***** BARACK ON WRIGHT (REJECTION): HUFFINGTON POST ***

[oviedodem]

Enjoy!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/barack-obama/on-my-faith-and-my-church_b_91623.html

---------------

Let me say at the outset that I vehemently disagree and strongly condemn the statements that have been the subject of this controversy. I categorically denounce any statement that disparages our great country or serves to divide us from our allies. I also believe that words that degrade individuals have no place in our public dialogue, whether it's on the campaign stump or in the pulpit. In sum, I reject outright the statements by Rev. Wright that are at issue.

---------------

Let me repeat what I've said earlier. All of the statements that have been the subject of controversy are ones that I vehemently condemn. They in no way reflect my attitudes and directly contradict my profound love for this country.

With Rev. Wright's retirement and the ascension of my new pastor, Rev. Otis Moss, III, Michelle and I look forward to continuing a relationship with a church that has done so much good. And while Rev. Wright's statements have pained and angered me, I believe that Americans will judge me not on the basis of what someone else said, but on the basis of who I am and what I believe in; on my values, judgment and experience to be President of the United States.

[BklynChick]

1. hopefully this puts it to rest, very good statement

[JenPen98]

151. Are you kidding me

He also said here that he is not leaving the church! Did you read that on the H. post. Let me also say this now I call into question his judgment! He has been there for 20 years, and has not left. I know see why he does not wear his American lapel, and his wife is proud of the US for the first time in her life.

[anonymous171]

152. troll alert.

[JenPen98]

154. Good Try

Is that all you got, truth alert!

[JBoy]

171. Can you say something positive about a Democratic candidate?

You've done nothing but bash Obama about this one issue since you joined DU yesterday. Many question your motives.

[jgraz]

175. No, we're preparing a special cookie for you. It'll be right up.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

208. Why should he quit the church when the pastor has already retired?

nt

[stillcool]

216. You can't handle the truth...

excerpts from the book
Blowback The Costs and Consequences of American Empire
by Chalmers Johnson
Henry Holt, 2000

The term "blowback," which officials of the Central Intelligence Agency first invented for their own internal use, is starting to circulate among students of international relations. It refers to the unintended consequences of policies that were kept secret from the American people. What the daily press reports as the malign acts of "terrorists" or "drug lords" or "rogue states" or "illegal arms merchants" often turn out to be blowback from earlier American operations.
p9
One man's terrorist is, of course, another man's freedom fighter, and what U.S. officials denounce as unprovoked terrorist attacks on its innocent citizens are often meant as retaliation for previous American imperial actions. Terrorists attack innocent and undefended American targets precisely because American soldiers and sailors firing cruise missiles from ships at sea or sitting in B-52 bombers at extremely high altitudes or supporting brutal and repressive regimes from Washington seem invulnerable. As members of the Defense Science Board wrote in a 1997 report to the undersecretary of defense for acquisition and technology, "Historical data show a strong correlation between U.S. involvement in international situations and an increase in terrorist attacks against the United States. In addition, the military asymmetry that denies nation states the ability to engage in overt attacks against the United States drives the use of transnational actors ."
The most direct and obvious form of blowback often occurs when the victims fight back after a secret American bombing, or a U.S.-sponsored campaign of state terrorism, or a ClA-engineered overthrow of a foreign political leader. All around the world today, it is possible to see the groundwork being laid for future forms of blowback.
p12
-----------------------------------------
Terrorism(by definition)strikes at the innocent in order to draw attention to the sins of the invulnerable. The innocent of the twenty-first century are going to harvest unexpected blowback disasters from the imperialist escapades of recent decades. Although most Americans may be largely ignorant of what was, and still is, being done in their names, all are likely to pay a steep price-individually and collectively-for their nation's continued efforts to dominate the global scene. Before the damage of heedless triumphalist acts and the triumphalist rhetoric and propaganda that goes with them becomes irreversible, it is important to open a new discussion of our global role during and after the Cold War...
----------------------

