Is the Republican party a racist party?

[Sbane]

Trump is the presumptive nominee and the runner up is an extremist who tries to act like Trump/espouse similar beliefs whenever he can. I don't think the nation has become more racist but it has exposed the seething underbelly of this country and the Republican party. These are people who think all immigrants are criminals and all Muslims are terrorists. And I think the worst part about all this is that these people will deny being racists when you call them out on it! This whole election is just incredibly sad. There are just so many trashy, useless people in this world.

[Sbane]

It's my view that the party elites used the racism of their constituents to further their own goals. They played to those attributes for electoral success.

Then doesn't that mean they are a racist party if they used the racism of their supporters for electoral gain? I will grant the elites that they did it in a respectable, dog whistle sort of way, as opposed to openly fanning racial tensions. And neither were their policies inherently racist, but rather anti-poor (which ends up hitting more minorities). Now it seems like the Republican party will entertain what it's base really wants, which is Medicare, Social Security and other goodies for whites, while non-whites get nothing and are called criminals, terrorists, thugs etc.

[Sbane]

It's my view that the party elites used the racism of their constituents to further their own goals. They played to those attributes for electoral success.

Then doesn't that mean they are a racist party if they used the racism of their supporters for electoral gain? I will grant the elites that they did it in a respectable, dog whistle sort of way, as opposed to openly fanning racial tensions. And neither were their policies inherently racist, but rather anti-poor (which ends up hitting more minorities). Now it seems like the Republican party will entertain what it's base really wants, which is Medicare, Social Security and other goodies for whites, while non-whites get nothing and are called criminals, terrorists, thugs etc.

I think it is debatable, but I would say a lot of Republicans are not truly racist to the core, either. After all, Democrats have racists of their own (not nearly as many, though, imo).

For them to be officially considered a racist party, I think their platform has to include blatantly racist goals. Either that or the vast, vast majority of the party (like 75%+) has to be racist, with a large contingent of vocal, seething racists.

It depends on how you define "racist", sure. Are the majority of Republicans KKK supporters? No, of course not. But they are Trump supporters. These people are bigots who think all Muslims are terrorists and that most immigrants are criminals who only come here for the "benefits" as opposed to working hard and providing more opportunities for their families. Opposing immigration is not at all inherently racist. Calling immigrants rapists and criminals is though.

[Sbane]

Saying you want to follow the law and keep people from coming across the border unless they do it legally is not racist. Any single way you slice it.

What about saying the majority of immigrants are rapists? Is that racist enough for you?

[Sbane]

No

Donald Trump is not a racist and 80% of his supporters aren't either. Trump is still awful though.

No, otherwise I wouldn't be a Republican.

Guys, I understand why you feel like you are Republicans. I also hate paying so much in taxes when much of it is being wasted on public employee unions and endless wars. I want to be able to keep at least some of my FICA taxes to invest in a way of my choosing. I think premium support should be introduced in Medicare and there should be greater cost sharing, especially for those who can afford it. I would be quite content if the Ryan budget was adopted.

That being said I understand I am not a Republican and wouldn't be accepted into the Republican party. I knew this before, but the 2016 election has made it crystal clear. Both of you are not going to be accepted by the Republican rank and file either. That doesn't make you Democrats but you guys just are not Republicans.

[Sbane]

Saying that all Republicans are racist is equivalent to saying that all Democrats are communists. Grow up.

I actually didn't say that all Republicans are racist but that a majority are. Refusing to see what your party is composed of is pretty silly. Why don't you grow up and accept reality.

[Sbane]

Quite the contrary.  The Republican party opposes using racial preferences or in discriminating based on race.
But, we live in the real world.  So if it is a fact that, for example, young Muslim men are the majority of terrorists blowing up buildings we should use racial profiling to protect the nation.  That is common sense.

So does that mean that all muslims are terrorists? And moreover, do you believe most Mexican immigrants are rapists? Muslims may be much more likely to commit terrorist attacks but Mexican immigrants are not more likely to commit rapes. We can see this using data from the "real world".

[Sbane]

No, there is nothing inherently racist about enforcing immigration law or supporting welfare cuts.

How about calling all Mexican immigrants rapists? Is that racist?

I find it interesting that I have asked like 4 people this question today and none of them want to answer.....

[Sbane]

Curious. How is the policy of affirmative action not racist? What you're saying is that you can't compete because of the color of your skin.

Affirmative action is not racist but it is unfair and I think it should be stopped. If anything, it harms non-whites because it adds an asterix to any achievement they have.

