The Atlantic’s Elspeth Reeve has decided that E.W. Jackson is a puppet for white racists who use him to spout their coded messages of hate against people of color. In a speech where Jackson railed against the toll the welfare state exacted on black families, Reeve picks up her ball and runs as far as she can with it:
You can’t say the n-word anymore, GOP strategist Lee Atwater famously explained, but you can say you want to cut welfare, and racist whites will know what you’re talking about. Think of this slavery-wasn’t-all-bad theory as having evolved to counter that: It’s not cutting welfare that’s racist — welfare itself is racist!
We can only wonder, then, when Reeve will roast the 1965 Moynihan Report. But perhaps she will leave that for Al Sharpton to do. Again.
Reeve isn’t quite done with Jackson yet:
Jackson urged listeners not to depend on government for freedom, but on faith. “We are founded on the principle of truth that our rights, our freedoms do not come from a government, a king, a president, a potentate… They came from almighty God; they come from our creator. And even while slavery still existed in this nation those words resonated in the consciences of the American people.” That’s a nice added touch — even during slavery people weren’t that racist!
One can only hope Reeve had installed a safety net before making that leap. No matter. Reeve and her ilk are convinced that Jackson is little more than a George Wallace in black face because he dares to believe that welfare made things worse for minorities. And because he believes that government does not give us our inalienable rights, but rather is charged with protecting them, he’s twice the fool.
Look for even more of this sort of material to appear as the campaign wears on.
