Jesse Jackson reduced to a parody of himself
Jesse Jackson
Pat Buchanan
Pat Buchanan, who made credible runs for the GOP presidential nomination in 1992 and 1996, has long since ceased to be a force in the conservative movement. His appeals to racial resentment became a little too transparent, and his need for the spotlight drove him to say and do things that embarrassed his party. In recent years, Buchanan has been quoted and cited far more often by liberals, who cast him as a convenient if outdated caricature of the right, than by those on the right who used to support him.
Buchanan has a close counterpart on the left: Jesse Jackson. Three years younger than Buchanan, Jackson also ran credible campaigns for his party’s nomination. He too has been left behind by changing times, with his own appeals to racial resentment increasingly rejected by those who once turned to him for leadership and inspiration.
Over the last 15 to 20 years, Jackson has allowed himself to become the conservatives’ favorite black man, the political figure who too often parodies the causes he once effectively championed. His decline is his own damn fault, but like Buchanan, his need for the spotlight, to be seen as still relevant, drives him to say and do stupid things anyway. And out of respect for his past accomplishments, a lot of people on the left have been reluctant to call him on it.
Jackson’s most recent outburst — his statement last night in a public forum that “You can’t vote against health care and call yourself a black man” — will no doubt be seized upon by conservative critics, and understandably so. It’s an insulting and pretty stupid comment, an acid flashback to the ’60s that tries to make a policy issue a test of racial loyalty.
The target of Jackson’s attack, U.S. Rep. Artur Davis, a Democrat from Alabama, responded well:
“One of the reasons that I like and admire Rev. Jesse Jackson is that 21 years ago he inspired the idea that a black politician would not be judged simply as a black leader. The best way to honor Rev. Jackson’s legacy is to decline to engage in an argument with him that begins and ends with race.”
The transition from raging lion to aging lion can be difficult, and Jackson has not handled it with grace.
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66 comments Add your comment
Midori
November 19th, 2009
11:44 am
first!!
Angry Black Man
November 19th, 2009
11:45 am
Tee hee hee. The Lukovitch drawing of him in the squirrels sums it up for me. Sometimes it’s best just to fade to the back and enjoy the rest and relaxation.
md
November 19th, 2009
11:45 am
Jackson has made his living on the race issue, it is all he knows. Instead of political fear mongering, he does it with race.
Doggone/GA
November 19th, 2009
11:49 am
Somehow this seems appropriate: (about Doctors) a General Practitioner treats what you have. A Specialist thinks you have what he treats.
Normal
November 19th, 2009
11:49 am
ABM, got a letter from the White House today, posted it downstairs
with my reply in the China Clinton post…you decide…
Normal
November 19th, 2009
11:51 am
Jesse, Jesse, Jesse…I did believe in your “Rainbow Coalition”, though.
Angry Black Man
November 19th, 2009
11:52 am
Normal
I read it. Keep writing until you get a response from the man himself. That’s what I would do.
Here’s the Link to luckovich’s drawing of Jackson that comes to mind every time I hear someone talk about him.
http://projects.ajc.com/gallery/view/opinion/luckovich2008/
Doggone/GA
November 19th, 2009
11:54 am
ABM…the drawing that comes up on that link is of John Lewis
stands for decibels
November 19th, 2009
11:56 am
See, if instead he’d said “If you vote against health care, I’ll call you everything but a black man,” he could’ve gotten his point across AND a laugh.
stands for decibels
November 19th, 2009
11:59 am
ABM, one has to do a lotta scrolling from your link to find that ‘toon.
Here’s a link to the image:
http://alt.coxnewsweb.com/cnishared/tools/shared/mediahub/03/43/90/slideshow_890433_11luck2008.jpg
getalife
November 19th, 2009
12:00 pm
The racers say outrageous things to get media attention.
Midori
November 19th, 2009
12:06 pm
Not a good day for Dems – Kerry’s daughter arrested for DUI
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/19/alexandra-kerry-dui-john_n_363721.html
Brad Steel
November 19th, 2009
12:06 pm
Palin, Limbaugh, Bachmann, Glenn Beck and the current faces of the republican party are better examples of anachronistic conservative leadership than Buchanan.