I will ask you this though, how is the Republican party not racist if it's presumptive nominee thinks most Mexican immigrants are rapists and that all Muslims are terrorists? He cheers on violence against blacks at his rallies, enthusiastically accepts support from white supremacists, etc etc.

[Sbane]

No, of course not.

Aren't you a Trump supporter?

[Sbane]

Saying you want to follow the law and keep people from coming across the border unless they do it legally is not racist. Any single way you slice it.

What about saying the majority of immigrants are rapists? Is that racist enough for you?

Statistics have shown that immigrants are much less likely to commit crimes than native-born citizens.

Statistics show the estimated 11.7 million illegal immigrants in the U.S. account for 13.6 percent of all offenders sentenced for crimes committed in the U.S. Twelve percent of murder sentences, 20 percent of kidnapping sentences and 16 percent of drug trafficking sentences are meted out to illegal immigrants.

That means 20% of all kidnappings are committed by only 3% of the population, those being illegal immigrants.

If you are going to argue a point, do some research.

Cite?

[Sbane]

Of course not. That is absurd and illogical

Reality says something different.

[Sbane]

The USA is overly sympathetic on crime and illegal immigration.

Example: The US Supreme Court said that an illegal immigrant cannot be detained indefintely if their country of origin refuses to take them back.

The following countries will not cooperate with US deportation laws for citizen's found guilty of committing a serious crime.

Afghanistan, Algeria, Burundi, Cape Verde, China, Cuba, Eritrea, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, India, Iran, Iraq, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, and Zimbabwe.

Result: The murder of Connecticut resident Casey Chadwick.

The illegal immigrant who was convicted in the June 2015 killing of Chadwick was a Haitian national named Jean Jacques. Jacques, 41, had a previous attempted murder conviction and should have been deported, but Haiti would not take him back.

Source: http://dailysignal.com/2016/04/28/in-2015-19000-criminal-illegal-immigrants-were-released-from-custody/

19,000 criminals who are illegal immigrants are released from prison back into US society every year to commit further crimes.

That is the most disgraceful result directly attributable to  government policy imaginable.

Why don't you back up your previous assertion instead of trying to skirt the issue with more nonsense?

[Sbane]

No, like the BJP (a very similar party in some respects) it contains multitudes. Whether non racist factions share responsibility for their brethren is another matter.

However:

There is racism embedded in more fundamentalist strict far-right sects of the party, that's easy to agree on. I believe it is still transitioning away from many southern-style Republicans and the recent generation putting the final shovels of dirt on the segregationist roots.

But absolutely no, it as a party is not racist: it's more realistic and less afraid of the hard-racial truths the country faces, while meanwhile it's opponents, Democrats, act as if they do not exist or live in a fairytail world. Sometimes it's not easy to ask the hard questions that may raise eyebrows or upset feelings. Simple as that.

> 'moderate' Republican who looks down on extreme base
> starts rambling about "racial truths"

Yes, I also agree that the Republican party and the BJP have a lot of similarities. The difference this year has been how open the bigotry has been with the Trump candidacy. You did not see that with Modi's campaign, where every effort was made to portray him as a moderate who will respect all religions. It does remain to be seen what Trump will do in the general of course.....

[Sbane]

I'm unwilling to say that it is, if only because there are some good-hearted Republicans (including on this forum) who I know are not racist, but at the same time many of the policies advocated have Lee Atwater's insidious imprint on them.   

Yes, of course there are good people in the Republican party. Though what this election has shown is that they are not the heart and soul of the party, the racists are. That is what I am pointing out.

[Sbane]

Interesting to see that many who have the biggest problem with Donald Trump saying something like "all Mexican's are criminals", these are the same people who have no problem saying "all Republicans are racist". News flash: both statements are indefensible, and downright dumb.

Who exactly has said that "all republicans are racist"? A majority are voting for a racist candidate though.

[Sbane]

Interesting to see that many who have the biggest problem with Donald Trump saying something like "all Mexican's are criminals", these are the same people who have no problem saying "all Republicans are racist". News flash: both statements are indefensible, and downright dumb.

Who exactly has said that "all republicans are racist"? A majority are voting for a racist candidate though.

Well, you tell me: what does it mean for a party to be racist? Does it mean that anyone who registers as a Republican is a racist? Does it mean that anyone who votes for a Republican is a racist? Please clarify what is meant by the question...

Well, I am registered Republican so......No, not everyone who registers Republican is racist. The majority is racist though, and they are supporting a candidate who openly fans racial tensions and divides the nation. It is just very sad to witness.

[Sbane]

You must be logged in to read this quote.

Plurality!= Majority.

