# What is the evidence that McCain and Palin are racists? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 10, 2008, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341 "2008-10-10T16:24:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2008, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/101 "2008-10-11T00:52:11Z")
> [@LonesomePolecat](#): > > You want cites? Here are cites: > > Abdul Al-Hazred, _The Necronomicon_, Chapter 4, Verse 12: I…I…_Love You!_😃 ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Gay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3ab097/32.png) [@Enola\_Gay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Gay)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2008, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/102 "2008-10-11T01:11:08Z")
I just saw a news clip from a McCain rally where a woman came up to the mic and told John McCain that she “doesn;t trust Obama because he is an Arab”. McCain looked horribly uncomfortable and said 'No maam, no…he’s a decent man who I happen to disagree with on policy" (or something to that effect). Then he appeared to walk away from her. Anyway, he didn’t ignore the obnoxious comment nor did he condone it, so my respect for him just increased a tad. But he’s in a tough situation to have to defend his opponent against his own supporters. ---
**Author:** ![LonesomePolecat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a88e57/32.png) [@LonesomePolecat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LonesomePolecat)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2008, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/103 "2008-10-11T01:12:07Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > I…I…_Love You!_😃 Thank you. I’m particularly proud of the Constitution bit. 😃 I think I just plain freakin’ _nailed_ that one. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2008, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/104 "2008-10-11T01:13:04Z")
**Lonesome Polecat** , you are out of line. While you did not name a particular poster, all your grumbling about “cites” makes it pretty clear that you were targeting other posters in this thread with claims of lying and stupidity. Stop it, now. [/Moderating] ---
**Author:** ![LonesomePolecat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a88e57/32.png) [@LonesomePolecat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LonesomePolecat)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2008, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/105 "2008-10-11T01:21:45Z")
> [@tomndebb](#): > > **Lonesome Polecat** , you are out of line. While you did not name a particular poster, all your grumbling about “cites” makes it pretty clear that you were targeting other posters in this thread with claims of lying and stupidity. > > Stop it, now. > > [/Moderating] Aw, c’mon, Tom, lighten up. Cut me some slack. I was just poking a bit of fun, and I doubt any feelings were hurt. And anyway, where else but the SDMB could I expect to find an audience who might appreciate all those cultural references? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![leander](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/bcef8e/32.png) [@leander](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leander)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2008, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/106 "2008-10-11T01:26:46Z")
I’ve seen no evidence that either McCain or Palin is a racist. It’s a bit disturbing that there are those around them who are stoking the “otherness” of Obama, but it’s not really a big surprise. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2008, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/107 "2008-10-11T01:53:41Z")
[He may not be a racist but his tacit approval of wink, wink, nudge, nudge may be biting him in the ass.](http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/1008/McCain_calls_Obama_decent_person_is_booed.html?showall) ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2008, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/108 "2008-10-11T01:54:57Z")
> [@LonesomePolecat](#): > > Aw, c’mon, Tom, lighten up. Cut me some slack. I was just poking a bit of fun, and I doubt any feelings were hurt. And anyway, where else but the SDMB could I expect to find an audience who might appreciate all those cultural references? 😃 I did not say it was not funny. I said that it so clearly called other posters names as to be inappropriate to this Forum. ETA: I’m sure that the high priest of Ageus in Philistia would have definitely enjoyed your post. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2008, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/109 "2008-10-11T02:06:44Z")
I don’t think either McCain or Palin are racist (and I’ll throw in that I don’t think Bush is a racist). And I don’t think they’re throwing out code-words either. Because why would they need to? It’s not like they need to tell anyone that Barack Obama is black. I think everyone already knows. So the people that are going to vote against Obama for racial reasons already know how to vote and don’t need instructions. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2008, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/110 "2008-10-11T02:44:54Z")
