It is not racist to oppose Obama policies

Michael Williams:

As an African American son of the South, I grew up in a time and place where you didn't have to divine intent or deconstruct code words to find racism. When it raised its ugly head, it was like a blunt instrument waved in your face to keep you in your place. It was as unmistakable as it was demeaning.

Unfortunately, with political waters getting rough for the first time for our president, his supporters are quick to latch on to the actions of a fringe element and ignore the racial transformation this country has made to take us back to an era in which opposition to a black man was about the color of his skin and not the content of his ideas.

Former President Jimmy Carter recently asserted that there is a "belief among many white people, not just in the South but around the country, that African Americans are not qualified to lead this great country." Absurd on its face — after all, Obama wouldn't have been elected without tremendous support from white voters — this statement is not damaging because it is a false observation, but it stigmatizes the discussion about race relations.

When someone of public prominence carelessly and callously demeans the motives of millions of honest Americans as racists when they are simply concerned about policy ramifications of the president's agenda, we stop hearing each other.

How can the president win over critics when critics are so unfairly stigmatized by such a personal attack on their character? You can hear the conversation around dinner tables and social gatherings: "If we disagree with Obama, the liberals think we are a bunch of racists." This truly hampers the effort to find common ground.

Furthermore, stigmatizing honest opposition as racist appears to be a way of not answering legitimate questions about policy reform. I oppose the president's health care plan because it will explode the deficit, allow further government intrusion into the doctor-patient relationship and continue to insulate health care consumers from the true cost of their care.

The president and his allies should explain why my concerns are misplaced. But by attacking the character of their critics, they don't have to answer their charges or win the debate over policy differences, because the charge of "racist" is the nuclear option. Once it is launched, there is no need for conventional warfare in the political sense: winning and losing on the merit of policy.

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There is more.

I like Michael Williams and think he is a serious candidate for the US Senate seat that Kay Bailey Hutchison is giving up. He is also a serious threat to the racial demagogues who are trying to shut off debate. He is a courageous leader for conservatism.