Do we have any black Democratic governors?

[doubles]

Please don't tell me Bobby Jindal might be the only brown skin Governor in these United States...... Shame on us if that's the case. We should be setting this standard!

[Some Moran]

1. Sadly...

Most Blacks live in the South. Most Whites who hate Blacks also live in the South...

[Syrinx]

3. Since Northern whites are less racist...

Surely there must be a black governor in the north. Not.

on edit: left out an important word

[FDRrocks]

22. I don't think its less rascist...

just more subtle. Trust me, its very prevalent here in PA.

[Some Moran]

26. I'd imagine so...

I freepin' live near Ottawa and Montreal, 2 of the most liberal cities in the world, and I STILL hear countless slurs against gays and Pakistanis.

I may dislike most of Taiwan's Mainlander population and South Africa's Boers, but it's more in the same way that I dislike Republicans than out of any racial issues...lol

[Syrinx]

2. I think Wilder in Virginia was the last one

[Sean Reynolds]

5. And first...oh, and only.

[Gulf Coast J]

48. But the south is racist...

How could a southern state elect a black governor? That doesn't make any sense at all.

[amazona]

4. Jindal is not black

He has very dark skin but I can assure you that an Indian is not considered a black man here in Louisiana. It is not based on color. Dutch Morial, New Orleans' first "black" mayor, had whiter skin than many members of my "white" family. Being black is a matter of family and historical background, not just color.

My impression of Jindal, admittedly only seeing him once, is that he is a nervous person younger than his years, picked because he can be easily controlled by Mike Foster, yes, Mike Foster, the David Duke supporter who bought Duke's mailing list and who paid Duke's fine. Anyone who thinks that putting Jindal in the Governor's mansion will help any minority is living in a dream world, and yes I include certain a black Democratic politician who should damn well know better. Since it appears likely he will win, I hope I am wrong, but I think he is just a Mike Foster hand puppet. How does writing a bunch of term papers make you qualified to govern the state?

Oh well...another 8 years of keeping it legal to drive without your motorcycle helmet...while the state washes away into the sea! I'm told Jindal is actually very concerned about coastal erosion and wrote a term paper on it once, lol!

[doubles]

6. I know he is not black but we as Democrats should be the ones

making the leadership in this country more diverse and colorful, we claim to be the party of inclusion but our actions don't always follow our words.

[amazona]

7. well, there's more to the story in Louisiana

"We" are not the ones who took pictures of Cleo Fields and made him an unindicted co-conpirator in the Edwin Edwards affair. For that matter, "we" are not the ones who spent two decades bringing Edwards to trial after trial and basically persecuting the hell out of the one of the better governors we've ever had. I hate to fall back on the "pink tutu Democrats" thing, but the problem is, the Democrats sat back and let these constant persecutions go on, instead of getting on the attack and putting Mike Foster in prison for his part in David Duke's crimes. Thereby putting ourselves in a position where the GOP governor can handpick a successor while the former Democratic governor can't do the same. I would vote for Fields in a minute but the fact is, he is dead in the water as a candidate because Democrats are held to higher standards. You can't do business in this state without money changing hands, but if the GOP does it, it's OK...if a Democrat does it, then there's something to be held over his head. How do you fight that? And since most black politicians in Louisiana are Democrats concentrated in the New Orleans area, well, you see the problem.

[_Jumper_]

8. I agree 100%

:kick:

[Isome]

10. Being Black isn't a crime...

But, the post didn't try to suggest that he (Jindal) was; it asked if he was the only brown skinned governor.

[fujiyama]

12. From what I heard

he seems pretty intelligent and did much better than Blanco in the debates. He definetely has an impressive resume and is quite accomplished at such a young age.

That said, his politics suck. Apparently his tenure on that medicare board resulted in many people losing their health benefits, unemplyment, etc. He also seems to be the usual right wing religious nut job.

[_Jumper_]

13. He was a Rhodes Scholar

He certainly is intelligent.

In the debate he spoke a bit too fast but he did show a great command of the details of issues. That being said, he is still a right-wing extremist.

[Isome]

9. What about...

Governor of the US Virgin Islands — Charles W. Turnbull. I don't know if he's still in office.

[_Jumper_]

11. Are blacks a minority there?

?

[Isome]

14. Uhhh... errrr... no, they're the majority.

Like the world's general demographics, all the shades between (and including) black and brown make up the majority. Whites are about 15% of the population.

[_Jumper_]

16. Then he shouldn't count for the purposes of this thread IMO

Having a "minority" who is a member of the majority among his or her electorate shouldn't count as a victory for racial progress. Blacks voting for blacks, or Hispanics voting for Hispanics, is essentially the same as whites voting for whites.