A majority probably would if there was a national primary today. He will likely get a majority in California and close to it in Indiana. I hope I'm wrong but I'm probably not.

[Sbane]

Saying you want to follow the law and keep people from coming across the border unless they do it legally is not racist. Any single way you slice it.

What about saying the majority of immigrants are rapists? Is that racist enough for you?

That is NOT what Trump said. 

Trump was referring to ILLEGAL immigrants.  And murder, rape, drug activity, and other violent criminal activity has come to America in the form of Transnational Gang members from Mexico and Central America. 

http://fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL34233.pdf

These folks "do their business" (often violent business for foreign drug cartels) in the streets of American cities.  They get to do so because of the porousness of our borders.  I believe, quite frankly, that our President, and our Presidential candidates, all of them, ought to be discussing this issue in its proper context.

Border Security is an element of Public Safety, which is a fundamental function of government and a right of every person living in America.

So you think most illegal immigrants are rapists? Is there data to back that up? is there even data to back up if illegal immigrants commit more crimes than the general population?

You know fuzzy this stuff is nasty. I suspect you will deny being a racist so then why do you support a candidate who is ripping this country apart to gain votes? As a non-white person in America I know who he is appealing to. People who just assume most immigrants and non-whites are criminals even though there is no data to back that up. People who assume all Muslims are terrorists and clutch their pearls when a person who is or "looks" Muslim steps on a plane. How can any decent person defend all this? Of course this primary season has made me realize the majority of Republicans are racist and reprehensible humans who operate on fear and don't care about facts.

[Sbane]

I guess tonight gives us a clearer answer, doesn't it?

[Sbane]

No

Donald Trump is not a racist and 80% of his supporters aren't either. Trump is still awful though.

No, otherwise I wouldn't be a Republican.

Guys, I understand why you feel like you are Republicans. I also hate paying so much in taxes when much of it is being wasted on public employee unions and endless wars. I want to be able to keep at least some of my FICA taxes to invest in a way of my choosing. I think premium support should be introduced in Medicare and there should be greater cost sharing, especially for those who can afford it. I would be quite content if the Ryan budget was adopted.

That being said I understand I am not a Republican and wouldn't be accepted into the Republican party. I knew this before, but the 2016 election has made it crystal clear. Both of you are not going to be accepted by the Republican rank and file either. That doesn't make you Democrats but you guys just are not Republicans.

Might god you have moved to the right. I seem to recall you being not quite so conservative economically.

I definitely feel I should get to invest my retirement income in the way of my choosing. I don't mind paying some FICA taxes to help the indigent in old age and of course disability insurance. I also think premium support would be a good idea as long as traditional Medicare is allowed to compete. Lastly, I really want an end to all the nonsense in the tax code and just want a lower tax rate in return. I don't want to get subsidized to buy a house, or to pay my state income tax, or any of the other crap built into the tax code. I think the Republicans are more likely to change that but that could just be because they are out of power currently. Lots of entrenched interests there.

[Sbane]

Saying that all Republicans are racist is equivalent to saying that all Democrats are communists. Grow up.

I actually didn't say that all Republicans are racist but that a majority are. Refusing to see what your party is composed of is pretty silly. Why don't you grow up and accept reality.

You literally think a majority of registered Republicans are actively racist?  K, whatevs.

Donald Trump is the Republican nominee.

[Sbane]

The fact that sbane can support the Ryan plan and not identify with the Republican Party is telling, isn't it? There are roughly zero racial minorities who are anti-tax zealots like sbane so it makes sense that the GOP faces hurdles with them but surely more than 10% of South Asians should be voting Republican. That is a pathetic figure that speaks volumes about the GOP's current predicament. Anyways, I am disappointed to see that sbane has turned into a "don't taxe me obame" type when we live in one of the lightest taxed developed nations. Sad!

There is a huge problem with the tax code. There are too many deductions and credits and it screws over those who don't get married, don't have children and don't buy a house. Also, those other developed countries with a higher tax burden have a much less progressive taxation system. If we are to have healthcare and higher education for all, then everyone should chip in. We should have a VAT and a carbon tax and pay for additional social services that way.

Also, I wish Obama could run for a 3rd term. Sad

[Sbane]

These kinds of Internet comments sum up why many of the self-described "conservatives" in the Republican Party aren't really conservative. They just want to make sure "those people" get put in their place.

Oh yeah. They want their Medicare but if someone with a higher melanin content gets some help, watch out!

Also, regarding the tax code, you may be right. The party out of power can promise more but I doubt Republicans do anything if they actually have power.