Moneyball

Is GOP candidate Herman Cain on the take?

Liberal activist and actress Janeane Garofalo appeared on Keith Olbermann's "Countdown" show on the Current TV network Wednesday night. Garofalo went on several rants, one of which included accusing the Tea Party, which she calls a "fundamentalist" movement, of racism.

Garofalo also said successful businessman Herman Cain is either being paid to run or is suffering from Stockholm syndrome because he is a "person of color" running as a Republican in the party's presidential primary.

"[He's] in this presidential race because he deflects the racism that is inherent in the Republican party, the conservative movement, the Tea Party certainly. [In] the last 30 years the Republican party has been moving more and more to the right, but also race-baiting more. Gay-baiting more. Religion-baiting more," Garofalo said.

"But, Herman Cain, I feel like, is being paid by somebody to be involved and to run for president so that you go like 'I love that, that can't be racist. He's a black guy, a black guy asking for Obama being impeached.' Or 'it's a black guy whose anti-Muslim. It's a black guy who is a Tea Party guy.'"

Garofalo also had some conspiracy theories as to who may be putting Cain up to this.

"And I feel like wouldn't that suit the purposes of whomever astroturfs these things. Whether that be the Koch brothers or Grover Norquist or any anything. It could even be Karl Rove. 'Let's get Herman Cain involved so it deflects the obvious racism of our Republican party,'" Garofalo said.

"Would that be separate from his delusions of grandeur or are they just taking advantage of him?" host Keith Olbermann asked.

Ms. Garofalo disagreed but had another reason for why she thinks Cain is in the race which includes diagnosing him with Stockholm syndrome.

"He's a businessman," she said sarcastically. "Who ever pays him. And there may be a touch of Stockholm syndrome. There may be a touch of Stockholm syndrome in there because anytime I see a person of color or a female in the Republican party or the conservative movement or the Tea Party, I wonder how they could be trying to curry with the oppressors. Is it Stockholm syndrome or does somebody pay them?"

I do not believe Herman Cain is being paid to run, though I understand why Garofalo would think this way. Michael Steele was clearly selected as RNC Chair to protect the anti-Obama right from charges of racism, and Armstrong Williams, another black conservative, was paid to shill for No Child Left Behind in the 2000s.



However, Garofalo's claims are far-fetched. Why would anti-Obama conservatives hire only one non-Caucasian candidate to deflect racism charges? Why not pay several to run? Why not financially induce Sen. Marco Rubio or Rep. Allan West to run, so that Americans would see a rainbow coalition of Republicans on the debate stage?

Garofalo is right to note that the American right has dramatically ramped up gay-baiting, religion-baiting and race-baiting rhetoric (i.e., Rush "Obama the Burglar" Limbaugh) in recent years. However, she is wrong to suggest, without evidence, that Herman Cain is being paid to run.

No, I don't think Garofalo is a "liberal racist." I see where she's going with this...but there's no evidence to back up her theory.

As for Garofalo saying she doesn't understand why any person of color would have anything to do with the American right, I'd love to have a conversation with her to explain why I became a Republican...and why I'm so disillusioned with the American right today.