When it comes to gratuitous references to race, it doesn't get more gratuitous than this.
James "Holmy" Holm works as a producer for Ed Schultz on his radio and MSNBC shows. In addition to that, Holm often accompanies Schultz on his radio program and espouses his views on politics and the news of the day. (audio clip after page break)
Schultz and Holm were talking on Wednesday about the previous day's recall elections in Wisconsin that targeted six incumbent Republican state senators. Badger State Democrats needed to win at least three of the races to gain control of the state senate; they fell short by one.
Here's how Holm described the two Republican state senators who lost their elections, after Schultz complained about outside money that poured into the state to affect the outcome of the recalls (audio) --
HOLM: But the thing that's bothering me the most this morning as I wake up and read the headlines, listen to the radio, watch a little bit of television ...
SCHULTZ: That this is all about (Wisconsin Gov. Scott) Walker's victory. That's hogwash!HOLM: ... This is a resounding win for Scott Walker, it validates everything he's tried to do to crush the workers of Wisconsin, this is the model for the country -- that couldn't be further from the truth. Scott Walker's policies last night cost two old white guys their jobs. And there's no doubt about it, those two people were Republican senators.
And being white, male and no longer young makes them utterly contemptible as far as Holm is concerned.
The late Boston radio host David Brudnoy coined a term for that cross section of humanity so reviled by Holm (and, oddly enough, much resembling him) -- the pale penis people.
It's worth noting that the two state senators maligned by Holm -- Randy Hopper and Dan Kapanke -- were not the only Caucasians to run in the recalls. So were all 10 other candidates, incumbents and challengers both. This did nothing to prevent Holm from playing the race card, especially with a losing hand.
Maybe I'm old fashioned, but I find it offensive when people are judged by the color of their skin and not the content of their character.
Incidentally, aren't "old white guys" a huge proportion of Social Security recipients that liberals like Holm often claim they're deeply concerned about? Roughly half, safe to say. (Blogger's note -- this overstates the percentage, although not for men overall).
Based on his previous remarks on Schultz's radio show, I believe Holm is in his 40s -- as is Hopper, 45, more than a decade younger than Schultz, who turned 57 in January. Kapanke is 63.
