Barack Obama Shifted the Political Discourse Today

Senator Barack Obama displayed a quality in his speech today that the Democratic Party desperately needs in its nominee in 2008: Fearlessness. It was not Barack Obama who injected race into this campaign -- Bill and Hillary Clinton did that for the most crass political purposes -- but when his political enemies moved Reverend Jeremiah Wright's sermons to center stage Obama masterfully shifted the political discourse and replaced the media-driven hype about Reverend Wright with a frank discussion of the state of race relations in America.

In his speech today, Obama displayed his nuanced understanding of the meaning of the U.S. Constitution and of the trajectory of American history. No presidential candidate in decades has had such a masterful grasp of the engine of social change and the role of struggle against injustice in moving history forward. Obama elevates our political discourse by trying to educate the electorate on the problems we face and speaking truth to both the powerful and the powerless.

Obama's honesty is like oxygen for our democracy, especially after years of the political farce we've had to endure. "We can accept the politics that breeds division, and conflict, and cynicism," he said. "We can tackle race only as spectacle -- as we did in the OJ trial -- or in the wake of tragedy, as we did in the aftermath of Katrina -- or as fodder for the nightly news. We can play Reverend Wright's sermons on every channel, every day and talk about them from now until the election, and make the only question in this campaign whether or not the American people think that I somehow believe or sympathize with his most offensive words. We can pounce on some gaffe by a Hillary supporter as evidence that she's playing the race card, or we can speculate on whether white men will all flock to John McCain in the general election regardless of his policies."

Obama said we can move in that divisive and tired direction as a nation and as a people, or we can choose a new path that seeks out wherever possible our common interests and our common fate. "I would not be running for President if I didn't believe with all my heart that this is what the vast majority of Americans want for this country. This union may never be perfect, but generation after generation has shown that it can always be perfected. And today, whenever I find myself feeling doubtful or cynical about this possibility, what gives me the most hope is the next generation -- the young people whose attitudes and beliefs and openness to change have already made history in this election."

There was an audible echo of America's greatest leaders ringing throughout Obama's speech today. As a biographer of Robert F. Kennedy, I could not help but be struck by the similarity in sentiment Obama expressed. His courageousness and honesty reminded me of some of RFK's greatest speeches on race relations. As the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. approaches, I believe both MLK and RFK would be gratified that America still has the capacity to listen to people like Barack Obama. On April 4, 1968, Kennedy said: "What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence or lawlessness; but love and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice toward those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or they be black."

Obama showed today that he is the only presidential candidate who can lead this nation in a new direction, elevate the political discourse, and educate the electorate on the challenges ahead.

Comments

[jiminycracker]

why did obama only feel the need to address the situation with Rev. Wright and the issue of race when it became clear that this situation was a clear problem for his campaign? true courage would have been to make such an eloquent speech BEFORE it became politically necessary......obama, unfortunately, is that which he rails against and which is campaign is all about changing: old style politics

[Joseph A. Palermo - Huffpost Blogger]

Thanks for the comments -- I think that anyone who missed the fact that Obama faced the smears and innuendo directly and did not back down and that his response is the opposite choice that John Kerry made when the Republicans were smearing his war record, didn't get how important his speech was. Democrats have been losing elections by always bowing down to the Republican smears, Obama said: Okay, you want to bring in race, let's have an honest discussion about race in America -- that is a winning strategy because it deflects the smears as they come at him -- no Democrat can survive while taking body blows from the GOP because Fox and other media will amplify it to ear shattering proportions (as they did with the Swift Boaters) -- Like RFK, you fight back, stare the smearmeisters in the face and let 'em have it. Let's try this for one election cycle and see if it works -- if he fails we can always go back to the same old dreary politics of Clintons Gores and Kerrys.

[Berettasskeeter]

Sorry Joe. It was a good speech. It just didn't ring true. Obama has indicated that he and Wright have embraced each other as father/son, uncle/nephew, mentor/student, for 2 decades. His words are empty as he attempts to turn attention away from him, who is the candidate, to America, which stands alone in the world as a bastion of equality, despite her growing pains.
Obama is an empty suit.
Semper fi

[Rocky4356]

When Black troops from New Orleans saw their grandmothers and Grandfathers hanging off roofs after Katrina. When they saw their community stuffed into the Superdom with no water of food. When they saw the body of the elderly lady in a wheelchair dead for days. Does anyone think this makes them fighting for Iraqi freedom feel good. Would It not make anyone disgusted. Black people have always loved America it makes Blacks mad when America fails to love them back as much. Anytime there is anger it was proceeded a deep hurt. Obama talked to us as adults today

[iratior]

As long as the name of the game is to hold Barack Obama resonsible for anything his friends, relatives, and advisors have ever said, I expect the same ridiculously unfair standard to apply to John McCain and Hillary Clinton. Let's draw up a llist of all the ministers whose churches they've ever gone to, and search all the sermons and speeches those ministers ever gave, for anything bad.

