MSNBC/CNN: Obama to miss a second event, MLK memorial due to scheduling problems

[UALRBSofL]

Obama missed the event in New Orleans due to scheduling problems but Senator Clinton attended, now the MSM has just announced Obama will miss the MLK Memorial due to scheduling problems but both representatives of the Democratic Party and the Republican Party, Clinton and McCain will attend and be guest speakers.

[scheming daemons]

1. Hillary and McCain need to pander to the AA community... Obama doesn't...

...

[Texas Hill Country]

64. no, he prolly feels he has a pass because he is AA

[AX10]

65. Binog!

[stahbrett]

73. Yes, BINOG!!! BINOG to EVERYONE!!!

:D

[MadBadger]

2. We get what you're saying, Obama doesnt care about black people.

[Bullet1987]

3. That's not what it means...I'm Black and I wouldn't care to go to be honest with you

[featherman]

25. Dang...there goes the AA vote

[npincus]

4. and I'll bet he's not wearing his flag pin!

(which is made in China, BTW)

[SoxFan]

5. Obama hates black people

[Catherina]

6. Clinton and McCain together again and pandering for votes

Obama's too busy living the dream. Get over it.

Hillary and McCain. What a sick fucking joke on the American people

[Vinca]

50. After seeing this picture, if I had voted for that fucking war, I would

probably have to kill myself. I could not live with myself knowing my vote caused this poor guy to be burned beyond recognition. How absolutely heartbreaking this picture is. I hope both McCain and Clinton have nightmares.

[VolcanoJen]

7. Obama's in Indiana.

The MLK Memorial events are in Memphis, Tennessee.

I'm confused... I was under the impression Obama didn't have the MLK events on his schedule to begin with.

[Skip Intro]

8. He's got the black vote, so will spend his time pandering to some other segment.

Let's see, he fed a calf, had a beer, went bowling...maybe he'll be too busy hosting an Avon party?

[wndycty]

10. You can make a sincere statement like Obama is making this very minute. . .

. . .or you can pimp the events in Memphis for a photo op.

[NDambi]

54. Exactly! Ha, I guess us black folk are supposed to offended..huh. NOT!

[Alter Ego]

47. At least he's not comparing himself to Rocky and strutting

around with mariachi bands.

I half expect Hillary to throw on a Brian Westbrook jersey and walk around Philly chomping on cheesesteaks in the hopes that people will vote for her there.

[BornBlue]

70. Don't forget about "Paulette Revere"

Hehehehe. . . I about pissed myself last night when I heard that.

[NDambi]

53. What is it McSame and Hilda are doing? I

screw em both...

[wndycty]

9. I hope Clinton supporters like you make an issue of this. As Sharpton said...

. . .its not about taking attendance its about your agenda. Listening to Obama speak right now in Indiana, its safe to say he doesn't need the photo op like McCain and Clinton.

[durrrty libby]

11. Hmmm...Not even "present"?

[wndycty]

12. Just because some candidates have to pimp a ceremony for a photo op. . .

. . .to proved that they like Black people and Obama doesn't don't hate on him.

[rodeodance]

37. Poor judgment on BO's part to miss MLK events.

[onenote]

42. Why? I'd love to hear an actual explanation.

He's giving a speech about MLK today in Indianapolis. He spoke at a King memorial event at Ebenezer Baptist Church over the King birthday holiday. Every day he is the living embodiment of King's dream.

So, tell me, what exactly makes it "bad judgment" for him to speak about King to a group of people who might not be paying as close attention to King's legacy today as those in Memphis?

[NDambi]

57. That's only your opinion...I disagree...he still has my vote and the vote of all those around me..

He ain't pimpin' black folk like McSame and Hilda are trying to do..with their pandering attendance and her fake tears..

Oh lawdy..oh lawdy everything was shattered...it's all gone..I threw my backpack across the room..lawdy lawdy..

Hilda is full of it.

