http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/12/26/ ... index.html

Chip will not be Chair.

This is an unforced error. How could Chip think a parody CD to all committee members would do anything but risk misunderstandings or hand hostile RNC members (backing other candidates) a media-ready club to crush his candidacy.

Republicans need to avoid racial sarcasm, even when they believe their hearts are pure, as it fuels the idea (itself a negative stereotype) that the GOP is a white only party.

This is just dumb!

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"As for us, our days of combat are over. Our swords are rust. Our guns will thunder no more. The vultures that once wheeled over our heads must be buried with their prey. Whatever of glory must be won in the council or the closet, never again in the field. I do not repine. We have shared the incommunicable experience of war; we have felt, we still feel, the passion of life to its top."

Oliver Wendell Holmes

If Chip won't be chair.... Who else is running that you and the others on here think would be a good person? I've been wondering about Ken Blackwell.

And I have to agree... that CD was a dumb thing to send to people.

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~*Roanna

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I agree this was a very careless thing to do. It's one thing to joke among family members, but wny would he take a chance like that?

I have always liked Michael Steele, but I heard that he is somewhat moderate when it comes to abortion--I don't know if that is true.

I just read this on cnn.com. I'm willing to wait and see if there is some explanation for this - and by that I don't mean 'Paul Shanklin is my friend,' I mean that perhaps this story has some inaccuracy that needs to come to light.

It's certainly negative publicity at the moment, though. And of course, it included Gov. Huckabee's name. Perhaps Mike will address this, somehow?

oh please tell me he didn't do this. Ughhhh

I just got sick to my stomach

Steele is certainly telegenic and media savy. We could do worse (Anuzi). While Steele is a moderate, he has also made clear that the GOP must remain pro-life, and pro-faith.

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"As for us, our days of combat are over. Our swords are rust. Our guns will thunder no more. The vultures that once wheeled over our heads must be buried with their prey. Whatever of glory must be won in the council or the closet, never again in the field. I do not repine. We have shared the incommunicable experience of war; we have felt, we still feel, the passion of life to its top."

Oliver Wendell Holmes

If this story is even mostly acurate, it is a case of abject stupidity. I am starting to wonder if there needs to be a Sensitivity IQ test which one must pass in order to be allowed into leadership roles.

The sad thing is that this has the potential to hurt Huck by association.

Simple rule. If it involves race and Rush Limbaugh thinks it's funny, stay away from it.

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The Values Voter
http://thevaluesvoter.spaces.live.com

Folks,

If anyone has a direct pipeline to Mike, my gut tells me that he needs to speak out about this and distance himself from it. Mike, who doesn't deserve this negative attention, is going to find his name mentioned as long as this story as mentioned, not only because of the fact that Chip was his campaign manager but also because he endorsed Chip for the RNC Chairmanship.

I have always been offended by the "Magic Negro" song but beyond offended, I'm just perplexed. If it got Rush Limbaugh in trouble when he aired it in 2007 - to the degree that some affiliates started playing special messages before Rush's show that the comments about to be aired did not represent the views of the station - why would you repeat it and send it out to everyone?? When you're running for a leadership position?

If there is a silver lining here for the GOP, it's that this didn't happen after Chip won and became RNC Chairman. The GOP is dealing with a most severe perception problem, and the hole they dig themselves in among many in all ethnic groups frankly gets worse everytime someone says or does something that's not just insensitive but stupidly insensitive. People already assume the worst things about Republicans. Especially about southern Republicans. It's not completely fair. But this just ads fuel to that fire.

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The Values Voter
http://thevaluesvoter.spaces.live.com

I can't believe this.. I can't believe this...

Please let this die a quick holiday weekend death.

I almost hope mike has enough cashe with the 'left' that they will let this story die to do mike a favor.

I'm also sick to my stomach.

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His maiden, singing a victory song for faith, family and freedom
http://maidensong.wordpress.com/

Mike will need to address this.