[S1m0n]

I've only been watching Obama as long as everybody else in the mediaverse has, but I'm starting to suspect that one of Barack Obama's favorite strategms is the game-breaking shift of ground. It's a move he plays very well; equally effectively in the trenches of the GOTV effort in South Carolina (when Obama bypassed the entrenched political machines already promised to Hillary Clinton, and built his own winning operation in a matter of weeks) as in the super-heated midst of a go-low political battle, when Hillary Clinton's campaign must have been certain they had finally managed to trap Obama in the mud.

We'll all be seeing it a lot over the next few years, I wager.

[talexis]

Mr. Palermo - I am sad to say that while the Obama speech on race did not 'shift the discourse on race' it was well done and great political theater.

This speech will fail to put Obama's problem with race to rest for two reasons:

1. Because his Pastor's words are so politically explosive and calls into questioin his judgement as much as stirring the race cauldron. This issue has damaged (perhaps fatally) his contention that he is that 'new politics of change' honest candidate of good judgement.

2. America is a country scared by its sordid racial past and this 'monster' is out of the bag.
The biased media hoopla attacking the Pastors comments and Obama is occurring despite the MSN's effort to go easy on their scrutiny of him while savage in their attacks of Hillary.
This problem for Obama is not something Hillary"s fabled attack machine cooked up.
It was Obama"s own words that called media attention to his Church and Pastor (no - it was not Ferraro) and as a consequence he is dealing with a uniquely American reality - a white racist backlash surely to have been part of the GOP 'swift-boating' by McCain during the Presidential campaign.

Unfortunately for Obama (and the GOP) America's racist dam broke early and it is now giving Hillary a real chance to win the Democratic primary.

[TN]

It would be soo nice to have a president that can lead and who has a brillant command of the english language. After, 7 years with a president that can't pronounce half of the most commonly used words in the english language, Senator Obama will be music to my ears, already is.

[foreignview]

I come from a country where we had to deal with untouchables. When my grand mother said some thing that made me cringe, I gently corrected her. I did not continue to put up with it. That is what Gandhi, MLK taught us. What did Obama do except give a politically expedient speech. In the last 20 years did he do any thing to bring the present dialog ? He sat in the pews to get elected locally and repudiate the comments when they came out into public

[Centaur]

Yes, and he wrote it too. A brillaint mind at work!

[marthlois]

Thank you, Mr. Palermo, for writing such a positive article and for recognizing the attributes of Senator Obama.
I tried to take a break today from negative remarks from some of the more radical people who comment on these blogs. It's hard to ignore them. But today I wanted to just relish in my pride, my enthusiasm, my acknowledgement in the fact that I chose the right candidate months and months ago. And today that candidate gave a speech that will go down in history.

[consultant55]

Clinton trolls, and trolls in general. Unite. Move to Central America where you can enjoy total freedom, no taxes, no gun control, no police, no-well, no thing.

Many of the troll arguments make that much sense.

Big problems require big leaders. Barack=big leader. Hillary or Johnny Mac=little leaders.

Have a nice day!

[AnninCA]

Now, where have I heard talk like that? Oh yeah.......right-wingers love to say that crap.

[curioustorquemada]

"Big problems require big leaders. Barack=big leader."
The candidate of change can't even bring himself to change churches.

[maggieb]

He sure did change the discourse, now we know that he is nothing but a LIAR. I wasnt there, I was there......change you can believe in!!!

[JavaCityGal]

Thank you for that thoughtful analysis that contributed true value to the discussion.

[idontthinkthisishelping]

!

[Citizenofreality]

I am of mixed race, today I saw for the first time, in such a long time, what the future could hold for our country. I am proud of Senator Obama and I am proud to call him my candidate for the Presidency of the United States of America. I am the descendant of Mayflower pilgrims and the daughter of a first generation American, I wish my mother could be alive today to see that the country she loved enough to become a naturalized citizen in, had produced a human being and leader as fine,honest and brave as Barack Obama. My heartfelt thanks to him for speaking about the unspeakable.

[foreverleft]

We are all of mixed race. Two hundred fifty thousand or so years ago, Africa was our only home. Politicians are not the cure for any of our the social illnesses. The source of our healing exists within each and everyone of us.

[AnninCA]

Thank you!

[JavaCityGal]

But it takes a strong leader, brave enough to start the conversation that no other politican has had the courage to do. The leader is just the catalyst, but without that, people do not just magically heal on their own. If that were the case, there would be no more race issues, and there would be peace all over the world.

[foreverleft]

OHB should take a lesson from RFK and MLK. He should rely less heavily on the teleprompter.

[BlueAsh]

You really nailed it when you said, "Obama's honesty is like Oxygen for our democracy/" He is indeed a breath of fresh air. It is refreshing to listen to him speak. This is part of his appeal.

