Artful Dodger:

>  Rep. Joe Wilson’s “You lie” outburst and how one senator called the remark racist

This is a tricky one.  Barack Obama (through the White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs) said that he did not believe that Wilson's comment was the result of racism.  Wilson later apologized rather informally to the president.  Democrats wanted him to apologize in the open floor of the House, but Wilson and the Republican caucus refused.  Since Wilson refused to apologize formally in the House of Representatives, he angered many Democrats and that is where the accusation of racism comes from.

Is Addison Graves Wilson Sr. (aka Joe Wilson) a racist?  In his case we are talking about guilt by association.  Wilson is associated with people who have been accused or were well known for being racist.  Joe Wilson worked as an aide to Senator Strom Thurmond.

Sen. Thurmond was one of the strongest supporters of seggregation and in 1957 he led the biggest fillibuster in US History.  He successfully blocked passing the Civil Rights Act of 1957.  For most of his life Thurmond defended his seggregationist views although later in life he moderated his views on race and even hired an African American aide.  He also fathered an illegitimate son with his African American maid.  It seems that Thurmond started as a hardened seggregationisn in South Carolina, but moderated his position later on.

Joe Wilson is also a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV).  This is an organization of male descendants of soldiers or sailors who served the Confederate States of America during the Civil War.  The SCV's mission is "preserving the history and legacy of Confederate heroes, so future generations can understand the motives that animated the Southern Cause."  Although the SCV has openly opposed the KKK, accusations against its members have surfaced over the years.  Those accusations include racism, revival of seggregation, and white supremacism.

A good question is whether Wilson can be accused of being a racist for having worked for a seggregationist and his being a member of the SCV.  The evidence is circumstantial at best.  Guilt by association is not proof, but it does make people think.  Jimmy Carter and Bill Cosby have called Wilson a racist, while Donna Edwards, an African American congresswoman, disagree.

What worries me about Joe Wilson is his campaign funding.  According to OpenSecrets.org, over his career he has received $251,196 from health professionals, $89,650 from pharmaceutical companies and $68,250 from hospitals and nursing homes.  The Health sector has been his biggest contributor over the years.  There is also a further $117,533 from lobbyist, and who knows who they work for.

http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/industries.php?cycle=Career&cid=N00024809&type=I

His track record is not different from other politicians who are influenced by other sectors of the economy.  However, it could explain some of the motivation behind his outburst during Obama's speech.