[goclark]

71. McCain didn't even vote for the MLK Holiday

:puke:

[MNDemNY]

13. Maybe the Secret Service advised him not to go to Memphis.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x5380702

[UALRBSofL]

16. MNDEMNY That was the first thing I thought of when the media announced he wouldn't attend

But who knows, I was just repeating what was being reported on the MSM.

[MNDemNY]

17. I am not an Obama supporter..yet, but I'll give him some slack on this one.

[indimuse]

48. ..

me too..

[EffieBlack]

14. Maybe he thought it more important to take Dr. King's message of economic justice to the people

rather than wander around the balcony of the Lorraine Motel apologizing for voting against the Martin Luther King Day holiday because, he said, he didn't really "understand."


I would think that spreading the message is just as meaningful tribute to Dr. King's legacy as attending an event in one city - and one that Dr. King would certainly appreciate.

[NDambi]

58. Amen sister. Amen

[ericgtr]

15. That's cool.. If they ever have another disaster though you can bet your ass he'll be there

eom

[BumRushDaShow]

18. RFK gave a speech announcing the assassination in Indianapolis on April 4, 1968

http://www.robertfkennedy.net/mlkdeathspeech.htm

So the venue for Obama is relevent.

[Barack_America]

19. He did not miss the "State of the Black Union" address due to scheduling problems.

He chose to remain on the campaign trail in Texas instead of attending.

He offered for Michelle to go, but Smiley patently refused.

And, sadly, I would not doubt for a moment that Obama is not attending the King event due to security concerns. I was face-to-face with Obama's Secret Service team at the event I attended the other day. Let me tell you, they aren't messing around.

[grrr050]

20. Obama doesnt want to be seen as...........

A black candidate. Pandering to his white supporters as usual.

[EffieBlack]

21. You're right. By not going to Memphis, Obama can still fool those white people into thinking he's

not black.

He didn't fool you, though did he?

[grrr050]

24. There is no way he can fool me.......

I'm aware of what he is. A political chamelion. He could be black or white depending on the platform he stands on.

[MadBadger]

31. He spoke to black and white people at Ft. Wayne.

[NDambi]

61. Sureeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[BornBlue]

72. So now he is Michael Jackson?

Amazing, he can change colors!!! He is the perfect candidate. Can he turn Asian too, 'cuz that would be a trick?

[Adelante]

27. .

:rofl:

[NDambi]

60. Lmaoooooooooo beautiful response..ha ha

[mckeown1128]

29. Herman is that you???

Or are you proud2Bapiehole???

[Forkboy]

75. Welcome back!

[democrattotheend]

22. He's speaking about MLK in Indianapolis

He said he thought people needed to hear about it all over the country, not just in Memphis. What difference does it make where he speaks about it?

[scheming daemons]

23. Maybe THIS is the reason that Obama stayed out of Memphis...

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=364879852


Supporters like that aren't doing Hillary any favors.

[Kittycat]

26. Jesus!

Those people call themselves democrats?

[Lone_Star_Dem]

43. I seriously doubt that person is a Democrat

I don't doubt that they are sick and filled with hate, however.

[Adelante]

28. Good God

I hate to see Hillary's images attached to that filth. :(

[MNDemNY]

39. "Friends" list could have been compiled before

changing "screen name" and Picture. This can be done on my space.

[Barack_America]

33. WTF is that?

How the hell is that page still up?

How does one alert the Secret Service about something like that?

That is appalling, enraging and many other words that I can seem to find at the moment.

:cry:

[MNDemNY]

38. Some have.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x5380702

[Adelante]

49. I submitted a complaint to MySpace

Here is a form:

http://collect.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=misc.contactInput&ProfileContentID=364879852

I said I will report this to the FBI and Secret Service if that photo is not removed.

[ecstatic]

67. me too nt

[fight4my3sons]

68. Thank you, I also sent a complaint.

[Adelante]

76. It's gone now

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=364879852

[TTUBatfan2008]

30. So which is it?

Is he a racist against whites (Wright-gate) or does he not like black people (MLK Memorial-gate)? You people can't keep your stories straight even as you're attacking someone.

[susankh4]

32. I wonder....

if there are security concerns?

