I went back to Frist's 1994 campaign in search of evidence for the race-baiting theory. Instead, I found good evidence against it?evidence that the Associated Press, New York Times, and Los Angeles Times didn't include in stories mentioning the Barry remark. In July 1994, three months before he brought up Barry, Frist aired a TV ad that depicted Sasser's face on Mount Rushmore alongside the faces of Bill Clinton, Ted Kennedy, and Dan Rostenkowski. The ad called them "tax and spend career politicians." Rostenkowski was under indictment and was eventually jailed for misappropriating government funds.
You can argue that Rostenkowski, like Barry, had little to do with Tennessee. But that's the point. Racism requires differential treatment. Frist reached for every villain he could hang on Sasser. Black or white, he didn't care.
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