"Blowback" is shorthand for saying that a nation reaps what it sows, even if it does not fully know or understand what it has sown. Given its wealth and power, the United States will be a prime recipient in the foreseeable future of all of the more expectable forms of blowback, particularly terrorist attacks against Americans in and out of the armed forces anywhere on earth, including within the United States. But it is blowback in its larger aspect-the tangible costs of empire-that truly threatens it. Empires are costly operations, and they become more costly by the year. The hollowing out of American industry, for instance, is a form of blowback-an unintended negative consequence of American policy- even though it is seldom recognized as such. The growth of militarism in a once democratic society is another example of blowbackEmpire is the problem. Even though the United States has a strong sense of invulnerability and substantial military and economic tools to make such a feeling credible, the fact of its imperial pretensions means that a crisis is inevitable. More imperialist projects simply generate more blowback. If we do not begin to solve problems in more prudent and modest ways, blowback will only become more intense.
----------------------------------------------

World politics in the twenty-first century will in all likelihood be driven primarily by blowback from the second half of the twentieth century-that is, from the unintended consequences of the Cold War and the crucial American decision to maintain a Cold War posture in a post-Cold War world. U.S. administrations did what they thought they had to do in the Cold War years. History will record that in some places they did exemplary things; in other places, particularly in East Asia but also in Central America, they behaved no better than the Communist bureaucrats of their superpower competitor. The United States likes to think of itself as the winner of the Cold War. In all probability, to those looking back a century hence, neither side will appear to have won, particularly if the United States maintains its present imperial course.
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Blowback_CJohnson/Blowback_BCJ.html
March 21, 2001
Silencing the Messenger
Censoring NarcoNews

by Gary Webb

Not long after I wrote a series for the San Jose Mercury News about a drug ring that had flooded South Central Los Angeles with cheap cocaine at the beginning of the crack explosion there, a strange thing happened to me. I was silenced.

This, believe it or not, came as something of a surprise to me. For 17 years I had been writing newspaper stories about grafters, crooked bankers, corrupt politicians and killers -- and winning armloads of journalism awards for it. Some of my stories had convened grand juries and sent important people to well-deserved jail cells. Others ended up on 20/20, and later became a best-selling book (not written by me, unfortunately.) I started doing television news shows, speaking to college journalism classes and professional seminars. I had major papers bidding against each other to hire me.

So when I happened across information implicating an arm of the Central Intelligence Agency in the cocaine trade, I had no qualms about jumping onto it with both feet. What did I have to worry about? I was a newspaperman for a big city, take-no-prisoners newspaper. I had the First Amendment, a law firm, and a multi-million dollar corporation watching my back.

Besides, this story was a fucking outrage. Right-wing Latin American drug dealers were helping finance a CIA-run covert war in Nicaragua by selling tons of cocaine to the Crips and Bloods in LA, who were turning it into crack and spreading it through black neighborhoods nationwide. And all the available evidence pointed to the sickening conclusion that elements of the US government had known of it and had either tacitly encouraged it or, at a minimum, done absolutely nothing to stop it.

And that's when this strange thing happened. The national news media, instead of using its brute strength to force the truth from our government, decided that its time would be better spent investigating me and my reporting. They kicked me around pretty good, I have to admit. (At one point, I was even accused of making movie deals with a crack dealer I'd written about. The DEA raided my film agent's office looking for any scrap of paper to back up this lie and appeared disappointed when they came up emptyhanded.)

To this day, no one has ever been able to show me a single error of fact in anything I've written about this drug ring, which includes a 600-page book about the whole tragic mess. Indeed, most of what has come out since shows that my newspaper stories grossly underestimated the extent of our government's knowledge, an error to which I readily confess. But, in the end, the facts didn't really matter. What mattered was making the damned thing go away, shutting people up, and making anyone who demanded the truth appear to be a wacky conspiracy theorist. And it worked.

http://www.narconews.com/warroom.html



http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/health/may97/tuskegee_5-...
AN APOLOGY 65 YEARS LATE

May 16, 1997
Lasting Legacy

Beginning in 1932, the federal government sponsored a study to examine the impact of syphilis involving black men. The experiment went on until 1972 without the test subjects' knowledge, but no President had apologized to the volunteers and their families until President Clinton did so today. Following a background report on the experiment, Charlayne Hunter-Gault looks at what the legacy of Tuskegee.