The point of this thread is why has the Democratic Party not run the most qualified candidate for top political offices? Why are whites run in white areas, blacks in black areas, and Hispanics in Hispanic areas? The Republicans are running a minority in a close election for the governorship. Why cannot the Democratic Party, which has a far larger pool of qualified minority candidates and a more tolerant voter base?

[doubles]

24. Exactamundo!!! nt

[Michael Harrington]

17. Hence...

Malcolm's "The End of World Wide White Rule." He was counting Asians and Hispanics.

[doubles]

23. IS the US Virgin Islands one of the 50 states?

[Michael Harrington]

15. The Republicans have a good system going.

Any African American who is a Democrat gets the Cynthia McKinney treatment, and is portrayed as a captive of the dreaded Special Interests (like Irving Howe used to say "As if Exxon and Hispanics were equally compared."). If they nominate one, (s)he is a brave, conscientius soul who's charting their own path. It's a no lose for them. They either: get a tool elected, get to claim to be diverse (like those quadrennial dog-and-pony shows they do for their conventions, when all 36 women, blacks and hispanics in their party get on in prime time and Trent Lott stays off camera.), or their candidate is so foolish (Chuck Robb's Senate opponent in 1988 Maurice Dawkins, who was such an ass I almost felt sorry for him) that it confirms their base's stereotypes and they all get a robust giggle behind the scenes. The whole scheme is nearly foolproof.

[_Jumper_]

18. How much more diverse is the DP where it really counts?

How many Democratic governors or members of Congress are minorities in their district or state? The number is very close to the GOP number...

[Michael Harrington]

19. Most white people

Are still reluctant to vote for non-whites. It's unfortunate but undeniable.

[_Jumper_]

20. Most?

So how do you explain Jindal, J.C. Watts, Mosley-Braun, Edward Brooke, Gary Locke, and the black congressman from a district that is over 90% white from New England(I don't know if he still is in Congress, but I recall that he was elected in the 90's)? I've heard that Jindal has a 30 point lead among white males in LA.

How many Democratic members of congress where elected from districts where "their people" were not the largest group??

[Isome]

21. With the exception of Jindal (who we know now is BROWN not Black)...

You're pointing out people who weren't elected from a statewide vote, but from a "district" vote. When it's all said and done, if there wasn't a reticence to vote for a person of color, there'd be more of them heading up state government.

Harrington's thoughts echo my own. Democrats have yet to find the spine to defend others when they're under attack; they've just found one to defend themselves individually, so there isn't much to spare. Before Cynthia McKinney, there was Alcee Hastings. He went to hell, and came back to give 'em hell! But he traveled that path alone, without the support of the party. Mayor Street of Philadelphia, from what I know, didn't receive much support from the party when his office was bugged and he made it public. Tom Bradley didn't die of a heart attack, I think he died of a broken heart. After all he did, and the praise he received, his bid for statewide office fell flat.

When the general public sees one of us twisting in the wind alone, their rightful impression is that this person doesn't inspire the support of his/her own party, he/she can't possibly be capable of governing an entire state, which requires inspiring, at a minimum, the cooperation of politicians outside of his/her party.

There's a song I remember from the 70's, it could be older but my memory only goes back that far, and it should be played as a reminder to Democrats. The pertinent lines in the song are:

United we stand, divided we fall.
And if our backs should ever be against the wall
We'll be together...

[dsc]

28. Just how much more support

should Street have gotten? All of the following campaigned for him. Bill Clinton, Al Gore, Howard Dean, John Kerry, and Ed Rendell.

[noiretextatique]

29. bradley's loss was heartbreaking

and a shame.

[doubles]

31. Amazing how those whimps ran from Cynthia Mc Kinney, a disgrace! nt

[_Jumper_]

33. So what?

He said whites would simply not vote for non-whites. He didn't limit his statement to statewide offices. Let's look at statewide races for argument's sake. If MOST whites are not willing to vote for non-whites how do you explain Gary Locke, Jindal, Mosley-Braun, and Edward Brooke?

" When it's all said and done, if there wasn't a reticence to vote for a person of color, there'd be more of them heading up state government."

They are not being run in the first place. Obviously, race is a disadvantage but it is clear that the vast majority of people, even Southern Republicans, will vote based on a candidate's platform and not their skin color.

[Isome]

41. What in the world do you mean... so what?

I explained that from my perspective. To do so again is a waste of energy. You may repeat your list, but you're ignoring Bradley's election flop.

If you think white people are willing to vote for people of African descent, who look so very different with their brown to dark brown skin, you're sadly mistaken. It would be great if the public cared only about the issues, but a cursory look around DU will handily put that bit of idealism right out of your head.