> [@Enola\_Gay](#): > > I just saw a news clip from a McCain rally where a woman came up to the mic and told John McCain that she “doesn;t trust Obama because he is an Arab”. McCain looked horribly uncomfortable and said 'No maam, no…he’s a decent man who I happen to disagree with on policy" (or something to that effect). Then he appeared to walk away from her. Anyway, he didn’t ignore the obnoxious comment nor did he condone it, so my respect for him just increased a tad. But he’s in a tough situation to have to defend his opponent against his own supporters. It’s the least he could do, but I’m glad he did that. To this point, I’m not convinced Palin or McCain have demonstrated any racism in this campaign. But I would say they have employed a lot of vague language that recalls and plays into race-based fears and beliefs about Obama. It’s hard to believe this is not deliberate, and that at best they’re turning a blind eye to the ambiguous stuff. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2008, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/111 "2008-10-11T03:00:19Z")
“…some of my best \*friends \*are racists!” ---
**Author:** ![LonesomePolecat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a88e57/32.png) [@LonesomePolecat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LonesomePolecat)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2008, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/112 "2008-10-11T12:59:46Z")
> [@tomndebb](#): > > I did not say it was not funny. > I said that it so clearly called other posters names as to be inappropriate to this Forum. > ETA: I’m sure that the high priest of Ageus in Philistia would have definitely enjoyed your post. ☹ My apologies. I’ll be good. ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2008, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/113 "2008-10-12T00:34:18Z")
The notion that blacks can’t be prejudiced about whites is strange. If you and those you love had been diminished by another racial group, wouldn’t you tend to be prejudiced against members of that group? > [@](#): > > **The Second Stone** : That and the R’s have used the Southern Strategy for years. The Southern Strategy is racist. Authorized Republican spokespeople have admitted using the Southern Strategy and that it is racist. The “Southern Strategy” – what is that? Is that what McCain was trying to calm the crowd about in Minnesota? If any of you were watching MSNBC before the Second Presidential Debate, you may have seen a different “Southern Strategy.” This one has come from the good spirits and hard work of many cultures working together in Nashville. The crowd that Chris Matthews interviewed was racially mixed, optimistic and proud of being very unified in their appreciation of each other and the democratic process. Nashville is my town. I’ve seen tanks go down its steets. We’ve had race riots and curfews and even a bomb in one of our schools. Now two blocks from where I once spent those same nights under curfew, the races were celebrating together. How cool is that? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2008, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/114 "2008-10-12T03:49:23Z")
> [@Zoe](#): > > The “Southern Strategy” – what is that? Is that what McCain was trying to calm the crowd about in Minnesota? The “Southern Strategy” is the Republican policy of breaking the Democratic stranglehold on the South by appealing to (real or perceived) racist tendencies among Southern whites, and (real or perceived) reactionary tendencies among Southern white Christians. Regardless of whether or not Southern whites are inherently more likely to be racist than Northern whites, it worked rather well. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2008, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/115 "2008-10-16T00:41:44Z")
They are totally racist. Look at all the[codewords](http://www.imao.us/index.php/2008/10/mccains-racist-code-words/) they’ve been using! I’m not being niave to think that blog is a joke, am I? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2008, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/116 "2008-10-20T16:10:01Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > I’m not being niave to think that blog is a joke, am I? [I’d say the jury is still out on that one.](http://www.imao.us/index.php/about/) ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2008, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/117 "2008-10-20T18:52:47Z")
> [@Zoe](#): > > The “Southern Strategy” – what is that? Is that what McCain was trying to calm the crowd about in Minnesota? > **[Southern strategy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_strategy)** > > In American politics, the Southern strategy was a Republican Party electoral strategy to increase political support among white voters in the South by appealing to racism against African Americans.\[a\] As the civil rights movement and dismantling of Jim Crow laws in the 1950s and 1960s visibly deepened existing racial tensions in much of the Southern United States, Republican politicians such as presidential candidates Richard Nixon and Barry Goldwater developed strategies that successfully contri... ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2008, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/118 "2008-10-20T18:56:57Z")
> [@Onomatopoeia](#): > > Oh yes. I count Alan Keyes as one of that cadre of crazies and apologists for their massahs. Alan Keyes is really crazy. He is Lyndon LaRouche crazy. ---
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2008, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341/119 "2008-10-20T19:07:50Z")
> [@The\_Second\_Stone](#): > > Alan Keyes is really crazy. He is Lyndon LaRouche crazy. Well, that may be, but if it wasn’t for him, you’d be trying to get Hillary Clinton elected President right now, so show a little respect! 😉 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-evidence-that-mccain-and-palin-are-racists/467341.md?page=5)