How the CIA sent Nelson Mandela
to prison for 28 years
by William Blum


When Nelson Mandela was released from prison in February 1990, President George Bush personally telephoned the black South African leader to tell him that all Americans were "rejoicing at your release". This was the same Nelson Mandela who was imprisoned for almost 28 years because the CIA tipped off South African authorities as to where they could find him. This was the same George Bush who was once the head of the CIA and who for eight years was second in power of an administration whose CIA and National Security Agency collaborated closely with the South African intelligence service, providing information about Mandela's African National Congress.{1} The ANC, like all left-leaning nationalistic movements, was perceived by Washington as being part of the infamous (albeit mythical) International Communist Conspiracy.
On August 5, 1962, Nelson Mandela had been on the run for 17 months when armed police at a roadblock flagged down his car outside Howick, Natal. How the police came to be there was not publicly explained. In late July 1986, however, stories appeared in three South African newspapers (picked up shortly thereafter by the London press and, in part, by CBS-TV) which shed considerable light on the question. The stories told of how a CIA officer, Donald C. Rickard by name, under cover as a consular official in Durban, had tipped off the Special Branch that Mr. Mandela would be disguised as a chauffeur in a car headed for Durban. This was information Rickard had obtained through an informer in the ANC.
One year later, at a farewell party for him in South Africa, at the home of the notorious CIA mercenary, Colonel "Mad Mike" Hoare, Rickard himself, his tongue perhaps loosened by spirits, stated in the hearing of some of those present that he had been due to meet Mandela on the fateful night, but tipped off the police instead. Rickard refused to discuss the affair when approached by CBS.{2}
While Mandela's youth and health ebbed slowly away behind prison walls, Rickard retired to live in comfort and freedom in Pagosa Springs, Colorado. He resides there still today. His brother, Samuel Harmer Rickard, III, was a CIA officer as well for many years.
NOTES
1. New York Times, July 23, 1986
2. The Guardian (London), August 15, 1986; The Times (London), August 4, 1986
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Blum/CIAMandela_WBlum...

[Th1onein]

259. Welcome to DU! Here's the word on the alert:

Whenever we can see, by your comments, that you are here propagandizing for the right wing nutjobs, we hit the "alert" button in the left hand corner of your post.

By the way? I just hit the alert button on you.

[byronius]

201. I don't think I could construct a better freeper post.

It's right out of the two-page playbook (front AND back). Wow. Misspelling, bad grammar, bad ideas, 13 posts.

Here's the Romney-bot security guard at my bank: "He's got a whole lot of money from somewhere -- heh? Big mystery. Where'd he get all that money? From Al-Quaeda, I think."

TSTL. (Too Stupid To Live).

[TankLV]

262. JenPen is entirely correct - and I've been here from the beginning...

the trouble is, you obamabots are so wrapped up in his sainthood, that no matter what the outrage, you spin and spin and spin until you make yourselves dizzy...

the TRUTH hurts...

much TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE...

just like mcglurkin - which fits EXACTLY into this pattern of demonizing people, whether they're gays or others, and rezko with the CORRUPTION...

YOU guys just don't get it...

if obama's the nominee - we can practice saying "President McCain" for the next four years at least...

[BearSquirrel2]

270. What outrage ????

The United States IS controlled by rich white people ... correct.
Hillary Clinton has never been called a nigger .... correct.
9/11 was retaliation for US intervention overseas (blowback (you reap what you sow)) .... correct.

The bad thing that I a saw was "God Damn America" ... translation ... criticize your country when it is doing wrong!!! ... correct ... but poorly worded.

The only REALLY bad thing that I saw was giving an award to Farrahkahn. But if this is a community activism award, it might be appropriate. I don't like Farrakhan when it comes to his anti-semetic views, but his message of black self empowerment is the type of thing that most white Americans would actually embrace. At the community level, it's very appropriate to tell people, CLEAN UP YOUR OWN NEIGHBORHOOD. GO TO SCHOOL. TREAT YOURSELF WITH RESPECT.