I can't see how it can be spun as anything but an ummiigated catostrophic mistake.

I suspect that he was winning them over too. I wouldn't be surprised if this was leaked by supporters of another camp for RNC chair.

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His maiden, singing a victory song for faith, family and freedom
http://maidensong.wordpress.com/

You can guage for yourself how this story is playing. Lots of negative talk about the GOP and at least one negative reference to Huck. Absolute Stupidity!!!

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/12/26/rnc-chair-candidate-sends-out-controversial-obama-song/

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The Values Voter
http://thevaluesvoter.spaces.live.com

I sent an email to Mike about this. Let's hope he responds soon.
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http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-tr ... =the-trail

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“The central message is that the Republican Party has a great future, if we get back to being the party of principle, clarity and conviction. And we’re going to do that.” --Mike Huckabee

I don't really care about how it got leaked. Think something like this couldn't have come out if he did it once he became RNC Chairman?

I don't know Chip and have never had anything against him. I'm not sure why he thought it was funny, if this story is indeed accurate. But I don't think that the GOP can afford to have a large number of people in leadership who don't recognize or don't care when they're about to step into a landmine, hurt the feelings of a large number of people and help perpetuate a very negative perception against all Republicans.

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The Values Voter
http://thevaluesvoter.spaces.live.com

Agreed. Very careless.

Its already a biographical factoid attached to Chip and noted on wikipedia:

As I understand the intent of the song, it is as political satire. There is a long tradition in this country of lampooning politicians, possibly, I suspect, because they take themselves so seriously that the satire gives them a reality check.

Obama's self-image, it seems to me, is in need of deflation. But, let the satirists go where they will, and let them be judged on their work.

Serious politicians, which is to say, ones who are trying to do the people's business, and not just in it for self-aggrandizement, need to stay away from political humor which is edgy and pushes the envelope.

Al Franken tried to defend himself as a satirist for having written a piece on rape which was intended as humor. There are some people who might find a written piece on rape humorous, but I don't think very many in polite society would. Perhaps some who are addicted to porn.

I think many people found Franken disqualified on this matter alone.

Mike Huckabee, above all other Republicans, is leading the way to try to smash the notion that the parties should stay divided on the basis of race. So, TVV is right, this has the potential to hurt Mike a little.

Mike can't outright denounce Chip. That would be a disloyal friend, and it would look like he was trying too hard. Mike should maybe make a statement that he finds the song in poor taste, and Chip's attempt at amusing the committee members with it, illconsidered.

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'If you drive God out of the world then you create a howling wilderness' --Peter Hitchens

I can't stop shaking my head. And not just because of this incident.

Just a month and a half ago, the Republican Party got the lowest share of the black vote that it ever got - which actually wasn't that lower worse than any other point during the past 44 years. It got the lowest share in recent memory of every other ethnic minority group as well. It lost the Presidency and more than five dozen seats in Congress. The Democrats coming into this year had about a seven million person advantage in the number of registered voters over the GOP.

One big perception problem for the GOP - the belief that Republicans are racists and that the party is essentially a country club. And after the shallacking of last month, this incident happens, after another candidate from the south resigns a racialy exclusive country club just in time to run for the RNC chairmanship. And an Alaska state employee sends out an email joking that Obama's White House is now "government housing" for "another black family" - I still have heard nothing from Palin about it.

It's not funny. And, mark my words, if there is not a culture change within the GOP - from the top, setting in place an environment in which people are encouraged to show basic sensitivity to every group of people both publicly and privately, as well as condemn actions of others who don't do this, it's going to be a hard way to go. And it hurts every Republican and conservative, even those who have no part in it.

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The Values Voter
http://thevaluesvoter.spaces.live.com

I havent heard the song so I can't make a judgement. However, I don't see how this possibly connects Mike Huckabee to this just because Chip was his campaign manager and so of course he was endorsed by Mike. I do think that it is such a shame that every little thing is taken so seriously and it makes everyone afraid to say anything for fear it will be taken as offensive in some way.

