Barack Obama Sets the Record Straight
At the gym today I saw Fox News on one of the monitors as the Republican mouthpiece constantly ran footage of Reverend Jeremiah Wright preaching followed by footage of Senator Barack Obama with the aim of creating a strong visual bond between the two men.
With Fox News apparently converted to the "all-Reverend Wright-all-the-time" channel, and the Hillary Clinton campaign throwing a "kitchen sink" worth of racially-tinged innuendo his way, Barack Obama gave a brief interview tonight with Keith Olbermann on MSNBC's "Countdown" where he set the record straight on his decision to distance himself and his campaign from the views of Reverend Wright.
Senator Obama spoke of the passion that many African Americans feel, including Reverend Wright, who were among the pioneers of the generation that fought for their fundamental civil rights in America. He implied, (in my impression of the interview), that the injustices of the Jim Crow South are fresh in the memories of many black civil rights activists, which sometimes leads to heated rhetoric. Obama acknowledged the debt he has to those activists who broke open the doors of opportunity for him, and he is clearly deeply grateful for their struggles and their contributions to American life. He reiterated his love for his country and his strong sense of patriotic duty, (which has led him to run for president).
Senator Obama should in no way be held accountable for the impolitic utterances of his former pastor. It is unfair to engage in guilt by association. Obama showed good judgment by distancing his campaign from the more radical views of Reverend Wright and relieving him of any formal connection to his organization, but Obama also showed an admirable character trait by refusing to denounce Rev. Wright the person.
Obama also acknowledged that Swift Boat 527 groups are sure to use Wright's fulminations against him if he were to win the nomination. His interview tonight and actions taken I think show clearly that Obama is better prepared to take on the inevitable Swift Boating than was John Kerry in 2004.
We should recall that the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., who is honored with a national holiday and politicians including George W. Bush and John McCain have paid homage to his memory, in April 1967 called the United States "the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today." In my opinion, Reverend Wright says nothing in the taped vignettes I've seen on TV that is untrue about America, despite the "tut-tutting" of liberals and conservatives among the chattering class. Obama showed that he is nimble in taking care of potential pitfalls in his campaign and that shows he would be a great candidate in the general election against the Republican smear-meisters.
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Yes! I appreciate the fact that Senator Obama refrains from flaming anyone.
Why perpetuate divide and conquer strategies? Has it helped us as individuals or as a country to fling back what we experience as wrong with ever growing hatred?
Could we use our reason and maybe try to identify where a person is coming from and why? Could it be that Wright, or even Farrakhan, has a completely different experience than that of the majority in this country? Maybe they have a point within their burning words? Maybe they're saying that racism is alive and well and they've had more than enough?
Folks, they're telling you that you just don't get it. We oughta pay attention. Look around and maybe you'll see. Oops, there are no black people in your neighborhood?
Now do you get it? We're still segregated.
THAT's the problem. It ain't the words, it's the facts that are so offensive.
Excellent post. I am still at a loss to figure out exactly what the Reverend Wright said that was so "outrageous or inflammatory".
I am sick and tired of candidates being forced to denounce and reject every single person who they know, or who works for them, or supports them, that said something perceived by some as offensive. This society is too damn politically correct. It's ludicrous! How is Obama responsible for what Reverend Wright believes, or said? The last time I checked, Reverend Wright was not a candidate in this contest.
This is merely another distraction in an endless list of distractions that are designed to take American's minds off the real problems and challenges we face in the 21st Century thanks to the criminal administration of George W. Bush.
All you Hilray supporters should send your children,nieces and grandchildren to the "War", since you think she has made such great decisions. The Clintons name is all over the "REZSO" case. as well as GWB 'S
hmmmmm...Hillary never voted to go to war. Bush took America to war if you recall. It was his call. He did not take anything into consideration that the Iraq Resolution spelled out. 77 senators (I believe that's the number) voted for this resolution, but it is convenient to blame Hillary once again. Yes, I know, but she is running for president....and so were others who signed the resolution.
Please show me where the Clinton's names are all over the REZKO case. Did you read the papers today where Obama admits he received more money from Rezko than previously reported?
