Is Obama’s pastor problem serious?
‘Does race still matter’? That was the vexing question posed by a recent U.S. News and World Report cover story on Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.
The gist of the story was that Obama may be changing the face of race in politics. ‘With his increasing appeal to a wide assortment of voters, Democratic front-runner Barack Obama is upending some long-held beliefs about the role of race in America.’
Since that highly favorable assessment of Obama was published, revelations about his ‘pastor problem’ may have tarnished his image as a new kind of black presidential candidate, unbound by the kind of ‘black identity’ politics that limited the appeal of Jesse Jackson and others who have run for the White House before.
The problem with Obama’s pastor, Jeremiah Wright is that he is aptly named, not only as a ‘constant complainer,’ as the Biblical Jeremiah was, but as a purveyor of bombastic demagoguery against white America and all it stands for. Not for him ‘God Bless America,’ but ‘G.D. America.’ Apologists for Wright’s tirades and tantrums assert they are ‘taken out of context.’ My question for them is what context is appropriate for blaspheming both God and country in one breath, and from the pulpit?
The problem for Barack Obama is not that he happens to attend church where Jeremiah Wright spouts his jeremiads from the pulpit. After all, if freedom of speech means anything under our precious Constitution, it means the freedom to speak ‘ and write ‘ words most of us deplore to our core. So, jackasses of whatever ilk are free to bray to the high heavens pretty much any kind of nonsense that strikes their fancy.
There are, of course, some limits to free speech, just as there are on our other freedoms. Pornography, obscenity, libel and slander come to mind. Still, wing nuts, right and left, are substantially unfettered in their right to express their views in public.
The problem for Obama, it seems to me, is his long and intimate association with Jeremiah Wright, which he freely admits. He has described Wright as ‘imperfect as he may be, he has been like family to me. He strengthened my faith, officiated my wedding, and baptized my children.’ Although freedom of association is valued highly in our society, so is the long-held notion that ‘birds of a feather flock together.’
To his credit, Barack Obama has worked hard in recent days to distance himself from the incendiary inanities of Wright. His speech Tuesday in Philadelphia was a bold attempt to reach out again ‘to perfect our union ‘ to move in the same direction: toward a better future for our children and our grandchildren.’ That part of his speech was eloquent and elegant. However, his comments regarding Wright’s ridiculous rhetoric were less cogent, and even less compelling.
Whether Obama has resolved his ‘pastor problem’ to the satisfaction of voters is unclear for now. What is clear is race does still matter in politics ‘ including 2008 presidential politics.
Retired Army Col. Thomas B. Vaughn can be reached by e-mail at [email protected].