I have to admit that vile comments, the categorical rejection by some posters here, may be a bit hard to take -- how can we have any dialogue when others keep their minds closed to new ideas and alternative view points?

But it dawned on me that the strong reactions, some of which came from self-professed Clinton supporters, are evidence that Obama touched a raw nerve with his speech. He voiced the truth that others have been unwilling to utter. To keep themselves from being moved, these people have to cover their ears and come out fighting indiscriminately.

For those who are determined to be cynical about Obama, it may help for you to stop thinking of him as a candidate for a moment and just listen to him speak. If you are confident in your beliefs and in your support of your candidate, you should have no fear of Obama.

In the end, I believe that this speech will go down in history as one of the greatest ever given. Some may notice that there are as many (if not more) people criticizing the speech as those praising it. For those of us who were moved by Obama's speech, we are savoring this historical moment. Words can't express what a profound impact Obama's speech has made, yet.

[blenko]

A breath of fresh air? C'mon! He is a gifted speech giver and has John Edwards old speech writers to dazzle you with but a breath of fresh air he is not.
If you want to believe what people say and not look at what they do then feel free to drink the kool-aid and quench your thirst with his sugar coated honey along with the media.

Rev. Jerimiah Wright wasn't on my radar until I read Obama's book where Obama claims him as his father, son and holy ghost. Even then I had no idea that Rev. Wright was a racist and preaching hatred for America until I heard a couple of his sermons.

The questions are simple:
Why has Obama embrace the Reverend for decades?
Why didn't Obama give his 'race speech for the nation' at his own church?
Why did he continue to attend the church and expose his daughter's to the rhetoric?
Why did he include the Reverend as part of his campaign?
Why has he suddenly distanced himself from the Reverend and suddenly found something improper in his message?

Obama embraced the Reverend's messages because he believes them. Obama is playing political hopscotch this week because of the discrepancies regarding his involvement with Wright. It's nothing new. Obama has not touched a "raw nerve", it's just that some people question why what Obama endorsed for twenty years is suddenly something different in tonight's speech.

Ratings:

Obama's speech writers -- Homerun!!!

Obama's delivery - extremely eloquent, well done

Media coverage - They still stand behind their WMD's stories, more of the same tonight

There may not be candidates in the race that we like but that's no reason to to allow yet another politician say things that aren't true and expect the American public to believe it. I can't live through a clone of the Bush administration for four years!

[JAJ2007]

Obama's speech writers -- Homerun indeed...

You know he wrote it himself right?

[outnow]

Joseph,

Good post.! Yes, Mr. Obama has elevated the discourse as did both MLK and RFK. I'm glad that we can begin addressing the issues that underly the constitution and the principles upon which our country was founded. I am sick of hearing that John Edwards got a $400 haircut or that Mr. Obama's middle name is "Hussein."

Whatever the outcome of the nomination battle between Ms. Clinton and Mr. Obama, the intellectual discourse has been moved forward. None of us as Democrats should be so mean-spirited as to vote for anyone other than a Democrat.

Today, Mr. Obama articulated a vision for the future of our great country as no other politician has in decades. He spoke of unity and solidarity of Americans acting under our guiding principles - our better selves. Mr. Obama criticized those professional pundits who make their livings spreading resentment over the affirmative action remedies fashioned by the courts to overcome the pattern of racial discrimination, such as Brown vs, Board of Education.

I hope that in the future political dialogue will be elevated to the plateau of RFK and MLK and not to the depths of the Fox News hate-mongers who blame minorities and women for all evils.

[LarBear]

outnow and Joesep0h Palmero...
OMG You Bloggers assume we the Public are stupid...
I had already posted part of this on another Blog...
Obama's speech was about one goal and one GOAL, ONLY... Self Serving!
Let me guess... The MSM and Obama supporters are going to gush this is a defining MLK Jr., JFK, RFK, walk on water, ooooops, maybe walk above water, speech...
So, if Obama had Played a Masterpiece on the Piano, would that qualify him in any way for the Office of President??? How about an awesome Oil Painting??? So, Painting a wonderful speech with words, means what ??? That he has been working on it for weeks??? Working on this, since the Obama's brought Race and Color into the Campaign???
Geee Whizzz Golly, it's NOT like he is known for speeches... NOT like it's self serving... No! It's about Race and Color and working together to Heal, LMAO.. The Obama Campaign played the Race Card against the Clinton's several times to bring Party Unity and Racial Healing, right???
Obama is a word smith... WE, the Government, of, by and for the People need more than a word smith in the Office of President... Are Obama's words going to Heal the near even split that is already occurring in the Democratic Party??? Seems to me he is more a divider, than Healer

[ginnypoo]

He admitted he has been lying for days.

[ndolomar]

No he didn't. Why are you lying?

[AnninCA]

Yes, he did. And that doesn't bother people?

I will not get this aspect of his adoring supporters for a long time. I'd be very disappinted in my candidate if that happened.

No accountability is just handing someone the right to rip people off.