Easter Sunday: Voters ponder Obama and Rev. Wright. What do YOU think?

One of the most remarkable things about the ongoing controversy over Barack Obama's angry pastor is the sharply differing reactions, even among those who seem to have so much else in common.

New polling suggests the wildfire Internet spread of the newly-retired Rev. Jeremiah Wright's most inflammatory sermons has scorched off some national popularity of Obama, who's based so much of his political message on being "post-racial," not militant, not angry, pro-unity.

But that now can seem contradictory to many with Obama's intimate 20-year association with a black nationalist who rages about "the U.S. of KKK-A," suggests the country invited or deserved the 9/11 attacks and believes the AIDS epidemic is a government conspiracy to kill blacks.

For a sample video of Wright's sermons, click on the Read more line below.

Then, Obama continued to expose his two young daughters to such views In a congregation whose loud, demonstrative cheers clearly endorsed such extreme statements, while claiming he'd not heard them.

(UPDATE: In his sunrise Eastern sermon at the Trinity United Church of Christ, titled "How to Handle a Public Lynching," the replacement for Rev. Wright, the Rev. Otis Moss III, did not mention his predecessor by name but likened his recent public treatment to that received by Jesus, who was crucified. "You picked the wrong folk to mess with," a defiant Moss told the enthusiastic holiday congregation. He also appealed for donations to a special "Resurrection Fund," which he did not describe.)

As reported here last week, Obama's chief political strategist, David Axelrod, admitted being sufficiently worried more than a year ago that they un-invited the pastor from giving the invocation at Obama's campaign announcement in February, 2007.

At the same time, some black and white voters say they were moved by Obama's ensuing speech as a long-awaited invitation to begin an honest, calm and cleansing national dialogue on race.

It's a topic clearly on the minds of voters in Pennsylvania, one of the largest....

states to weigh in on race and the race for the Democratic presidential nomination between Obama and Sen. Hillary Clinton, who's trailing in money, delegates and the popular vote but leading in Pennsylvania and using Obama's success to raise more money.

Recent items on the issue in The Ticket have elicited many hundreds of Comments, baring feelings of sympathy and support, naked anger and even racism that had not been expressed in that forum before the sermon videos unlocked the issue for public debate. To see such Comments, click on virtually any of the links in this item. And check that section at the end of this item.

Just as talk radio and television are preoccupied with the matter, so were a surprising number of shoppers and employees this weekend in the mega-mall known as King of Prussia, in the Pennsylvania town of the same name.

Dereck Cummings is an openly gay man and a former Jehovah's Witness who says he isn't in the habit of judging other people on their lifestyles or religion. But Cummings can't shake the disturbing feeling there's something worrisome in the incendiary sermon highlights, something that keeps nagging at him as he tries to decide how to vote in

his state's Democratic primary election April 22. "If that's been your priest for that many years, it affects who you are," said Cummings, an assistant store manager in the suburban shopping mecca outside Philadelphia. "Those thoughts come across, Sunday after Sunday, and that just scares me."

His co-worker, Stacey Hermann, couldn't care less, saying the statements fade given her concerns over taxes and education. "He isn't responsible for what another person says," Hermann said, shrugging.

King of Prussia mall is the commercial center for a sizable population of swing voters, whose willingness to go back and forth between Republican and Democratic presidential nominees makes them crucial in general elections.

So their take on the latest bruising to Obama matters for the upcoming primary and signals how fertile the ground is for Clinton or, later, Republicans to try to take advantage of the issue politically. Since the controversy erupted, for instance, polls show Obama support plunging sharply among white males.

In the mall's food court, several self-described swing voters said they were not bothered by Wright's words, though they did not like them. "It's unfortunate," said Judy Wolstenholme, a retired phys ed teacher.

"You don't want someone out there with a history of preaching hatred. I think it might hurt [Obama]. He should have been a little stronger in putting down those theories. But it only bothers me if I believe he isn't smart enough to rise above that message, and I don't think that right now."

