THE RACE CARD – AT 9:02 A.M. ET:  It is ugly, and, especially in the modern era, inappropriate.  We said here many months ago that the Obamans would play the race card in this election, and they have.  Their objective is to motivate African-Americans to vote.

The African-American vote is projected to be importantly smaller than it was in 2008, in part because African Americans haven't gained much from the administration of Saint Barack.  But some of the means of motivating this vote have been over the top, and have even offended other African-Americans.  From Andrew Malcolm at IBD:

Joe Biden just returned from another one of his vacations. So it can't be blamed on fatigue. Maybe age? He does turn 70 this year.

But JB's been gaffing up a storm recently. He's in Virginia talking about winning North Carolina. He's proclaiming the 20th will be an American century. He's describing Mitt Romney's new vice presidential partner as Governor Ryan.

And then there's Joe's BFD chains gaffe that really wasn't a gaffe. He's introduced in Danville, Va. as "the conscience of our nation's capital." He's talking to a significantly black crowd and he warns what Gov. Romney is going to do to help those evil banks:

"Romney wants to let the--he said in the first 100 days he’s going to let the big banks once again write their own rules, unnnn-chain Wall Street. They’re going to put y’all back in chains.”

A guy from Scranton living in Delaware on the public payroll since Obama was in grade school suddenly talking like a faux Southern preacher. The crowd approved. But elsewhere, the vice president of the United States looked, in the vivid image of Charles Krauthammer, like a crazy uncle in the attic. And this guy's a heartbeat away from the presidency?

And...

Thankfully for this campaign we have former Obama buddy Artur Davis to help interpret Biden's racial Democrat-speak. A four-term congressman from Alabama, Davis seconded Obama's nomination at the national convention four years ago this month and was national co-chair of his friend's successful campaign.

Davis told CNN's Wolf Blitzer Wednesday Biden's remarks were "racial viciousness," adding:

"It's a divisive tactic that's insulting to African Americans. It's insulting to the American people. It's insulting to the legacy that he used to build up as an orator who used to know how to inspire people instead of strike fear in people's heart."

Davis, who is black, added: "I know what Joe Biden was doing yesterday, and every black person in the room knew who the 'y'all' was, they knew what the chains were about, and they knew what the metaphor was."

In May Davis officially abandoned Obama, the Democrat party and Alabama and has since endorsed Romney. Back then, Davis criticized "an administration that has lapsed into a bloc by bloc appeal to group grievances when the country is already too fractured: frankly, the symbolism of Barack Obama winning has not given us the substance of a united country." Davis will address the Republican Convention late this month.

Davis isn't the only one.  From AP:

RICHMOND, Va. – The nation's first elected black governor, Doug Wilder of Virginia, has lambasted Vice President Joe Biden on national television for his comment Tuesday about banks keeping people "in chains."

Wilder, a Democrat and a grandson of slaves, echoed indignant Republican claims that Biden's remarks before a largely black crowd in Danville, Va., brought racism into the presidential race.

In railing against Republican efforts to undo Obama administration regulations reining in Wall Street after the 2008 stock market meltdown, Biden said the GOP wants to "unchain Wall Street."

Then, Biden added, "they're going to put y'all back in chains."

Wilder said he felt Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would have made a better Obama running mate and called on Biden to "cool it, back up" and admit that he was wrong.

COMMENT:   This won't get better.  It will get worse.  Obama himself has already defended Biden's comments.  And he has now publicly rejected suggestions that he replace Biden on the ticket.

Just recently a pro-Obama ad essentially charged that Mitt Romney caused a woman's cancer.  You can pretty much draw up your own list of what's coming next – but accusing Republicans of murdering the elderly should definitely be there.

August 16, 2012