I agree! I wouldn't want to be held accountable for everything priests with long term ties to my family while I was growing up, said and did! There is so much hypocrisy in this attack against Obama, it sickens me. What about John ( Katrina is God's retribution) Hagee and McCain or Hillary's 20 plus year close association with Billy Graham who was forced to apologize after his Anti-Semitc remarks on the Nixon tapes surfaced? Once again the media holds Obama to different standard. I find it very curious that this blow up on an issue the media thoroughly dissected last year erupted again one day after Ferraro-gate.
I'm glad Senator Obama dealt with it all with such grace and maybe now we can move on. I hope that when it is covered in future, it will be balanced with equal billing for Hagee and Graham.
You mention the "Republican smear meisters."
Not only the Republicans are working against Obama, CNN has blown the issue so out of proportion, it almost appears that they are trying to sabotage Obama's chances. CNN has downplayed McCain's negatives such as McCain's heavy involvement with the lobbying to help European Aeronatics and Northrop get the bid to make the new AF refueling tankers rather than a U.S. company. McCain is controlled by lobbyists but it doesn't get much attention on CNN. CNN is reacting as if Obama's pastor comments were threatening the security of the world.
I've noticed that since two days prior to the Ohio primary, CNN has exaggerated Obama's negatives while underplaying Clinton's and McCain's. The most untrusted name in news?
It's not enough to keep informed on real issues. Now I'm told I shouldn't vote for someone unless I know what their pastor says. I don't give a damn what Obama's pastor says as long as it is legal and doesn't frighten the horses. How would we be able to vote for Clinton or McCain inasmuch as we don't know what their pastors say - that is, if they have a pastor.
"In my opinion, Reverend Wright says nothing in the taped vignettes I've seen on TV that is untrue about America."
I agree.
I was going to vote for the Libertarian party, but I think I'll vote for Wright instead.
I agree with you! There is a huge difference between getting an uncomfortable political endorsement and and being a willing disciple of this "victim" political theology. It is wrong to separate this pastor from his church's ideologies; It has a very radical point of view as outlined in its mission statements.
I researched Obama's church long ago and I was shocked by what I found. It told me that this guy would be unelectable in the fall, because he could be easily characterized as an extremist. It also shows the naive nature of Obama, that he didn't join an ethnically diverse mainstream church that touted Christian conduct such as "do unto others..." before his run for the White House.
The so-called pastors bizarre claims about AIDS and HIV, especially disturbed me, because AIDS is hitting this community so hard! Just when they must accept responsbility for the epidemic in their community, this "pastor" gives them someone else to blame : "the U.S. government."
If you researched the Church I assume you saw their work in the community re HIV so I don't understand your comment. I looked this up last night. You see a slant I don't re victim and oddly most of Obama's speeches are exactly the opposite - empowering so I don't get that point either.
The HIV government stuff though is off the reservation tinfoil hat territory and there I agree bizarre, he and Ron Paul have some stuff in common.
Thanks for the thoughtful replies. I don't think it helps victims of HIV and AIDS to suggest that the government gave them this disease on purpose. If anything, it adds to their anxiety and need to find blame.
I know the statement about AIDS and HIV is disturbing, but the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiement from 1932 to 1972 is in our not too distant past. President Clinton apologized in 1992 to the eight survivors of the experiment in which 399 poor African Americans, mostly illiterate sharecroppers from the poorest areas of Alabama were basically used as laboratory animals by the US Public Health Service. According to Infoplease these men, many of whom had had never received any medical treatment, had sypphilis and were told that they were being treated for "bad blood". Their doctors had no intention of curing them of syphilis at all. The data for the experiment was to be collected from autopsies of the men, and they were thus deliberately left to degenerate under the ravages of tertiary syphilis—which can include tumors, heart disease, paralysis, blindness, insanity, and death. “As I see it,” one of the doctors involved explained, “we have no further interest in these patients until they die.” By the end of the experiment, 28 of the men had died directly of syphilis, 100 were dead of related complications, 40 of their wives had been infected, and 19 of their children had been born with congenital syphilis.