Honestly, as far as the nature of the message I see little difference between the Nation of Islam and most evangelical southern bible thumpers. Different faith. But they both have a message of self empowerment. They both are to a degree personality cults about the preacher. They both have external "boogeyman" (they used to share the same one ... jews) that are used to rally people into action.

Ultimately, we have to accept that all people are flawed. And we have to reason whether those flaws are relevant to us. Obama's preacher said a few things to a focused audience that when broadcast to a larger audience, didn't sound so great. Each sentence was taken out of it's context and the guy is essentially correct on each point.

When it comes to the general election, this is NOT a problem. The Republicans have so many nutball, nutjob preachers up their ass that you couldn't possibly name them all. The WORST may be Jesus Christ himself incarnate ... Reverend Sung Myung Moon. The thugs have been taking help from this guy for decades. They attend his functions and take the support of his paper. We could go on all day.

Wright is just one preacherman. And if you think that Obama MUST have known about everything that man has ever said, you're being ridiculous.

[Name removed]

156. Deleted message

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

[Gore1FL]

166. So?

yThe guy whosaid the stuff did. Do they have to suck the air molecules out of it before it is safe to go back inthe building, or something?

[Danger Mouse]

183. Yessuh, Barack Obama hates white people!

:eyes:

[City Lights]

187. What kind of lapel does he wear?

Do tell...

:crazy:

[still_one]

196. Gosh I sure hope those whose clergy leader has spoken up against gays, or Jews or other

"special groups", also leave those churches

I have no doubt they have been part of the Congregation for sometime

[TankLV]

263. I have - long ago...

some idiots just don't CARE...

[Thurston Howell III]

209. McCrazy doesn't wear one either.

Go to his website and look.

[Jawja]

215. Oh.

Another Limbaugh loving Repuke. :eyes:

[Buzz Clik]

220. Have you read the Constitution lately? Ever?

Welcome to DU.

[Joe the Revelator]

224. Lets be honest, nothing he could have said would have mollified you

This is all you have to hang on to. This statement effectively kills the story.

[TankLV]

264. in your dreams - nice try - but look around - it is THE story...

and contrary to YOUR wishes, it is FAR from over...!

[tachyon]

225. Hey, Goober...I'm not an Obama supporter, but you really need to get

a brain

[ktowntennesseedem]

228. You need a bit more practice on your Limpballs talking points.

Not bad on some of them, but your laughable spelling and grammar gave you away. Let me guess: you attend some fundamentalist church where every word out of your pastor's mouth is the gospel truth and you have no idea how to think an independent thought or hold a contrary position. Some church-goers in this country, including Senator Obama and myself, actually are able to think our own thoughts and express our own opinions. And no pastor, politician, or political idiot like yourself can tell us what to think or feel or do.

Be gone, troll!

[George II]

231. Why should he leave his church?

The controversial person in question is no longer the pastor there (hasn't been for a while)

WHY doesn't Hillary Clinton wear an American flag (you forgot to mention that!!) lapel pin?

You should learn to read and listen to COMPLETE sentences, not just the part that you would like to hear.

You are not capable or qualified to "call into question his judgement"!

[George II]

234. NOTE!!! THIRTEEN POSTS - first sign of a TROLL!!

[earth mom]

239. Obama's been a member of that Church for 20 years?! C'mon people quit lying to yourselves!

Obama only gives a damn what his pastor said now that it's reflecting badly on him and his campaign! :puke:

[TankLV]

265. BINGO! You hit the nail on the head!

the obamababies just refuse to "get it"...

[ksquire]

242. LOLS Troll. Lapel Pin comment ftl

[earthlover]

243. do YOU wear an American flag lapel pin? If not, you have no basis to criticise Obama or anyone else

for not doing so!

Your post reads like a right wing swift boat Republican....amazing what we do to ourselves in blind obedience to our cult leader....