You don’t need to go back 20 years to find republican leaders with out-dated stupid dogma.
Jesse Jackson’s and Al Sharpton’s leadership was becoming tired 15 years ago too. Today they both are kind of like tired old geezers who sole source of self-validation is complaining about the gov’ment.
They should get more time on AM radio or join the complaining geezers at a tea party.
Angry Black Man
November 19th, 2009
12:09 pm
Darned links. The photo is from 7/11/08. It’s down on the second or third row in the gallery
Angry Black Man
November 19th, 2009
12:18 pm
sfd
Thanks. Was trying to find a direct link to it. I had coke up my nose the first time I saw it. I have that one at home. Can’t decide if I want to frame it or laminate it.
Normal
November 19th, 2009
12:19 pm
ahem…Je t’en prie…por nada…do itashi mashite…bu’ keqi.
The last one, I’m not sure of.
Doggone/GA
November 19th, 2009
12:19 pm
“I had coke up my nose the first time I saw it”
ABM…Might want to reword this one!
The American People
November 19th, 2009
12:20 pm
Where is Jackson and Sharpton protesting the fact that a man was beaten up at an SEIU 1000 meeting for excercising his American right of free speach? A public meeting where he was trying to get them to stop spending tens of thousands of dollars on a political campaign which they have no right to do. Maybe it is because Ken Hamidi is a white man? I am sure if a black man was beaten up at public meeting by 4 white men it would be all over the news, but the SEIU and their best pal Obama are trying to sweep this one under the rug and continue the corruption.
Normal
November 19th, 2009
12:20 pm
Jay, I brought my 10:40 downstairs up here. I still want to know why it was moderated. PLUUUEESSSEE???
Hard Right Hook
November 19th, 2009
12:23 pm
Ever since Rev Jesse got caught lying about his place at the MLK assasination, he’s had zero credibility. Along with his buddy Rev Al & the Tawana Brawley incident, the two are cretins of the highest order.
I Report (-: You Whine )-: mmm, mmmm, mmmmm!
November 19th, 2009
12:25 pm
It used to work so well.
Midori
November 19th, 2009
12:33 pm
one of my favorite SNL skits
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPxPciXcJvc
Normal
November 19th, 2009
12:34 pm
21 posts and we seem to have worn this one out…might as well move on, Jay isn’t being informative today…
Angry Black Man
November 19th, 2009
12:39 pm
Doggone
Oops. Coca Cola-the liquid kind. I didn’t catch that.
ROLLERGIRL
November 19th, 2009
12:42 pm
I do not LIKE green eggs and Ham..
I DO NOT like them, SAM…I ..AM
Truth
November 19th, 2009
12:47 pm
Why in the world did Jay bring up Pat Buchanan? Absurd move by another Red Sox nation loser.
Normal
November 19th, 2009
12:54 pm
Off topic, of course, but…the new Senate Healthcare Version…
http://www.thenation.com/blogs/thebeat/498754/senate_health_bill_rejects_anti_choice_extremes
I Report (-: You Whine )-: mmm, mmmm, mmmmm!
November 19th, 2009
12:59 pm
Obozo arrived on the base 3:19 p.m. local time (1 a.m. Eastern Standard Time) and received a rousing welcome from 1,500 troops in camouflage uniforms, many holding cameras or pointing cell phones to snap pictures.
“You guys make a pretty good photo op,” the president said.
About the only thing he is really concerned with.
Normal
November 19th, 2009
1:06 pm
If you haven’t seen this…get ready to
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20091130/dobbs_video
Normal
November 19th, 2009
1:10 pm
Whiner, I have to agree with you here…did I feel the earth trwmble?
I popped my cork when he said he would not put the troops in harms way for nothing and if he had to he would back them to the hilt. We can’t properly support our troops already in the field and he’s making more promises. He will stand behind them though, of that I am sure. He will, like all politicians, stand so far behind them, he will be in another time zone.
Jack
November 19th, 2009
1:13 pm
Buchanan & Jackson are smokescreens because he doesn’t want to talk about Obama.
