Democrats Plan for Michael Steele--Insults and Race Attacks

A few weeks ago, The Washington Times ran a piece citing a plan by Maryland and national Democratic leaders to knock Maryland Republican Senate candidate Michael Steele down. Citing a poll of 500 black voters, the Washington Times notes that Democrats see

an "emerging black swing" voting bloc in Maryland.

Democratic pollster and consultant Cornell Belcher's survey calls Mr. Steele a "unique threat," and says he and Mr. Ehrlich "have a clear ability to break through the Democratic stronghold among African-American voters in Maryland."

The poll says Democrats cannot afford to wait until the fall "to knock Steele down" and their goal should be to link Mr. Steele to President Bush and national Republicans, turning Mr. Steele "into a typical Republican in the eyes of voters, as opposed to an African-American candidate."

What is interesting is that one of the sharpest critics of this game plan is former Prince Georges County Executive Wayne Curry. Prince Georges is the county with the largest black population outside of Baltimore. Curry, a Democrat, is rumored to be on the short list of possible running mates for Republican Governor Bob Ehrlich, now that Steele is running for the Senate. According to the Wa Times story

Mr. Curry said the Democratic Party has not supported the only black Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate -- Kweisi Mfume, former president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

"When they get a chance to raise up, instead of doing that, they tear down," Mr. Curry said.

Curry, who by the way is black, noted that

Mr. Steele's campaign is "not just about personality. It's about who's going to help you obtain the tools to make your life better."

Yesterday, in Real Clear Politics, Gregory Kane said that Democrats attack Steele at their own peril.

In November of last year the Washington Times ran a story in which several black Maryland Democrats claimed Steele "does not share the same political policies and values as most African-Americans," according to a Nov. 4, 2005 article in the Baltimore Sun.

It was the "Oreo cookie" incident all over again, only more refined. The implication was that Steele, while black on the outside, was still as white as Oreo cookie icing on the inside.

What those black Maryland Democrats meant was that Steele doesn't share the same political policies and values of most black Maryland Democrats, who are out of step with large numbers of black Americans on a variety of issues.

Take vouchers and school choice. Some polls show many blacks are for both, but you'd be hard pressed to find a black Maryland Democrat in public office who feels the same way. There are also many blacks who oppose abortion, as Steele does. Add to those blacks who oppose abortion in all instances, those who don't support publicly-funded abortions or abortions for minors without parental consent and you probably have a majority of blacks.

The fact that the overwhelming majority of Maryland's black Democratic leaders oppose the death penalty doesn't support their contention that Steele is not in accord with their policies and values. As a devout Catholic, Steele is opposed to the death penalty too.

There is a certain amount of fear in the Democratic party that their grip on the state of Maryland is failing. Governor Ehrlich won the state house with a strong get out the vote drive (and a really bad Democratic candidate). But when even the Washington Post thinks the Maryland Democratic legislature has lost its mind and acts stupidly, you know that the Democrats are in trouble.

Steele is the kind of person that people look up to. Like Bob Ehrlich, he came from less than affluent parents. Steele has earned all that he has gotten to this point in his life. He learned the value of hard work, of respect for oneself, one's family and one's community, and of leadership. With more black leaders like Steele, and like Wayne Curry, Maryland may be embarking on a new chapter of its political history.

A Steele victory in November will cetainly be another nail in the coffin of the current Maryland Democratic party. My only issue at this point the the Maryland GOP is that I don't think they focus enough time and energy building a bench. There is not the same effort among the GOP to get more local and state legislative offices filled with Republicans, giving a cadre of current officerholders to move up to more positions of leadership in years to come. But that is another story all together.