Let Me Be Sure To Highlight Some BS

The media struggles even as the media tries to get off of their Obamadulation.  Here are three laughers:

Exhibit 1:  Mark Halperin of ABC News "The Page" presents an excerpt of Obama's remarks about Wright; Obama invokes Bobby Kennedy and urges us to seize this moment to come together.  Very uplifting, and what Dem can resist Bobby!  All that is missing is any attempt to explain why Obama is the man or this is the moment.

What I really want to see is the text of Obama's comments as summarized in this AP report, where Obama seems to describe his vision for healing America's wounds:

He said schools should do a better job of teaching all students African-American history "because that's part of American history," as well as women's struggle for equality, the history of unions, the role of Hispanics in U.S. and other matters that he suggested aren't given enough attention.

"I want us to have a broad-based history" taught in schools, he said, even including more on "the Holocaust as well as other issues of oppression" around the world.

More Victims Studies in the public schools, because they have done such a great job with reading, writing, and arithmetic.  I want to hear a lot more about this, at least until I can fix my satellite connection and tune in to the Comedy Channel.  While I work on that, what does Barack have to say about teaching more on Native Americans, the Japanese internment during WWII, the Chinese building of the western railroads, the grim history of the Irish underclass performing similar labor in the east, the gay-lesbian struggle for equal rights... geez, we could be here a while.

To be fair, Brian Ross of ABC News took the lead on airing Jeremiah Wright in all his anger.  But can we fish Halperin out of the tank?

Exhibit 2:  The Politico - Mike Allen of The Politico delivers a laugher explaining why the media ignored Wright for so long:

To reporters who had followed the campaign, it was an old, oft-written story. But this time it had video of Wright saying things like “U.S. of K.K.K.A.,” available on YouTube and played endlessly by cable news channels.

It was old news!  And well covered!  As evidence, we get this:

The minister’s controversial history has been written about countless times throughout the campaign. Wright has ties to the Rev. Louis Farrakhan, the black supremacist leader of the Nation of Islam — a fact that has been noted in more than 100 news stories just in the past few months, according to the Nexis database of news coverage.

Oh, stop - Tim Russert asked Obama about Farrakhan during a televised debate.  But I just don't recall Tim asking about "God Damn America", or whether America deserved to get attacked on 9/11, or "Hillary has never been called a n****r".  Hmm, that last would have made for great live television; you'd think I would remember it. 

Mike Allen further deepens my embarrassment about my lapse in news-awareness:

On Feb. 20, after a fiery guest sermon by Wright in Little Rock, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette ran an article that said: “On Tuesday, Wright criticized the U.S. invasion of Iraq and likened the insurgents to the Israelites under Babylonian rule.”

At 9:20 that morning, Obama opponents were already trying to get Politico to link to the story.

That’s why many news outlets — including Politico — did not initially pile on with rehashes after Ross’s story on “Good Morning America.”

Geez, how did I, or any of us, miss that Democrat-Gazette article?  Let's see, Wright spoke on a Tuesday and was reported on Wednesday; at Memeorandum on Wednesday morning folks seemed to be more interested in the fact that voters went for Obama on Tuesday in Wisconsin.

Exhibit 3:  The AP transcription of the Team Obama talking points in defense of the Obama/Wright situation;; I had mocked this on Friday, but there is a wrinkle - from the AP:

In the private meeting in Cleveland with 100 Jewish leaders last month, Obama talked about his 2005 trip to Israel, his views on a Palestinian state and regional Middle East security. He was quickly questioned about his own pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, and an award his church magazine gave last year that said Farrakhan ''truly epitomized greatness.''

Apparently video and transcripts of this meeting are available; a questioner actually read specific quotes from Wright.

So Obama's prompt denunciation of those remarks was in private and never reported, nor were the remarks themselves.  Let's remind ourselves of Obama's position taken at the Huffington Blog:

The statements that Rev. Wright made that are the cause of this controversy were not statements I personally heard him preach while I sat in the pews of Trinity or heard him utter in private conversation. When these statements first came to my attention, it was at the beginning of my presidential campaign. I made it clear at the time that I strongly condemned his comments.

