Obama set to deliver speech on race, Wright (he will turn this into a positive)

[usregimechange]

PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania (CNN) — Far from putting the controversial issue of race behind him, Barack Obama has decided to address the issue head on in a speech Tuesday.

"I am going to be talking not just about Reverend Wright, but the larger issue of race in this campaign — which has ramped up over the last couple of weeks," Obama told reporters in Monaca, Pennsylvania.

Obama's chief strategist David Axelrod characterized the speech, to be delivered in Philadelphia, as "a discussion on race and politics." "Given the events of the last few weeks, Obama felt it was time to address the issue of race and politics directly, and what it means in our country," Axelrod said.

UPDATE: Axelrod later told CNN's Gloria Borger that the Illinois senator has "always contemplated giving a speech like this."

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/03/17/obama-set-to-deliver-speech-on-race-wright/


He will tie this into his campaign themes of unity and change and this story will be a positive for him. Some Blacks are angry, they have earned the right to be angry, and Obama will offer himself as a bridge to reconciliation.

[anonymous171]

1. GOBAMA!

[David Dunham]

2. This speech will not succeed. It will only attract more attraction the disliked Wright

[woolldog]

3. Dude shut up.

I'm sick of you spamming every thread with your crap. Fuck off.

[usregimechange]

4. That was my first thought...

[Swamp Rat]

8. Lighten up Snoopy!

:D

[Craftsman]

29. I have one question for you?

If a white rethug was a member in a church as long as Obama was in this one with his level of involvement and the pastor of that church made similar statements about whites, would you be outraged and against it? And if so why are you not the same here? Racism is racism no matter the color it comes from.

[pnwmom]

52. Martin Luther King also made some statements that could be considered

inflammatory -- that is, by white people. Probably most black ministers have.

Does that mean that the only acceptable black candidates are ones who have always attended mostly white churches?

[Craftsman]

63. The statements the pastor made are far beyond that.

I am reminded more along the lines of David Duke then Martin Luther King.

[niceypoo]

50. My thought too....

most of the Wright threads the last couple of days are from Obama supporters.

If they want it to go away so badly, why don't they just shut up about it and stop trying to spin it?

[KittyWampus]

61. so we're supposed to just sit and take the filth your filth-loving brethern spew?

It's either respond to YOUR garbage or let it go unanwered.

[BigDDem]

58. "Fuck off"

Hope!
Change!
Fuck off!
God Damn America!

I love the new politics!!!

:rofl:

[FrenchieCat]

5. Self delete

[Name removed]

6. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[moobu2]

9. It reeks of desperation, and you’re right, it will never work.

He may be able to game the Primary but Repubes will burry Barack with Wright. He should have done something about this Wright years ago. 20 years to late.

[rodeodance]

12. It was BO who racialized this primary and now he will "arise above the fray" Ha!

[cali]

32. nope. it was the vile clintons who brazenly played the race card

and screwed themselves doing so. Except in your Orwellian universe.

[usregimechange]

13. McCain and Falwell sitting in a tree, game over.

[rodeodance]

10. It will be reconnized as damage control .

[dkf]

23. I can't wait for his speech.

You are going to be so ashamed of yourself when you hear it.

You will realize that his is the path towards reconciliation and yours is the path to permanent hatred.

[cali]

30. put down you pathetic faux crystal ball, sonny

you don't know whether it will work or not. I know how disappointed you'll be if it does, but tough shit. Hilly is already done. cooked. over.

[ProgressiveEconomist]

38. IMO, the more people learn about Wright, the more they'll understand his anger

and the more they'll hate Sean Hannity for cherry-picking two minutes out of a hundred hours at http://www.tucc.org/store/trumpet_order.cfm?action=catbrowse&catid=40 .

IMO, the whole case against Obama rests on the assumption that what Hannity cherry-picked was representative of what Obama and 8,000 other congregants heard for the last 20 years. That assumption CANNOT be true, and all but hoard-core bigots will will listen to NPR, Newsweek, and other authentic news sources to educate themselves about Wright during the next week or two.

See the thread on the UCC's response to the controversy, at http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x5116494 .

[KittyWampus]

60. Well, some assholes are obsessed w/Wright, even on DU. So there's no other choice.

[housewolf]

7. Anybody know what time this speech is scheduled for?

Thanks

[usregimechange]

11. Here...

An aide to Obama, whose speech will be delivered at a historic building across from Philadelphia's Liberty Bell at 10:15 a.m. EDT, said the speech will have a strong personal element. Obama worked late into the night on Sunday drafting it.
http://www.reuters.com/article/vcCandidateFeed2/idUSN1864167620080318

[David Dunham]

14. Obama would be okay if he had left Wright's church several years ago.

His staying in the church at the time he was thinking of running for president was DUMB!!!!!!! He was really foolish to think that a majority of Americans would ever vote for a guy who believes in "black liberation theology." That's never going to happen.

[HopeforChange]

15. At least they can all stop saying he is a Muslim. He has a radical preacher but he is not a Muslim.

[DerekJ]

16. you F!@#$ earned yourself an ignore.

