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Barack Obama had no choice but to further distance himself from his former pastor and his incendiary rhetoric, claims a Clemson University political science professor. Sen. Barack Obama has finally had enough. His former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, has been conducting a multi-event tour over the weekend, culminating in a speech on Monday to the National Press Club in Washington, DC. Over those days, there were many outrageous statements said by Rev. Wright. Some were new, and some were repeats of past comments. Obama had plenty of time to come forward and blast Wright for the outrageous, anti-American rhetoric that pours from his mouth. Did the senator from Illinois do that? No. He waited until Wright said something personal about Obama. Only then did Obama organize a press conference to express his "outrage". The outrage fell flat, and it again calls into question Obama's judgment and beliefs.
As I detailed in Tuesday's Loft posting, Rev. Wright is truly the gift that keeps on giving. He gave a speech talking about how black brains and white brains were different and cited research to "prove it." Imagine if a white researcher had made similar claims! Oh wait, they have, and they were branded as racists. Wright also didn't step back from his comments about America deserving the attacks on 9-11 or his statements that the U.S. government invented HIV to wipe out blacks. In this barrage of garbage, he also added one other noteworthy comment. He said that Barack Obama's denunciation of Wright's comments was "political posturing."
That comment, and that comment alone, motivated Sen. Obama to call a press conference to express his outrage at Wright's "ridiculous" comments. You can see the press conference here:
The transcript of the press conference can be read at FOX News. In the press conference, Obama said:
Yesterday we saw a very different vision of America. I am outraged by the comments that were made and saddened over the spectacle that we saw yesterday. I have been a member of Trinity United Church of Christ since 1992. I’ve known Reverend Wright for almost 20 years. The person that I saw yesterday was not the person that I met 20 years ago. His comments were not only divisive and destructive, but I believe that they end up giving comfort to those who prey on hate, and I believe that they do not portray accurately the perspective of the black church.
I invite you to not only read the transcript, but also watch the video. By doing so, the words can be seen in their true context. Compare Obama's "denunciation" of Rev. Wright to his later comments about his own campaign. This whole press conference was the result of Obama getting ticked off that Wright would bring up his name and say Obama was playing politics.
When Obama talks about Wright's outrageous comments, he appears stiff and unsure. He struggles for every word. But when he mention's Wright's comments about "playing politics," then we can see actual, real emotion. His jaw tightens, and the anger can be seen in his face. In other words, Wright would have probably gotten another pass from Obama, but Wright made it personal. The problem is that Obama's comments and denunciations don't make sense.
In the press conference, as noted above, Obama said, "The person that I saw yesterday was not the person that I met 20 years ago." Later in the press conference, Obama said, "What we saw yesterday out of Reverend Wright was a resurfacing and, I believe, an exploitation of those old divisions. Whatever his intentions, that was the result." Obama keeps referencing "yesterday" as if Wright suddenly woke up the other day and decided to be an anti-American racist -- that Wright's comments of recent days are somehow different than what he's been preaching for years. Give me a break!
Obama says that Wright was his "pastor" and not his "spiritual advisor." However, he listened to Wright's sermons for years. Years and years of being bombarded with Wright's twisted views of America. We have seen the clips and sound bites from Rev. Wright. They did not all originate in the last couple of days. They are years old. For Obama to claim that Wright is now a different person, that Obama doesn't recognize this hate speech, is flat-out unbelievable. Of course Obama knew what Wright believed. He heard it over and over again.
As I noted yesterday, Obama doesn't have a record to go after. He has no legacy of legislative accomplishment. He has made this campaign about his judgment and vision for America. If that is all he is running on, then he is in trouble, because his judgment regarding Rev. Wright calls into question his judgment in other areas as well.
