Anglosphere Politics: Bookerista Perspectives

Walter Williams: "Is Disagreement With Obama Racism?"

The libertarian economics professor writes: "For these people, it is inconceivable that many Americans are outraged by the president's spending policies, budget deficits, industry takeovers, not to mention the appointment of Czars, a term that ought to be alien and offensive to American values whether used by a Republican or Democratic president. Obama's presidency is truly a remarkable commentary on the goodness of Americans and how far we've come in resolving matters of race. Obama convincingly won votes in states with insignificant black populations, such as the New England states, Iowa and Minnesota. For the nation as a whole, he managed 53 percent of the popular vote and 365 of the Electoral College votes when he only needed 270 to win. So now Jimmy Carter, Dowd, Rangel and other race-carders want us to believe that the massive discontent with Obama is racism. I say nonsense!"

More: "Race is no longer the problem that it once was. That doesn't mean there are not white and black bigots and that every vestige of racial discrimination has been eliminated. What little racial discrimination remains is nowhere near the insurmountable barrier it once was. For the most part, white bigots are no longer respected among whites and I look forward to the day when black bigots are no longer respected among blacks."

James Cleverly: "The Sun Stops Shining On Labour"

The London Assemblyman and Conservative Party member, on the woes of British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his Labour Party: "That Labour have lost the backing of the Sun newspaper probably isn't a deal breaker but it is significant. Gordon Brown is trying to say that the backing of the Sun is unimportant. Really? Then why did Blair, Mandelson, Brown and Campbell all try so hard to win over the paper in the past? The Sun, like all printed media, has lost some of the influence it once had, but that is not the same as saying that it has no influence at all. Millions of people read the Sun every day and they are likely to represent the kind of voters who will move their support between parties. Perhaps the more significant point is the timing of the Sun's announcement, it was clearly designed to undermine Brown's set piece speech. This time next week few people will remember any of the points Brown was trying to make but they will remember that the Sun turned on him the very next day."

Alan Keyes: "The Saving Grace Of The Republican Imperative"

The conservative activist and America's Independent Party member takes issue with supporters of both U.S. President Barack Obama and Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas), who he argues are trying to undermine America's national sovereignty and republican form of government: "Both the Obama national socialists and the Ron Paul nationalists turn away from the beautiful symmetry of the Declaration's wisdom. Both treat the idea of limited government as if it were simply about the good or bad results of action, with respect to the particular aspect of justice they hold to be paramount. The Obama faction does so claiming to seek social and economic equality. The Ron Paul nationalists do so in the name of personal freedom. They either fail, or else refuse to see the essential purpose of limited government, which is to establish the exercise of government power on a basis that keeps the pursuit of particular goods within boundaries that respect and preserve the possibility of justice for all."

He discusses his appreciation of the Declaration of Independence, which starts when he did his doctoral dissertation: "I learned that liberty involves more than freedom, even as justice involves more than getting good results. Both have an intrinsic source and foundation, to which respect is due at every step along the way. So I came to the paramount truth on which the substance of republican government depends: the presence and authority of the Creator God. This is the truth in which America's identity truly abides: 'in all places, and against all foes, and at whatever cost.'"