Made it clear to whom?  Well, I guess it wasn't clear enough.  If the Obama campaign could point to a press release or contemporaneous news story describing the denunciations, that would be a helpful start.  Here is the "denunciation" reported by the Times when covering the Obama decision to drop Wright from his campaign kick-off:

Bill Burton, a spokesman for the Obama campaign, said the campaign disinvited Mr. Wright because it did not want the church to face negative attention. Mr. Wright did however, attend the announcement and prayed with Mr. Obama beforehand.

“Senator Obama is proud of his pastor and his church, but because of the type of attention it was receiving on blogs and conservative talk shows, he decided to avoid having statements and beliefs being used out of context and forcing the entire church to defend itself,” Mr. Burton said.

That almost hits all the key points!

Comments

[MeTooThen]

TM,

Well done.

But it doesn't matter.

As I wrote earlier, Barack Hussein Obama will double down, he already has, as have his proxies (AP, NYT, CNN's Anderson Cooper, etc.)

No, Senator Obama has already moved on.

And it's time the rest of you do, too.

Or not.

In any case, here is Victor Davis Hanson, today at the corner.nationalreview.com on the matter.

"If one were to review the recent network appearances of Obama, the reaction to them by pundits, and the campaign’s spin on them, the story we are to swallow is pretty clear:

Given the racist history of the United States, the black church has developed a counter-narrative and history. Others outside the community are apparently not fully aware of the vocabulary, metaphor and style of this sometimes problematic and complicated milieu, but they should give this “alterity” a pass, given our own culpability for shameful episodes in American history. Obama surely and at present does not buy into this “God damn America” rhetoric, so what is the point in pursuing it any longer?

We are most certainly not ever going to get from Sen. Obama anything close to something like “The repugnant rhetoric from the Trinity Church neither reflects my own views nor those of most in America. To assure others of my long-standing objections to such hatred, I am now leaving the church.”

So the question will simply be left to the American voter:

EITHER: 'Obama probably knew what was going on at Trinity, but, given the complex circumstances and Obama’s other strengths, it doesn’t matter enough to affect my vote;'

OR: 'Obama’s attendance and his feeble reaction to the criticism of Wright provide a valuable warning of why someone so inexperienced and yet so familiar with extremists should not be President of the United States next year.'

It's left to the electorate, as it should be."

What he said.

Just sayin'.

[SteveMG]

TM:
Great post.

Who really is this guy?

I'm stumped.

[clarice]

Out of context=it's a black thang.

I heard all these jive explanations for Wight and while they might sail past a media who thought Kerry's running as a war hero was a neat idea, I don't think the sentient part of the population is buying it.

Here's a guy who deserves our support BTW. I just sent him a contribution and perhaps others here would be interested in doing that, too.
http://www.americanthinker.com/2008/03/lt_col_allan_west_and_michelle_1.html>Not stuck on stupid

[centralcal]

"...it was an old, oft-written story."

Isn't it amazing how Mike Allen and his ilk convince themselves, but almost no one else?

This story hasn't even begun to become old and more will yet be written, because someone, somewhere will be able to prove Obamamessaih was present for one or more sermons. Maybe, a video will even surface.

I just watched the Howie Kurtz segment on this and liberal radio jock Schultz said that the "soft underbelly" of Obama has been found and that his presence at the Wright sermons are a serious problem.

[centralcal]

Wow, Clarice - what a great story at AT!

[clarice]

I love this guy. I also think James Lewis (pen name for a rather prominent scientist ) is a genius.

[Rick Ballard]

For those wondering:

FL-22 is Clay Shaw's old district, lost in '06 and Colonel West has a much better than average chance of retaking the seat. I'll be making my donation here and I hope that others will committ themselves to not get "Stuck on Stupid".

(I wish Honore would take on Landrieu - speaking of Stuck on Stupid.)