Just sayin. It don't take much to get folks riled up over race nowadays.....

[jenmito]

34. I guess you missed the speech he just gave about MLK in IN-the same place Kennedy was the night

MLK died-the same place he started his speech with the news that MLK just got killed.

[UALRBSofL]

51. jenmito I don't think RFK was in Ft. Wayne

He was in Indiana but I don't think it was Ft. Wayne.

[cooolandrew]

35. Really come on, one week he is amillitant black next he hastes his onw race. consistency helps.

[rodeodance]

36. he had scheduling problems on the kyle -lieberman vote also--Campaigning in NH

[anonymous171]

56. lol. At least he didn't vote "YES."

[NDambi]

62. Rodeo your hem is showing..don't be so obvious dearheart lol

[Catherine Vincent]

40. He should take the time to make at least one of these events.

No excuses.

[Vinca]

52. What's more important? Actions or a photo op?

Some people have a need to be photographed at this particular event to be more acceptable to a segment of the electorate . . . if you get my drift.

[Basement Beat]

41. *sigh* To me, it would have really been good...

to see him at the event. Just for the simple fact of symbolism. Living the dream that Dr. King envisioned.
It doesn't tarnish my view on Obama, but personally it would have been nice to see him attend.

[onenote]

44. I think you can make the case that he does more actual good speaking in Indianapolis

He takes Dr. King's message and brings it people who might not otherwise be paying as much attention -- certainly not as much attention as those in Memphis. You can preach to the choir or you can go out into the hinterlands. I don't see anything wrong with his decision at all.

[Adelante]

45. I don't, either

People just like to criticize :shrug:

[Basement Beat]

46. Good point....

:)
I feel a lot better about it looking from that perspective.

[anonymous171]

55. Obama doesn't care about Black people

:rofl:

[SeaLyons]

59. That seems arrogant on

his part, maybe just poor judgement, or maybe he's so self-serving he just didn't have the time to work it in his schedule. I wonder if any AA feel taken for granted.

[NDambi]

63. "I wonder if any AA feel taken for granted"

Not this black woman, nor any of the other tons of black people I know. Nope, we are not offended...

Go Bama...you got our vote and will keep it.

[ellacott]

74. The organizers of this event had no problem

Along with many other people.

[easy_b94]

66. As a AA Male he don't have to come....He got most of our votes :) Now...

Hillary and McCrazy on the other hand ...well the need a good photo op ;)

[Oilwellian]

69. Obama's great speech today

Remarks for Senator Barack Obama
Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Fort Wayne, Indiana
April 4, 2008

As Mike said, today represents a tragic anniversary for our country. Through his faith, courage, and wisdom, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. moved an entire nation. He preached the gospel of brotherhood; of equality and justice. That’s the cause for which he lived – and for which he died forty years ago today. And so before we begin, I ask you to join me in a moment of silence in memory of this extraordinary American.

There’s been a lot of discussion this week about how Dr. King’s life and legacy speak to us today. It’s taking place in our schools and churches, on television and around the dinner table. And I suspect that much of what folks are talking about centers on issues of racial justice – on the Montgomery bus boycott and the March on Washington, on the freedom rides and the stand at Selma.

And that’s as it should be – because those were times when ordinary men and women, straight-backed and clear-eyed, challenged what they knew was wrong and helped perfect our union. And they did so in large part because Dr. King pointed the way.

But I also think it’s worth reflecting on what Dr. King was doing in Memphis, when he stepped onto that motel balcony on his way out for dinner.

And what he was doing was standing up for struggling sanitation workers. For years, these workers had served their city without complaint, picking up other people’s trash for little pay and even less respect. Passers-by would call them “walking buzzards,” and in the segregated South, most were forced to use separate drinking fountains and bathrooms.

But in 1968, these workers decided they’d had enough, and over 1,000 went on strike. Their demands were modest – better wages, better benefits, and recognition of their union. But the opposition was fierce. Their vigils were met with handcuffs. Their protests turned back with mace. And at the end of one march, a 16-year old boy lay dead.