Still, Wolstenholme, a registered Republican, said she likes both Hillary Clinton and likely Republican nominee John McCain better than the Illinois senator, as does her husband.

Joshua Snyder, a theology professor at nearby Villanova University, said he thinks the Wright sermons probably sounded very different in church than they do blasting out of computer and television screens.

"When people preach, they tend to get bombastic," Snyder said. "You can use it as a sound bite, and especially in white suburbia, that helps to perpetuate a stereotype."

But in the construction site of a new jewelry store in the mall, union workers said they were deeply offended. "It was unbelievable the way the reverend was talking," said David Terrano, a carpenter. "It makes me worry that, if Obama's president, he's going to be thinking about things that way."

Cummings and Hermann work together at the Ann Taylor store, where another co-worker said the off-duty conversation frequently veers toward politics.

"I listen to what Rev. Wright said, that we brought 9/11 on ourselves," said Myisha Upshur, a Philadelphia resident. "It sounded very callous. If I were listening to that and I lost someone in the 9/11 attacks, I would be very hurt."

Still, she said, "I appreciate that Sen. Obama didn't say, `I'm never going back there to church.' We all have friends we don't agree with. That doesn't mean we should turn our backs." Hermann said she's voted for Republicans and Democrats and that her decision next month won't be affected by Obama's church history.

But Cummings' gay life experience teaches him differently. He said he was "dis-fellowshipped" from the church of his childhood when he came out of the closet but that he still finds traces of those early influences in his thinking. He wondered, can Obama really avoid being influenced by Wright's angry words the same way?

"It rubs off," said Cummings. "And that doesn't go away easily."

Now, it's YOUR turn. Click on Post a Comment below here and let's see how you feel and what others have to say.

--Christi Parsons

Christi Parsons writes for the Swamp of the Chicago Tribune's Washington Bureau.

                                        Photo Credit: AP Photo/Trinity United Church of Christ

Comments

[Phillip]

To Ken Chicago:
I'm a registered Republican.
I bless the Dixie Chicks, Jeremiah Wright. and Michael Moore
---------------------------------------------
Yeah, right, you sound like a Republican

[Saundra]

Wow! Kudos to Harley for putting into words what white people vacillate with and hover over.

Attitude in government is also hushed rhetoric: "Just don't go there!" -- high flown style and empty talk to and about black-dialed preferences. Colleges admit to preferential racial balancing. Balancing? More of a mixed bag in order to appear on the horizon as a non-racial institute,

We know Obama is moving on a black race ticket rather than merit alone--publicly advanced by money magnate Oprah and her ilk--it is difficult to vote for a black figure manifesting racial implications, preferential to say the least.

There are poor white people in this world Obama--not just poor black people.

[Dwight]

Ronald,

Thanks for saying you challenge everyone to listen to the sermon in question. I've done, and I'll share with people the rather remarkable conclusion that I have found.

First, background. Growing up, I attended a Catholic Church in Torrance, went to a weekly 1 hour deal called CCD when I was 11-12 years old, and took confirmation at 13 which, in theory, meant I was choosing to be Catholic. In practice, we all did it because that was what you did and why not? No big deal either way for your basic beach, school, and sports kid.

So what did I realize when I watched Rev. Wright? That this guy actually serves up Christ and God the way the Bible does. The Christ I learned about in CCD said we should love those who do us ill. That we should not resist their anger, but meet it with love. If we did so, we would have our reward in the next life, and enjoy loving purity and closeness to God in this life. God, for his part, was more stern and pionted: he never said anything himself, but 'thou shalt not kill' was the first of his commandments -- with no if's and's but's or unless's tacked on.

What I heard in the sermon where Wright said 'God damn America for killing of innnocents' was 100% in line with what I learned at Catholic training school. Which brough on another realization.

Americans who say they are Christian, but support war, are big time religious spin doctors. Christ and the Biblical God don't give us the space for such things. End of story.

Our nation needs to stop spinning Christ and God to justify our wars. To do that, we need to be willing to be honest enough to say we are not fully Christian. We think Christ was a pacifist, and we don't belive pacifism is good for our nation.