If you don't contribute today, bookmark the site for future reference.

Thank you for the pointer, Clarice.

[kim]

James Lewis has been excellent on climate. Now I'll have to dig around and figure out who he/she? is.
=============================

[clarice]

Pls spread the word on Col West. There are a number of really outstanding Black conservatives who seem to get very little media play and way too little public support.

[Pam]

Tom, I loved your post. I happen to agree with Barack on the history issue, but your points need to be incorporated as well. When Dr. Carter Woodson started Black Histroy Month, he had hoped for 2 weeks, not a month, in which students learned that blacks are a part of the building of this nation..Slavery is an ugly part of that history, but it wan't just whites involved. He wanted kids in 2008 to be taught real history, including what you suggested, so that no special months or days are necessary for any particular people..Just teach the actual history..I can't find fault with that noble idea..I just fear that we have a generation of kids that can't read, let alone comprehend that info!

Anyway, great post, will be linking momentarily.

[Tom Maguire]

Hmm. Either this is an incredibly elaborate spoof on a guy no one has heard of, or it is "Allen" West.

And a quick Google says it is not a spoof.

That said, your wish, my command...

[clarice]

The work of the Woodson family is another area of Black life that is utterly disregarded by the stuck on stupid media. Probably because among other things they believe and encourage capitalism and never have considered the culture of victimization a winning strategy.

[clarice]

Thanks,TM and Rick.

[Porchlight]

Clarice, thanks for linking the article on West. He sounds like a winner. You might want to give the AT editor a heads up that it's "Allen," not "Allan" or "Alan" as it's spelled in the article. I try not to let my spelling geekiness get the best of me, but it's important if people are looking for more info or to donate to West.

[kim]

I guess you have to talk coastlines in Florida, but he could use some updating about the IPCC. Good article in the Washington Times, yesterday.
====================

[clarice]

Thnx porchlight. TM pointed it out more subtley but at that point my cat --who now is practicing flushing toilets and jumping on top of doors--distracted me briefly.
I've notified the editor.

[Rick Ballard]

Clarice,

That's the Gold Coast district - organizing the Condo Commando Corps is imperative for West's success. His endorsements include one from the Afghan translator who worked with him. He definitely believes in leading by example. I wish I could vote for him.

[Porchlight]

Sorry, didn't see TM's post before sending mine!

[Jane]

Well I'm slightly buoyed by what I've seen of the Sunday Talk shows. Chris Dodd looked like he was in tears defending the Messiah. Juan Williams even took the great one to task.

I missed MTP and Paul Bremer is on LE as I write this, but hopefully the recap at Red State will convince me that America is realizing that BO is no longer viable.

I've spent months resisting the temptation to paint Mr. unvetted as a stealth candidate working against my self-interest, but I can no longer hold myself back. From what I know about the guy now, (and it's still not much), he's pretty scary all things considered.

I suspect America is coming to the same conclusion.

What it must be like to be in the Obama camp today.

[GMax]

Seriously if you think the dreck of reporters on this is bad, just think if it did not come out until the general and it could all be blamed and therefore dismissed on the VRWC attack machine.

Hill is doing the dirty work of showing that the illusionist is absolutely not walking on the surface of the lake. Once his negatives meet or exceed Hill's then it wont matter who they nominate. And there is no way her negatives go down putting the lumber, even indirectly to the Mess. Think about it, if you can convince yourself that the CIA is poisoning the black community with AIDS, it aint hard to see the hand in the puppet's back of one Brian Ross ABC stooge.

[GMax]

David Bernstein of Volkhoh Conspiracy:

Yglesias may well be correct about Obama, but when you're left with the choice of either acknowledging that you had sincere close, personal, and political ties with a minister whose views most Americans find beyond the pale, or defending yourself by using the "hey, I'm just a cynical politician who uses religion to get votes just like anything else, and I don't believe in it any more than I really believe that NAFTA is bad" excuse, I think you may be in for some trouble.

