The number three Democrat in the House, behind only Pelosi and Hoyer, and a longtime practitioner of toxic race-bating on behalf of his party. Unbelievable.

“I have seen this kind of hate before. I have seen this discussion before,” he said. “I have seen snarling dogs going after people who were trying to peacefully assemble. I have seen the eyes of people who were being spat upon.”

“This is all about activity trying to deny the establishment of a civil right. And I do believe that health care for all is — a civil right,” the House Majority Whip argued. “And I think that is why you see this kind of activity. This is an attempt on the part of some to deny the establishment of a civil right.”

Clyburn, a veteran of the civil rights movement, said he was particularly appalled by the use of the Swastika symbol at some of these town hall events. Noting that one had been painted on the office of Rep. David Scott (D-Ga.), an African-American, Clyburn insisted that was proof enough that some of the protests were racially motivated.

“There is no question in my mind,” he said.

This is a guy who’s so intimidated by the supposed terror tactics he’s witnessing that he’s actually been known to doze off at town halls of his own. Here’s my question: At the end of the HuffPo piece, he’s quoted tsk-tsking at the House GOP for not formally denouncing the swastika aimed at David Scott — as if the Republican Party’s supposed to take collective responsibility for something done by one anonymous nut whose party affiliation we don’t even know. If the GOP’s supposed to do that, how come it’s not similarly incumbent upon our blessed savior, the avatar of Hopenchange, to say a discouraging word or two about the insane amount of demagoguery and demonization pouring out of his own party right now? And I don’t mean the stuff coming from nutroots blogs; I’m talking about the Senate majority leader mumbling about “evil-mongers” and the Speaker of the House wringing her hands about swastikas and other congressmen warning of “brown shirts” and “political terrorists” and now this from Clyburn. The rhetoric from the Democratic leadership has turned completely poisonous, yet The One won’t open his mouth to calm it down. How come, champ? Are we playing good cop/bad cop again with these cretins? Exit question: How come this didn’t earn any Bull Connor analogies back in the days when protest was still patriotic?