It will be interesting to see which direction Republicans will choose to go in light of the latest Republicans R the Real Racists scandal. Will they stand by their icon Ronald Reagan or will they stand by their professed belief in racial equality.
The day after the United Nations voted to recognize the People’s Republic of China, then–California Governor Ronald Reagan phoned President Richard Nixon at the White House and vented his frustration at the delegates who had sided against the United States. “Last night, I tell you, to watch that thing on television as I did,” Reagan said. “Yeah,” Nixon interjected. Reagan forged ahead with his complaint: “To see those, those monkeys from those African countries—damn them, they’re still uncomfortable wearing shoes!” Nixon gave a huge laugh.
The past month has brought presidential racism back into the headlines. This October 1971 exchange between current and future presidents is a reminder that other presidents have subscribed to the racist belief that Africans or African Americans are somehow inferior.
Since most Republicans are, by nature, cowards, and since literally nothing terrifies them more than the possibility that someone, somewhere, will accuse them of being racist, I assume that they will not hesitate to obediently jettison Reagan from the Republican pantheon, as well as Lincoln, Jefferson, and Washington. At this point, there really isn’t any more room for anyone but Harriet Tubman, Martin Luther King, the Melting Pot, and, of course, the Holocaust.
I assume they’ll turn against the Constitution too, once they finally grasp that its very purpose is disinclusivitating.