Juan Williams Tears Up: "This Is America At Its Grandest" (VIDEO)

A visibly moved Juan Williams reacted to the news that Barack Obama was elected President of the United States shortly after the race was called on Fox News Tuesday. Williams called it "stunning," noting that African Americans were barely able to vote until just 43 years ago, and saying, "I don't care how you feel about him politically, on some level you have to say this is America at its grandest."

His full comments:

It's a stunning sight. It's incomprehensible. Even a year ago, I wouldn't have thought this was possible. That an African American man could be elected President of the United States. When I think of it from a historical point of view, and you go back and think of people, that fact that black people didn't have the right to vote in this country. There were only black men until 1870. In 1870, black men got the right to vote and of course it didn't mean much until going forward until 1965 and the Voting Rights Act. And at that point, Linden Johnson said the Democrat Party lost the South forever and there was no possibility really of full enfranchisement that said black people could somehow be the leader of the United States of America. This is truly an incredible moment of American history. I can't think of another country in the world where you could have a significant minority that was once so maligned and so oppressed finally have one of its sons rise to this level. This is ah... I don't care how you feel about him politically, on some level you have to say this is America at its grandest, the potential, the possibility, and what it says for our children. Black and white, the image of Barack Obama and those little girls in the Rose Garden in these years to come. I think it's just stunning.

Read more Election Reaction here.

Read more about Election 2008 coverage here.

Comments

[Jaking]

aww poor FAUX! it must be hard! all the hard work you s c u m s did!! America has spoken ENOUGH!! oooh by the way where is poor little Sean Hannity? the master of bottom feeders!! Lol Lol it must be painful!

[murly]

When Barack Obama was born, little children with his skin color were being escorted to school by the National Guard in order to protect them from jeering white crowds with ugly hatred on their faces. And now an African-American will lead this country.

It feels great to be proud of our country again after eight years of seeing our Constitution shredded by men who think it's okay to torture, okay to start preemptive wars, okay to hold prisoners without legal representation, okay to wiretap without warrants, okay to censor scientific research. I have hope for the first time in what feels like an eternity!

[LoloZ]

Juan was horrible this whole campaign. Now he jumps on the bandwagon?

[Abby1]

I noticed after he won, they started saying some nice things about Obama. I was sort of shocked that those nice words were coming from Fox News.

[ihavehope]

That was nice to hear. It was a little disappointing however to listen to him bash Obama for the rest of the night.

[QuietNetworker]

Best to turn off Faux News.

However, that line...

...this may not just be one for the history books, this may be the COVER of the history books!

WOW.

Paulie Sabol

[karamelioness]

Defiantly Fox was harsh...last night almost especially Williams...they were tearing him a new one on his administration before he has even made his first decision. A dark day for Faux New Channel.

[Quotidien]

In the end, the truth catches up to everyone.

Juan Williams has been one of the most dissapointing Black men I have ever seen in the media. I understand that he needed to be the "atypical" Black man in order to get where he is, but at every opportunity, he has chosen to throw Barack Obama and the Black community under the bus - just to appease his atypical image and hence his value to the right wing media.

But after Barack won the election, and he couldn't help but think about the difficulties, challenges and criticisms that he and his loved ones have faced on this long road to 2008. He had his epiphany right there on live television. FOX News allowed him to be Black for 2 1/2 minutes. It was moving.

Sadly though, we all know who's buttering his bread. He'll likely return to being the right wing attack dog who facilitates FOX's claim that they are not racists.

It was nice while it lasted.

[kikimae]

No, I think Steele from Md. has him beat.

