This is Ludicrous

Tomorrow I'll talk about one of the common responses to Geraldine Ferraro's racist comments, but I wanted to post something else today.

As is my habit, I was reading Jack and Jill Politics. As I went through the comments on a story, I came across a line from a poster called CM directing people to an old New York time article with a comment from "Gerry."

Ferraro, bless her heart, was discussing the chances of Hillary and Obama with a New York Times reporter in 2006. This was when Hillary was the presumed heir to the Democratic throne and Obama was a young upstart. The article discussed whether voters could really elect a black man or a white woman. Here's an excerpt:



By contrast, for all the excitement stirred by Mr. Obama, it is much less certain that an African-American could win a presidential election. Not as many blacks have been elected to prominent positions as women. Some high-profile black candidates — Harold Ford Jr., a Democrat running for the Senate in Tennessee, and Michael Steele, a Republican Senate candidate in Maryland — lost in November. And demographics might be an obstacle as well: black Americans are concentrated in about 25 states — typically blue ones, like New York and California. While black candidates cannot assume automatic support from black voters, they would at least provide a base. In states without big black populations, the candidate’s crossover appeal must be huge.

“All evidence is that a white female has an advantage over a black male — for reasons of our cultural heritage,” said the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, the civil rights leader who ran for president in 1984 and 1988. Still, he said, for African-American and female candidates, “It’s easier — emphatically so.”

Ms. Ferraro offered a similar sentiment. “I think it’s more realistic for a woman than it is for an African-American,” said Ms. Ferraro. “There is a certain amount of racism that exists in the United States — whether it’s conscious or not it’s true.”

“Women are 51 percent of the population,” she added.




Did y'all catch that? Read it again if you didn't. My, my, my, it's amazing how things can change in two years, isn't it?

Link to the full story.

(Another link about Hillary's "qualifications." shout out to Lesley and Lolo for pointing it out to me)