Compare and contrast the starkly different viewpoints of two well known African-American pundits, Thomas Sowell and Bob Herbert, as they each discuss the electoral defeat visited upon Washington, DC mayor Adrian Fenty.
First, Thomas Sowell:
Mayor Adrian Fenty, under whom the murder rate has gone down and the school children's test scores have gone up, was resoundingly defeated for re-election.
Nor was Mayor Fenty simply a passive beneficiary of the rising test scores and falling murder rates. He appointed Michelle Rhee as head of the school system and backed her as she fought the teachers' union and fired large numbers of ineffective teachers-- something considered impossible in most cities across the country.
Mayor Fenty also appointed the city's chief of police, Cathy Lanier, who has cracked down on hoodlumism, as well as crime.
Either one of these achievements would made mayors local heroes in most other cities. Why then was he clobbered in the election?
Bob Herbert provides the answer why. In fact, he seems to actually personify it.
The idea that we had moved into some kind of postracial era was always a
ridiculous notion. Attitudes have undoubtedly changed for the better
over the past half-century, and young people as a whole are less hung up
on race than their elders. But race is still a very big deal in the
United States, which is precisely why black leaders like Mr. Fenty and
Mr. Obama try so hard to behave as though they are governing in some
sort of pristine civic environment in which the very idea of race has
been erased.
These allegedly postracial politicians can end up being so worried about
losing the support of whites that they distance themselves from their
own African-American base. This is a no-win situation — for the
politicians and for the blacks who put their hopes and faith in them.
Mr. Fenty was cheered by whites for bringing in the cold-blooded
Michelle Rhee as schools chancellor. She attacked D.C.’s admittedly
failing school system with an unseemly ferocity and seemed to take great
delight in doing it. Hundreds of teachers were fired and concerns
raised by parents about Ms. Rhee’s take-no-prisoners approach were
ignored. It was disrespectful.
Imagine that. Firing incompetent teachers was disrespectful. According to Sowell the teachers were fired because they weren't up to the job. But by Herbert's unspoken charge, most of the teachers fired were black, therefore this is about racism.
It's merit versus patronage and in Herbert's book patronage is the ticket.
Most blacks are reluctant to publicly express their concerns about the
president because they are so outraged by the blatantly unfair and often
racist attacks against him from the political right. But many blacks
are unhappy that Mr. Obama hasn’t been more forceful in the fight to
create jobs. And there is disappointment over the dearth of black faces
in high-profile posts in the administration.
I've seen almost no unfair or racist criticism leveled at Barack Obama, especially from the right, where folks are at pains to avoid anything that will discredit their opposition to the liberal takeover in Washington. Many, in fact, have the same complaint that Herbert claims blacks have with Obama. He hasn't done enough to create jobs. Unfortunately, with Herbert it's the dearth of black faces in high profile posts in the administration that has him upset. Herbert is talking about patronage not merit. It's all about the race card and Bob Herbert is all too willing to play it. Thomas Sowell has long since tired of that game.