This is the struggle that brought Dr. King to Memphis. It was a struggle for economic justice, for the opportunity that should be available to people of all races and all walks of life. Because Dr. King understood that the struggle for economic justice and the struggle for racial justice were really one – that each was part of a larger struggle “for freedom, for dignity, and for humanity.” So long as Americans were trapped in poverty, so long as they were being denied the wages, benefits, and fair treatment they deserved – so long as opportunity was being opened to some but not all – the dream that he spoke of would remain out of reach.

And on the eve of his death, Dr. King gave a sermon in Memphis about what the movement there meant to him and to America. And in tones that would prove eerily prophetic, Dr. King said that despite the threats he’d received, he didn’t fear any man, because he had been there when Birmingham aroused the conscience of this nation. And he’d been there to see the students stand up for freedom by sitting in at lunch counters. And he’d been there in Memphis when it was dark enough to see the stars, to see the community coming together around a common purpose. So Dr. King had been to the mountaintop. He had seen the Promised Land. And while he knew somewhere deep in his bones that he would not get there with us, he knew that we would get there.

He knew it because he had seen that Americans have “the capacity,” as he said that night, “to project the ‘I’ into the ‘thou.’” To recognize that no matter what the color of our skin, no matter what faith we practice, no matter how much money we have – no matter whether we are sanitation workers or United States Senators – we all have a stake in one another, we are our brother’s keeper, we are our sister’s keeper, and “either we go up together, or we go down together.”

And when he was killed the following day, it left a wound on the soul of our nation that has yet to fully heal. And in few places was the pain more pronounced than in Indianapolis, where Robert Kennedy happened to be campaigning. And it fell to him to inform a crowded park that Dr. King had been killed. And as the shock turned toward anger, Kennedy reminded them of Dr. King’s compassion, and his love. And on a night when cities across the nation were alight with violence, all was quiet in Indianapolis.

In the dark days after Dr. King’s death, Coretta Scott King pointed out the stars. She took up her husband’s cause and led a march in Memphis. But while those sanitation workers eventually got their union contract, the struggle for economic justice remains an unfinished part of the King legacy. Because the dream is still out of reach for too many Americans. Just this morning, it was announced that more Americans are unemployed now than at any time in years. And all across this country, families are facing rising costs, stagnant wages, and the terrible burden of losing a home.

Part of the problem is that for a long time, we’ve had a politics that’s been too small for the scale of the challenges we face. This is something I spoke about a few weeks ago in a speech I gave in Philadelphia. And what I said was that instead of having a politics that lives up to Dr. King’s call for unity, we’ve had a politics that’s used race to drive us apart, when all this does is feed the forces of division and distraction, and stop us from solving our problems.

That is why the great need of this hour is much the same as it was when Dr. King delivered his sermon in Memphis. We have to recognize that while we each have a different past, we all share the same hopes for the future – that we’ll be able to find a job that pays a decent wage, that there will be affordable health care when we get sick, that we’ll be able to send our kids to college, and that after a lifetime of hard work, we’ll be able to retire with security. They’re common hopes, modest dreams. And they’re at the heart of the struggle for freedom, dignity, and humanity that Dr. King began, and that it is our task to complete.

You know, Dr. King once said that the arc of the moral universe is long, but that it bends toward justice. But what he also knew was that it doesn’t bend on its own. It bends because each of us puts our hands on that arc and bends it in the direction of justice.

So on this day – of all days – let’s each do our part to bend that arc.

Let’s bend that arc toward justice.

Let’s bend that arc toward opportunity.

Let’s bend that arc toward prosperity for all.

And if we can do that and march together – as one nation, and one people – then we won’t just be keeping faith with what Dr. King lived and died for, we’ll be making real the words of Amos that he invoked so often, and “let justice roll down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”
http://thepage.time.com/full-text-of-obamas-remarks-on-... /

[BenDavid]

77. when has obama ever delivered a speech that explained how

he was going to help the black community? he never has and never will. You would think the black community is invisible to obama.