Among the newly elected members of Congress this week was Mia Love, a freshman Congresswoman from Utah's Fourth District. She is a black female Mormon Republican. She is an instant superstar. She is the face of America's political cynicism.

It is true that black female Mormon Republican members of Congress are rare. In fact, female Republican members of Congress are rare, as are black Republican members of Congress, and black female members of Congress are rarer still. (The Mormonism is just icing on the demographic cake.) So it is not surprising that Mia Love would get a disproportionate amount of attention. Still, let us remember that Mia Love is a freshman member of Congress whose previous political experience was as mayor of Saratoga Springs, Utah. One can without malice observe that her political position is not one associated with great influence.

So, in the normal course of things, Mia Love would receive somewhat more media attention than the average freshman member of Congress, due to her unique qualities in the context of her political party, but would hardly be considered an important political force at this early stage in her career. Is that what is happening? Let's review a brief representative sample of some of the Mia Love coverage from the past couple of days.

  • Mia Love, the Obama of the Republican Party?: "Damon Cann, politics professor at Utah State University, said Love is bound for greater things in Washington. 'Since the election of Barack Obama, the Republicans have been more serious about trying to showcase the diversity within the Republican Party,' he told the Salt Lake Tribune. 'And Mia Love is potentially the poster child for diversity in the party.'"
  • Mia Love, first black Republican woman in Congress, is 'solid gold' for GOP: "Love, the former mayor of Saratoga Springs, Utah, who often wears her hair in the kind of urban-style braids more likely seen in Brooklyn than the Beehive State, tells a classic, almost Obama-like American story of overcoming odds and achieving great heights through hard work and perseverance."
  • Meet Mia Love. You'll be seeing a lot more of the Republicans' first black congresswoman: "Though she may speak out against immigration or D.C. dysfunction, she is not a white-haired, pale-skinned Methuselah turning beet-red on Fox News while doing so. She is a black woman under 40. That's all that matters."

That's all that matters, you see. "An African-American congresswoman is solid gold for the Republicans," pundit extraordinaire Larry Sabato told The Telegraph. "They have enduring, deep problems with both minorities and women across the country, so I guarantee you they will feature Mia Love prominently." With no apparent platform or accomplishments or influence to wield, Mia Love has been proclaimed—primarily by the media itself—as a " Rising Star" in the Republican party. Was it cynical of the Republicans to give Mia Love a featured speaking slot at the 2012 Republican National Convention when she was nothing more than a small town mayor? Clearly. (And it was funny, in the sense of "How far do Republicans have to look to find a black woman?") But it is even more cynical of the ostensibly responsible and "serious" mainstream political media to shout themselves hoarse proclaiming her a "Rising Star" and "the next Obama" before she has actually done anything.

Mia Love is the living embodiment of our clumsy national attempts to shuffle towards a "post-racial" America. Consider what exactly her value is to the Republican Party: it is the fact that she is a black woman. Does her presence on stage prove that the Republican party is inclusive? On the contrary—if she weren't the only black woman they could find, her value would be greatly diminished. How about her explicit rejection of the idea of institutional racism, and her statements about the Democratic party using "demagoguery" to "ignite emotions and ignite racism when there isn't [any]?" Doesn't it help the Republicans to have that message coming from the mouth of a black woman? It could—except for the fact that the only reason Mia Love has been so lovingly shepherded to the national podium to deliver this message is because of her own race, and its contrast with the whiteness of the Republican party, which is a condition that exists in large part due to the party's rejection of the reality of institutional racism! Mia Love is a contradiction made flesh. Her own success disproves her own political views.

It would be nice if the media would wait and see what she does, rather than propelling her forward on their own breathless racial narrative, like a pundit-fueled Silver Surfer. And if it's not too much trouble, maybe stop comparing her to Obama. They're both black. Other than that, they have little in common, except for being propelled forward by the media's own breathless racial narrative.

[Photo: AP]