Americans who support the idea of a just war should have the decency to leave the church, and stop taking false satisfaction in being Christian. Being Christian is a tough calling of sacrifice: Christ gave his own life without resistance. And that is what he calls on his followers to do.

I am not for it. I am glad my country resists people who would do us ill, and wipes out people who attack us. Most Americans agree with that sentiment. So most Americans should be honest, and leave behind their false claims on Chirstianity.

We are not a Christian nation. And we don't want to be. Thank you to Mr. Wright for having the courage to, in that case, preach the message of Chirst. Now if only his detractors would show similar courage, and stop their own false Christianity.

[Ruby]

I don't know what speech Harley was listening to but Barack Obama did not call his grandmother a racist. He said that if you only soundbite, some comments his otherwise loving grandmother made could be said to be racist like what is being said about Jeremiah Wright. I don't agree with the comments attributed to Rev. Wright, however I know people who could have said the same things. As to bringing up Jim Crow. Jim Crowe was the systematic taking away of rights given to black after being freed from slavery mostly through legislation. Did you know black men had the right to vote when they were freed which was taken away during Jim Crowe? Hence the need for The Voting Rights and Civil Rights Acts in the 1960s which just said it was illegal to discriminate. Rev Wright was a marine during a time that was probably one of the most overtly racist periods in America history, yes , in 1960's. He may have seen, done, & experienced things that put his comments in better context. They are his comments though not Barack Obama's.

[ariella Keysey]

Hmmm, what can I say?
All, I know is that we will be missing out on a great leader if we don't vote Obama into the white house come November 2008.
I'm sure you don't all actually believe he shares Reverend Wrights views? Or have you conveniently forgotten that he has a white mom and was raised by his white grandparents? and that his black father was basically absent from his life?

[Sternberg]

The Rev. Wright story is an issue, because Obama spent 20 years condoning hatred of the same America, that he now tells us needs to put all of this behind us.
I can't buy that. I can't buy that a man would return again and again to a church where the Lord's name is taken in vain.
Pretending his Grandmother's concerns are equal to that hate speach is a slander against his own family, to condone a greater crime than Imus committed.
I have lost a lot of faith in Mr. Barrack over this issue.

[David O]

I'd be interested to know if Obama owns the DVDs of Rev. Wright attacking America.

[CRL]

As much as it pains me to say this... I think Pat Buchanan hit it right out of the park in his 'A Brief for Whitey'.

-"How would he pull it off? I wondered.

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How would Barack explain to his press groupies why he sat silent in a pew for 20 years as the Rev. Jeremiah Wright delivered racist rants against white America for our maligning of Fidel and Gadhafi, and inventing AIDS to infect and kill black people?

How would he justify not walking out as Wright spewed his venom about "the U.S. of K.K.K. America," and howled, "God damn America!"

My hunch was right. Barack would turn the tables.

Yes, Barack agreed, Wright's statements were "controversial," and "divisive," and "racially charged," reflecting a "distorted view of America."

But we must understand the man in full and the black experience out of which the Rev. Wright came: 350 years of slavery and segregation.

Barack then listed black grievances and informed us what white America must do to close the racial divide and heal the country.

The "white community," said Barack, must start "acknowledging that what ails the African-American community does not just exist in the minds of black people; that the legacy of discrimination — and current incidents of discrimination, while less overt than in the past — are real and must be addressed. Not just with words, but with deeds ... ."

And what deeds must we perform to heal ourselves and our country?

The "white community" must invest more money in black schools and communities, enforce civil rights laws, ensure fairness in the criminal justice system and provide this generation of blacks with "ladders of opportunity" that were "unavailable" to Barack's and the Rev. Wright's generations.

What is wrong with Barack's prognosis and Barack's cure?

Only this. It is the same old con, the same old shakedown that black hustlers have been running since the Kerner Commission blamed the riots in Harlem, Watts, Newark, Detroit and a hundred other cities on, as Nixon put it, "everybody but the rioters themselves."

