Republican chairman finding his voice

As an African-American elected to an office never before occupied by someone who looked like him, this national leader has a chance to improve race relations in this country - if he's willing to call out racism in ways that are unpopular. In this respect, with so much racial strife, he is the right man for these times.

I speak of Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele.

After Steele took over the RNC post in January, the former Maryland lieutenant governor made some mistakes. He locked horns with Rush Limbaugh, only to later apologize to the talk-show host. And he seemed to be trying too hard to make the GOP user-friendly to African-Americans by employing hip urban lingo that sounded contrived.

Yet, thanks to Jimmy Carter's outrageous remarks about how much of the criticism of President Obama is "based on racism" and stems from "a belief among many white people ... that African-Americans are not qualified to lead this great country," Steele is finding his voice.

Carter, of course, is not alone with his outburst. Consider the inflammatory comments of Rep. Henry "Hank" Johnson, a Georgia Democrat, who told reporters that if we tolerate incivility to the nation's first black president - in the form of, say, a member of Congress yelling out "you lie!" during a presidential address - then, before you know it, "we'll probably have folks putting on white hoods and white uniforms again and riding through the countryside intimidating people."

Steele is firing back. He accused Carter of being "dead wrong" and "out of line" in a way that serves to "diminish real instances of racism that need to be addressed." Later, during an interview by CNN's Wolf Blitzer, Steele blasted Johnson's comments about white hoods and intimidating people as "an ignorant statement" and insisted that it is "beyond anyone's comprehension that you can make that leap."

Granted, it would have helped Steele's credibility - particularly with moderates and independents - if he could have acknowledged that some of the attacks on Obama have been racially tinged. Exhibit A: the infamous poster depicting Obama as an African witch doctor. It's hard not to see that as racism.

However, the major point here is that not all criticism of Obama or disapproval of his policies is based on racism. It's in the mix. But it's not the dominant ingredient.

The furthest that Steele was willing to go was to admit that the GOP hasn't done itself any favors with black voters over the years. He told Blitzer that Republicans have "for over a generation employed a strategy that right now many of us wish we never had." That so-called Southern strategy of pitting whites against blacks has blown up in the GOP's face.

But where Steele really delivered was when he tried to turn the tables on Democrats who are criticizing Rep. Joe Wilson and insist that many of those who represent poor and minority constituents are doing more harm than the South Carolinian who called out Obama.

"You tell me where racism really exists," Steele said. "Is it in the words of a congressman who says 'you lie'? Or is it how we strip education funding through opportunity scholarships? Or is it how we cut money for our HBCUs (historically black colleges and universities) around the country? Or is it the fact that so many African-Americans still live in neighborhoods that are burnt out and rundown?"

Exactly. And Steele was just scratching the surface. He could also have mentioned how Democrats work to undermine educational reform efforts that help black students through their slavish adherence to teachers unions. Or how liberals attack and try to discredit African-American conservatives who dare to think their own thoughts. Or how Democrats in the 1990s actually challenged using race in redistricting because they feared having minorities concentrated in one district would make surrounding districts majority Republican.

The war of words is on, and Michael Steele is getting in his share of licks. More importantly, let's hope the RNC chairman is also getting African-Americans to think about those policy areas where Democrats have betrayed them. It's time that community learned to challenge its friends as vigorously as its adversaries. It'll be better off for it.

© 2009, The San Diego Union-Tribune