Yes, John, they’ve made a big deal about this before — in 1996, when they somehow couldn’t believe that Bob Dole wouldn’t speak before the NAACP. Here’s NBC reporter Jim Miklaszewski on July 10 of that year:
“Dole had been invited speak to the [NAACP] convention yesterday, but declined. He claimed he was already committed to campaigning and the All-Star baseball game. To those at this convention, this was quite a stretch and an insult to African-American voters….By not showing up here, Bob Dole may reinforce those racial divides along party lines and fuel the anxiety among some Republicans that in this presidential campaign, Bob Dole might not be up to the challenge.”
Any NAACP-campaign story this year ought to mention the infamous James Byrd ad in the fall of 2000, where Gov. Bush was accused of dragging Byrd to death all over again by refusing to surrender on a “hate crimes” bill. Here’s how CNN did the typically biased story first, and then did the less ridiculous story later, ad mention included.