Today's Worst Person In The World: Josh Mandel
Sometimes, the more you claim to not be a racist, the more you prove you actually are a racist
Once upon a time, in a previous iteration of my blog, I had a semi-regular feature (inspired by Keith Olbermann) called “Today’s Worst Person in the World.” The criteria were precisely what you’d think they might be. It could involve hypocrisy, lack of self-awareness, being an asshole, lack of compassion- it was a long list. Think Ted Cruz, Josh Hawley, Lindsey Graham, Marsha Blackburn, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Louie Gohmert, Paul Gosar, and Lauren Boebert, and you’d be in the ballpark.
I’ve long resisted the temptation to return to those days, but today I’m finally giving in to the impulse- and it’s Josh Mandel’s fault. All it took was a racist, self-righteous, Christocratic Republican with no conscience and the willingness to twist the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. to his advantage. I figured that if someone triggered my gag reflex in the way Mandel has, someone should recognize his shameless self-promotion for what it is.
So, to the Republican Senate candidate from Ohio goes my first Worst Person in the World Award, a pile of pure, unadulterated horse shit:
So, why, you might wonder, did I choose to bestow such a (not so very) prestigious award upon Mandel?
In truth, there wasn’t much competition, not when you look at his willful twisting of history and his self-serving misreading of MLK’s words. However, the piece de resistance was his attempt at mansplaining history to MLK’s daughter, Bernice, telling her to “study her history better.”
“Why, yes, I AM an asshole! Thank you for asking!! I’m Pro-God, Pro-Gun, and Pro-Trump!! And totally NOT racist!!”
Well, thanks for clearing THAT up, eh??
Sorry, but if you have to point out that you’re NOT a racist, there’s a pretty good chance that YOU’RE A RACIST! If you weren’t a racist, no one would think of hanging that label on you. Your words and actions would speak for themselves.
In Mandel’s case, his words and actions DO speak for themselves, making the case that he’s very much a racist. First, he trots out the “I fought next to people of every color,” which is today’s “some of my best friends are Black” argument. Even worse, though, was shooting part of his campaign ad in front of the Edmund Pettis Bridge in Selma, Alabama. The bridge is a sacred site to America’s Black community, and Mandel sullied it to twist MLK’s words and intent.
That he’s using Critical Race Theory, something not even taught in secondary or elementary schools, as a wedge issue speaks to his racist bona fides. Sometimes actions speak louder than words of denial. In Mandel’s case, the more he pleads his case, the more he claims not to be a racist, the more apparent it becomes that he IS a racist.
“By advancing the lie of Critical Race Theory, the liberals are stomping on the grave of Martin Luther King,” Mandel tweeted in September.
“I invite you, if you truly desire to advance the cause of humanity toward true peace, to study my father’s teachings in full and in context,” King, CEO of the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, wrote to him in response.
“He was not a drum major for a colorblind society, but for justice, which requires truth about our past and present,” she wrote.
Mandel then attempted to school King on her own father’s teachings and called her a “race politics profiteer.”
If Mandel would keep his mouth shut, perhaps it would reduce the possibility that some might think him a racist. But, unfortunately, he’s either incapable of keeping his mouth shut or not smart enough to realize its importance.
When you attempt to take on the daughter of MLK by calling her a “race politics profiteer,” you’re not doing your cause any good. On the contrary, you’re providing those who believe you a committed racist with more fuel for that fire.
I almost feel sorry for Republican voters in Ohio, but they’re getting the primary they deserve. Mandel and financier Mike Gibbons nearly dropped the gloves during a debate last month when one called the other a “pussy.” J.D. Vance has proven himself to be a moral black hole, willing to assume whatever position he believes gives him the best chance of winning. Vance, at one point, said he doesn’t care what happens in Ukraine, a statement he was forced to walk back (Ohio has a sizeable Ukrainian population). Mandel has argued that there should be no separation of Church and State in government or the classroom.
That crackling sound you just heard was the Constitution going up in smoke.
So here’s to today’s Worst Person in the World- Josh Mandel- who believes that skin color shouldn’t matter as long as Whites still sit on the top tier of the socioeconomic food chain.