Windmill Tilter

This morning Air America played a promo for the station recorded by Charles Barkley. I really hope this makes Rush Limbaugh seethe. Years ago, when I was an avid listener of Rush (which lasted pretty much up until a couple of years ago) Rush talked approvingly of Barkley and one of his many un-PC statements (probably regarding the fact that he lived in Phoenix while Arizona did not have a MLK holiday and didn't care). Rush seemed desperate to recruit/brand Barkley as a conservative. I remember thinking, "Has Rush ever listened to this guy talk when he's saying non-conservative things?" Rush even went so far as to call him a "milk dud" and to opine that Barkley should hire an agent named "Whitey". Rush on Letterman:

LIMBAUGH: So, but I learned how the real world worked. I met people I would have otherwise not met. I've gotten to know Charles Barkley of the Phoenix Suns, Paul Westphal.

LETTERMAN: This seems like an unlikely combination, you and Charles Barkley. Here is a guy --

LIMBAUGH: Milk Dud Head. (laughter) That's what he calls himself. You've got to know him to be able to call him that, and I do, so I can get away with it.

LETTERMAN: But he's got kind of an attitude. Every two or three weeks he's punching somebody.

LIMBAUGH: No. Let me tell you about Charles Barkley. He's become the best at what he is and what he does. He did it without any help, he did it overcoming a lot of obstacles, and he admires others who have done that, and, of course, I am one, and so we have this natural affinity for one another. We have a lot of things -- well, I've overcome my obstacles too, and am still in the process of overcoming them -- some in this audience, it sounds like -- but that's all right, that's all right. (laughter and applause)

LETTERMAN: See, I don't think you want to know. Everything is fine. Don't do that. Because then, you know, the next thing you know, we'll be wrestling up here, and we don't want to be wrestling, do we?

LIMBAUGH: No. Why would we do that? Not with you.

LETTERMAN: All right. So now so tell me about Charles Barkley -- No, no, not with me. Oh, never mind. -- Charles Barkley, your relationship with Charles, and he is interested in politics.

LIMBAUGH: He wants to run for Governor of Alabama. Now, it's interesting about Charles, one thing you've got to understand, when he says things like, "I'm thinking of quitting," or, "I want to run for Governor of Alabama," at that moment his agent is upstairs renegotiating an extension of his contract.

LETTERMAN: Right, of course.

LIMBAUGH: But if he is serious about this, I would like to pledge my services to him. I would like to be his campaign manager, and I think if he is going to go to Alabama and run for governor, he needs a guy named Whitey. I will change my name to Whitey, and I will be his campaign manager, and I'll let him run for governor, and we'll win, we'll win.

LETTERMAN: Okay, all right, okay.

LIMBAUGH: Now, you can do that with Charles, you see, you can do that.

He might as well just say, "See, I have a black friend, I can't be racist!" The fact is that Barkley is an incredibly nuanced and savvy public figure who played Rush. It seems to me that he is evolving into a more progressive person. Take this from 2002:

Asked whether women deserve to be members at Augusta National Golf Course, Barkley said, "No, because it's a private club. It's not a public place. Most of the golf courses I play have no black members, a lot of them don't have Jewish members, and some of them don't have women. They don't want them. I mean, that is the ultimate good-old-boy network." Not exactly The Fire Next Time.

And compare it to what he said on Costas NOW this week on HBO. No transcript available so I'll summarize. Costas confronted him with a quote Barkley uttered about the golf establishment trying to keep down Tiger Woods because he's black by lengthening the courses. When Costas pointed out that this probably helped Tiger more than hit hurt him and asked Barkley if he wanted to retract what he said, Barkley said that he would never take back a criticism of golf's racism.