[DemVet]

45. Ignore it but it's true....it's DAMN true.

[ClayZ]

17. It is a beautiful church!

Check it out!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=5118135

[housewolf]

22. Thanks! Appreciate the info

[Tatiana]

18. I hope he lays it all on the line and lets the chips fall where they may.

I could care less about Wright, but I know he needs to make a definitive statement on the issue.

However, I hope he takes the time to address the supposition that he is "privileged" and that his demeanor is "arrogant." I hope he gives folks a glimpse of what it's taken, what it's cost him personally to get where he is.

And I hope he frames the issue of race in the appropriate context, meaning not just against African-Americans, but against Latinos and Arab-Americans and other groups that have experienced systemic discrimination. I hope he talks about how this affects lives and livelihood and what we can all do to move forward.

[TLM]

19. Remember that West Wing, right before Bartlet's big speech.... "Watch This"

I get the feeling that he had this one ready and waiting for the set and spike.


I bet that Obama is going to come out of this not only looking like exactly the bright shiny Christian that can draw in the "values voters" while also completely getting rid of the whole Muslim fear smear... but also, Hill can now be spun as attacking his faith his church, the grassroots level of organization for so many areas where hill is already on shaky ground.

How many religious folks out there would want to be blamed or held accountable for every word of fire and brimstone that their preacher has ever said on the pulpit? I think this will blow back on Hill bad.

[2rth2pwr]

20. He attends a church that honors Farrakhan, preaches from the pulpit

to "God Damn America", that the gov't invented aids to kill black people, etc..etc..

and he wants to lecture the country on race?

Right.

[David Dunham]

21. Sadly, the prior post is correct from the standpoint of most US voters

[FrenchieCat]

26. Most voters like you.......

which wouldn't vote for Barack if he were baby Jesus.

[Iceburg]

31. He's addressing a crisis he created /nt

[ProgressiveEconomist]

39. Do you remember the "Million Man March"? Google it if you don't

[TheDonkey]

24. Will this be aired live on TV?

Would be great if basic TV pulled away for it. Obama is speaks with confidence and passion that America needs right now.

[Inuca]

44. I know that MSNBC

said they will carry it.

[kdpeters]

25. I can hardly wait!!

It won't be about him, but about addressing the wounds and scabs in this country that have been ripped open with this toxic dialog. THAT'S what a leader does! I fully expect this to be a landmark speech. I can't wait. God we have needed someone like this for so long.

[quickesst]

27. It probably will...

be a successful speech in the eyes of Obama and his worshipers. It will in fact, be the crowning jewel in the civil war started by them. Having successfully played the race card, and cowing the msm into being afraid of racist labeling, they will enjoy the temporary high from this speech. Unfortunately, having alienated, and transforming half the Democratic party into racists, it will all come crashing down in the GE, if he gets the nomination. Apparently, hate breeds success in this brave new liberal world, and MLK is probably rolling over in his grave at the satirical mockery being made of his dream. If Obama gets the nomination, but loses the GE, Obama and his supporters will have noone to blame but themselves. They have become the Dem version of Bush loyalists.
On a side note, having viewed HRC hate on the home page for over a week running, when is the new name going to take effect? You know, hatehillaryworshipobamaunderground.com. Thanks.
quickesst

[cali]

33. hilly dear played the race card attempting to frame Obama as

a fringe minority candidate who wouldn't appeal to white voters. And she fucked herself by doing so. It's called blowback. And Obama's speech has to do more than please me and other Obama supporters, hillybot.

Now you can return to your worship of queen hillypoo.

[barack the house]

28. Yep it is time to put the record straight. Hope he speaks it deep from the heart.

[indimuse]

34. Hopefully it is to announce he will be dropping OUT OF THE RACE!

Obama is NOT Presidential material.

[Inuca]

42. Such a delightful sense of humor n/t

[Craftsman]

64. I agree he is not presidential material

After this it would be best for him to bow out.

[Craftsman]

65. I agree he is not presidential material

After this it would be best for him to bow out.

[Name removed]

35. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[elizm]

36. You bet he will! :) nt

[Bentcorner]

37. Obama's problem has nothing to do with race. It's about choosing someone that says despicable

things as his moral compass. It's an issue of judgment, not race. Pretending that this has anything to do with the color of anyone's skin instead of the content of their character is engaging in deflection.

I'm bothered that Obama would associate himself with someone such as Rev. Wright. The Barack Obama I thought I was voting for in the primary wasn't the type of man that would choose someone like Rev. Wright to be his minister. Evidently I was wrong. I'm also bothered that he would also expect anyone to believe his excuse that he wasn't sitting in the pews when Rev. Wright said any of those things. That's incredibly hard for me to believe. He had to have known that his paster of 17 years believed such things. If not, he was incredibly duped.

He has used the analogy that Rev. Wright is like an uncle that sometimes says outlandish things. People don't pick their uncles. People pick their pastors.

[City Lights]

40. How well do you know Rev. Wright? How many times have you attended

Trinity United Church of Christ? How many of Rev. Wright's sermon's have you listened to?

