But the same Democrats whimper that the press will call them racist if they do, because "welfare" is often used as racial subtext.

He seems to have hit on yet another subject that's both idiosyncratic and rich with racial subtext.

But there is plenty of evidence that it was heartily appreciative of the racial subtext.

Another critic concluded that the casting choice is "simply distracting" and "forces an uncomfortable racial subtext onto underlying material that doesn't support the weight."

"The racial subtext to this confrontation should not be ignored," Professor Snyder said.

Equally disturbing is the racial subtext that Mr. James has introduced.

Was what occurred in Turin a clash of competitive egos, or was there a festering racial subtext?

"There's a very clear racial subtext to all this," she said.

Nor would he ignore the racial subtext of the debate.

Even so, Mr. Mehlman said he did not see a racial subtext to the ad.