Originally posted January 20, 2016.

During the last Democratic debate, Hillary Clinton told the audience of her “outrage by what’s happening in Flint, Michigan.”

“Mrs. Clinton,” writes Jason L. Riley in the WSJ, “sees this as a crisis worthy of political exploitation because Flint is an impoverished majority-black city in a state with a white Republican governor.”

To appreciate the opportunistic nature of the former secretary of state’s indignation, compare it to her response Sunday morning when asked on “Meet the Press” about the 2014 death of Laquan McDonald in Chicago. The city’s mayor, Rahm Emanuel, is facing questions over whether his administration covered up details of the police shooting last year to help him win re-election. The city hid from public view a dashcam recording of the incident that contradicted the police’s version of events. If released, it likely would have cost the mayor black support that he needed to win. The Justice Department is investigating.

When Mrs. Clinton was asked if Mr. Emanuel, a top aide in her husband’s administration, still had enough credibility to lead the city, she demurred. “That’s going to be up to him and up to the people of Chicago to prove,” she said. Calling out a Republican governor is more useful to Mrs. Clinton than is calling out the Democratic mayor of the president’s hometown. Her concern is not the plight of poor blacks in general but the plight of those blacks best situated to help her win the White House. In Michigan, the governor needs to be held accountable. In Chicago, the mayor gets a pass.

It’s pretty clear that Hillary is playing the race card. Her election mantra is that Democrats will give blacks a $15 minimum wage and free health care. And what will Republicans give? Voter ID laws and contaminated water. Read more from Mr. Riley here.

VIDEO: Clinton Dodges On Whether Rahm Emanuel Should Resign