Many white people are racist. Many white politicians are or have been racists. So what?

[Dream Girl]

Nothing new for us. This idea of "Bloomberg is a racist" will likely have minimal traction. Cause tell us something we don't know? They all are racist to some degree or other. I totally agree that stop and frisk was horrific, but I believe it was originally intended to get guns out of black and brown neighborhoods. It turned into something vicious and thoroughly racist in how it was executed and its impact on black/brown young men. But at its inception it was intended to stop what has been happening in Chicago for many years now...black on black gun violence perpetrated by young black men against other young black men. Is Bloomberg a racist? You betcha. But he's a racist with $60+ billion to spend who may enable us to claw our way back to a semblance of democracy. I can promise you this, if we can get a dem (any dem) in the white house, take back the Senate, retain the house the agenda is going to be packed with policy initiatives that will provide guardrails to keep this insanity from ever happening again. We just need to get it back. I don't care how or who. I don't care about M4A or free college or $15 minimum wage because unless we can get our democracy back from the brink none of this will ever happen.

[bluewater]

1. Many white politicians are or have been racists. So what?

Now there's a winning campaign slogan...

[Dream Girl]

3. I'm just responding to the difficulty some whites have with the ability of some blacks to

go with Bloomberg. We know he either is or has been racist. So's Biden, Bernie, Mayor Pete and Klobuchar (or at a minimum they've been tone deaf and enacted official policies that have had disproportionate impact on black/brown people). We are doomed if Trump gets another 4 years. We all are, but black/brown people in particular. All we care about is who can get the job done, not what someone said or did 30,10, 5 or 2 years ago. Who can get us out of this hell?

[bluewater]

5. The candidates are not all the same, especially on racial issues.

And I have faith in voters not to select as our 2020 Nominee a candidate with as much sexism and racial baggage as Bloomberg has.

Time will tell.

[abqtommy]

4. "Racism" and "racists", better known as ethnic bigotry/bigots, have been a feature, not a bug

of the human race for eons. We got tto keep chipping away at it while realizing that people have to come to their own decisions about it. The best way to fight it is to not buy into it yourself and be an example to others. I'm sure us anti-"racists"/bigots have way more friends. Am I right?

Accepting the realities of life is an important step in eliminating the damaging ones.

[uponit7771]

9. IKR !?!?!

[demmiblue]

13. Just bizarre, isn't it?!

[underthematrix]

2. I'm listening to EVERYBODY LIES and it is everything.

Every one should listen to it before voting, especially African Americans. Check this out.

Link to tweet

[jmg257]

10. Any notion of what they mean here? Im not getting it.. nt

[underthematrix]

12. They're saying what people tell political pollsters is usually a lie.

Instead how we use Google search is a better indicator of our voting behavior. So regions that had higher searches with the n-word were areas where Trump won.

[jmg257]

14. Ah got it! Thanks so much! Nt

[Skya Rhen]

6. Could this be the reason why Biden did so poorly in white Iowa and white New Hampshire? Because of

his long-standing ties to the African American community?

[jmg257]

11. Interesting...'white Dems do not like Joe cause AA do'...hmm...

Now THATS a bumper sticker.

[underthematrix]

15. Yes. I think he does better with AfAms because he was the wingman for the first AA

president AND most AfAms loved Joe Biden BEFORE Obama.

This is why I concluded AfAm turnout must overperform 2008.

[uponit7771]

7. Racism is getting children kidnapped from parents, offer YOUR children to racism & I'll believe you

... think your "so what".

Otherwise this post should be deleted

[brush]

8. A big K&R. Couldn't have said it better myself. Getting trump out is the most important thing.

[jcmaine72]

16. "But he's a racist with $60+ billion to spend who may enable us to claw our way back to a semblance"

Anyone here ever think they'd read such a statement on a Democratic forum? Any of you long time DU'ers ever think you'd see such a thing embraced here?

If this is where we are now as a party, if this is what we stand for, what we believe in, I genuinely pity the future of our party and nation.

