"The reality is that Senator Obama and his campaign didn't want to deal with Rev. Wright's hate speech until they had to. Doing so at the height of Obama's strength kept them from enduring the backlash during early primaries and caucuses, which would have left him weaker than he is today. Obviously the campaign knew his Democratic rivals would never raise the Wright issue. Obama deserves abounding credit for the candid speech he gave today, which also revealed the reality of a man in deep turmoil, talking about issues he didn't want to address in a delivery that was tight and even a bit resentful, if for no other reason than his candidacy has been based on something other. The conflict between the speech he had to give and the message of his campaign showed throughout Obama's presentation, revealing a man in deep conflict with being forced to confront issues publicly that he wanted to rise above, or maybe just wish would go away. No doubt Barack Obama wants us all to move on now. However, that's not quite how presidential politics works."
"Senator Obama delivered a powerful speech on the roots and state of Black-White relations in America. Every politician should deal with the divide between African-Americans and Whites in this country. However, because Mr. Obama had to speak before the background of the Reverend Wright's divisive statements, I doubt whether he was able to remove doubts about his candidacy and agenda. While I believe that he has a good chance to win the nomination of his party, he cannot win the general election against Senator McCain. The Republicans will play and replay segments of his long-time pastor's sermons and thereby kill his chances for the White House. Unfortunately, this is what politics is about."
"We as American's need to face the reality of racial tension in our society. It is there. We can't deny it. I think this is a bold move on Sen. Obama's part. It is more than a simple political maneuver. In fact, I'm sure most political analysts would advise against the candor and specificity shown in his speech. But he has raised the bar for politicians in my opinion. He has said it's not enough to just use race as a political tool. You have to be willing to face it head on when it is politically inconvenient and work to overcome it. As far as the comments of Pastor Wright. No they were not warranted, no Sen. Obama does not agree with them. Honestly, if he thought that poorly of our country why would he run for president? But as the Clinton campaign often notes words are just words...and these words aren't even Sen. Obama's. So I will continue to let his actions, his character, his ability to speak truth to power, and his willingness to acknowledge his mistakes serve as the basis of my judgment."
"Aren't these racial problems ours? After listening to his speech today, I am convinced that Barack Obama will be an important figure in American life regardless of the outcome of this race. I believe he already towers above Hillary and McCain as a public figure. He has leadership and authenticity that becomes more and more apparent as the weeks go by. As things stand today, a Clinton nomination will surely diminish her because she will get it in a very unconventional way. That way being via backroom deals with super delegates. Barack Obama is showing that he has the right stuff. Ironically, it is those who seek to prove he does not who are enabling him to show it. Barack Obama is the right man for our times."
For me it was a great speech from a biracial man with the understanding of each side of the issues. But he is running for President of the Unitede States and is still a Democrat and will have to deal with a Congress that will not be easy to sway.
What do you think of the speech?
Michael H. Drucker
Technorati Tag in Del.icio.us 
No comments:
Post a Comment