Was "white racism" really responsible for those black men looting auto dealerships and liquor stories, and burning down their own communities, as Otto Kerner said — that liberal icon until the feds put him away for bribery.

Barack says we need to have a conversation about race in America.

Fair enough. But this time, it has to be a two-way conversation. White America needs to be heard from, not just lectured to.

This time, the Silent Majority needs to have its convictions, grievances and demands heard. And among them are these:

First, America has been the best country on earth for black folks. It was here that 600,000 black people, brought from Africa in slave ships, grew into a community of 40 million, were introduced to Christian salvation, and reached the greatest levels of freedom and prosperity blacks have ever known.

Wright ought to go down on his knees and thank God he is an American.

Second, no people anywhere has done more to lift up blacks than white Americans. Untold trillions have been spent since the '60s on welfare, food stamps, rent supplements, Section 8 housing, Pell grants, student loans, legal services, Medicaid, Earned Income Tax Credits and poverty programs designed to bring the African-American community into the mainstream.

Governments, businesses and colleges have engaged in discrimination against white folks — with affirmative action, contract set-asides and quotas — to advance black applicants over white applicants.

Churches, foundations, civic groups, schools and individuals all over America have donated time and money to support soup kitchens, adult education, day care, retirement and nursing homes for blacks.

We hear the grievances. Where is the gratitude?

Barack talks about new "ladders of opportunity" for blacks.

Let him go to Altoona and Johnstown, and ask the white kids in Catholic schools how many were visited lately by Ivy League recruiters handing out scholarships for "deserving" white kids.

Is white America really responsible for the fact that the crime and incarceration rates for African-Americans are seven times those of white America? Is it really white America's fault that illegitimacy in the African-American community has hit 70 percent and the black dropout rate from high schools in some cities has reached 50 percent?

Is that the fault of white America or, first and foremost, a failure of the black community itself?

As for racism, its ugliest manifestation is in interracial crime, and especially interracial crimes of violence. Is Barack Obama aware that while white criminals choose black victims 3 percent of the time, black criminals choose white victims 45 percent of the time?

Is Barack aware that black-on-white rapes are 100 times more common than the reverse, that black-on-white robberies were 139 times as common in the first three years of this decade as the reverse?

We have all heard ad nauseam from the Rev. Al about Tawana Brawley, the Duke rape case and Jena. And all turned out to be hoaxes. But about the epidemic of black assaults on whites that are real, we hear nothing.

Sorry, Barack, some of us have heard it all before, about 40 years and 40 trillion tax dollars ago."-

[Adetoro Ogumbaja]

Too controversial. I saw that even today the Untied Trinity church's new pastor is comparing the United States to the KKK and issuing anti-semetic remarks in his first Easter sermon. Every aspect of religon that has come from the camp has been divisional rather than untiing. I was a staunch Barack supporter, but now I am going to stay home with my vote. There's just noone to vote for.

[Willie in Kansas]