[Th1onein]

258. You been watching too much FOX News, friend.

Time to go back to the site that cannot be named. I think you're swimming in the wrong fishbowl, dude.

[axollot]

261. *must not feed trolls*......however.....

Talk about RW talking points OMG!

Cheers
Sandy

[TexasLady]

2. Thank you

It was a really great read.

[jgraz]

3. OMG -- did you see his picture next to the article???

Why didn't anyone tell me he was BLACK???????

[TexasLady]

4. er..kinda skinny and tall too!

:P

[jgraz]

10. And those EARS. How can we have a president with such huge EARS???

:scared:

[pocoloco]

206. Remember Lyndon??

[George II]

235. haha, great response....thanks!

[CreekDog]

70. Is he black enough?

No wait, that was last month.

Apparently he's too black now.

I swear I can't keep up with this stuff. :banghead:

[jgraz]

102. We'll hire Hillary's graphic designer to adjust his skin tones for the GE

[arundhatiroyfan]

161. Unreal, isn't it?

One thread says he is the corporate candidate, in others people almost call him a black racist and imply he has ties to communists. If he were a radical, corporations wouldn't endorse him and I doubt he would have accomplished so much. The ridiculous accusations change by the day.

[pnwmom]

197. This is par for the course. Welcome to an election year, any century.

And welcome to DU as well!

[tomp]

256. he is, unfortunately, not a radical. nt

[DearAbby]

84. Snarf

:spray::::wipes mouth:::

[Cha]

86. Barack is only 1/2 Black ..he's got this

whole white Kansas thing goin' on too. :P

[Coexist]

130. knr!

[Unsane]

5. Good job Barack

[LTR]

6. Let's K&R this

And put this silliness to rest once and for all.

:kick:

[DJ13]

7. No response to this?

Poor Clinton supporters just lost this weeks Obama bash.

Time for them to move onto another thing to express faux outrage over.

K&R

[marshall]

89. If only Hillary could come out with strong denunciations of her negative allies

She might be in a more popular situation than she is now.

[jgraz]

She'd have to start with herself.

[JoFerret]

158. Allies like Obama you mean?

It's a thought. Pass it along.

[Ravy]

164. Maybe in 20 years she will. nt

[earthlover]

244. Good point! Hillary wasn't quite as strong when she was talking about ferrarro

I was hoping Hillary would condemn the unsupportable with more clarity, but she didn't. Obama showed us how it is done.

[Mags]

99. He can say anything he wants, but he has supported this kinda stuff

from his Rev. for 20 years. If the tapes have been out for a yr or two, where has he been. I can't believe that this statement will change anything , oh, and how funny that he wasn't there when the bad racist sermons were preached. You people will fall for anything. He will do or say anything to win. You've just seen him do it.

[jgraz]

103. Really. And what do you mean by "supported"?

Is it anything like the way Hillary has supported Bush for the past 8 years?

[Mags]

112. I mean $22,000 a year to him and his church, I mean having him as

someone he turns to for advice, I mean having him on his Faith Admin. Committe, I mean Naming his book after one of his sermons.

[jgraz]

116. I bet Obama wouldn't support him if the pastor tried to slaughter a million Iraqis

But hey, that's the difference between your candidate and mine.

[Mags]

124. You don't know that for sure, he has voted to support the war with his votes to finance it.

what's the difference? He sure supports someone that Damns America and that is more then enough to kill his chances with the real people in the real world.

[jgraz]

127. If you really don't know the difference, you're dumber than I thought.

Refusing the fund the war would have been a singular act of political courage, one that I wish he had taken. But it is nothing compared to the bloodthirsty cynicism that led Hillary to approve the war in the first place.

[Mags]

131. explain. If he really wanted to end this war he would have voted against financing it

Call me whatever you want, that just shows that you all will say or do anything to win.

[jgraz]

134. We don't need to do or say anything to win. We've already won.

Hillary's just too stupid and desperate to notice.

[Mags]

139. No, not yet , can't get enough delegates yet. It ain't over.

But it is ok for you all to keep beliving that you have already won.

