Nobody asked for this, but, yet, here we are. In the middle of a volatile election year where Charles Barkley has free reign to spew his illogical political takes on TV. True bipartisanship looks like viewers from both parties working together to make this end.
When CNN announced that King Charles was happening, even the dumbest Americans scratched their heads. Because in what world does it make sense to have someone with the talents, professionalism and resume of Gayle King paired with Barkley to discuss things beyond why Doc Rivers can’t close out playoff series when his teams have a 3-1 lead?
As expected, things haven’t gone well.
“I can say I’m dying to vote for you,” Barkley said to “former” Republican Presidential candidate Nikki Haley last month when she appeared on the show. “And that (comment) hurt me. So I would love you to clarify that.”
“So, first of all, I never said that there was not racism in America,” Haley replied. “There absolutely is racism in America. I said that America was not a racist country.”
In case you missed it, Haley is delusional and willingly ignorant. It’s been reported that she’s suspending her campaign today (Wednesday). Also, her real name is Nimarata Nikki Randhawa, she’s Indian. Her husband’s name is Michael Haley. “Nikki Haley” sounds a lot more “American.” Especially when you want a career as a Republican politician — just ask Rafael Edward Cruz, he goes by “Ted.”
When Dylann Roof walked into a bible study at a Black church in South Carolina and killed nine Black people just because they were Black, guess who the Governor was?
Nimarata.
And when the Confederate flag was finally removed entirely from the South Carolina Statehouse, guess who was the most powerful person in the state?
Nimarata.
Yet, this same person doesn’t believe America is a racist country after she was the governor of the state that was the home of the Confederacy and the first state to secede from the union.
That’s who Barkley was “dying to vote” for.
But wait, there’s more.
“First of all, I’m just gonna say this, if I see a Black person walking around with a Trump mugshot, I’m gonna punch him in the face.” Barkley was commenting on Trump’s remark about how Black people now have a strong connection to him because he’s been indicted.
“First of all, if I was at that press conference, I would’ve gotten up and walked out. That was an insult to all Black people . . . to compare Black history and how we’ve been discriminated against to his plight,” he added.
As usual, Barkley is showing us that, unlike rebounds, logic is something he’s always failed at getting his hands on. Because if you wanted to vote for Haley, it tells us you lean towards the Republican side in the voting booth. And given that she only won one contest in the primary, the guy that just angered Barkley is his only option left at this point. It’s as if he’s as unaware of who’s leading political races as he is about the standings in the Southeast Division in the Eastern Conference.
I mean, remember this? (click the link and watch the clip for a good laugh.)
A few years ago, Barkley got on TV and said that politicians, not racists, were the reason racism succeeds. And now he’s frustrated with Nimarata?
In December, the Washington Post wrote about King Charles’ lackluster ratings. “An article came out that our ratings weren’t great, but I want to tell my team, man, these Nielsen people are the biggest clowns in the world. Name me one person you know with a Nielsen box?” Barkley said on his podcast. “But I really just want to tell my team, I just want to say thank you. And f*ck those Nielsen people,” he added.
Being angry at the people who work at the company who put together the data isn’t going to solve King Charles’ issues in the same way that once longing for Nikki Haley to be a better candidate, and punching Black Trump supporters won’t improve American politics. The only answers are to become educated voters and for networks to put knowledgeable people on the air to help educate voters even more. And when you look at it that way, Charles Barkley just seems to be frustrated at himself.
