[Blitzer:] He says Democrats want blacks to focus only in on one issue that would be race and that Republicans have better ideas to actually advance black Americans. Larry Elder, a radio talk show host, he's the author of a new and controversial book entitled, "Stupid Black Men: How To Play the Race Card and Lose." Larry is here.
[Larry Elder, Author, "stupid Black Men":] You said it, Wolf.
[Blitzer:] Yes.
[Elder:] You said it.
[Blitzer:] I said what?
[Elder:] You said stupid black men. Thank you for...
[Blitzer:] "Stupid Black Men" is the title of this book.
[Elder:] That's right. Right.
[Blitzer:] And that's a controversial title, "How To Play the Race Card and Lose." You've got to explain how you came up with this title, because the title alone is generating a lot of commotion out there.
[Elder:] Which proves my point. My point behind the book, Wolf, is that white racism is no longer a major problem in America anymore. And the fact that people recoil by the title shows you that they are reluctant to be perceived as racist. You know, we have a country now where Barack Obama is on the brink of possibly becoming the next president of the United States. He's winning primaries in places like Iowa, Idaho, seeing a strong second in New Hampshire. White racism is no longer a major problem in America anymore.
[Blitzer:] But there's still plenty of racism out there. You know, there's all these incidents you see of racial hatred. It's still a problem.
[Elder:] But the
[Blitzer:] It may not as bad as it was 30 or 40 years ago, but it's still a problem.
[Elder:] Wolf, they are incidents, as you pointed out. They are not they are not frequent anymore, thank God. We now have a country where if you go to college, go to high school, don't make bad moral mistakes, keep your nose clean, you can make it in America. If you can't make it here, you can't make it anywhere. But many Democrats don't want black people to think that for their own exploitative reasons. Why? They want that 95 percent monolithic black vote, without which they cannot win at the presidential election.
[Blitzer:] Tell us why you think black Americans would actually be better off with Republicans.
[Elder:] The Democrats want blacks to focus on white racism. Why? Because if you go point by point by point and look at some of the Republican ideas, they will disproportionately benefit black people. I'll give you one...
[Blitzer:] Wait...
[Elder:] ... vouchers.
[Blitzer:] Let's talk about tax cuts for the rich.
[Elder:] Tax cuts as my dad used to say my dad is a was a janitor. He worked two jobs as a janitor. I've never gotten a job from a poor person. Tax cuts benefit everybody. It's not poor people directly. They benefit their bosses, who have more money to hire them and buy plants and buy equipment and buy resources. So tax cuts benefit America, not just rich people. But Democrats don't want you to focus on things like vouchers. And in California, we had a referendum a few years ago. It failed. But it passed, Wolf, interestly, among inner city parents. They wanted their kids to have the right to go to the schools that they wanted them to go to. That's a Republican idea.
[Blitzer:] Why do Republicans have so much trouble attracting African-American support?
[Elder:] Because of the history perceived history of the Republican party. The Democratic party has a pretty skanky background, Wolf. After the Civil War, you had all these Democrats that were there voting against civil rights legislation. Republicans, as a percentage of the party, more of them voted for the Civil Rights Act of 1964 than did Democrats. Al Gore's dad voted against it. Democrats founded the Klan. I'm not saying the party, but those who founded the Klan were, in fact, Democrats. And one of their goals was to stop the spread of Republicanism.
[Blitzer:] How worried are you and you're obviously sympathetic to the Republicans that if Barack Obama gets the Democratic presidential nomination, that there could be elements of racism that come up from the other side?
[Elder:] I'm sure there are people who won't vote for him because he's black. I'm sure there are people who are voting for him because he's black.
[Blitzer:] No, but I'm talking about the Willie Horton kind of commercials, the ads that could be used against potentially against Barack Obama.
[Elder:] I think if Republicans and they won't were to go that low, there would be such a backlash that it would backfire. It would be counterproductive. Nobody wants that. There aren't going to be people running those kinds of ads not establishment types. Maybe some wing nuts might be doing it. But by and large, Wolf, this country has evolved. This is not your grandfather's America.
[Blitzer:] How about McCain and Huckabee, this battle that's going on right now? Give us your sense of who's better, not only forget about African-Americans or white Americans but for the country right now?
[Elder:] Well, if Republicans want to win, they ought to take a look at John McCain. I don't get people like Rush Limbaugh and I have a lot of respect for him and others who are saying I would just as soon sit it out or vote for a Democrat than vote for John McCain. McCain is right on the war, as far as most of us are concerned. He's right on tax cuts, as far as most of us are concerned. He certainly will appoint conservative justices on the Supreme Court. So if you care about those issues, I don't know how you can be an American forget about a Republican but an American and say I want the country to be less safe.
[Blitzer:] And so if it comes to John McCain versus Barack Obama, who do you vote for?
[Elder:] Well, I'm a Republican. I don't want my taxes raised.
[Blitzer:] But there are some Republicans who say they'll vote for Barack Obama.
[Elder:] Well, I pity them. But if you are sincere that the war has kept us safer, how can you want a commander-in-chief who would want us to be less safe?
[Blitzer:] But how significant is it for a black man like yourself that another black man, Barack Obama, is going to be the potentially the Democratic presidential nominee?
[Elder:] Well, it confirms my point that white racism is no longer a problem in America. But, Wolf, I'm free. I'm a free man. I can be free to say I don't want taxes raised. I can be free to say Hillary- Care would be bad for America. I'm free to say the war in Iraq, however you believe it started, we should conclude it to a respectable end or otherwise it will hurt America. I am free, as an American, to think that way. And I applaud Barack Obama. He's not playing the race card the way Jesse Jackson has and the way Al Sharpton has. I like the way he's run his campaign. But, at the end of the day, he is the most liberal senator on the Hill and he's not going to get my vote.
[Blitzer:] Do you think Republicans will cross over and vote for him...
[Elder:] No
[Blitzer:] ... because, as there were once Reagan Democrats, they're already talking and we're going to have a report on this later Obama Republicans.
[Elder:] Well, Wolf, I'll see you in November. But at the end of the day, Americans don't want to lose wars. Americans don't want their taxes raised. Americans don't want the government to take over the rest of health care that they don't already have. Americans will not stand for that. At the end of the day, Barack Obama is a liberal. He wants a bigger government. He wants taxes raised. And he wants to retreat in Iraq. And I think Americans won't take that.
[Blitzer:] His book is entitled "Stupid Black Men: How To Play the Race Card and Lose." Larry Elder, thanks for coming in.
[Elder:] Thank you, Wolf. Appreciate it.
[Blitzer:] Appreciate it very much.
[Elder:] All right. You've got it.
[Blitzer:] The first exit polls from the Potomac primaries are just coming into THE SITUATION ROOM. Bill Schneider is going through the numbers right now. We're going to share those numbers with you and show you what they mean for the candidates tonight. Plus, find out how your vote could be trumped by the so-called super-delegates. Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.