The physical appearance of a visonary like Kucinich, as generically white as he appears to me, is the first thing many commented on, without knowing his platform. "Electability", the word of the '04 election, is often synonymous with both physical appeal and the creative ways a candidate regurgitates meaningless pap for public consumption.

But, again, if you've somehow deluded yourself into believing that skin color isn't an issue for the majority of Americans, enjoy your delusions. They should make you very happy.

There's a guy named Solomons who took the drug Psorlin to make his skin dark, back in the mid to late 90's, and repeated the Griffin experiment. He couldn't take it, just like Griffin. White people are still prone to stigmatizing dark skin color and heaping as much quiet scorn and contempt on the individual wearing that skin as possible. They may claim not to do it, but even a white man like Solomons couldn't deny it when experiencing it firsthand. If just being a private citizen going about your daily life with dark skin garners a negative reaction from caucasians, you have to know that running for elected office won't be much better. Many smiling faces tell lies.

.::.Solomons' Interview.::.

[_Jumper_]

44. I am shocked

I am not black but I am a minority so I thought that blacks were not treated much worse than "my group." I will start another thread about this topic.

BTW, my title was in response to your argument that the fact that msot of the candidates I mentioned were not elected to statewide office. I apologize for my lack of clarity.

[bleedingheart]

25. Jindal talks and walks the right wing squak...

so the white guys who are voting for him...think he is a puppet for some other white guy...that's my guess.

There are Indian Democrats who are sending him money because of the ethnic pride issue...even though they don't agree with him on issues...to that I say WTF?

[_Jumper_]

34. So what if he is a right-wing?

If Republicans will elect a conservative of a different color why can't Democrats elect a liberal of a different color?

What are the numbers for support for Jindal from Indian-Americans? I suspect that is overstated. Indians are socially conservative and a very affluent group. They are natural Republicans so if they move to the GOP it will not be surprising. The only thing the Democratic Party offers them is marginally more tolerance.

[doubles]

42. Maybe its an illusion that we are less racist than the Repugs.....

"If Republicans will elect a conservative of a different color why can't Democrats elect a liberal of a different color?"

Maybe its an illusion that we are less racist than the Repugs.....

Yeah, we continue talking the talk but never walk the walk. We should be ashamed of ourselves for allowing Repugs to steal our thunder. Racism is a subconscious thing, and judging from the amount of members here who called Sharpton names for rightfully calling Dean on his latest flag flop, I really wonder which party minorities should call home!

[_Jumper_]

45. Locke and Mosley-Braun are Democrats

The DP is clearly less racist than the GOP but what this may indicate is that when push comes to shove their is not a major gap in racism between the two parties.

[liberalpragmatist]

47. Actually...

as an Indian-American du'er, I can attest to the fact that Indian-Americans are overwhelmingly Democrats. They're quite well off and entreprenurial, but coming from poor backgrounds and a country where poverty is a huge issue, they tend to support social justice and higher social spending as long as small-business can thrive. They're also usually more supportive of Democrats b/c India and the US have generally had a much better relationship under Democrats than under Republicans. Don't forget that Indian-Americans are highly educated, and even if they are close to the upper-class (highest average income of any US ethnic group, nearly twice that of Whites). As Teixiera and Judis have shown, college-educated professionals are becoming overwhelmingly Democratic.

It is true that the first-generation Indians are quite socially-conservative, esp. on sexual issues. But these usually don't figure into their voting choice. The religious right scares them, and they strongly dislike Republican and Neocon economics. They also have a strong concern for Civil Liberties and the racists in the GOP scare them too.

Second-Generation Indian-Americans are even more liberal. Almost none of the Indian-Americans i know is a Republican, though some are more centrist. Most are quite liberal, especially b/c they're very well-educated and strongly identify with non-Whites. Plus, on social issues, 2nd-generation Indians are also quite liberal, generally being silent about but accepting of and partaking in premarital sex.

Saying Indian-Americans are natural Republicans is Grover Norquist's alternate reality.

[noiretextatique]

30. i recall a study once about this

it was about how stated preferences for certain candidates differed from actual votes for said candidates. in other words: people lie about their willingness to vote for certain candidates.
people like Watts are a totally different breed...different rules apply to rw candidates.

[_Jumper_]

35. That is true

That is why the poll numbers mean little in this race. Probably 5-6% of people are racists who are claiming they will vote for Jindal and there is probably an equal amount of sexists who are claiming they will vote for Blanco.

Why should different rules apply to right-wing candidates? He was elected in a virtually all-white district (I think it is 97% white). He fought for their values and they elected him. Why can't Democrats elect someone of a different color who will fight for their values?

