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Andrew Gillum Defies His Claim to Keep Race Out of the Election ... Over and Over and Over

October 27, 2018 - 6:00am
Andrew Gillum
Andrew Gillum

“Now, I’m not calling Mr. DeSantis a racist. I’m simply saying the racists believe he’s a racist.” That was one of the many prepared one-liners Andrew Gillum let fly during the second and final gubernatorial debate between himself and Republican Ron DeSantis. It was a frustrating night, with candidates hemmed in by restrictive time limits and few substantive subjects explored.

As a result, it was too easy for candidates to resort to personal attacks and rapid-fire accusations tailored to the format. For his part, Gillum resorted to a practiced technique, which is invoking controversial racial components. As DeSantis brought up any issue of a damaging nature -- a Tallahassee corruption scandal, crime rates in the city, or Gillum accepting bribed gifts from undercover FBI agents -- the mayor would attempt to pivot from possible damage by attempting to connect DeSantis to racism.

From the time he earned the Democratic nomination, Gillum has stated firmly he did not want race to be a central issue in the campaign. Yet, the subject is routinely and eagerly brought up ... by Andrew Gillum. 

There he was in Wednesday’s debate, repeatedly bringing up the subject, playing the victim. He mentioned the desperate claim that DeSantis “has spoken at racist conferences.” This has been the oft-repeated canard that political conferences staged by David Horowitz were problematic because some of Horowitz's previous quotes have been less than flattering toward African Americans and other minorities.

  • Did DeSantis say anything racist at one of these conferences? No.
  • Was there any speech or panel at one the conferences that exposed racism? No.
  • Was there any explanation given for the persons of color and Jewish pundits who attended? No.

But that label of “racist” conferences is trotted out. The racially reticent Gillum also referenced once again the virulent robo-calls that were sent out on Labor Day. With no connection to DeSantis, the state, or the Republican Party, Gillum was perfectly at ease invoking the hate-crime messages one more time. These were a cartoonishly infantile recording delivered by a supremacist group out of Idaho, which has created similar robo-calls in other states prior. But look at Andrew pouncing on the chance to smear DeSantis with them.

Gillum called for DeSantis to rebuke these racist calls at the debate -- even though he and his campaign had done so emphatically the day news of them came out. Andrew’s desire to revisit this easily dismissed event even defies his own campaign. His spokesman, Geoff Burgan, said the calls were meant only to fuel hatred; “Don’t give it undeserved attention.” If only his candidate had received the message.

When a new batch of calls came out last week, it gave Gillum another opportunity to discuss them anew with Chuck Todd at MSNBC. That was the day before the debate. Todd even stated that DeSantis and GOP members all denounced them, yet the Tallahassee mayor was declaring that this messaging “comes from the top,” and he listed off a number of racially charged issues he could attribute to DeSantis -- which he purportedly doesn't want to talk about.

The debate also had Gillum mentioning other racial issues, from the questionable comment DeSantis made at the start of the campaign, to a donor making disparaging remarks, and the unattributed claim that DeSantis "has neo-Nazis helping him out in this state.” Amazing how easily these charges spill out from the man who states he has no intention of mentioning this subject.

The rather transparent effort here is either to distract from the significant scandals, or to dismiss the charges as being rooted in a base cause of racism. Gillum has declared as much to his voters in a video message: “The goal is obviously to use my candidacy as a way to reinforce, frankly, stereotypes about black men.”

Burgan has announced that this has been “the ugliest, most divisive campaign in Florida's history,” and in many ways he is probably correct. Of course, he would probably hesitate to say his candidate has been responsible for much of that. As Wednesday night’s performance has shown, when it comes to bringing up ugly and divisive accusations, Andrew Gillum is more than willing to practice that method.

Just understand, he does not want race to become an issue ... each and every single time he brings up race.

Brad Slager, a Fort Lauderdale freelance writer, wrote this story exclusively for Sunshine State News. He writes on politics and the entertainment industry and his stories appear in such publications as RedState and The Federalist.

Comments

When Gillum was asked about his association with an FBI investigation through his former friend Corey, he said, he should have been more careful over who he trusted over some $500 tickets. He thought they came from his brother. He took responsibility. DeSantis has $145,000 in unaccounted for tax payer funded travel to speak on FoxNews, travel to Mar-A-Lago, all the fun stuff. That's right, $145,000, and not mistakenly given by friends, FBI, whoever, he knew who it was paid by and what the rules were... When DeSantis was confronted over his racist contributors, he offered no explanation whatsoever, he got angry, pounded the lectern and said he would not be held accountable for the words of others. Well, he is not accountable to the tax payers for his travel, he is not accountable for racist hate and filth spewed by his contributors. Who in the hell is Ron DeSantis accountable to? One person, Donald Trump.

DeSantis has clearly evidenced racism and has clearly associated with and taken money from avowed and admitted racists. As Gillum said ... "the racists clearly consider DeSantis a racist!" What more 'evidence' does anyone need? The GOP has had a significant racist component ever since the Brown vs. The Board of Education decision in 1954. Trump bought it into the open again with his 'birtherism' and McConnell burnished it with his avowed obstructionism against an African-American president, Now, Trump flaunts it in his so-called 'pep rallies'. Those among us who are truly opposed to racism need to vote against Republicans!

Leftists AKA Democrats are the most racist and divisive people in The USA. How can anyone in their right mind develop a bond with these racist Jew haters to such a point that they would even consider voting for these leftist Jew haters AKA Democrats??????????? It's the racist leftist Democrats that bow down and worship at the feet of their devil Head Jew Hater In Charge Farrakhan. Shame on you all.

