COMMENTARY | As the Republican Party tries to find a viable candidate to unseat President Barack Obama, the GOP can now claim Texas Gov. Rick Perry won't be one of them. The Washington Post reports a hunting camp leased by Perry's parents beginning in the 1980s had the "n-word" painted on a rock at the property's entrance.
There is some dispute as to whether or not the name of the camp was changed when Perry's parents first leased the land or much later. New York Magazine reports the Texas governor said the word was on a huge rock and was painted over as soon as his parents saw it. Yet lawmakers who have been taken to the hunting property stated they've seen the word on the rock over the past couple of years. Even with a paint job, the "n" and the "g" are still visible.
Perry's opponents, especially Herman Cain, are understandably upset. MSNBC reports Cain called Perry's name for the camp "insensitive." Politico states Al Sharpton is weighing in on the issue by also saying Perry is "insensitive."
Perhaps the word "insensitive" shouldn't be the response warranted in this case. Perry is running to be the Republican nominee for president. This isn't some small town in the South. Cain is wasting an opportunity here to bury Perry's chances to win the nomination. He is being almost passive when he calls the name of the camp "insensitive."
The word is disgusting, plain and simple. It harkens back to a time when Africans were hauled to the United States in slave boats and treated like animals. Perry is suggesting by being complicit in the name of his camp that he would treat certain constituents as if they were cattle.
Ultra-conservative members are finally showing their true nature by supporting a man like Perry. The best name anyone should be calling the Texas governor at this point is "racist." There is no place for such limited thinking in the greatest country in the land, much less with the person who would occupy the highest office in the United States.
Even worse, this discovery also adds an insult to the current commander-in-chief. Any GOP candidate that doesn't speak out against Perry's blatant racism is just as guilty as he is. Suddenly, Cain's victory in the Florida Straw Poll doesn't seem so shocking. Republican donors must tread carefully now as they may be construed as complying with a racist candidate.
This latest gaffe by a Republican candidate is indicative of the entire party. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., could have won the 2008 election but instead faltered when he chose then-Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. If the best the GOP can do right now is Perry, then it will become apparent that Mitt Romney should be rational choice of Republicans. Otherwise, Obama will have an easy victory in November 2012.
William Browning is a research librarian specializing in U.S. politics. Born in St. Louis, Browning is active in local politics and served as a campaign volunteer for President Barack Obama and Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill.
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