Arrogance, Class and the Race Card

Self-important and arrogant are characteristics often found in celebrities, and sometimes those characteristics are in direct contrast with the public’s impression of the celebrity. For my money, Bob Hope was one of those individuals. Here was a guy loved all over the world for his comedy, film career and work with the USO’s. He hobnobbed with the rich, famous and the politically powerful. And, how did he get so famous? By the dollars that the little people coughed-up. And, yet when one of the little people wanted his autograph, he was arrogant, and dismissive. Here’s the story.

It was the inauguration of the Ronald Reagan Library in 1991. Hope and his wife were VIP guests, and at the conclusion of the event they were walking toward their car. A little girl, no older than ten years old, ran up to Hope with a piece of paper and a pencil in her hand. She politely asked Hope if she could get his autograph. Hope ignored her and continued walking. She ran alongside him, asked several times if she could have his autograph, and then stopped in her tracks as he strode away never once acknowledging her presence. I’ve heard a number of similar stories about Hope, but I can’t attest to them. I can on this one because I saw it happen.

Contrast that behavior with that of Pres. Ronald Reagan, the Gipper. Everybody wanted to have the autograph of Pres. Reagan, but he often could not stop because the Secret Service would hustle him through the crowds. So, what did the Gipper do? He handed out pre-signed business cards as fast as he could.

It is interesting how some people never lose track from whence they come. And, others are too good to acknowledge the “common folk” or follow the rules of conduct. Rep. Cynthia McKinney appears to be one of the latter. Her behavior in the melee with the U.S. Capital police officer reveals her to be arrogant, self-important, hostile, violent, unrepentant and a race baiter.

Rep. McKinney walks through the security area of the Capitol without her identifying pin and expects that the officers should know who she is. Maybe they should have and maybe not. There is not yet any evidence to suggest whether or not the officer even had the opportunity to have seen her face. What we do know is that he had to pursue someone who failed to respond to orders to stop. It might be just a little difficult to determine who it is he is pursuing when the person is hurrying away from him and refuses to stop or turn around. When the officer takes a hold to detain her, she strikes out at him. Apparently, the battery is significant enough that a warrant may be issued for McKinney’s arrest. Does McKinney apologize for her actions? No, she and her spokespeople immediately play the female black race card. Her lawyer said that she is "just a victim of being in Congress while black."

McKinney is an embarrassment as a member of one of our national legislative bodies. I imagine that the citizens of Georgia also consider her an embarrassment. But, I suspect that McKinney is not disheartened. After all she still has the loyalty of the likes of Danny Glover, Harry Belafonte and all the other race baiters who rose immediately to her defense and lambasted this country as a bastion of racial hatred.

Welcome Cynthia McKinney to the Race Card Club. You and your fellow members deserve each other.