Racism isn't a by-product of the GOP, it's the point of the party, especially in Florida.
Florida’s top elections official abruptly resigned Thursday after a newspaper obtained pictures of him in blackface dressed as a Hurricane Katrina victim at a 2005 party.
Secretary of State Michael Ertel, who had been on the job less than three weeks, resigned just hours after he testified about election lawsuits before a state legislative committee.
The Tallahassee Democrat obtained pictures taken at a Halloween party 14 years ago that show Ertel dressed in blackface while wearing earrings, a New Orleans Saints bandanna and fake breasts under a purple T-shirt with “Katrina Victim” written on it. The photos were taken two months after the deadly storm ravaged the Gulf Coast region and eight months after Ertel was appointed Seminole County supervisor of elections. The newspaper hasn’t said how it got the photos or identified the source.
Ertel was the Seminole elections supervisor until new Gov. Ron DeSantis picked him last month to take over the department that oversees elections.
DeSantis said Ertel regretted dressing up in blackface, but he said that he was right to step down after the pictures emerged.
“I want people to be able to lead and not have any of these things swirling around,” said DeSantis, who was in Marianna to discuss hurricane relief efforts for areas hit hard by Hurricane Michael in October.
Bye.
Three weeks on the job and this pops up. Frankly, this should have been revealed last decade and Ertel's career ended then, but hey, now's good too.
Of course I expect he'll be fine with a nice sinecure somewhere in Right-Wing Noise Land, most likely a Trump Regime position somewhere.
But there was no way Ertel was going to survive as the state's top election officials with Ron DeSantis's racist campaign and current efforts to re-disenfranchise a million-plus black Florida residents fresh on everyone's mind.
Still, not only is the cruelty the point, so is the racism.
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