There's a discussion about the Republican Party's Sleazy Blonde-Bimbo attack ad and the Ford vs. Corker race over at The Caucus - a blog at the New York Times.
Under a post titled, Tennessee Mud: Of Porn and Substance, readers weigh in on the significance of the dirty RNC ad with views like: 1) the ad is racist 2) the Republican Party is racist 3) Tennessee is racist and the ad is a play to the rampant racism in the state.
There's even a thought or two about the RNC's appeal to classism.
Myself, I don't think the dirty ad creators had much choice about the race of the 'bimbo.' Can you imagine the outcry if they'd painted a black woman with the cheap and tawdry dumb bimbo persona they put on to the white woman? It would have been stark, and not even believable. The stereotypical black woman is strong and in charge. I don't believe I've ever heard a black woman talk in the dumb blond bimbo dialect that this actress does so well. It's more of a white woman thing. Of course, we're talking stereotypes here. That's what the ad is all about, the stereotypes of race, class and sex.
The discussion could use some more Tennesseans. But especially, it could use some more women. In my view, politics in the U.S. stinks so bad because it continues to be a male sport. Even when women get to play in roles other than the bimbo, we play by rules we were not permitted to help create.
Harold Ford is going to be on Chris Matthews' Hardball today. Too bad for me, I have a lot of non-blogging demands lined up for the day, and I can see I'm going to miss a lot. But it should be a good show.
Will Corker summon enough courage to go on Hardball? If so, watch for that smug little holier-than-thou arrogant smirk he seems to wear every time the cameras roll.
Harold Ford Politics Bob Corker Tennessee U.S. Senate Republicans Race, Class, Sex Attack Ads Memphis Black News Race Racism Swiftboating Harold Ford