This is a part of our recent history. I happened in my lifetime, and I am not yet 50. Most of us who are white have never heard of this experiment, or we have heard of it but don't believe there is any truth to it. I encourage all of you to read a bit about this experiment by going to http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0762136.html. This is just part of what has been edured by African Americans and people of color. So many of us have moved on from our racist history. In many ways, that is a good thing. It is what Senator Obama has done. Still, we all need to realize it is still a part of who each of us is. It is less a part of me than it is of my parents, and it is less a part of Obama than it is of his pastor.
thank you! i have been trying to let folks know that being intellectually lazy and historically non-curious will lead them into rash judgments about other people's beliefs on the state of our country and the world. the tuskegee experiments and the nevada radiation experiments (our govt. luring families into the desert to see the 'spectacular mushroom clouds' in order to monitor the effects of radiation on their unknowing bodies) are just two horrendous instances where our citizens were exploited to satisfy the government's research aims.
Lack of good judgment is more like it. Obama's "boneheaded" (his own word) decisions make him look inept. And for you to gloss over it, is a lack of journalistic integrity. You managed to get in digs at
Fox News and Hillary AND make Obama look like a victim, once again.
Obama has stated, in public, Wright is his mentor and spiritual advisor, so why are you worried about how they look side by side on television or the print media?
One more time, I will point out that Rev. Wright also served as a spiritual advisor to the Clintons during Bill's term in office. Particuarly when the Lewinsky matter came to light, President Bill Clinton was eager to embrace Rev. Wright and pastors around the country to help him weather that storm. I find it curious that so many people are amazed that older Black Americans are angry at the enduring spectres of racism and discrimintation. To name just one example, have we so easily forgotten that a Black man was lynched in Texas less than 10 years ago by white people who knew him? You may not like his form of expression, but don't pretend that the Rev. Wrights of the world have nothing to be upset about. Barack's candidacy is an opportunity for reconciliation that may not come again.
Hope trumps fear!
Letuckerchicago, Where did you hear that Wright was spiritual advisor to the Clintons? Is this true? Did you read this somewhere? Could you provide a link for me? Thanks.
letuckerchicago:
Reconciliation?!? And by whose standards are you referencing, exactly? Your super-imposed vision that you have placed upon that blank canvas Obama? Exactly WHAT does Barrack stand for? NOBODY knows, because he hasn't taken a stand of ANY type that can be substantiated.
This is what I find so incredibly repugnant about this kind of aggrandizing by Obama supporters. It always this blanketed type of high-gloss hyperbole that is nothing more than cheerleading. The example you give has absolutely nothing to do with why Senator Obama has decided to put as much distance from himself and the Reverend. It's not about 'trumping fear'..
It's about self preservation and prevailing in the polls. And ZERO to do with hope.
At least your 'vision' of hope.
His only 'hope' is to get to the finish line and catch his breath when seated in the oval office come January so as to start going over the 'kick backs for corporate supporters' wish list which will take him four years to fill.
And what about you? Me? Here's the answer: NOTHING
letuckerchicago, great comment.
Wright as Clinton's spiritual advisor? Is this true information? If so where did you hear that?
If Wright did serve as a spiritual advisor to the Clintons in the 90's, I'd appreciate some documentation on that. Thanks.
Joseph, so we now know that every religious American is responsible for the words and deeds of their Church Leaders. So, getting too close to God is now dangerous if it distracts you from auditing your Holy Man's sermons.
Guilt by association is always a favorite tool of fascists, so I reject attacks on Obama based on his Reverend's comments without hesitation.
I also ask a further question ...
Is every member of Reverend Wright's Congregation anti American as well? Is the United Church of Christ, anti-American? If any member of Reverend Wright's church is currently serving in the US Military, should they be considered a National Security risk?
For certainly Senator Obama wasn't the only individual drinking in the words of Reverend Wright over the last 36 years ... how many anti-American Church goers has Reverend Wright sent into the World?
If I were the US Military, I would immediately identify all servicemen and women associated with Reverend Wright and send them home ... they are obviously a threat to National Security.
This is the fun thing about guilt by association ... it can be taken to the most absurd extremes.
Bottom line, Joseph, Senator Obama is no more responsible for Reverend Wright than you and I are.