Gee, welcome to prejudice and stereotyping 101. Yes, I'm hispanic. So, should Obama's Pastor comments have caused the ruckus it has? Absolutely, has Obama handle the situation well? Would any of the candidates have handled this kind or situation any better? Is this an issue that worth turning away possibly the most qualified candidate? Of course not. This great country of ours has had pages in our history that we certainly can't be proud of. Were Pastor Wright's comments accurate, fair, and tactful? Absolutely not. Blacks and white's alike know that the words were hurtful, inaccurate and spoken with a high degree or anger and hatred. This is not the kind of message most of us go to church to hear. But we all hear it at work, on the road, while we shop, on TV. Not a black man speaking words of anger and hate, but white man doing it too. The difference is that a man with such anger is Obama's preacher, and most of us aren't running for President.
Sure, we can judge Obama by Mr. Wright's rants, and throw him of the Sears Tower's top floor? He would turn around and fullfill his own prophecy that the black man can't win and it is the white man's fault. To me is like going to the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, KS and saying, but I really love gay people. So, what's the difference. Mr. Wright's still bears the scar of a time in America where your pet had more rights than a person of color. His speech is that of a tragic American who feels, left out-defeated. He has stayed in his shell and allow the world to pass him by. Mr. Wright's speech says more about him than the American his talked about. Yes, there are periods in our history that were very painful, not only for Blacks, but also, for Jews, Mormons, gays, women. Mr. Wright's speech and anger comes from a generational experience, where high pressure hoses, and dogs were let loose on unarmed men, women and children; were lynchings were acceptable in the south. The words of anger accurate or not reminds us of the past sins of our grandparents, and some of our parents. It taints the legacy of those we love. We are still in denial of the racial injustice that persisted, and shaped our country. We all like to look in the mirror and be proud of what we see. We all like to go to bed without feelings of guilt or the worry that some ghost of the past some how will bring revenge for our parents sins.
Obama's Pastor is a nut, but I understand his prejudice and madness. Obama, I believe is angry about the sins of our parents. But like many of us he realizes that it is time to move on. The sins of our parents are not our fault, nor do we see the world today the way our parents did. As generations of Americans pass away. New generations will forge a future were we look at each other's character first, and celebrate what makes us unique. Some of us still hold on to our prejudices, and stereotypes. We would be lying ourselves, if we told ourselves prejudice doesn't exist (Jenna Six case).
I guess what it is hard to explain or get accross is that Obama understands were his preacher is coming from. Sometimes, we find prejudice in our own families, but we don't dump our family member. We are not all guilty of prejudice and discrimination. Those who believe in prejudice and discrimination should be the ones Mr. Wright's comments must ring true with. Not all white people deserve the hate, nor the anger of Mr. Wright's comments. Many white's were an integral part of the rights of blacks to the point that we have Obama as our next President. He is a healing leader, he is righteous, he is talented. His American experience is the same as many of ours. Yes, the American experience has been painful at times, but the pain is shared no matter the color of your skin. OUR GENERATION, is coming together and letting go of the ghost of our grandparents and parents. It is our turn to shape our country, based on the values of our constitution. We can't allow ourselves to be marginalized and guided like cattle into slaughter because we are a simple minded electorate. These are extraordinary times that require extraordinary leadership. Mr. Obama IS an extraordinary American.

[patrizia]

I just want to say one thing: Whatever Barack Obama will do in his life he will be fine, because he is smart, he is carismatic and he has shown to be able to find his way around an ostile world. Now it is up to us to use this man to make our life better as well or let him go. I strongly believe that if we do let him go it will be our loss!! Please for the sake of America, DO NOT LISTEN TO ALl THIS CRAP!! He is much more then Washinghtton and the Clintons want us to know!!

[Mike in NC]

15 minutes of fame,,but Obama still doesn't get my vote,all the hype still doesn't sway an intelligent person to change their mind,correct?

[Melissa]

Quite frankly, I'm tired of hearing about this. Rev Wright had strong feelings and he expressed them, period. I'm sure he speaks for a lot of people tired of the war, and tired of America's insensitivities, lack of humility and in my opinion, greed, and maybe a little more manipulation than is necessary (i.e. - the media). America is not squeaky clean - yes, we are a great country in many ways, but that doesn't mean we should from time to time assess ourselves honestly.

[NewMexicoFan]

I stook up and left a church over the way they treaded the minister's wife after they divorced. Leaders do stand up, and express what they believe in especially when it counts. That is what defines a leader. Barack H. Obama is obviously not a leader. He could not stand up in 20 years, he did not indicated he had even one conversation on this topic with the man, and he used his words to title his book as an honor. His children and wife listened to this. We know how his wife feels. However, My children know I stand up for what is right. What have his children been taught, and do I want a person like that leading a country he could not stand up for in his church for 20 years?

[NinaK]

I believe the news media is making far too much about Rev Wright. Yes, his comments were terrible but Senator Obama is NOT responsible for what others say. He has condemned the pastors statements and that should be the end of the issue.