[Dream Girl]

20. If you don't get it, maybe you are not as panicked as I. As for me we just can't

can't afford purity tests. Not at this critical juncture. EVERYTHING hangs in the balance. Not just someone's pet issues. Climate change? M4A, living wage, all going up in a big frigging puff of smoke. Democracy is on the line. How about that for a purity test? And no, I don't believe Sanders can beat Trump. In fact it would be a bloodbath. Just my humble opinion. I'm as progressive as they come, but I'm also very, very pragmatic and very, very scared. If you're willing to gamble with Bernie, you may not have as much to lose. Alternatively, you weren't around for McGovern '72 when our beloved progressive lost in a massive landslide.

[BlueWI]

29. Seeking a candidate who's not racist is a purity test?

1948 wants its white public opinion back.

[Awsi Dooger]

17. I don't see how it's any different than Susan Sarandon

She had the same knucklehead view that it had to be a perfect candidate.

Let's see, a rich white guy with his name attached to a financial network. A rich white guy who will spout our themes and sign our bills while vetoing theirs. A rich white guy who will nominate reasonable judges.

Yes, I can certainly see why I should he petrified of him and outraged by any thought of his nomination. Maybe I should base all of my handicapping on Charles Blow and the latest thing he is overreacting to.

Then white America shows up on election day 2020 and decides they prefer Donald Trump above a socialist.

What? What went wrong? How could this possibly happen? It was so unforeseeable. I thought swing voters don't exist. I thought our amazing youth turnout would squash Trump in every swing state.

[jmg257]

18. Whew - I'm glad to know Blow was overreacting to 1/2million kids getting

Thrown against the wall every year, simply cause they were minorities.

I was upset there for a while.

[jcmaine72]

19. Racism is okay now, especially when you have $60 billion to buy an election.

Mr. Blow should be a sent a link to this thread so he can learn something. He's obviously out of step with what it now means to be a Democrat.

[Dream Girl]

21. Blow told half the story. What preceded stop and frisk? Guns used by young black men against young

black men. For the record I have a 19 year old black son and he has been stopped multiple times in good old liberal, progressive San Francisco (albeit, not on foot or thrown up against the wall). One of his friends had two police cruisers pull up on him while he was eating a burrito in his car. Guns drawn. I live this shit, but no purity tests for me. Too fucking much at stake. The jury is out, but IF Bloomberg can beat Trump, I'm there.

[jmg257]

22. No argument on the stats - its one thing Bloomberg came very close to getting right.

"His" reaction, similar to the Crime Bill, was a bit...understandable.
But someone like Blow can get those who may not know any better to REALLY understand the results of racial profiling

[Garrett78]

23. It's not just stop and frisk. Not even close.

If Bloomberg were to buy the nomination, between now and November more and more people will learn about his long history of racism, misogyny and bribery. POC and youth turnout would be even lower than it was in 2016. The sharp contrast with Trump would disappear and millions already jaded would become more so. Bloomberg is a disaster.

[Skya Rhen]

24. He is the worst thing to happen to us and we are allowing it. After Trump wins, they will rekindle

their longtime friendship and the both of them will be just fine.

[Dream Girl]

33. Who will bring out POC and youth? Pray tell.

[cwydro]

25. Rec.

[Kurt V.]

26. What the actual fuck? if ppl are thinking like this we can kiss it all goodbye.

[ForEverGlades]

27. I thought

we all agreed racist, brutal police practices were bad.
And that when they happen as a matter of policy--from the top--that they were even worse.
Didn't we once agree that redlining was bad too?
And that those giving millions to the GOP were certainly not out allies?
I guess I thought we stood for something.
Apparently a bad guess from what I'm seeing here.
What's the old saying?
"If you don't stand for something, You'll fall for anything."

[WhiskeyGrinder]

28. People really do show themselves during primaries.

[Aaron Pereira]

30. You could try some volunteer phone canvassing for Bloomberg.

Call some black and latino households and just explain to them "many white politicians are or have been racists. So what?" See if that works.

[wellst0nev0ter]

31. Thanks for normalizing racism

mazel tov.

[wellst0nev0ter]

32. Anyways, how many guns did stop-n-frisk get off the streets

Honest, non-evasive answers only. Show your work.