake their heads in disgust, muttering "But the guy is unprincipled and hollow." "Where are his tax returns?" "Obama swept the floor with him during the last two debates," and so forth. These incredulous Obama supporters are invariably white. Black voters know better, because their experience of America is more multi-dimensional.
Romney is getting at least half the nation's votes because he is a wealthy, white male. Period. He doesn't need to be honest or care about anyone other than the 1%. He doesn't need to identify which income tax deductions he would cut or what his plans are for the nation's future, because he is a wealthy, white male. This reality is called "entitlement." In the minds of Romney supporters, their candidate deserves the presidency because well, he represents the model of what an American president should look like. This way of assessing people by their "beingness" rather than by what they do is a lingering legacy of slavery. What do we think the Reverend Martin Luther King meant when he spoke of judging people by the "content of their character" rather than "the color of their skin?"
The entitlement factor pushing Romney's candidacy was not on display until after Obama flubbed the first debate. The reason is that Romney for all the lies he told at that forum, at least "looked presidential." Republicans were relieved that they were not dealing with a candidate as embarrassing and IQ-challenged as a Sarah Palin. But these voters would never have pulled the lever for Obama. They would simply have stayed home.
The fact that Romney has flip-flopped on such pivotal issues as abortion and foreign policy will not keep the Republican base from voting for him. Because there is an unspoken issue in this election that trumps all the usual social hot buttons. It is ridding the White House of this black president, an imagery as jarring to many Romney supporters as would be a billboard of Jesus Christ in high heels.
This is an extraordinary moment in American history. If Romney does win the election, this nation will continue the process of disintegration begun during the George W. Bush administration. But at least, in the minds of Romney voters, they will have purified the White House of its current contamination.
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