It's depressing that the Bushes use people of color to do their worst work

[HamdenRice]

I have no grand theory nor incisive analysis. It's just depressing, as an African American with Puerto Rican family members by marriage, however, to constantly be reminded that some of the worst of the worst of what Bushes do has been done by their appointees who are people of color.

First, Bush-the-First made perhaps the most cynical Supreme Court appointment of all time -- appointing Clarence Thomas, already at that time a confirmed opponent of civil rights enforcement and affirmative action -- as the successor to the first African-American justice, Thurgood Marshall, who was one of the most progressive justices in American history and a founding father of the legal civil rights movement. Thomas has done incalculable damage to the Constitution, to Supreme Court jurisprudence and to the civil rights that Justice Marshall helped secure.

Then Bush-the-First taps the rising General Colin Powell, by all accounts at the time a person with liberal domestic political leanings at the time as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, cementing his fate to the Bush family.

Then Bush-the-Second appoints Condoleeza Rice to be the enabler of a vicious, illegal, militarized unilateral foreign police as National Security Advisor and now Secretary of State. He also managed, by having Powell deliver fake intelligence to the United Nations, shred what was left of the reputation of Colin Powell.

Now we have the spectacle of Alberto Gonzoles, a Latino and a Mexican American from Texas, being revealed to be the worst, most lawless, most incompetent, most craven, and seemingly most out of touch Attorney General in history, at the same time that there is a wrenching debate about Mexican immigration.

Recently there have been a number of posts on DU calling Gonzoles "Speedy." (For those of you who are too young, that's a reference to an old Warner Brothers cartoon character, "Speedy Gonzoles," one of that company's few really offensive cartoon racial stereotypes -- a Mexican mouse-bandito.) Gonzoles, Rice and Thomas have firmly implanted in even progressive minds the meme of "incompetent affirmative action hire," even though they were obviously nowhere near the most qualified minority candidates for their positions -- all while bolstering the idea that the Bushes themselves are not racist and are "comfortable" around people of color.

As I said, I have no theory and no analysis. It's just depressing.

[crikkett]

1. oh, shame, 'speedy' is derogatory and racist.

What a shame - DU is better than that.

[kurth]

2. Bush's little old plantation

The little colored people do all the dirty work and catch all the flak, while W and Uncle Dick sit back and enjoy the show.

[annabanana]

3. I understand the frustration.

I think they deliberately went out of their way to find such wretched examples as point men (& women) for their destructive policies. It served to deflect the old charges (justified) of Republicans as the party of bigotry and protectors of priviledge... And it bought them time (a little) until progressives began to come out loudly against them.

[HamdenRice]

4. Interesting point about the effect on progressives

Initially, it made it difficult for progressives to call them out as "incompetent," because that's a racial code word.

I wonder whether the Bushes are clever enough that this is a deliberate strategy?

[Captain Hilts]

5. The tobacco institute and NRA got women to be their spokesmen. nt

[napi21]

6. I understand they have pushed 3 people of color out front and in the

news, but I really don't think their color has anything to do with they being incompetent, and they sure aren't the ONLY incompetents in this admin! It fact, I'm finding it very difficult to think of ANY people who are GOOD at their job!

I'm really sorry to hear you were offended by the cartoon character Speedy Gonzales. I always liked that little guy, and he always made me smile when that was on TV. Were you also offended by the Frito Bandito? I find that sad. Cartoon characters put humor in a lot of different identities. In fact it's hard to think of a group that hasn't been portrayed.

[RaleighNCDUer]

9. You beat me to in, on both comments.

I almost wonder if they put incompetant minorities in place to cast a bad light on all minorities, then I remember that they are ALL incompetant, and that would require a level of sophisication that is well beyond this administration (we hire bad people for the wrong reasons to make them make us look bad to our ultimate benifit with the racists. ???)

As for Speedy Gonzales, he was always faster (of course) but also smarter and slicker than anyone he came up against, he was always the good guy and he always won. The stereotype was very broadly painted in the accent and characterization, but OTOH it was not truly derogatory any more than any of the other stereotypical types of the day, including Irish, Italian, Jewish characters - real derogatory characterizations were saved for blacks, Japanese and some German. (I am a fan of the Classic Cartoons shown on TMC on Saturday mornings - even tho some of them are outright apalling.)

[ChicagoRonin]

7. Don't forget Elaine Chao

I have to mention W's Secretary of Labor, even though her offenses haven't been as public or dramatic as those others (yet).
I'm Asian - had to get in my digs.

[napi21]

11. Oh my God YES! I'll never forget watching her at a hearing on

new labor laws and their impact on OT for many workers. She didn't answer ONE SINGLE QUESTION! She brought her assistant along, and her response to every question was, "I think Ms. XXXX would be better able to answer you."

I couldn't believe this AH actually had any job, let alone head a Department!

[madrchsod]

8. what would one expect from a...

a doughface white anglo saxon protestant family from new england? after all bab`s has skeleton in her closet...

dam i have to use preview

[Horse with no Name]

10. She sure does

Seems old Bush 41 had incompetent sperm. I wish he would have just used a condom...