Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Bush a liability to McCain

No news there. But look at the context:

According to a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, Sen. Barack Obama’s ties to his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, could end up hurting his chances of winning the White House.

So could his earlier comment that small-town Americans are “bitter” and cling to guns and religion.

Question have also been raised over Sen. Hillary Clinton’s honesty and trustworthiness, as well as her husband’s possible return to the White House.

But a bigger problem appears to be John McCain’s ties to President Bush.

The NYTimes on Mr. Obama & Mr. Wright

They get it exactly right:

It is an injustice, a legacy of the racist threads of this nation’s history, but prominent African-Americans are regularly called upon to explain or repudiate what other black Americans have to say, while white public figures are rarely, if ever, handed that burden.

Senator John McCain has continued to embrace a prominent white supporter, Pastor John Hagee, whose bigotry matches that of Mr. Wright. Mr. McCain has not tried hard enough to stop a race-baiting commercial — complete with video of Mr. Wright — that is being run against Mr. Obama in North Carolina.

If Mr. Obama is the Democratic presidential nominee, we fear that there will be many more such commercials. And Mr. Obama will have to repudiate Mr. Wright’s outbursts many more times.

This country needs a healthy and open discussion of race. Mr. Obama’s repudiation of Mr. Wright is part of that. His opponents also have a responsibility — to repudiate the race-baiting and make sure it stops.

It’s abundantly clear that if Barack Obama becomes president of these United States of America, he will have earned it.

Michael Moore on Larry King tonight

For the full hour. I’m going to be very interested to see what Moore will have to say about Jeremiah Wright. I’ve got lots to say… I’ve yet to say it… It’s along the lines of this…

We’ve moved from fighting for freedom and justice and liberty for all to some esoteric notion of “tolerance.” With tolerance comes the right to be intolerant of those who do not meet our standard of tolerance. Wright’s “anger” puts him into that category so we can all tut-tut at him all we want.

The Right can have at him no matter what. No one on the left can defend him—he’s thrown Obama under the bus after all—and he’s ruined Obama tactically. None of has to engage the issues he raises. He’s been declared “beyond the pale.”

I don’t think so. He doesn’t reflect my views. I don’t support them. But I believe in freedom and justice for all. He’s not outside the range of rational discourse any more than Falwell or Dobson or any of those he mirrors on the Right. And he is only Obama’s former pastor!!! I think Moore will say something I’ll be quoting tonight…

Colbert on Florida’s Christian license plates

Says Stephen, “They’ll look great with your Shroud of Turin mud flaps.”