Behind the Roar of Political Debates, Whispers of Race Persist

The controversial topic of Government Spending and Healthcare has opened the doors to many other issues that people have been dealing with for quite some time. John Harwood explains these issues in detail in his article "Behind the Roar of Political Debates, Whispers of Race Persist" published in the New York Times on October 30th.

President Obama brought attention to immigration issues and the tension that Whites are feeling as Asian American, Blacks, and Hispanics gain a louder voice in US Politics. There is a division in the  ideas about politics and government power between the races. For example, many Whites oppose legal status for illegal immigrants, whereas many Hispanics and blacks support it. Keep in mind that this is just one example out of many that demonstrate the increasing polarization between race and politics.

The major issue discussed in this article is the rising problem that soon Whites may have a very small volume in political voice. Blacks, Hispanics and other races believe the Government should have a greater say in the United States. The majority of Whites, however, believe that the less government interference the better. Big government is a growing concern for Whites. Many feel that a big government will explicitly help Democrats, and will loosen the White's power in the United States.

The first issue brought to the surface is that the Democratic coalition is made up of mainly nonwhites such as Asian Americans, blacks, and Hispanics. This means that the majority of Whites make up the Republican side of the government, which is the side that strongly disagrees with many of Obama's decisions. This is where we see racial tensions begin to grow, according to Obama as well as other politicians.

In conclusion, politicians claim they do not want race to be an issue between sides in the government but they are claiming that the strong disagreement on Obama's health care law is an example of the racial issue between Democrats and Republicans. Can these tensions deminish as time goes on and "as rising generations replace older ones"?