There's basically 3 routes for MH to take on this...

1) Ignore it and hope it magically disappears on it's own with no significant permanent damage - This is the most common tactic used by Republican Establishment, when something goes really, really wrong and it rarely ever works.

2) Take it on the chin and wear the undeserved fat lip - Just allow everyone to run your name through the mud, no matter how unfair that is. This would allow the Romney camp and other Republican Establishment types (who wrongly despise Huckabee) to mop the floor with MH and ruin any possible political future that he might have.

3) See this as an amazing opportunity - This is a literal gift from God, if seen from the proper perspective. Mike can take what seems like the biggest, most disastrously negative circumstance and surprisingly turn it around into the biggest, most positive outcome imaginable. Because this was Mike's Campaign Chairman, Mike should get to have the loudest voice on this subject. Mike should be able to get a crescendo-like moment out of this that enables him to take complete command of the role of "GOP LEADER WHO GETS IT". He should be getting his day in the Court of Public Opinion soon. He needs to prepare right now for how to deal with this and take the bull by the horns!

How can we help? Find all of the information that we can about Mike's showing his sensitivity and take that info everywhere we can on the net, on talk radio, on C-SPAN, etc. Get the video of him giving his speech at Central High School in Little Rock, get the speech that he gave at the RNC Convention, get the info about him winning 48% of the black vote, get the compliments given to him by Tavis Smiley, on his radio show, and get all of that information out to the masses as best we can.

Huckabee and Huck's Army have the opportunity here, to use the element of surprise in this battle to our advantage. Outsiders will see this as an impossible hill for Huckabee to overtake, but they will be very surprised to see us turn it around for good.

"Overcome evil with good."

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http://www.JimBridenstine.com/
Mike Huckabee Book Store

Mike had nothing to do with the controversy. But that doesn't matter so much. Every time a news story mentions Saltsman, it has to tell the uninformed who the heck he is by mentioning his latest gig - he was the Campaign Manager for Mike Huckabee. And when they report further, they find that Huck endorsed him. Huck had nothing to do with any of this and doesn't deserve this. But that isn't important. The important thing is that they were somewhat close and people start to form questions when people we're associated with get in trouble. I totally agree with DFCSTech's take and advise.



You know, it's true that there are a lot of people who are oversensitive. And it's also true that there are a lot of people who aren't sensitive enough.

I don't consider myself sensitive to "every little thing," but I do recognize when pretty blatant attempts at racial humor - done in a way that laughs at people and not with them - are made. The origination of the "Magic Negro" song are associated not with Chip but with the Rush Limbaugh program. The song concept attracted national news more than a year ago when Rush aired it. Many people were offended by it. Not many people in the media have more joyfully used irreverent and mocking racial humor than Limbaugh. Note: I am not calling Rush a racist - I don't know what's in his heart. But in his public personna, he seems to take pleasure in stepping right up to the line and saying enough to delight those who would like to laugh at groups of people without saying enough to get himself in actual trouble. The joke about Obama and Hillary Clinton, referencing the "spade" and the "hoe" in the garden and repeating it over and over again - even doing it again in the next segment because listeners liked it so much. Talk with double meaning. And it is incredibly foolish to get associated with that - especially if you want to lead a national organization, which is what Chip walked into by distributing it to the RNC world.

I wish I could explain what it's like to hear certain things spoken from within a group that almost entirely excludes people who look like you. As wordy as I am, I need more time than I have to try to do that. But I think it's just easier to know that if something is offensive to a group of people, you're better off not saying it - unless it's something that needs to be said (in which case you just say it anyway, speak the truth in love, and just let things fall where they may).

And I totally stand by what I say that many people in this country, both whites and non-whites, see the Republican Party as a party that is occupied by many racially insensitive people and that isn't inclusive or even desiring to be inclusive. Every time somebody says or does something stupid about race, it reinforces this belief. I stand by my statement that this hurts every Republican and conservative.