Bernstein is a Democrat I am pretty sure based on some of his previous posts. If he gets it, why dont "Republican leaning independents?" Its a mystery to be sure.

[kim]

That 'Republican leaning independent' is the cloak of invisibility. The facade of faux credibility. The masque of mendacity. Should I go on?
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[Jane]

Stephanopoulis had Donna Brazille on the panel today. She is black and supports Obama. Brazille stated that Wright's church was actually mild compared to many other black churches. It made me think that perhaps there is a link between that and all the crime stats in that population.

Or am I just piling on?

[sylvia]

"More Victims Studies in the public schools, because they have done such a great job with reading, writing, and arithmetic"

Actually I had such a teacher in junior high who taught us all that stuff in social studies. Let's see, he taught us about the bad treatment by whitie in America of Native Americans, women, slaves, even the plight of white miners being ripped off by the company stores. At the time I didn't realize he was a pinko commie, but he was a really fun teacher and I must say I learned a lot and we all really liked his class. I can still remember a lot of the names of the freedom trail runners and when African Americans try to hold their knowledge of black history over me, I can still give them a run for their money.

So I think a little victim studies doesn't hurt, because let's face it, it is reality through history that many peoople and classes will take advantage of each other if they can, and to be aware of that keeps your eyes open in the future.

[clarice]

Let me see if I understand, Sylvia..You are holding out yourself as an example supporting the argument that victim history doesn't harm the brains of the students?
QED

[GMax]

HEH!!!!

[kim]

Harsh, C, but S has something there. Political correctedness is pathological, a resentment of things to come. But the potential lesson, that S can see, is not being learned. Why not, Sylvia?
=====================

[GMax]

Wow. So a shorter Brazille is, Wright's not that bad on the continuum of black churches. So stop talking about it.

No Donna, if we should be rooting out racism in our society, you are making a strong argument that we need to stop using a microscope trying to find it in society cuz it growing and metastasizing geometrically, all the while hiding in plain sight in the black community.

Aided and abetted by the Democrat Party I might add.

[clarice]

Yes,GMax--all those sweet heartland Americans trying to overcome even non existent racism in their hearts and communities, racing off to help the downtrodden(like taking in Katrina victims), rushing off to interfaith and interracial potluck dinners now realize that they are being hoodwinked by the Dem-blackliberation church cult of the ever more aggrieved victims.
Scales falling from eyes--if not now, shortly.

[kim]

Obama's just an inauthentic hip hopper trying to fake some street cred. Torn up and twisted inside, but stacking those gold records up. What next, when the tide ebbs? I'm beginning to pity him.
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[Tom Maguire]

Thanks for the D Bernsrein thing - I had mentally blasted Matt last night, but have now posted.

[jerome]

Funny to see this post. I just opened the Chicago Tribune, and was treated to yet another attempt to cover their campaign-friendly tracks and journalistic non-feasance as they provide another year of free advertising to Obama, all in the wake of nationwide astonishment and outrage at the Wright videos.

This time -- replete with photo of Obama on the hot seat in front of the two dozen liberal Democrat activists/newspaper editors -- they provide Obama two entire pages of print free of charge to spew talking points utterly unchallenged by intelligent cross-examination from the gullible Obama supporters assembled.

The hard-hitting questions on Wright? "Then comes the video that has comments your pastor Jeremiah Wright has made. How are we to look at these? What's the best way to look at this...?" There follows a campaign-designed blather by Obama, and then the tough follow-up: "You reject his views; you don't reject the man. Is that it?" Obama: "Yeah. Exactly."

The Tribune, apparently mortified at being scooped on every Obama issue by blogs and out of town papers, going back to fake it again...what a farce.

[triblidite]

To me, the suspicious surprise of the week is that Obama winds up the ONLY dem candidate opposing the Hilldebeast, yet this (Wright) info has been out there for ..uh... I suppose 20 years at least?

I mean, what are the chances that the Clinton machine didn't know about the black militant "church" long before boy Obama ever set footstep #1 on the campaign trail?