[dsc]

32. Some answers

JC Watts was a football star. Had he not been he wouldn't have been elected dog catcher. CMB won a very narrow victory in a three way primary. Then she faced bozo the clown in the general election. Dixon was supposed to be unbeatable and the Republican's had no decent candidate. Had the Republicans had a decent candidate she may well have lost that race. Gary Locke is Asian and for many people that is very different. My mom would have skinned me alive for dating a black woman but when I told her I was dating an Asian one she was cool with it. Brooke was DA of Boston and convicted the Boston Strangler. I would imagine that helped him immensely in the race for the Senate. As it was he was a one term Senator. Don't know how Franks did it.

[_Jumper_]

36. Response

"JC Watts was a football star. Had he not been he wouldn't have been elected dog catcher. "

Similar things can be said about Steve Largent, Jack Kemp, and Jim Bunning.

"CMB won a very narrow victory in a three way primary. Then she faced bozo the clown in the general election."

She was still able to win enough white votes to be elected. If we closely looked at each race we'd find many races where a candidate "lucked" into a win.

"Gary Locke is Asian and for many people that is very different. My mom would have skinned me alive for dating a black woman but when I told her I was dating an Asian one she was cool with it."

There are two sides to that coin. Many people do not consider Asians "real Americans", while everyone except the KKK crowd accepts blacks as Americans.

"Brooke was DA of Boston and convicted the Boston Strangler. I would imagine that helped him immensely in the race for the Senate. "

A lot of politicians have used their tenure as DA as a launching pad to high-ranking political offices.

He was elected twice I believe. I think he resigned or lost because of a scandal.

[dsc]

40. Responses

Yes bad white politicans can be helped by football too. Look at how poorly Largent did in his run for Governor and you can see what being a football star actually did for him.

CMB won her primary with virtually nothing but black votes. In the general election she was able to win by playing on gender and getting white women to vote for her. As it was she very narrowly won a race that should have been a cakewalk.

Asian is different. Even the racial stereotypes are beneficial to them in that they are thought to be smarter which is a good thing. It is no accident that California also has had statewide elected Asians. Look at Jindal in Louisiana.

Yes many mediocrities have been elected to office after winning big cases (my current Congressman is a perfect example) but when you have to count on these types of things to barely win that is a major problem.

[_Jumper_]

46. "Asian is different"

That is valid point. As long as we convince them that we are loyal Americans we are for the most part okay.

[Gulf Coast J]

49. Lee Brown in Houston

Houston has more hispanics and whites than blacks, but Brown would be mayor forever if not for term limits.

[Michael Harrington]

52. Well...

White Republicans will jump at the chance to "prove" they're not racist by locking on to an individual candidate who is safely right wing (Jindal, Watts, Alan Keyes.) That doesn't really mean all that much. Mosley-Braun had Limbaugh on her case from the day she took office. Brooke was a liberal northeasterner. I'm surprised there haven't been more like him.

And I wrote "reluctant", not "unwilling". Sometimes, they can convince a majority to give them a shot (Douglas Wilder, for example, who was able to beat Coleman in the last days of their campaign by playing up Coleman's anti-abortion pandering, which was somewhat out of his usual groove, and eventually cost him the election.) But for the most part, the Democratic Party has been so demonized to white voters as being beholden to African Americans, that they try to overcome that stereotype by nominating people who they think will pass muster with angry white people, which almost never works.

[doubles]

53. Say it again Jumper!

[funkyflathead]

27. Carl McCall or did he lose? n/t

[_Jumper_]

37. He lost--badly

That was not a contested race. He was a sacrificial lamb.

[Monte Carlo]

38. No, he lost. He lost badly.

New York got to enjoy Pataki for another 4 years.

[IronLionZion]

43. no, Pataki beat him in a landslide

Sep. 11 helped Pataki and rapper LL Cool J endorsed him

There was no way to beat him

[Zomby Woof]

39. don't forget Gary Locke of WA

The first governor of Chinese descent.

[gulliver]

50. I don't know, but we do have a "black" SCOTUS justice ...

and don't we progressives love him!

It's about policies not race or numbers. The sad fact is that the Dems stand behind blacks and other minorities who run on policies attractive to those minorities while the Republicans use race merely as a divisive tool. The Dems support minority policy; the Republicans don't.

[Gulf Coast J]

51. The LG of Maryland is black

Robert Steele. Not quite governor, but close.

[mndemocrat_29]

54. In Minnesota

Gregory Gray ran in 2002 for the State Auditor's nomination in 2002, but lost in a squeaker of an election to Carol Johnson. However, this had more to do with Johnson about to lose her job (the position of State Treasurer was eliminated).

Gray will probably be a frontrunner in 2006, however, unless Rebecca Yanisch runs. Awada is unpopular, so Gray could sneak in, particularly in a good Democratic year (which 2006 is shaping up to be in Minnesota).