If you belong to a country club that doesn't allow minorities, are you guilty of being a bigot? I say yes.
If you attend skinhead meetings for 20 years but claim the leader of your group is just kinda like an uncle, are you a skinhead? I say yes.
If, let's say, you considered Hugo Chavez to be your philosophical mentor and belonged to his inner circle for decades ... would you be considered a leftist? Um, probably so!
If you regularly attended KKK meetings for 20 years but never PERSONALLY wore the white suit, would it be safe to assume that you believe the ideology? YES!
If you donate tens of thousands of dollars to a church that promotes separatism, are married by its minister and consider the minister your mentor are you a member of that church? I say yes.
What's not to understand here?
Is it too much to ask of our candidates for PRESIDENT to at least assume that they are not anti-American? I think Wright makes some really valid points about the atrocities commited by the US but in order to get elected you just can't associate with extremists like him. Malcomb X made some excellent points and was a very important visionary -- but he would never have been elected president. Obama has foolishly taken advantage of the Left at a time when we really, really, really needed someone who could win the general election.
I would guess you would have to be happy with MadMan McCain for President then ... because Hillary Clinton doesn't have a snowballs chance in Hell (I picked a mythological place I figured you would appreciate) to win the General Election.
I think there is a clear distinction between Rev.Wright and the KKK, in none of his sermons did he encourage violence, hatred or lynching attacks on those he was criticizing. I have also listened to portions of his other speeches and it seems he is equally harsh toward the black community itself...Living in the south, I haven't found the KKK wannabees (or probably are) to be critical of their own race unless it is for not hating minorities enough.
Rev. Wrights' church did not disallow anyone to attend his church. If you paid attention to the clips, you would have seen white people in the congregation.
Skinheads and KKK members preach and teach white supremacy and violence. Rev. Wright did not say anything about black supremacy or violence.
If you've actually ever attended church, you would know about tithes and offerings (10% of your earnings).
Its not guilt by association its freedom of association. Obama is free in America to join such a church, but the question for us is whether we want such a person as president.
Bottom line is that most people won't see it your way. They'll catch the exact visuals cited in the post and equate, in a simplistic way, Barack Obama with "God Damn America!" Sad but true.
I'm sure a number of graduate students would be happy to write dissertations on the wholly unnuanced way that Americans vote, but let's save that for another day. The good reverend has destroyed Obama's hope of winning the general election.
Exactly.
Wait until Hillary is tied to the current state of the Economy thanks to Bill's deregulation of the Banking Industry in 1999 ... there is a direct connection between the two ...
I'm fairly certain Hillary's chances in November will be destroyed as well come the General Election.
Hopefully the DNC has a backup candidate, if the current two are tainted beyond rehabilitation ... otherwise our future is President McCain.
I think people losing their savings, their houses and their jobs thanks to Bill Clinton will be hard for Hillary to explain away as well.
I'm laughing my ass off at the complete disarray of the Democratic Party. The words of Jeremiah Wright fall perfectly inline with the "hate America", "Blame America" politics of the Democratic left wing base.
You morons have reaped what you sowed.
LOL!!!!!
America suffers from the fact that its people, raised as arrogantly patriotic as they are, have never been educated on American History in a more than cartoonish way.
This ignorance of American History is what undermines the Nation's ability to move forward ... A key way for me to identify someone who is ignorant of United States history is to hear them invoking the "Hate America" frame for anyone who engages in thoughtful analysis of the current and historical conditions of the Nation.
I hate so say it, but someone who is ignorant of the History of American, is really no more an American than his or her pet is.
Derek, I hope you're also laughing at our enmirement in Iraq, our failing school,s infrastructure, health system and economy, all thanks to Republican policies. You must be having a wonderful time.
You may want to take a look at the "disarray" of our country. Do you find that funny too?
back away from the mirror
Excellent post. And you make an excellent point when you observe: "Obama showed that he is nimble in taking care of potential pitfalls in his campaign and that shows he would be a great candidate in the general election against the Republican smear-meisters."
I hope the super delegates are paying attention.
I'm sure they are, and they envision Obama and Rev. Wright riding down the river on that swift-boat, Obama is damaged beyond repair, they can show pictures of his house and Tony Rezko too!