And once Obama announced his candidacy, why didn't Wright tone it down? He's STILL TODAY, SUNDAY, listed as the pastor on the Trinity web page, by the way.

I'll tell you what.....Anyone who thinks there isn't going to be race riots when Obama gets clocked, STILL doesn't realize what the Clintons will do to get elected.

Stick a fork in Obama, he's done, and nobody is gonna want dark meat on this election soiree. By the time the Wright race rant makes it's exorable trek through the slow-to-anger middle America tough sensibilites, Obama's approval rating is going to hang lower than Nancy Pelosi's boobs.

[Charlie (Colorado)]

It was old news! And well covered!

And Obama doesn't remember any of it!

[rhodeymark]

Jane: "What it must be like to be in the Obama camp today"
What it must be like to be a Dem Supercalifragilisticexpialidelegate today!

[Digger]

I tend to agree with the Tribune CYA, the race riots and the middle -America anger over Wright and his acolyte. I hope the MSM can't sweep this under the rug and prevent the "toast" outcome. That said, I'd like to pose a scenario that is extremely hypothetical, but a healthy brain-teaser. Since the two main arrows in the Democrat quiver are gender and race, what if this summer plays out as follows?: All the Democrats and the MSM continue to marginalize this issue and portray it as either an attack on BO's religion or race. It won't die because of the internet, but after Obama gets close enough to his needed delegate count to appear the inevitable winner, Clinton either drops out, or, if the arcane rules would disqualify her for doing so, hangs on 'til the convention. Meanwhile, the Dems have washed their hands of the authentic Wright narrative and stand aside while the Republicans and their surrogates, increasingly outraged, take ownership of the issue. Obama, yielding to the pressure of the supposed bigots, either steps down, or is presumed to no longer be an 'electable candidate' in the general, and we pause pending the conventions. The benighted portions of the black community go nuts, blaming BO's fall on the Republicans and all things Right and White. Comes the convention, it is clear that Hillary is the (super-delegate approved) nominee and, to quiet the rioting black community, graciously invites (again, under new circumstances) BO to be her running mate. Gender and Race are reconciled, and the Republican barbarians have once again been proven to be the racists the left paints them as. If you're more comfortable throwing Gore into the mix in Hillary's place, feel free, but I think he's found a place as Savior of the Planet that is superior and far more lucrative than being mere POTUS. So, purely speculation, but how many of us believe that such a scenario may have been deliberately concocted prior to the primaries, by the usual suspects?

P.S. Any variation of this, as well as any conventional version that results in Obama's loss, would tend to permanently deter any drift by blacks to the Republican party. Would also reinforce the self-alienation from white society of the blacks represented by Wright's congregation (Oprah?).

[GMax]

Digger

You left out fire cant burn steel.

[triblidite]

"If you're more comfortable throwing Gore into the mix in Hillary's place, feel free, but I think he's found a place as Savior of the Planet that is superior and far more lucrative than being mere POTUS." Digger

Gore's toast too. (as far as a candidate) Gore CANNOT AFFORD to be forced into a real debate in public. The topic would inevitably turn to "Global Warming" and he would lose his "carbon credits" scam in the process, but also his credibility. (because his nobel prize "fame" is based on hogwash and his movie has been ridiculed everyplace BUT the Hollywood "community".

Gore insists "the (global warming) debate is over" because if it ever really takes place, he'll be the butt of more jokes than the time he claimed to have "invented the internet".

[Marty]

Fine, Hussein probably isn't the savior we thought he was. But wait until his surrogates start preaching, now probably before the convention rather than after, that failure to support Hussein is the same as Klan membership. Every blue-stater, liberal and politically correct anti-American will jump back on the band wagon.
Which surrogates? Well, there's Oprah, there's Cruse. How about Maher, all the anchor-persons, Chris Rock, most (all?) black Hollywood types and even some black jocks? All screaming that those not for Hussein are, therefore, racists and anyone verbalizing opposition to Hussein must, therefore, be estoped from further hate speech?
Those days are coming!!