Less-Than-Precious Metal

The Weekly Standard's Sonny "Honey" Bunch reports from Maryland, where he saw Michael Steele—a black Republican seen as the GOP's last, best hope of scoring an upset Senate seat win today—get an ugly reception from similarly-hued voters.

"Anyone who's with Bush is not with me," proclaimed one black woman as she crossed paths with Steele in a hallway. There were other remarks in the same vein. While being interviewed in the polling place, another African-American voter stated that she couldn't support someone who still believed in "a false war based on lies."

Standing in line to vote with his wife, the pair wearing matching blue Under Armour windbreakers, Steele was surrounded by folks who clearly had no desire to vote for him. They made snide comments behind his back. "They're just trying to trick us, but we know better," exclaimed one elderly woman. She went on to explain that Steele's great "trick" was not cutting to the front, but instead choosing to stand in line like everyone else.

For all the hype Steele (and fellow black Republicans Lynn Swann and Ken Blackwell) have received, the best case scenario they can hope for is to lose the black vote, but by a little instead of a lot. Steele's campaign raged against a Democratic survey that suggested the party should negatively attack Steele to prevent him from pulling a big black vote. But even that poll showed Steele maxing out at 44 percent of the vote, which is 10-15 points higher than his campaign actually expects to score. If Steele is making "historic gains," he'll still lose black voters by 2-1 to the extremely white Ben Cardin. A couple weeks back I attempted to grok why black Republicans are going to fall short again this year for Radar.

Comments

[Lay-Z]

Are you sayin’ us coloereds is stupid?

[joe]

Inaccurate sample ballots describing Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. and Senate candidate Michael S. Steele as Democrats were handed out to voters in at least four polling sites in Prince George’s County this morning.

The ballots were handed out by people who said they arrived by buses this morning from Pennsylvania and Delaware.

Erik Markle, one of the people handing out literature for Ehrlich, who is seeking reelection, and Steele, the current lieutenant governor who is campaigning to replace retiring Sen. Paul Sarbanes (D), said he was recruited at a homeless shelter in Philadelphia.

After a two-hour bus ride to Maryland, Markle said the workers were greeted early this morning by first lady Kendel Ehrlich, who thanked them as they were outfitted in T-shirts and hats with the logo for Ehrlich’s reelection campaign. Nearly all of those recruited, Markle said, are poor and black. Workers traveled to Maryland in at least seven large buses.

[Lay-Z]

“Nearly all of those recruited, Markle said, are poor and black.”

I guess you is!

[Bret]

A fool and his vote are soon parted.

[Lay-Z]

“A fool and his vote are soon parted.”

I think you meant a “tool” and his vote.

A slave is kinda like a tool, isn’t it?

[Bill]

Yes, Lay-Z, I guess that is true in that African-Americans are tools/slaves to Democrat race-baiters.

I, for one, don’t believe Joe’s post.

[zach]

Of course, if Democratic voters don’t know which candidate is actually theirs, they deserve to lose that election.

[Postmodern Sleaze]

It says right on the ballot “DE-MO-CRAT”? See? Good.

[joe]

Bill,

Ha ha.

joe

[highnumber]

joe,

I believe you.
Read this:
BALTIMORE — Gov. Robert Ehrlich’s campaign is acknowledging that it paid for fliers handed out Tuesday suggesting Ehrlich and Michael Steele are Democrats.

[Todd Frye]

I liked Michael Steele back when he played bass for the Bangles.