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 omebody
at the NAACP didn't receive his talking points last week, judging
from the wildly different responses to
House
Majority Leader Dick Armey's letter to NAACP president Kweisi Mfume.
In a February 22 missive, Armey suggested that he and Mfume get
together. In addition to discussing items on the NAACP agenda, wrote
Armey, "I have another concern that I would like to discuss with
you."
Armey continued: "I believe there is a phenomenon in American politics
today that could justly be called 'Racial McCarthyism' or 'reverse
race-baiting.' In my opinion, it has become an all-too-common practice
to spread unfounded, racially charged falsehoods against Republicans
for political advantage. Deliberate or not, if left unchallenged,
this practice will continue to divide our nation, polarize our political
parties, and do untold harm in the lives of real people who are
unjustly accused of conspiracy against the civil rights of African
Americans."
Armey called special attention to the NAACP's anti-Bush ads last
fall and "the likening of Florida to Selma." He also noted a recent
quote by NAACP chairman Julian Bond: "The new administration almost
daily separates and divides. …[It] selected nominees from the
Taliban wing of American politics, appeased the wretched appetites
of the extreme right wing, and chose Cabinet officials whose devotion
to the Confederacy is nearly canine in its uncritical affection."
The letter was tough, aggressive — and fair. Bond's response
to it was predictable, and practically proved Armey's point: "This
is a typical complaint of those who oppose justice and fairness
and who accuse those of us who insist on fairness of this tactic."
Mfume, however, took a different tack: "Dear Dick …I'm sure
we could agree that there is enough blame to be placed on both sides,
but the real question is where do we go from here? How do we get
beyond the last election in order to build a more perfect union
and when will dialogue replace demagoguery on the issue of race
in our nation? Like you, I know that all Republicans are not racists
or bigots and neither are all Democrats saints or saviors."
It's surely too much to expect genuine rapprochement between the
GOP and the NAACP. But perhaps there is a flicker of hope in Mfume's
response, which does not attempt to defend the anti-Bush ad or Bond's
words.
By and large, Republicans should bypass organizations such as the
NAACP and communicate directly with black voters. But when they
engage such groups, Republicans should do so with the kind of cordial
forcefulness Armey has demonstrated here. It makes possible editorials
like the one appearing in today's Roll Call — no friend of
Dick Armey — noting that "Now there's a tendency on the part
of some African-American members [of Congress] to match [conservatives
like former Rep. Bob] Dornan in incendiary rhetoric."
When Julian Bond utters something pretty close to anti-Republican
hate speech, the NAACP will pay a price — but only if Republicans
call him on it.
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