A Candid Republican Diagnosis

One of the things I have surmised from my 30 years of being a Republican, is that the Republican Party that I came into in 1979 as an idealistic college graduate and was welcomed, is now not the same party. There has been an even greater identity switch than that which historically took place in the 60s.

In making such a broad statement, I need to clarify that my Republican experiences come from a southern prospective. What I have found is that all African American Republicans are not created the same. For example, in states such as Ohio, African American Republicans have and continue to be a part of the political mix of the party without resistance. Therefore, it would be totally unfair to label them as politically deprived or to suggest they have endured racial injustices. However, in states such as Tennessee, which is also my home state, it is quite an opposite scenario. So how African Americans are treated in the party is determined more by region and the mindset of those in leadership within those regions, which can be the difference between night and day.

Where there is political parity within the Republican Party for Blacks, we applaud it and are greatly encouraged. We also do not want to unjustly place everyone under any label, which they do not duly deserve. Therefore, I want to proceed with extreme caution not to do this. However, we do not want to disillusion ourselves with thinking that every state and every Republican experience is the same. We have to allow for all of them as polar opposite as they may be. However, there is one consensus we all can share and that is there is far too few of us involved in the party at meaningful local, state and national levels, and this has to change.

Regardless, we have to take a serious look at the Republican Party, see where we have gone wrong, and try to get back on track if we wish to share the loyalty of the Black vote that was once enjoyed from Reconstruction to the 1960s.

What I have identified as a major factors contributing to the lack of Black participation and loyalty that is so heftily enjoyed by the Democratic Party, is that we have undergone a switched identity that has been birthed out of Greed, Territorialism, Mean Spiritedness, Racism and Religious Hypocrisy.

As the economy tightens, "greed" has surfaced even more, as those who have, press harder to keep what they have, and to cushion themselves with more. As I have shared with my daughter, “We only live one lifetime, but greed will cause one to store up that which they cannot use within that lifespan or take with them in death.” Golden Nuggets of Wisdom to My Daughter LaShunda___JHH.

If government interfering in business or the lives of the wealthy means securing the wealth or as in the case of the bailouts, it acts as a financial safety net, then it is regarded as a function of government. However, when it means bailing out those who are losing homes and are unemployed, or who require some form of healthcare, we scuff at its reality with opposition for how much it will cost taxpayers. Originally, I supported the bailout, only because I believed it would stimulate the economy by proving financial stability to the markets, and in turn help to keep small businesses from going under. But as we have seen, small businesses are the last to receive the benefits.

There also is something else that is interesting about "greed". It is willing to do what is unprincipled to protect what it hordes. In doing so, it often turns a deaf ear to those who are suffering. We clearly see this. In Congress, 44 percent of its lawmakers are millionaires. This is in contrast to only one percent of Americans being millionaires. Even the medium income of those who are not, is $622,254, which makes it very difficult for them to understand the plight of the average American citizen who is struggling.

None of the members of Congress, Republican, Democrat or Independent is struggling to keep a roof over their heads, food on the table, a car and gas to go in it. They do not have to be concerned if they are sick. They have one of the best health coverage plans in America. Retirement is of no concern to them. If they can manage to stay long enough, their retirement benefits are assured. This is quite to the contrary of many Americans who are in desperate straits with each day that the economy worsens, they fall further and further into despair.

Some members of Congress even hold assets in some of the very same companies that have received TARP (bailout money), including Bank of America and Goldman Sachs. So it is like the fox guarding the chicken house. This shows that "greed" is not anything that is unique to politics and is a disease on both sides of the aisles. But seemingly it appears that Republicans are more guilty of it symptoms when it comes to who gets what from our government and at what cost.

"Territorialism" is another system of Republican politics as I have witnessed in Tennessee. In my home state, it has caused some in power, such as former TNGOP Chair Robin Smith and Congressman Zach Wamp to covet that power so much that they become so "mean spirited" that they are ruthlessly willing to do anything to keep it! If it means cutting throats, then throats are cut. If it means destroying a person’s reputation or credibility, then it is done. If it means black balling those who are perceived as competition or rivals, then there is no problem with this. The Gatekeeper's Spirit consumes those who watch day and night to protect and keep out those who might cease or share a portion of that power. This is unfortunate because what it does is prevents full participation within the democratic process by those who perhaps would have made meaningful contributions.

