Three weeks ago today Senator Barack Obama made his speech on race. Since then I’ve thought long and hard about what he said; and I’ve also listened to the opinionators, spin doctors, and talking heads dissect every sentence.
Many of them have come to the conclusion that the speech was eloquent, but that the issues of Jeremiah Wright and race will continue to dog the Senator’s campaign for the presidency. More than one said, in so many words, “Obama will have to address this again.”
Why?
I thought he was pretty clear that he rejected the extremist views of his minister but did not reject the man himself. I thought he was equally clear about his hope that all Americans — black, white, rich, poor — could work together for a better country. Granted, he didn’t outline specific plans on how to do this or how to fund it; but that wasn’t the main goal of his presentation in the first place.
So why go back over it? Is it because the opinionators, etc. are not used to a political person who has different standards from their own? Is it because they want the answer tailored to their views rather than express the views of the person himself? Is it because America really isn’t ready for a black president?
I don’t know the answer. (And, for the moment, the issue has been overshadowed by such events as the upcoming Pennsylvania primary, the Iraq war, and the economy.) But I respect Barack Obama for not rejecting Wright for his own political advantage if he felt otherwise. There are not a lot of people in Washington these days who would have done that. I respect him even more for addressing the issue of race head on. There are not a lot of people in Washington these days who would have done that either. And I respect him most for making a speech that could jeopardize his campaign for the nomination. If he’s chosen as the Democratic candidate for president, I suspect the Jeremiah Wright flap will return. If so, I hope Obama reminds us that on March 19 he said all he had to say about the man.
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