All About Race: Maxine Waters and Charlie Rangel Both Going to Trial In The House

There is a racial angle to this. But not, as the Congressional Black Caucus says and the media dutifully implies, how unfair it is for two black congressmen to be facing the indignity of accountability.

The back-to-back trials of a pair of black lawmakers represent an unprecedented use of an ethics adjudication system that has rarely been used by House members accused of breaking House rules…

POLITICO first reported earlier this week that the committee was expected to unveil its charges against Waters before leaving town for the recess.

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Members of the Congressional Black Caucus have complained that the OCE has unfairly and disproportionately targeted them, and many have signed onto a legislative effort to de-fang the office.

Charlie Rangel's defender's defense of him? Not innocence, of course. Identity.

One member of the Congressional Black Caucus, also speaking on condition of anonymity, expressed bitterness that the president would turn publicly on Rangel, a decorated Korean War combat veteran.

“Charlie Rangel has served our nation with honor and distinction for more than four decades — before I was born and the President was a twinkle in his parents’ eye,” the CBC member said of a career in public service dating back to Rangel’s days in the Army.

“He should be treated with honor and respect,” the member said, referring to Rangel’s work promoting equal rights for African Americans. “In fact Mr. Rangel made my service in Congress and Mr. Obama’s presidency possible.”

Ah, he served in the Korean War, and he advanced the black cause, so he deserves "honor and respect." "Honor and respect" apparently defined as a license for lawlessness.

The racial narrative here isn't the unfairness of this. It's that Maxine Waters and Charlie Rangel calculated -- probably correctly -- that they could do pretty much whatever they wanted and break any law they liked and skate by for it, because identity politics means they have a license to break the law as they see fit, and Whitey is too scared to do a thing about it.

Rather than take some sort of minor penalty, they're demanding trials, calculating, again probably correctly, that they can play the Race Card and get acquitted.

And this, of course, will somehow wind up being painted as racist by their accusers.

Is it racist to judge these bastards by the corruption of their characters rather than the color of their skin?

Ah well, maybe someday. I have a dream.

posted by Ace at 01:15 PM

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