SC Senate Candidate a Plant to Split the Black Vote?

When I first saw the Democratic candidate for the Senate in South Carolina, Alvin Greene, I didn't believe my eyes or ears. Greene is not exactly the kind of guy you'd expect to be running for or from anything, other than the police. In fact, Greene is sort of running from the police, facing a felony conviction on a tiny little issue involving pornography and a college student. But I'll stay on point here. I listened to Greene, the candidate that no one knew about, explain how he won, why he ran and what he plans to do for the state of South Carolina. I admit that I am the last person to go after another brother, but Greene was an absolute embarrassment. In fact, if I didn't know better, I'd think he was planted by the Republicans.

Greene didn't know where he got the money to run, what he did to win, or what he planned to do when he got into office. The unemployed veteran who lives with his father and doesn't own a cell phone or computer didn't even know how to finish a complete sentence. He didn't know how to answer one single question asked by the reporter, and all of the suspicions held by many, including Congressional Whip James Clyburn, were being substantiated right before our eyes. Some believe that Greene was chosen and paid for by the Republicans to split the black vote and take the Democratic nomination to create an easy win for the other side. At the very least, we know that in South Carolina, you can switch party affiliation during a primary, and no one knows exactly how many of the 100,000 people who voted for Greene were Republicans or Democrats.

Without going into whether Greene broke the law or not, let's just talk about the feasibility of this theory. I am not one to jump on every available conspiracy theory, and Lord knows I'm always down for the candidate that no one believes is going to win. But apparently, there is a history of southern conservatives deliberately reshaping elections to increase their chances to win. Until we are sure where Greene got the money to file for this election, there is reason to be extremely suspicious.

According to George Mason Political Science Professor Michael Fauntroy, candidates are sometimes chosen by wealthy individuals and given the money to run, just so they can split the black vote. "This has gone on in lower-level races for years," says Dr. Fauntroy. "We only know about this guy because he actually won and is getting national media attention."

So, while we might think that Alvin Greene is simply good comic relief for his lack of understanding of key issues, the truth is that he is dangerous. Now that he has secured the Democratic nomination for a Senate seat in South Carolina, his Republican challenger, Jim DeMint, is now free to use his campaign funds to support other backers of the Tea Party movement around the nation.

Clyburn is calling for a federal investigation into Greene's campaign. He'd like to know who financed him and how he got elected. According to Greene, the money for his filing fee came from his campaign bank account, which now has $114 in it. Also, he didn't give a single speech or even build a website for his campaign. This is going to be interesting.

"I'm the Democratic Party nominee," Greene said during a recent interview. "The people have spoken. The people of South Carolina have spoken. The people of South Carolina have spoken. We have to be pro-South Carolina. The people of South Carolina have spoken. We have to be pro-South Carolina."

That gives you an idea of the amazing oratorical abilities of Alvin Greene. I look forward to seeing what happens here.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action Resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.