[jgraz]

140. It's called Math. Look it up.

[Mags]

143. If it's over, then why hasn't he declared himself the winner!

It's called a little of comman knowledge. No just wishful thinking. Ok.

[jgraz]

146. Because he has CLASS. Look that up once you're done reading about MATH

[Mags]

149. yeah, class to you and me are far from the same.

anyone that hangs with a racist, anti american Rev and do so for 20 years along with his little Innocent girls is not class to me and many others.

[jgraz]

157. Here's a couple of innocent little girls for you

Courtesy of Hillary Clinton and her moral cowardice.

Classy.

[Mags]

160. yes they were or are, but Obama could have help to stop this with defunding this awful war.

You would think from you all that Hillary did this by her self. You are playing dumb, if you see the whole picture.

[jgraz]

162. I'd just like us to keep our priorities straight

In the grand scheme of things, one nutty old pastor doesn't matter much.

[Mags]

168. maybe not to you, but his words have hurt a lot of people and our Country.

I have nothing else to fight with you over. I just pray the war is ended and our party will be healed. Peace.

[earth mom]

241. Obama funded those horrific pictures too. Don't you forget it!!! nt

[Danger Mouse]

190. Mags wouldn't know class if it bit her in the ass.

[greyghost]

213. Yeah right, NE went 19-0 too.At least 1/2 party isn't ready

to ordain Obama. I'll be laughing my ass off if Hillary waltzes into Denver and out with the nomination. This Rev. Wright thing is not going away, it's a Rove wet dream.

[jgraz]

219. Apparently Rove's not the only one having a wet dream over this

You guys do realize you're rooting for race hatred to bring down a Democratic candidate, don't you?

[NickMorgan]

179. Funding is Not Support for INvasion

Funding the war is not the same as supporting the reasons for the war. Once a war has begun, there's no turning back and the decision to fund it adequately is a decision to support troops who have already been put in harms way and a decision to make sure that, now that we're in the mess, we at least do the best we can to maintain the chaos we caused and move toward resolving things to a point where withdrawal will not do more harm than good to the United States.

The bus metaphor works perfectly well here. There's no contradiction when a person vocally opposes taking a left because it will get us into a ditch and cost tremendous money and distract us from the right path, and then, once the bad decision is made, to support efforts to pay whatever is necessary to deal with the bad situation.

[madmom]

184. Why then was everyone on DU so up in arms, and ready to impeach

Pelosi and Reid when they voted to fund the war (before Obama)There were many calls to defund the war, there were even ways shown ,by people in the know, about how it would work. So how come now that it's all about Obama voting to fund the war it's "not about funding the war it's about supporting the troops?" Just wondering why the double standard?

[NickMorgan]

193. I'm not "everyone" and neither are you

Are you suggesting that I am accountable for the "many calls to defund the war" and the vague "everyone one on DU" who was "up in arms"?? You can't create a double standard by lumping me into some amorphous group of opinion. If there are specific DUers, feel free to call them out, but I am not speaking for them, I am speaking for me. But at the outset I want to say I think so much fo the petty infighting in the party is due this very kind of in-group / out-group thinking, whereby people think a candidate is somehow the same as the candidates supporters, or that one supporter must hold the views of another supporter. And yes, Obama supporters are just as guilty as Clinton supporters of making every last supporter a surrogate, as if all the nastiness coming from Clinton bashers (and there is a TON of that kind of nastiness here on DU) means that Obama himself is nasty. I'm about having substantive discussions, not loyalty pledges, and I support Barack Obama because I believe HE is about having substantive, thoughtful discussions, even though many of his fans are clearly not. Take it from someone who worked closely with Obama: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cass-r-sunstein/the-obama-i-know_b_90034.html

The only relevant questions are: 1. What are the reasons Barack Obama voted to fund the war? and 2. How are those reasons inconsistent with his opposing the invasion?

