Just when you think the Associated Press can’t sink any lower they do. The news analysis piece on Sarah Palin’s William Ayers remarks by the AP’s Douglass K. Daniel is real jaw-dropper: Analysis: Palin’s words carry racial tinge.
Palin’s words avoid repulsing voters with overt racism. But is there another subtext for creating the false image of a black presidential nominee “palling around” with terrorists while assuring a predominantly white audience that he doesn’t see their America?
In a post-Sept. 11 America, terrorists are envisioned as dark-skinned radical Muslims, not the homegrown anarchists of Ayers’ day 40 years ago. With Obama a relative unknown when he began his campaign, the Internet hummed with false e-mails about ties to radical Islam of a foreign-born candidate.
Whether intended or not by the McCain campaign, portraying Obama as “not like us” is another potential appeal to racism. It suggests that the Hawaiian-born Christian is, at heart, un-American.
Most troubling, however, is how allowing racism to creep into the discussion serves McCain’s purpose so well. As the fallout from Wright’s sermons showed earlier this year, forcing Obama to abandon issues to talk about race leads to unresolved arguments about America’s promise to treat all people equally.
John McCain occasionally looks back on decisions with regret. He has apologized for opposing a holiday to honor Martin Luther King Jr. He has apologized for refusing to call for the removal of a Confederate flag from South Carolina’s Capitol.
When the 2008 campaign is over McCain might regret appeals such as Palin’s perhaps more so if he wins.
Wow… This really is the year journalism died.
Here’s the video of Palin’s remarks:
Here’s the New York Times story she’s refering to.
Allahpundit has more on the AP story at Hot Air and Dan Spencer has more on Obama’s radical connections at Red State… I’m going back to the Dolphins game, there’s 1:55 left and they’re winning for change!
Update: The Dolphins Win… They knocked off the San Diego Chargers 17-10. 🙂
Updates (6:45 p.m.): Quin Hillyer at the American Spectator goes after the AP:
This might be the single most irresponsible piece the Associated Press has EVER run. Not only does it badly misstate (i.e. excuses, plays down, hides) the level of Obama’s relationship with Bill Ayers, but it goes to phenomenally bizarre lengths to claim that Sarah Palin’s repeated references to Ayers — who is white — somehow “carry a racially tinged subtext.” HUH????!!???? This is sick. Literally sick. Have things really reached the point where ANY criticism of Obama is racist? Next thing you know, criticism of Obama for having the most liberal voting record in the Senate will be called racist. Criticism of Obama for being against the surge will be called racist. Hell, next thing you know, criticism of Joe Biden will be called racist, because Biden is the running mate for a black man and, well, any criticism of him is code for racist opposition to Obama.
Jonah Goldberg calls the AP’s analysis Outrageously Asinine:
Douglass Daniel, an editor of the Associated Press, offers some absurd analysis of the race, trying to make the case that playing the Ayers’ card is “racially tinged,” journalistic code these days for flat out racist.