Michael Duffy's Kemp obituary was kind, never tearing into supply-side economics as the magazine did so ferociously in Reagan's time. He did refer several times to Kemp's willingness to work on the GOP's "weakness" with black voters, as in this passage:
Kemp would not seek the presidency again. But the first President Bush tapped Kemp to be his secretary of housing and urban development, a position from which Kemp tried to make inroads for the GOP with African American voters, to little avail. Unusually candid at times, Kemp was more willing than other politicians to acknowledge his party's weaknesses.
But any Republican would acknowledge "weakness" in attracting black voters. Duffy seems to be implying that there's racism entrenched in the Republican base -- a notion also fervently pushed by Time magazine.
(HT: G. Wong)