My comment, above, shows that opposing invasion and supporting funding are by no means necessarily inconsistent. Thus, merely pointing out that a candidate took both positions does not establish the inconsistency. I can't find a transcript, but as I recall, Obama has claimed that his choice to vote for funding at certain points was all about what is the best way to deal with this crappy situation. For those of you who claim that his vote to fund is inconsistent with the opposition to invade, the burden is on you to answer the two questions above. And I extend that challenge in good faith. If you can persuasively show that Obama's reasons were, in fact, inconsistent, then I will happily amend my position and agree with you.

[Stardust]

251. This might explain the so-called "contradiction"...

"I have been very clear even as a candidate that, once we were in, that we were going to have some responsibility to make it work as best we could, and more importantly that our troops had the best resources they needed to get home safely," Obama, an Illinois Democrat, told reporters in a conference call. "So I don't think there is any contradiction there."

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/03/22/obama_defends_votes_in_favor_of_iraq_funding/

It's a tough call and not one taken lightly, I'm sure.

[roseBudd]

212. Takes 60 senators to over ride a veto, So you are saying Obama can end war how?

Just curious.

[earthlover]

245. Yours is a specious arguement.

For one thing, it is a totally different thing voting to start a war compared to funding the war. The soldiers who are there deserve support. If Obama's warnings about the war would have been heeded, there would be no funding of the war to begin with.

Secondly, who is the candidate running now who voted against the Iraq War funding? McCain? Nope Hillary? Nope So, while you may have preferred that Obama vote against funding....this is hardly a logical arguement to support Hillary instead of Obama! Hillary voted for the funding PLUS she voted for the IWR in the first place. How is doing both better than doing one?

Only Obama can take McCain to task on Iraq. Hillary can't because of a certain mistaken vote she never really acknowledged was a mistake.

[NickMorgan]

253. workin together

I totally agree with you, except that, to be fair, Hillary did acknowledge her vote was a mistake when asked. It was during I believe the debate in Ohio, and the question was what decision or action she would take back. She said she would take back the vote to authorize war. Of course, we can wish she had explicitly said something like "I was WRONG, I admit it, it was a MISTAKE," but in my view she bit the bullet and confessed the mistake adequately. I'm only adding this point because I want Clinton supporters to extend to me (and to Obama and other supporters) a presumption of good faith and fairness in debate. It's one thing for everyone to agree that the party is divided and boy it sucks, but I have not forgotten that the great majority of Clinton supporters out there are my fellow liberals, progressives, and Democrats with whom I share many core political values, and that we are going to need to work together to take the nation back from its most reckless, disgusting handlers in history.

[tomp]

257. so he's bad, but not as bad as hillary. nt

[Stardust]

250. oooooooooowee! good one!

:hi: :hug:

[TankLV]

266. McGlurkin, Rezko, among others - I'm sure there is PLENTY more...

like we've said - it's now become a disturbing PATTERN...

[grantcart]

141. lol

[rucky]

165. Show me some words or actions from Obama that echo these tapes. n/t

[earth mom]

240. Obama will say or do anything to win. Bingo we have a winner! nt

[Igel]

236. You have to denounce something soon after you know about it.

Waiting years to actually form a judgment about something loathsome, until it's suddenly a campaign issue ... rank neophyte politician.

HRC knows to do it within 48 hours or so most times. BO waits years, but not so many years that it can be passed off as a youthful indiscretion like Byrd's multi-year nonsense. "Experience" tells, but doesn't really much matter when it comes to this kind of behavior.

[Stardust]

252. Denounce what? Pastor Wright spoke the truth. Listen to any progressive

radio show and you'll hear the same stuff. Fired up and on a rant, if they're any good. I'd go to hear him even tho I'm not a believer.

Having said this, I do realize that the general public does not share my opinion and it's probably a much bigger deal to them than it warrants. And whoever compiled the video montage selected the most inflammatory screeds in a 20-year career filled with many moments of love and clarity, from what I've heard.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

8. Barack swings . . . and hits it out of the park! GObama!

[Quixote1818]

9. I like what he said here. I just hope enough people will read this. nt

[John Q. Citizen]

93. He will be on TV for a week saying this, every network, and Clinton will be

saying, uh, she has experience. Which isn't news that she thinks she has experience.

And after the week is up, only 5% of the country will think he's a muslim, instead of the 13% who think that now.