The Bible says condemn the DEED, NOT the person. Are we so calloused and self-serving that we cannot see this? Furthermore, this is lightweight in comparison to the many scandals of the Clintons. But they get away with their crimes by lying and covering up. They are expert liers and deceivers!

Why isn't the news media covering the Davis vs Hillary Rhodam Clinton and William Jefferson Clinton million dollar fraud case in California? This is BIG TIME fraud and the media remains mum about it. Why isn't the media pointing out the Clinton campaign fraudulent statements about Hillary's so-called "experience"?? Why isn't the media showing videos of Hillary's statements where she said Michigan and Florida were not important when she agreed to the DNC rules? Hillary has run a fraudulent campaign and the media chooses to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to her lies, lies, lies, and more lies. It's time the media acknowlege the Clintons' hypocracy and deceit!

[R L Ponton]

"You are known by the company you keep." You hang with trash, you are trash. Theirs is no way out of it. If Obama wins the nomination, and is elected President the United States will continue the distructive course we have been in for the last eight years. It is time to forget the devisive issues that have plagued the Democrats in the last two elections. Their is only one issue, to elect Hillary Clinton and to help widen her coat tails so that we can increase the Democratic majority in Congress.

[deBeer]

Ken Chicago
1. "I'm a registered Republican"
2." Do you realize that soldiers who are deployed in Iraq are required to sign an affidavit that they will lose all of their financial assets if they so much as speak disparagingly of the military campaign in Iraq"

You want to try for 3 lies on this beautiful Easter monrning,?

[NinaK]

I believe the news media is making far too much about Rev Wright. Yes, his comments were terrible but Senator Obama is NOT responsible for what others say. He has condemned the pastors statements and that should be the end of the issue.

The Bible says condemn the DEED, NOT the person. Are we so calloused and self-serving that we cannot see this? Furthermore, this is lightweight in comparison to the many scandals of the Clintons. But they get away with their crimes by lying and covering up. They are expert liers and deceivers!

Why isn't the news media covering the Davis vs Hillary Rhodam Clinton and William Jefferson Clinton million dollar fraud case in California? This is BIG TIME fraud and the media remains mum about it. Why isn't the media pointing out the Clinton campaign fraudulent statements about Hillary's so-called "experience"?? Why isn't the media showing videos of Hillary's statements where she said Michigan and Florida were not important when she agreed to the DNC rules? Hillary has run a fraudulent campaign and the media chooses to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to her lies, lies, lies, and more lies. It's time the media acknowlege the Clintons' hypocracy and deceit!

[Mike in Sac]

If you are an extremist, ie you like to have things black or white in your mind, then you probably miss out on Obama's message. He is both black and white in body and in thinking. He has an incredible intellectual gift and his drive to seek unity within his own mixed racial background informs his drive to seek social unity. He is, I believe, at heart a community organizer. A great one. His early lesson to unify communities to help deal with unemployment and poverty in Chicago have taught him a much richer lesson that we can likely know. Look at his campaign, it is about organizing people and is very much community oriented.

If people can get past their need for black and white thinking and think, just a little bit, about what kind of candidate Obama is then Wright isn't an issue. If, however, people can get past their need to label and analyze a candidate then it may be a problem. The vast majority of America sleep a sleep of ignorance and subconsciousness. Feigning conscious thoughts by parroting those of commentators and talk radio. Obama may not be able to overcome this, but his speech on race goes a long way. His speeches reach out and touch many people and pull them in with their inclusive empowered message of unity. We do need unity in the country. We are, after all, supposed to be United.

Clinton is probably the most divisive figure in politics. The democrats have to know that the Republicans will come out to vote against her in mass. That really is the only hope for them. McCain can't get them out to vote. He has put of the Religious Conservatives by having a marital affair and has turned off the Fiscal Conservatives by voting against tax cuts, though he has reversed.