[Bentcorner]

43. Here's a list of people I don't "know", but I have been able to form an opinion about

by listening to some of the stupid stuff they say:

Rush Limbaugh
Ann Coulter
Sean Hannity
Pat Robertson
Jeremiah Wright

I don't have to "know" someone to form an opinion about them. As Barack likes to point out, "Words Matter".

[City Lights]

51. Sounds like you've never heard a full sermon, nor set foot in his church.

You've formed your opinion of him based on a few sound bites.

[Bentcorner]

53. I've never set foot in Rush Limbaugh's home, yet I've still been

able to form an opinion by the words he has said. As Barack likes to say, "Words Matter".

[Smelting Pot]

41. Have you ever been a member of an Evangelical church?

Or any church with a Pastor or Preacher that would every once in a while preach a "fire and brimstone" sermon? The excerpts from 3 or 4 of Rev. Wright's sermons could very possibly be almost all of his "controversial" preachings. If he has become more confrontational since September 11, if as he has neared retirement has decided to say some things we would not have said before, it is very possible that Barack was not in church for the more outrageous sermons. Of course Obama knew that Wright was saying things that would make White America nervous. But Obama doesn't see the world the same way Rev. Wright does, strident and angry at times at the plight of Black America. Obama believes strongly in overcoming the differences and divisions between races. SOME of that came from Rev. Wright. Just because the media is only showing a handful of seconds of a handful of sermons, do not mistake that for being representative of the man's body of work.

[Bentcorner]

46. I grew up in a pentecostal church where the preacher spoke about

things that had to do with the Bible and living a Christian live. He never spoke about the USA being the KKK or that the USA had invented HIV to commit genocide. Not once he he ever say "God damn America" from behind the pulpit. If he had, my father -- who was a deacon -- would have stood up and walked us out of the church.

[Smelting Pot]

47. So, your pentecostal preacher was inclusive of all races and lifestyles?

If so, he should have been given an award of some kind because he would be the only one I've ever heard of!

You seem to not understand the role of the church in many black American's lives. It's not the same as the role of the church for white America. It is NOT hate speech for Rev. Wright to say "God Damn America" or the USA is the KKK. It is an expression of the frustration and, yes, anger that most of his parishioners feel. What we have not heard is where the sermons go from these points. The soundbites we are being exposed to are the CLIMAXES not the lesson that the church goers are being asked to take away with them. They are being taken out of context in more ways than one.

[Bentcorner]

48. It's hard to put "God damn America" into any kind of context.

Do you remember how much was made of John Kerry saying <i>"I voted for the $87 billion before I voted against it"</i>? Many people had difficulty putting that into context and it very well may have cost Kerry the election. That was nothing compared to "God Damn America".

Barack has already denounced the statements made by Rev. Wright. What Barack has to explain now is why he stayed in that church. It comes down to a matter of judgment.

[Smelting Pot]

49. Yes, it comes down to judgment.

Obama's judgment was that his church was more than his pastor. As you said, he denounced the statements, he even somewhat distanced himself from Wright. Of course, people will bring up the fact that he was married by Wright and his kids were baptized by Wright. But Rev. Wright was the head of the church. Those duties would naturally fall to him.

The church itself has between 6,000 and 8,000 members. Their many outreach programs are diverse and massive. "Condemn the sin, not the sinner." That's the kind of judgment Obama has.

And over the past 8 years, especially after the 2004 election, I was definitely saying "God Damn America" not as a curse on America, but as an expression of disgust at what we have allowed to happen to this country. There. "God Damn America" in context.

[RememberWellstone]

54. Always?

"always contemplated giving a speech like this." Sure he has and he's never heard an incidenary speech from Pastor crazy horse. Sure.:eyes:

[BigDDem]

59. Always...

for the last 20 years

:rofl:

[democrattotheend]

55. I'm nervous for him

Fingers crossed that he can put this issue to rest. It's a really tough challenge, to make people understand without selling out his church and his pastor, to get white people thinking about race issues they'd rather avoid without becoming "the black candidate", but if anyone can pull this off, it's Barack Obama.

[oregonjen]

56. What time will he give it???

Nevermind. Found the time in a post above.

[Steely_Dan]

57. I Understand Why...

he must give this speech. However, I do not believe that their is much he can say that will change people's minds or lessen the fire.

=P

[knixphan]

62. closet racists will not listen.

(And I believe there are a few posters here who qualify...)

This is a necessary period. Reform starts with ugly stuff.

Many prefer a dressed-up lie to the naked truth.

This is a separation point between the remnants of ugly 20th-century conservative racist politics and the future... part of which we can see in the faces of the students rallying for Obama.

It's a generation divide, and many of the 'older' half don't want to admit how much racism you've swept into the closet of your minds.

It's okay, though. We'll move forward anyway. The real majority wants the US to move in a more progressive direction.

And we will do that, despite the Karl-Rovian 'divide and conquer' techniques being used right now.

[Tatiana]

66. Well, he certainly did turn it into a positive! n/t