Yes, our Establishment press is this bad

Among the many impoverished elements of our "public discourse", such as it is, not the least impoverished of them is the discussion of race. Lance Manion, writing on How would Jesus vote? 08/16/07, says something that's accurate and important. But our Big Pundits tiptoe around it if they take notice of it at all:

Meanwhile, the evangelicals have allowed themselves to be used as tools for the Republicans' Southern Strategy, which has always been racist not religious. Piety is just the mask for the the racial animus of a great many white male voters.

The racism that has undergirded Republican victories for the last four decades has never figured in Beltway Insiders' analysis of the political scene. Republican Presidential candidates make the pilgrimage to Bob Jones University every four years because they like the food in the dorm cafeterias. (my emphasis)

Josh Marshall also just had a "hey, how stupid is this?" moment:

For about two centuries it was widely understood that being black at all was a disqualifying qualification for being elected president. So why don't more people see at as more than vaguely nauseating that the first black candidate for president with a realistic chance of getting the job is continually asked if he's black enough?

Good question.

Tags: establishment press, mainstream media, mainstream press, race