Florida Redistricting Chairman: "We're Not Trying To Redistrict Rep. Allen West Out Of Office"

As highlighted yesterday on Booker Rising, Tea Party activists and conservative bloggers charge that the Florida Republican establishment is trying to undermine the conservative Republican Congressman's re-election bid. From Sunshine State News (Florida): "[State] Rep. Will Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel, the chairman of the House Redistricting Committee, is rejecting comments making the rounds that he is leading efforts to drive U.S. Rep. Allen West, R-Plantation, from office. 'There are rumors that the Florida Legislature has targeted Congressman Allen West. This is patently false,' Weatherford stated in a Facebook posting. 'I personally have supported and endorsed Allen West. I will continue to support this extraordinary member of Congress who has brought a much-needed conservative voice to Washington, D.C.'"

The article continues: "On Monday, Rush Limbaugh stated on his radio show that 'Florida Republicans are trying to -- in redistricting -- write it so that Allen West has no district, and the Republican establishment, whether it includes Romney or not, is behind it.' The House redistricting proposal goes before the full House on Thursday. Under the proposed congressional district lines drawn by the House, seats held by West and Rep. Steve Southerland, R-Panama City, may be considered more competitive. Meanwhile, the redistricting lines for the state House could pit at least 38 of the 120 sitting House members into races with a colleague."

John McWhorter: "Black Segregation Is Down In America. This Is Great News!"

The linguistics professor and moderate-conservative opines: "Well, now there's more good news. We need to trumpet it to the skies as eagerly as we do the news that not so many of us use food stamps. It's about segregation: This new report by Edward Glaeser and Jacob Vigdor shows that black Americans are living under less of it than at any time since William Howard Taft was president. As Glaeser and Vigdor, writing for the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, show, 'As of 2010, the separation of African-Americans from individuals of other races has stood at its lowest level in nearly a century. Fifty years ago, nearly half the black population lived in what might be termed a 'ghetto' neighborhood, with an African-American share above 80 percent. Today, that proportion has fallen to 20 percent.'"

Dr. McWhorter continues his commentary about the study: "Indeed, I used to work for the Manhattan Institute and am proud of it. But I am hardly the only one who will be writing about this report this week, and I would be shouting it to the heavens even if I used to work for Burger King. This is important news. So often we are told that despite the civil rights revolution, black America's big problem is segregation. Black people live together too much, we are told. And when everybody is black and poor, then we have to understand that the neighborhood must fall to pieces. Not enough middle-class role models, we are told. About twice a year the New York Times runs a story on segregation that pings around the country madly for weeks, in which assorted people are quoted spinning variations on 'We've come a long way, but we have a long way to go.'"

More: "This report is not designed to shut people up about injustice. Its final words are 'While the decline in segregation remains good news, far too many Americans lack the opportunity to achieve meaningful success.' However, there is a crucial implication of this and the report. As the authors put it, 'The persistence of inequality, even as segregation has receded, suggests that inequality is a far more complex phenomenon.' That is, while black America does suffer from overall socioeconomic inequality with the mainstream, addressing that will not be a matter of worrying about whether black people live in neighborhoods with too many other black people in them. We should welcome this news. It means that we no longer have to put up with smart people telling us that when too many black people live in one place, you have to expect all hell to break loose. It is rather striking how this insult to black dignity is so warmly received as kindly wisdom."