Democracy is a precious concept, which allows citizen’s participation at the individual level through direct participation, and through the representative level afforded to us by those elected. But when it is seized and is horded by only a few, and God forbids if that few are less than qualified or principled, then what we have is a party which lacks leadership and direction. In many ways, this is exactly what has happened to the Republican Party. This is why we have anyone who can scream the loudest, say the most ridiculous things get the media's attention, write a book and become front center spotlighted, and become self anointed as the almighty leaders and spokespersons of the Republican Party.

“Racism” is another issue within the Republican Party and especially in Tennessee! Quite to the contrary, racism is not dead! But the other side of the coin is that not all White Americans or White Republicans are racists. Also, we have to acknowledge that the ghost of past racial sins has also haunted the Democratic Party. It has a long history of slavery and racial prejudice and violence towards blacks. It is often overlooked that it was the racist demons within the Democratic Party that enslaved us, and fought so bitterly and violently, prior to 1965 to keep us from obtaining equal rights. This has been barely a generation ago, if we count a generation as a forty-year period. But despite that, today less often in the Democratic Party is there a perceived threat of racism. The election of our country’s first African American president is proof positive of that. Not in my lifetime would I have thought this was possible! But it did happen. It is obvious that there is a shift in those who were once racists, having flocked to the Republican Party. We need look no further than the insidious racial incidents that occurred in Tennessee during the 2008 presidential race or the way in which African American Republicans like myself and those members of the National Republican African American Caucus have been treated.

Also, when you contrast the two parties in terms of their racial positions, there are more African-American Democrats at the table, which suggest they have been included and not excluded. While in the Republican Party, there are few to no African-Americans at the table. In Congress, there is not one African American Republican member in the House or Senate! So when the Republican Party talk about it being the “Party of Lincoln” and attempts to persuade Blacks to join its national ranks, it is hard to sell because we do not see anyone who looks like us in a national elected position. This begs the question of “Party of Lincoln” is not more willing to embrace those of whom the party under President Lincoln was willing to go to war to free, as worthy of national elected leadership.

[We will leave the election of RNC Steele for another discussion. ….Ummm? ….Interesting. Thank you President Obama and the Democratic Party for prompting the gift. But not so sure about whether or not it is truly a gift or a cover.]

Regardless, there still are some who cannot phantom that racism could be an issue within the Republican Party. Therefore to mention it, is to suggest that the race card is being played. Then there are those who are fully aware that it still exists, because they are the ones nurturing and keeping it alive. Second cousin to them are the ones who become angry at the mentioning of the sins of White America from the not so far past, which still have not been properly atoned. Not realizing that it is better to just say "uncle", admit it happened, change and move forth. But to deny it and to say get over it, or to pretend it does not exist, while at the same time being the perpetrator, is just as hurtful and offensive to present victims of racism, as it was to those who were victims of it in the past.

No one wants any more than African Americans, including myself, to once and for all have racism removed from America and to get beyond the horrors of the past. This is why like many other African Americans, I have has done everything White America has said is required to acquire a place at the table and a piece of the American dream; to have some boots and a strap in which to pull myself up. However, as much as I would love to believe this and would like to move pass race, my experiences with Tennessee Republican politics will not permit me to do so. Because I realize that despite Tennessee being not only in the Bible Belt, but also considered the "buckle", there is still racism coming from those who say they walk with, hear from, live for, and serve God. This no doubt is the most disheartening of it all – racism mixed with religion.

Racism coming out of the church and from those who are considered godly is scary, because out of this same mixture came the nightriders of the Ku Klux Klan, with the white sheets and burning crosses! It also is an affront to the very God we say and preach is a Just and Righteous God. So this is something in which White Christians have to be careful not to fall prey to it, as a repeat of history.

Fortunately, there are those White Christians who have walked color blindly, not seeing color, but just the God in their sisters and brothers. This is what it is going to take in order for there to be a true Republican revival of the conscious and spirit, which brings the party back into its intended purpose. More importantly, what we must do is be careful and mindful to live and practice what we teach, so that we do not fall victims to our own hypocrisy.

So one might ask of me, why is it that a well educated, outspoken, African American women who also is a member of the clergy, still stays in a party where she has not been welcomed? It is because I believe in redemption and hope. Therefore, I stay. I fight the good fight, and I lead the way in my home state in changing the political atmosphere that is slowly, but surely killing the good that is still left in Republican politics. By extending a black olive branch to my Republican sisters and brothers of faith, hopefully, those who know right from wrong will take a stand, and those who claim they know God will accept the olive branch, as we recruit "People of spirit and faith, working together, extending an olive branch, to bring about positive impact through involvement and leadership in politics within the Republican Party."