But I've grown up around and currently live around people of every group - whites, asians, hispanics, blacks, people of the Jewish faith, Muslims, etc. And I have to say that I just don't find it very hard to not say or do things that offend people. I talk all the time with people who don't look like me and I never worry about offending anybody. It's just not that hard - in fact, it's amazingly simple. If you can, learn something about other groups of people - even better, meet them and get to know them a little. When you see that something that doesn't need to be said really ticks people off, don't go and do likewise. Don't make copies of it and hand it out to your hundred closest friends. And if you do screw up and offend somebody, just apologize immediately and learn from it. Don't try to explain why people shouldn't be offended - you're not them and you don't know how it sounds to them. Just follow this and Presto! You're not in the deep water that Chip has waded into and won't find yourself in it in the future. Simple.

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The Values Voter
http://thevaluesvoter.spaces.live.com

Alas, alas! We feel betrayed by Saltsman. The effort to change how the Republican party is perceived by the black community has received a tremendous blow by the unthinking inclusion of this parody on Barack Obama. I am angry at Rush whenever he plays stuff like this that he thinks is funny, and then for anyone in the Republican Party picking this up and using it. I wonder how many of those who received the CD laughed, and how many cried, like I want to.

Also, I was hoping Chip would be the one to help Gov. Huckabee win the Presidential race in 2012, but I would suspect that job will not be his, either.

Chip, what have you done?

Now, I will have to call our State Republican Chair and ask him NOT to vote for Saltsman. I just pray this will not cause irreparable damage! Unlike Saltsman, Blackwell is sounding better and better with his campaign to be RNC Chair.

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I like your option #3. This will certainly bring to a head the very problem with the black community that the Republican Party needs to face. Here is Gov. Huckabee's opportunity, as well as ours!

Here is my plan

Mike Huckabee invites the Arkansas pastors on his Huckabee show (the ones who supported his campaign so vocally) and he apologizes and explains his real feelings. Something like this:

"I am so grateful to have each of you come on my program this evening for the purpose of getting something straight. I want you to know that I will be eternally thankful to you for your support of my campaign, but I also want to apologize for what was a most inappropriate and unfortunate gaff by my former campaign manager. I know Chip well, and realize that the song on the CD he sent out to the the RNC electors was not a reflection of the man I came to know on the campaign trail. Unfortunately now, I am having to distance myself from Chip Saltsman on this issue, although knowing him as I do, I know he has no real prejudice and was only using a cheap joke about Obama. I have even been accused of making a stupid joke that was taken wrongly as racial in the past, which I never meant it to be.

"It is with deep sorrow and regret that I must say, there is no excuse for joking about something so serious. As Americans, and especially some conservatives in the media, we need to put a stop to this kind of joke. As you know, I have worked very hard to repair the damage that racial slurs and racial prejudice have caused. I was the only Republican Candidate to participate in the presidential debate held by the ------(justgrace forgot name -- also he could list other examples of outreach to the black community and show video of him participating). Often I have told crowds that it is not the color of the skin but the content of the heart that matters.

"Now, I am coming humbly before you, some of the most outstanding black leaders in the Arkansas I ever had the honor to know, to ask for forgiveness, for understanding, and for guidance in how we may find reconciliation.

"As you know, the Republican Party of which I have been an active participant, was the Party of Lincoln. It's very founding was based on the rights of the black people to be freed from slavery and given full citizenship. With all my heart, I want to work to achieve a color-blind party and a color-blind America.

"Thank you for your past support, and I ask you to help me turn our country now in the right direction, so that racial slurs will no longer be considered "funny" and no segment of our population will be ignored. I appreciate how the black conservatives in California voted against overturning traditional marriage law. We need you in the Republican Party if we hope to survive and bring America back to the traditional values that will heal our nation's economic and social woes. " [end of Huckabee's speech as justgrace imagines it]

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