Midori
November 19th, 2009
1:13 pm
here’s another funny SNL Jessie skit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNz5XnvZHhk
Boogers for the Children Fund
November 19th, 2009
1:18 pm
“an acid flashback”
Hmmm…Ive had a few of those…I think!??
Boogers for the Children Fund
November 19th, 2009
1:24 pm
Jackson and his henchmen, Shankton, Useless Lower, Maxine “Mean” Waters, Billy “McNasty” McKinney etc, have been hypocrits and liars from day one promoting hatred, bigotry and single-mindedness.
James Brown…now there is a leader in which one could believe.
Jimmy Carter
November 19th, 2009
1:24 pm
“Reduced” to a parody? He’s been a joke since 1984 with his “Hymie Town” remark. Good riddance to his brand of “leadership”.
Question
November 19th, 2009
1:25 pm
Unfortunately the MSM will not take Jesse to task on his comments — always the pass and double standard. Same PC fear which likely contributed to Ft. Hood…
Rant
November 19th, 2009
1:26 pm
And while we on topic — why the need for the CBC????
Mrs. Godzilla
November 19th, 2009
1:33 pm
Midori
Not a real good day for Reps either
Lugars wife git arrested for a DUI too!!
(
Mrs. Godzilla
November 19th, 2009
1:33 pm
got got got
@@
November 19th, 2009
1:40 pm
Posted this at Kyle’s by mistake.
jay:
I don’t see much difference between Jackson’s comment and those offered up by your liberal contributors. Whenever black conservatives are put forth, they call them Uncle Toms.
“We even have blacks voting against the healthcare bill,” Jackson said at a reception Wednesday night. “You can’t vote against healthcare and call yourself a black man.”
Nope! Not much difference in my view.
Jimmy Carter
November 19th, 2009
1:42 pm
The American People
November 19th, 2009
12:20 pm
Interesting. Here’s a link if anyone else wants to read it:
http://cbs13.com/local/hamidi.seiu.beating.2.1297874.html
This article didn’t say anything about his attackers being black. That being said, if the were black, would this fall under the “hate crime” scenario that so many seem to endorse?
Jimmy Carter
November 19th, 2009
1:47 pm
Oops. The details in this article paint an even bleaker picture:
http://biggovernment.com/2009/11/17/seius-targeted-townhall-violence-you-started-it-and-now-you-dont-like-it/#more-32226
sam
November 19th, 2009
1:51 pm
abm…i’ll be right over
Midori
November 19th, 2009
1:51 pm
really Mrs. G?
LOL!!!
Paul
November 19th, 2009
1:53 pm
The overlooked story here is Rep. Artur Davis. If his response is typical of how he conducts himself, he’s one classy person.
Brad Steel
[[Glenn Beck and the current faces of the republican party ]]
One.. more… time… Beck’s a Libertarian. Not a Republican. Not a Democrat. In many ways Libertarians aren’t even conservative.
L-i-b-e-r-t-a-r-i-a-n.
Just read through the rest of the posts. What, no comments about a hyprocritical conservative-religious political figure who preaches family values while committing adultery and having kids out of wedlock? Who calls himself ‘Reverend’ no less?
Later -
Paul
November 19th, 2009
1:53 pm
Hi Midori!!
Bye Midori!!
sam
November 19th, 2009
1:54 pm
the sad thing about jj is he had potential to do great things. but while he has been asking america to change over the past 45 years (which it has), his attitude towards white folks (and jews) has not changed at all..
Jimmy Carter
November 19th, 2009
1:56 pm
sam
November 19th, 2009
1:54 pm
You are right, sam I am (see Midori’s link above).
Jimmy Carter
November 19th, 2009
1:56 pm
Paul
November 19th, 2009
1:53 pm
Are you referring to Jesse “tragedy pimp” Jackson or Evander Holyfield?
Jackie
November 19th, 2009
1:57 pm
Jesse Jackson is no longer as politically powerful as he once was. It is time for him to fade to the background and allow some of the younger faces and ideas come to the front.
Regardless of what one thinks of him, his policy of pointing out the injustice that is still prevalent in society, still requires a spokesperson.