As Braun Warns Clinton, Could Jackson Mediate a "Consensus Black Candidate?"

By Chuck Sudo in News on Dec 29, 2010 7:40PM

Yesterday it was Congressman Danny Davis who offered a stern warning for former President Bill Clinton against campaigning for Rahm Emanuel. Today it's former Senator Carol Moseley Braun who says Clinton runs the risk of alienating African Americans if he decides to interject himself into the mayoral campaign.

Braun's statement was not as subtle as Davis's in playing the race card:

"Bill Clinton is an outsider parachuting in to support another outsider. Rahm's residency status continues to be challenged in court. It's not yet clear that he will be on the ballot. At the same time former president Clinton risks his legacy and the great respect that he has enjoyed among African Americans by coming to Chicago to endorse Rahm Emanuel who is running for mayor against two black candidates.

"Clinton should remember New Hampshire where he called Barack Obama's opposition to the war in Iraq 'a fairy tale.' He was wrong.

"Clinton should remember South Carolina where he played the race card painting Obama as "the black candidate". Again he was wrong. Bill Clinton will be wrong again if he gets involved in the Chicago mayoral contest. He should stay home and avoid
the cold."

Have either Davis or Braun seen how they're polling lately? Right now, Emanuel doesn't need Clinton's help. Especially since Braun and Davis seem determined to mark territory that isn't theirs to mark. Still they persist.

Carol Felsenthal, writing over at Chicago mag, reports that Davis and Braun are meeting tonight with Rev. Jesse Jackson to hopefully put the manufactured "consensus black candidate" drama to rest. In a perfect world, Jackson would show Davis and Braun the polls showing the two of them trailing Emanuel and Gery Chico, with Emanuel drawing significant African American support in head to heads against Davis and Braun, and tell them both to drop out.

Davis, Braun and Jackson are playing from an antiquated playbook, forged in the fires of the Civil Rights movement. The beneficiaries of their struggle are making their own decision to support, well, neither Davis nor Braun. As we mentioned yesterday in listing the "Countdown to Rahmageddon" at number 6 of our top news stories of the year, this is shaping up to be a status quo election and, if the polls were open today, it would wind up being Emanuel and Gery Chico heading for a runoff, while Davis and Braun try to protect what they think is theirs