Perusing the papers today, I came across this in the Baltimore Sun. It seems the D's have their panties in a bunch over a book endorsement by Lt. Governor Steele. Normally that's not a big deal, people endorse books all the time. But when you are a black conservative, and the book takes a look at the racial history of the Republican Party in glowing terms (in other words, the truth) then the gauntlet has to be thrown down. Can't let these things get out for fear of losing more blacks from the Democrat plantation.
The book is called Back to Basics for the Republican Party, by Michael Zak. Actually, prior to this story, I'd never heard of the book. But it seems to be a well-liked book based on the Amazon.com reviews I read. (By the way, there's only 5 left in stock.) The gist of the problem that the D's have with the book is that it points out a lot of truth in history. For example, until the New Deal and for some period beyond, blacks in the country were predominantly GOP, including Dr. Martin Luther King. This was because the Republicans were originally cast as an anti-slavery party, and it was the Republicans who enacted the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments. These were the original civil rights acts. It wasn't until Reconstruction ended and Democrats again took over in the South that the so-called "Jim Crow" laws were passed.
Later, in the 1960's, it was the GOP helping northern Democrats to pass civil rights legislation. It's a fact that as a percentage, the GOP vote in the Senate was higher than the Democrat voting for civil rights passage.
Obviously, the Democrats have managed to gloss over some of their record on race by promising economic goodies to inner-city blacks, in essence buying their votes. Seriously unethical and stinks to high heaven, but it works to where over 90% of blacks vote Democrat in the presidential elections and Baltimore city votes (mostly minority) keep the Democrats in power in the state of Maryland.
This is where Michael Steele comes in. He is black, and he is conservative. To Democrats, he's their biggest threat to the near-monopoly on the black vote. To try and damage Steele in the minority community you get comments like, "Michael Steele has failed an important test of character by aligning himself with Michael Zak's dangerous, deceptive and racially divisive commentary." So to the Democrats, pointing out obscure historical facts is dangerous and deceptive. Well, I happen to think that a lot of comments made by black Democrat icons like, for example, the Rev. Jesse Jackson are dangerous, deceptive, and racially divisive too.
(And I'll bet Democrats think that articles like this one written by Mychal Massie, a black man, are divisive as well.)
I held my nose and visited the Maryland Democratic website, and sure enough, this flap with Steele is front page news there. It's not quite the scream like on the Ohio Dems' website about Ken Blackwell (another black conservative who leads the governors' race in 2006), but they certainly don't like someone they consider "theirs" because of his race getting away from the Democrat fold. The same can be said about newly confirmed appellate judge Janice Rogers Brown, a black woman who threatens the left as a believer in judicial restraint. The left certainly doesn't appreciate her opinions on civil rights.
Needless to say, I didn't sign the petition on the Maryland Democrat website asking Steele to repudiate his endorsement of the book. Now, if there's a petition necessary to put Michael Steele on the U.S. Senate primary ballot, I'd be happy to sign that one. (Not sure how Maryland works, you do have to be petitioned onto the ballot in Ohio.)
And, speaking of Maryland Republican politics, today I sent in an application to join the Wicomico County Republican Club. I think it's time to start working toward change with all that's going on in the state right now. Luckily we don't have full-year legislative sessions, but there's a lot of damage done in the time the Democrats hold sway in Annapolis. It will be tough, but what needs to be done is to outflank the left in this county. The key is to get the influx of newcomers on our side. Let the market straighten out the housing situation and this area will really boom, possibly enough to start outweighing the Baltimore area. That's what I want to work for.
