The angry white men, whose voices were largely silenced by the excitement and pride that greeted Obama’s election last January, are back with a vengeance.*
They are also beginning to cause problems for a Republican party that is eager to capitalise on right-wing revolt against Obama’s supposed liberalism but is also wary of being associated with the hail of frequently racist abuse spilling into debate.
Behind the verbal slapstick of Beck, Rush Limbaugh and Bill O’Reilly lies unease that Obama is changing the face of the United States by shunning white males.
“This has been a country basically built by white folk,” complained Pat Buchanan, a former presidential candidate and key conservative voice, during a television debate. “What is happening to white men right now is exactly what was done to black folk for years.”
Much of the anger has focused on the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor, a Hispanic judge, to the Supreme Court. She once observed that as a “wise Latina” she brought a different perspective to issues. Some conservatives took this to mean that she would be biased against whites.
* While this analysis deals primarily with “conservative” television and radio personalities it would be to ALL our people’s benefit for the British to find the long suffering but angry portion of the European American population and interview them, as opposed to neocon celebrities. Nevertheless, this Times Online piece is a good start. –Ed