Romney's Reverse Pandering

After the 1964 Civil Rights Act became law, the Republican party almost immediately became the majority party in the South. All of a sudden the party of Lincoln became acceptable and preferred in the South. Republican party candidates soon learned the so-called "Southern Strategy" -- a strategy to appeal to racist instincts by using code words to assure the racists that the candidate was on their side. Few candidates were so blatant as to make a direct appeal to the fear of all racists share, but they were experts as trying to vilify  Democratic candidates by associating them with feared blacks. Refer back to the Willy Horton ads Bush Senior used against Michael Dukakis. Even Republicans admitted that ad was a direct appeal to racial fears.


Then in the 2004 presidential campaign, all of the Republican sponsored questions about President Obama's background and religious faith were substitutes for good old-fashioned bigotry. They were blowing on the smoldering embers of racial hatred. However, in that case and to his credit, John McCain, unlike other Republican contenders, would have no part of it and dismissed it for what it was.


In 2012, that same Republican dynamic is at work in the Romney campaign, but with a subtle twist. Many have questioned why Romney would go to the NCAAP convention and provoke the audience to boo him by attacking the Affordable Health Care Act. Mitt did not go to garner black supporters, he went so that all the news coverage would be of a black audience booing him. That was the message he wanted the racists in his base to see.

In fact, the same reverse pandering occurred when Romney visited Israel. Some thought his remarks about Palestinian inferiority were a serious gaffe. Many, on the other hand, saw it for what it was,  a blatant attempt to pander to Jewish voters back in the United States. It was a Rovian version of the successful "Southern Strategy." It stood in contrast to Romney's direct approach in Poland where he pandered the old-fashioned way. In an attempt to attract Catholic voters, he mentioned Pope John Paul II so many times many thought he had converted from Mormonism to Catholicism.

But, usually, Romney's efforts at direct pandering end up demonstrating how out of touch he is with the average voter. Talking to auto workers he tried to ingratiate himself by pointing out that his wife owns two Cadillac SUVs.  Attending a NASCAR race (an audience the GOP claims as theirs) Romney admitted he didn't know much about racing, but pointed out  he has several friends who are NASCAR owners.

Mitt, it seems, is much better at reverse pandering. Most Americans laughed at the absurdity of Romney suggesting that 'Self Deportation" is a solution to the country's immigration problem. Perhaps we should re-evaluate Romney's true intention. Perhaps he too understood the stupidity of self-deportation, but was in fact reminding his  fearful anti-immigration base that he too was on their side. He apparently is content to write off the Latino vote hoping that the GOP efforts at voter suppression will keep them away from the voting booths.

One has to give him credit, Romney has taken the art of pandering to a new level.