You're a nutcase, dude!

Leftists AKA Democrats are the most racist and divisive people in The USA. How can anyone in their right mind develop a bond with these racist Jew haters to such a point that they would even consider voting for these leftist Jew haters AKA Democrats???????????

Hard to keep racism out when DeSantis kept bringing it up like as the article said with the Monkey Up comment along with running around with known racists, praising them...................And as Gillum said so well, the Racists think Desantis, Trump is racists, and they are right.........As many of you commenting here........The FBI thing was 2 yrs ago and if anything was illegal, Gillum would have been arrested last yr..............See you on November 6!!

Gillums campaign is making these comments in support of his corrupt ass. Pathetic.

Now we know Gillum is dishonest, has no integrity and can't be trusted. So why is anyone surprised to see him stoop so low to play the race card?

Gill-ty Gillum

The Dems have nothing to offer except sound bite labels. Hohum. Nothing new here. It is laughable when Des accuse their opponents of being/doing nasty stuff that in fact is being done/saying by the Dems themselves. Not your grandma and mothers Democratic Party for sure. Sad.

Andrew just MIGHT be a good guy,.. someone I could imagine buying "sports or show" tickets for; But, I don't really think I could trust him to be my Governor for EVEN ONE TERM, because he doesn't seem to value his "reputation" enough to protect it, above ALL: ("Nobody can take your "reputation" from you: ONLY YOU can "*GIVE* YOUR "REPUTATION" AWAY"!!!!) [and, unfortunately, Politicians are very suceptible to this 'temptation'...enough to "trade their 'honor' for it"...]

I know why you mean. It’s hard for me to see DeSantis as not being racist. When all he does is hang out with them. Either he doesn’t care about his reputation or he cares so much he chooses to hang out with racist on purpose.

These radical leftists don't get that when every thing is racist, nothing is racist. Too bad there isn't another debate where Ron Deracist, as your resident bigot Leslie Wimes calls him, could explore Andy Killum's sexual proclivities. I mean nobody cares that Andy has a gay lover, but we can't have the governor of Florida under threat of blackmail. Come out of the closet Andy Killum.

Lincoln was a WHIG, and his "Emancipation Proclamation" was a "war tactic" to cripple the SOUTH'S labor force... It wasn't truly in his heart to "free slaves"... He was duplicitous,.. just as Lyndon Johnson was being duplicitous with his "Great Society" scheme designed to "keep Blacks on the Democrat Plantation". WAKE UP MY BLACK BROTHERS & SISTERS !.. YOU are "Americans"!!!... )(The "African" title has no real credibility in your title, other than to indicate a lack of "loyalty" to your one true country: AMERICA ! {So stop wielding your "African" title like a club and end this "racist" nonsense once and for all... (like the song says "Come together, right now..")

Our resident admitted racist speaks!!…………….If buttheads like you would stop trying to keep blacks down by racism, they would have to mention racism...…..........As videos continue to shows just how racist people are by calling police for baby sitting, campaigning, lost and asking directions gets shot at ,driving, etc , while black...............No to mention police murders of black people, now on tape so can't lie out of it so much..............I'll never forget I was in a group with some black guys to go horseback riding and they said whites could ride but the blacks had to leave in Tallahassee...........We agreed and all left...

Slager is the racist. And he writes like one. Me, a Lincoln Republican. I appreciated his "Emancipation Proclamation".

The idiots who keep crying wolf, watering down actual racism, and for mere political advantage. Slager isn't racist, but you're certainly one confused puppy.

Pretty funny how in an article about how many ridiculous charges of racism Gillum makes Robert says pointing it out is "racist".

When you guys get finished running folks like Robert out of the Republican party, you will be left with only the dregs. You wont have enough dregs left to elect a dog catcher. So keep it up.

They have run some of the best repubs out of the party and decent people flee it in droves from it as it shrinks to just deplorables and completely fiscally and morally bankrupt.................I'm a fiscal conservative I learned from repubs but that turned out to be rhetoric as they have ballooned the deficit, double Obama's dropping deficits from the $1.1T deficit repubs left him and now back up to $800B and over $1T next yr , the national debt to $21T!!...............And let's remember a tax cut for some is a tax increase on the rest.

'Headline' on November 7th: "Gillum repeatedly invokes "racism",... And Loses Race !"

Not quite. Headline' on November 7th: "Gillum repeatedly invokes "racism, ... And Loses Race, ... But at least gets a free stay at federal prison!"

...and shares a cell with everybody in the Trump administration! Listen, if Rick Scott is allowed to walk scot free after HCA and devastating Florida's environment, Gillum's free tickets are nothing to worry about.

'Headline' on November 7th: "Gillum repeatedly invokes "racism",... And Loses Race !"

'Headline' on November 7th: "Gillum repeatedly invokes "racism",... And Loses Race !"

Saw both debates. I thought Desantis won the first one. The second one he sounded like a bully, talking over the moderator, ignoring the time limits, interrupting constantly. If you look at it, he looks like he keeps talking to someone off stage to his right, but he's mouthing things to the moderator (presumably asking for response time). But we don't care about the format, we care about Florida. Ron is an empty vessel waiting for the drivel and nonsense of Trump to be poured into it. If your candidate is funded and cheered on by racists, it's fair game to point that out. If your party has lost its' soul by trying to block minority voters, that's fair game too.

The race card is always the last card played from someone in a empty, losing argument.

Look around you, no need to be in a white robe to be racist or hold such beliefs. Voter suppression to name one of many GOP goals. Good riddance Rick Scott

Thomas Sowell said, "I remember when Racists were White."

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