Wednesday 10 April 2013

Rand Paul depression comments spur backlash and heavy criticism

Rand Paul depression comments spur backlash and heavy criticism, Rand Paul's depression comments during a speech at Howard University on Wednesday have sparked an intense reaction. The politician spoke to the students for nearly an hour, and it did not take long for his remarks to go viral online. The Atlantic Wire shared the details on April 10.

Paul's speech incorporated his premise that the Great Depression is where the African American population shifted their support away from the Republican party.

His remarks that that he believes the Democrats promised “unlimited federal assistance” while the Republicans shared “something that seemed less tangible.” Rand Paul's depression remarks said that African Americans “understood that Republicans championed citizenship and voting rights.” However, he says they “became impatient for economic emancipation” and thus turned their support to the Democrats.

Sharing this particular viewpoint at Howard University was an interesting choice, as the school population is predominantly African American.

When questioned a bit about whether he is from the Republican Party of Abraham Lincoln's days or Ronald Reagan's days, Rand Paul insists the party has not changed. Many would likely argue that premise.

It seems clear that Rand Paul and the Republicans are trying to appeal to groups of voters that they have not necessarily resonated with in the recent past.

In this case, however, it seems his speech fell mostly flat as the students at Howard University apparently knew far more than he gave them credit for as he prepared his remarks.

Both at Howard and around the web, it seems that Rand Paul's depression remarks left folks with a very different impression than the one he intended.

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