Hillary's campaign and electability takes her no where. Bill has been doing a lot of shady business that will come out. This is connected to the election fraud scandal waiting to happen. The Republican Attorney General has, I am sure, been instructed to investigate the campaign contributions she received illegally in her Senate campaign. It will so convenient to indict her as soon as she gets the nomination and that will kill the Dems chance of gaining the Whitehouse.

All said and done, if Obama isn't the Dem nominee they will lose any number of ways.

[treetracker]

I'm glad you posted the extended version of this sermon.

The complete sermon after 9/11 can be heard here: http://essence.typepad.com/news/2008/03/listen-to-rev-j.html. The press should have this transcribed and put it in every newspaper across the country.

Note that the "chickens coming home to roost" comment attributed to Wright was not his statement. Rev. Wright was quoting a statement made by the former Ambassador to the Iraq, Edward Peck.

The media has hyped this without giving it the full review it deserved. Shame on them! If Obama loses this election, it will be due to the media failing to report the full story.

[David]

From the mouths of self-annoited 'geniuses' we hear praise for Obama - and this is perhaps understandable.

Demagogues like Obama always play well to the sheep who mindlessly repeat idiotic accusations re: "aids was invented by the CIA as a genocidal weapon against Africans."

The facts happen to be that Obama has never accomplished anything truly noteworthy except getting the admiration and votes of those easily mesmerized by superficial charisma.

What I see is an approach as old as snake oil sales representatives, the stereotypical demagogue. Vague sound-bite promises and feel good phrases.

Name one significant political initiative Obama has spearheaded? Name one key piece of legislation that he was the principal author of?

Where are the deeds and actions that demonstrate his 'brilliance', his innovative and fresh approach?

I believe Obama has a lot in common regarding his beliefs and his perspective of white people, with his long term religious advisor and minister, the man who married Barack to Michelle (Obama).

Michelle Obama is the woman who declared that she had never been proud of the US in her adult life until they supported her husband for president.

Recall that Obama referred to his grandmother as a 'typical white woman'. Do you start to see a pattern, an underlying attitude here?

This is the kind of unconscious racism I might expect from a Klansman, but coming from a candidate for President and his wife? YUCK!!!!!

If Hillary Clinton had declared she had never been proud of the US in her entire adult life until they started supporting her husband's candidacy, would you have had a problem with that?

Obama is a different kind of Oreo - smooth and attractive on the outside, but inside? Nothing but artificial flavors and empty calories, guaranteed to rot your teeth out. America - bite into the Obama cookie at your severest peril.

[TZAZ- Gilbert,Arizona]

Barack did not impress me with his we are still oppressed speech. He said that he could no more disown the Rev. Wright then he could disown the black community, well he has had no such compulsions when it comes to the white community. His equating his grandmothers remarks and fears with the the hate speech of the Rev. is an example of his priorities. To elect a man that has stated in his book that he is not comfortable with white people, would be an act of lunacy for a non black. He has had nothing but the best in life and education given to him, what a demagogue. America has so many Afro Americans
that would be leaders of the nation not just leaders of the black community, to pick this man is nothing short of idiocy.

[Radical Raul]

McCain has sought and gained endorsements from similar lunatics who wield much more power. Why isn't the media doing any kind of in depth coverage of this fairly well known fact, other than Bill Moyer?

[lawrence]

the technique of labeling any american of color as racist, comes straight from the republican manual of dirty tricks.
could this election, after all the crap is swept aside, become a referendum on class & race? where are we at? hillary gains support because she is a 'feel-good' candidate. republicans would toast her election knowing they can cripple her from 'day one'. john finds the republican rank-&-file forming into predictable (fascist) lock-step. barack remains successful despite concerted effort to rain on his parade. let's vist history for perspective. in the USA, until the 1970's, black americans routinely experienced threat, intimidation, discrimination. before 1970, their life was worse. in the south, until the 1950's, any black american could be victimized in the night. cross burnings, house burnings, hanging, and rape were rarely prosecuted. today, let us say 'no' to slander & fear. by choosing to elect barack obama we can experience the power of democracy & the pride of bravery.

[Bill Bradley]

Weird.