[blah blah blah]

Unbelievable. Juan doesn't walk in lock step with the African American agenda and he's disappointing? What your saying is that he needs to be a "typical" black man? Isn't that the type of racism the left claims to be against. Why don't we just call him a man (not black or white) who has a mind of his own. In addition to cnn and msnbc, I watch fox news and find Juan refreshing. He constantly defended Obama without being combative and without covering up his faults and weaknesses (despite what you may think, Obama is not perfect). It's called critical thought. I would venture to guess that Juan has done more to chronicle the plight of African Americans than those who are bashing him here. "Eyes on the Prize" is a very good book. Perhaps you should read it (and his other books) before you judge the man.

[VSamuels]

What the heck, are you his freakin mom? Juan resides in a party that is unreflective of the United States as a whole, and one in which few if any non-whites can actually prove the existence of his atypical viewpoint, as neither he nor Armstrong Williams, Lynn Swann, J.C. Watts, nor Thos. Sowell ever will be in a position to ever test if the so-called republican party is actually color blind, as they won't select them to be in charge of anything.

The point isn't judging Juan Williams, but placing and putting his political philosophy under the light of common sense, which would show the delusion of grandeur that underscores those keeping the republican party a narrow, racist and incompetent clique of frat boys and sweethearts.

Juan Williams has a right to be as god awful as he desires, but he doesn't have a right to pretend that the frauds he covers for, actually stand for something.

[Obama-ist]

Great clip. But it's spelled Lyndon Johnson.

[LisaLisa1234]

And again, tears in my eyes.

[mikemillion2000]

I echo the words of choirgirl:

"Juan. got two words for ya: shut up. now, come to your senses, leave the dark side and walk into the light. we're all here."

[DavidKC]

Juan Williams can bite me. He spends his days sucking up to the worst right-wing bigots in the country who fought for two years to tear down Obama with the most despicable lies and smears imaginable, as Williams sat by silently or joined in the fun, and now he suddenly finds love for Obama? I don't think so.

[VSamuels]

Many of us have met the Juan Williams and Joe Watkins types, they are always out to 'out white' the whitest white person to prove that they are down with their fraudulent cause. Here, Williams had a bit of reality hit him, that he had abandoned 'black folks' not seeing how such a point could bring him to the success he believed was possible only by completing drowning himself in 'the whiteness' of his viewpoint.

Obama's success was a temporary wake-up call to his own weakness and denial of everything black and his new path to pretending all can be just like him, if they only weren't trying to be 'black'.

He, like J.C. Watts are in no-mans land, a place where they will never be treated with true and actual respect, but if they just remain in denial; it is a wonderful, wonderful fantasy---at least until reality fades to BLACK.

[cbates]

Jaun it is a hard job you do. Keep the faith.

[mikey970]

president obama??? i never thought it would happen. this is one of greatest moments in world history!!! i only wish those who fought hard and died to bring civil rights justice to this country could have seen this moment!!! we must stop worrying about skin color and work together to make this country get out of this mess that we are in!!!!

[neesy08]

People in Kenya and the rest of Africa are just beaming!!!!!!!!!!!! Hell, most of the world is jubuliant today! I cried and cried and cried last night. People of African descent te world over must be particularly joyful. Someobdy wo looks like THEM is now the most powerful man in the world! In the White House! I'll be speaking to my European friends shortly. I know they are elated

[choirgirl]

Juan. got two words for ya: shut up. now, come to your senses, leave the dark side and walk into the light. we're all here.

[BETTERDAYSARECOMMIN]

YES WE CAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Good morning everyone, I just want to say thank you for working so hard to get President Obama Elected. I dont know any of you but I've been blogging for two years for President Obama on my own time and I've seen many of you doing the same thing. You guys have proved to the world that when we are united, and not divided over nonsense wedge issues such as religion color or gender but as Americans, there is nothing we can not achieve if we work together and speak with one voice

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

[Pees1]

YES, YOU DID!
And people from Asia,Europe, Africa and around the world share your joy and wish you well.

And I really don't care about President Obama's skin colour. He is American and that says it all.

[morenews7]

The Work of Better Angels:

http://headofstate.blogspot.com/2008/11/work-of-better-angels.html