What Senator Obama showed was self preservation by alienation. This is a common tactic by politicians. There is nothing austere and grandiose about his maneuvering. It has absolutely nothing to do with character or judgment. He is in an election for the highest office in the planet, and any association with anyone that might potentially cause him ruin in that regard he needs to separate from.
I am plenty sick of the grandstanding these posts seem to take for Obama, and the other posts so anti-Clinton. There is no balance in this. I support neither. His recent blog here on HuffPo only re solidifies my already growing mistrust of him in that Obama had a compelling need to espouse what he stands for, and his friendship with Rev. Wright.
Yes, it is good that he shows great dexterity in shedding himself of potential pitfalls. B.O. is highly efficient in taking the gathering storm and putting the burn on it to keep from getting wet. But does this define a good leader? No. It just means he's adept and quick minded in not being 'caught' in something that could hurt the image he has fostered.
Rev. Wright should in NO way be a reflection of or to Obama. What would have impressed me is if he had not try to 'excuse' himself so adroitly, and sounding more like he was trying to convince himself rather than his faithful. Stand by who you are by action, not explanation, and if an 'explanation' is justly needed, then give it with no potpourri of scented language. Just be direct and non-repetitive. And move on.
He didn't do that. He is too busy preparing for the Republican onslaught. And while he's distancing and practicing for 'political debacle damage control', he is not doing the one thing where his whole 'change' mantra should be the basis of his campaign:
Telling his corporate backers 'no thanks. I think the American voter has had enough of corporate interference' , and set about running a truer campaign that won't invariably end up being yet another special interest payday. And find some substance. Quit the self serving sloganeering.
..And make the other 'corporate products' masquerading as qualified candidates do the same.
THAT is 'character', THAT is 'good judgment'
THAT is change
Am I the only one seeing this?
This flap over Reverend Wright's offensive words reminds me of my grandfather, god rest his soul, who loved to go to Chinese restaurants and call the waitresses racist names. I know that he did not consider himself racist, and when I would chastise him he would smile impishly and say "what?", because he came from a time when racial stereotypes were acceptable. Today we believe that color and race should not define us because in America we are all individuals, but remember that the people of my grandfather's generation and reverend Wright's generation and Geraldine Ferrero's generation still see each other through a prism of racial stereotypes; An "us and them" mentality that came from the segregated society that they grew up in.
Reverend Wright, like my Grandfather, can say such fractious things and think that it is acceptable because he still sees the world as sectioned, as divided, and defined by race. In his mind, his statements aren't hateful, they are the truth. But we younger people know that his perspective is no longer relevant like it was when he was our age. In many ways the Reverend is made outdated and outmoded by his own success at combating segregation and racism in the past.
Obama is the new leader for our new world. It makes sense that he would be in touch with the civil rights fighters that made our country more equal, but having grown up with a white mother and in a post segregation era, he is the embodiment of the better world we are on the brink of creating. A world that fulfills the dream of King and the millions of others who believed that the day would come when any man or woman, regardless of the color of their skin, can be anything they want to be.
We as a people are standing on the shoulders of those like Wright who came before us, and from our lofted position we can now see farther than they were ever able. And nobody can see farther than Barack Obama. He is the future. We are the future. God Bless America.
deutchs, I appreciate your vision and think there is some truth in it, but no one who watched the television coverage after Katrina can believe either segregation or racism is a thing of the past.
Oh, please. The people in attendance, who were on their feet clapping, were not Wright's age, and there were a lot of young people among them. Have you seen the videos? Watch them on you tube-or BUY them. The church sells them. That's how they are out here.
Did you stand up and cheer for your grandfather in that restaurant? Did you think that he should get up on the pulpit and yell these same things, to inspire the congregation? Did you film these occasions to sell and distribute for inspiratioin?
This man is a church leader, and this is his message. This is nothing at all like your grandfather story.
My grandfather was a dry cleaner so he was not in a position to spread his opinion to a mass audience but that does not make his opinion any less true to who he was as a pre-segregation American. My prior post was not a endorsement of Wright's point of view but an explanation of why he feels as he does. If we can understand why he feels as he does and why his congregation was applauding him, we can understand a truth about the racial past of this country and the promise of a more equal future. ONLY through understanding can we find common ground and unity in the face of historic divisions.
