David Paterson: People don’t want me to run for re-election because I’m black

Via the NY Post (h/t JWF):

ALBANY — Gov. Paterson has officially played the race card.

The beleaguered Democratic governor in a radio interview this morning blamed his troubles on a racist media that he said has taken part in an “orchestrated” effort to get him out of office.

Paterson, a former lieutenant governor, who faces an uphill election fight next year, argued that other prominent black politicians, including President Obama, had received similar treatment.

“I submit that the same kind of treatment that (Gov.) Deval Patrick is receiving right now in Massachusetts, and I’m receiving; the way in which the New York State Senate was written about, calling them a bunch of people with thick necks – they’re talking about (Senate President) Malcolm Smith and (Senate Democratic Leader) John Sampson – that we’re not in the post-racial period,” Paterson said.

“The reality is that the next victim on the list and you see it coming is President Barack Obama, who did nothing more than try to reform a health care system that’s not ten percent of GDP and will be 20 percent of GDP in the next four years only because he’s trying to make change,” the governor continued.

LOL! So the same mainstream media who greatly aided in pushing Obama to the finish line in the presidential election last year is now a “racist” bunch intent on throwing their ‘messiah’ – and Paterson – out of office? Furthermore, are the New Yorkers who at the beginning of the year gave Paterson an approval rating in the mid-50s now “racists” for changing their minds?

Hmmm. Lemme see. Is the Governor aware of a poll – taken back in late March – which showed that, in addition to his approval ratings sinking from 51% to 19% in two months, black voters in NY had serious issues with him as well?

ALBANY – Gov. Paterson’s job performance ratings have crashed thorough the floor, with less than one in five New Yorkers saying he’s doing well, a new poll shows.

Just 19% of those polled gave him a positive rating, while 78% turned thumbs down, the Siena College poll found. That’s down from 51% positive and 45% negative in the same poll just two months ago.

[…]

A whopping 67% of voters say they’d prefer someone else for governor next year, compared to just 14% who say they would vote to elect Paterson to a full four-year term.

The poll found black voters would prefer someone else to Paterson by a 52%-25% margin.

Gee – are they racists, now, too?

Gov. Paterson apparently doesn’t understand that when you’re not doing a good job, eventually people are going to figure it out and it’s going to show up in your approval ratings. But I won’t blame him for his failure to grasp that basic fact. As we all know, there are many liberals out there who almost never take personal responsiblity for their own actions, tending instead to blame their failings on everyone else – in essence, playing the victim card. Gov. Paterson is obviously no exception. His remarks (which you can hear here in full) are entirely predictable.

Oh, but no worries. He’s issued a retraction … sort of:

“During a radio interview this morning, I made some observations about the tone of some of the recent negative media coverage.

“At no point did I claim that this media piling-on effect was due to race – elected officials of all races get piled on by the media all the time; that is the nature of our business. What I did point out was that certain media outlets have engaged in coverage that exploits racial stereotypes.

“That’s not only unfair – it’s wrong – and it sends an objectionable message. I will not shy away from speaking honestly about prejudices, some subtle and some not, nor will I fail to point out that we have a long way to go to achieve a truly post-racial society.”

Uh huh.

How soon til the Sharpton/Jackson brigades show up to rally ’round the Govnah? 8-|

Related: ST reader Anthony has a good post up on the whole issue of liberal race-card playing. You can read it here.

Comments are closed.