There is a disturbing pattern emerging about Barak Obama. If only one incident had appeared it would not be much of a concern but the fact that there is a pattern gives one pause to consider exactly what kind of changes does he envisage.
Here is the pattern:
1) During the reciting of the Pledge of Allegiance Obama does not place his right hand over his heart.
2) Michelle Obama states that only after the Iowa caucuses: “Was the first time she felt proud to be an American”. This from a woman whose success may have depended on affirmative action – something that would have made me feel proud to be an American.
3) Now we hear and see his pastor (his spiritual advisor for 17 years) openly preach “God should damn America” and who openly supports Farrakan.
This is not guilt by association, it is guilt because of choice. Obama cannot claim that he did not know what his “uncle” was preaching. He did know, but still chose to remain in that congregation.
The pattern is clear enough. Ignore at your own peril.
1) MYTH. It was the National Anthem in the silly photo you FOX watchers saw. Nice Strawman though. But, GOD DAMN you and your furthering FOX lies.
2) MYTH. You forget FOX edited out the 'really' in the real you saw a 1000 times. So why is/was there Affirmative Action? Oh, right, most white folks hated black folks. Are you proud of everything this country did and proud every second of every waking day? Love the Occupation of Iraq for instance?
3) Finish the quote...God should damn America for all the killing it has done. C'mon, DEEP DOWN IN YOUR HEART KNOW YOUR GOD LOVES IT WHEN AMERICANS KILL HIS CREATIONS? The phoniest thing any politician says is "God Bless America". What Super Being gives a rat's ass about political borders?
You show a pattern of lies and deceit. Hillary/McCain supporter, by chance?
Ever been to a major sports event in the good old USA ? If you're wearing a hat you remove it and place it over your heart while the national anthem is being played; otherwise you place your hand over your heart, Same symbolism. So I don't know about the GOD DAMN YOU part, but I think you may have gotten the rest of paragraph 1 wrong.
Do the facts really matter IN A GENERAL ELECTION? Or is perception of intention more important? Do you want to be right -- or do you want a Democrat to win? Honestly, I wonder sometimes.
Even more important is the fact that he has indoctrinated his children to the views of this church.
How do you know what kinds of discussions they have around the dinner table? Or even what goes on week by week at his church? They are probably in Sunday school, not the main church.
His children look very well adjusted to me. Children that poised and delightful with happy smiles don't just happen. There is some great parenting going on there. You can also tell by Obama's offhanded comments about his children that he is a passionate and fully-conscious parent, another sign of his emotional intelligence, which is far greater than either of his opponents.
If you want to know about Obama and get a read on him, don't listen to what other people say or guilt him by association. Go to the "Media" section on his website and watch the video clips on his positions that are on his website. It is like he is in your living room. Use your people skills to read his body language. He's the real deal.
Here's the disturbing pattern. Trying to hijack the election by getting people scared so they don't use their higher critical thinking brains to vote for the best candidate, but vote out of irrational fear against their true interests for the fear monger.
Bill Clinton himself talked about this in the 2004 election:
"Now one of Clinton’s laws of politics is this: If one candidate’s trying to scare you and the other one’s trying to get you to think, if one candidate’s appealing to your fears and the other one’s appealing to your hopes, you better vote for the person who wants you to think and hope." - Bill Clinton
If you're not convinced, ask Bill Clinton himself, watch him say it on video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGW38Zy4bJo
The real "peril" is in allowing your brain to be hijacked by fear.
White people are suckers for a scary story. This is particularly acute when it is about Black people.
Thank you for the refresher course in Fascist Fear Tactics 101. You must be one proud American. Do you not realize you are in the wrong place for this type of fear mongering? The Fox news and RL Dittoheads sites can be found just down the hallway, to the right. Or perhaps it is your intention to spread the gospel of brother Rush and his ilk?
Hardly anyone places his or her hand over his heart when reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and if you are basing your support for someone's candidacy on points like these, you obviously have very little knowledge of the true issues.
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