And his approval rating will be higher than they are now.

Obama is a smart guy and he's running a brilliant campaign.

[cottonseed]

97. I like your take on this.

I'd have to agree. He's going to have to tease this out a bit over next weeks news cycle. The guy makes too much sense when listening to him not to come away feeling he is sincere in what he is saying.

[jgraz]

117. Yep, it's a joy to watch competent campaigning from a Democrat for once.

[VolcanoJen]

11. Thank you, Barack!!!!

And thank you, oviedodem.... good eye!!!!

:thumbsup:

[bicentennial_baby]

12. That's the response I was waiting for....whew!

Most excellent.

[Yes We Did]

13. Dammit! You beat me to it!

[haymakeragain]

14. What, no call for a lynching? Too little, too late.

Hillary '08

[jgraz]

20. Ok, I'm confused

You just posted a pro-Obama reply and now this. What gives?

[jgraz]

34. .

.

[cbayer]

37. You do realize that you are talking to yourself

don't you?

:rofl:

[snooper2]

That handy edit button

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[haymakeragain]

35. Noted

.

[jgraz]

42. You really need to tag it.

Seriously, your post is almost word-for-word in sync with some of the shit that's being posted here.

GD:P has long ago moved beyond the point where irony can be detected through context.

[haymakeragain]

50. I have to admit,

I don't know how.

[jgraz]

54. Use the :sarcasm: tag

[haymakeragain]

68. :-(

You exposed my ignorance in public.

[jgraz]

78. I'm really really sorry

:sarcasm:

:P

[cbayer]

80. Type this in text: :sarcasm:

:sarcasm:

[haymakeragain]

83. You guys are all very helpful.

:sarcasm:

[jgraz]

98. nicely played, sir.

:rofl:

[cbayer]

122. Well we can be

You just need to ask questions and mostly you will get a respectful response.

You did start this by posting something very inflammatory and emotions run high right now.

Welcome to DU :hi:

[redqueen]

15. This guy has what it takes.

Bring on the GOP.

[El Supremo]

16. Good!

Good enough? I hope so.

[Texas Hill Country]

17. Good response... but...

1. Is Wright leaving the campaign?

2. Does it matter to the 527's?

[scheming daemons]

23. answers.

1. Wright has no official role with the campaign.

2. The 527's just had to throw away all their "Obama is a muslim" ads and are now working on new ones. If this didn't come up, they'd be working on something else.


We need to quit FEARING the GOP and their 527s. We'll fight fire with fire... once this nomination process is over.

[BeyondGeography]

18. That's a good start; I hope he works this basic message into his stump speech

[babylonsister]

72. I bet he will tomorrow, to a sold out crowd:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x5075541

[DemsUnited]

19. thanks for posting this

This is going to be raised again and again in the GE should Barack become the nominee. But I am glad that it's coming out now instead on six months from now, and that Barack has a chance to explain it.

[azmouse]

21. Excellent.

[slinkerwink]

22. ah, good!

[joeybee12]

24. Yeah, he addresses it now that it's a controversy; previously he just

said that he was "like an uncle you don't agree with." Yeah, the repukes won't have anything in the GE...love to know what glasses you people are wearing.

[ellacott]

40. I don't think that anyone is naive enough to think they won't try to use it

But what is with this attitude of fear and wimpishness regardibg what they're going to do. I so wish we would learn how to fight and not be so soft.

[KittyWampus]

59. you think your girl doesn't have mountains of dirt for the GOP to use? Are you that blind?

[earthlover]

246. Cult members are often blind...true enough with the Hillary Cult

[joeybee12]

25. Yeah, he addresses it now that it's a controversy; previously he just

said that he was "like an uncle you don't agree with." Yeah, the repukes won't have anything in the GE...love to know what glasses you people are wearing.

[FrenchieCat]

26. This should be good enough......even in the land of guilt by association,

[creeksneakers2]

218. I wish it would be good enough, since

There was nothing to this all besides guilt by association to begin with. But rather than turn it completely back on the GOP by saying he doesn't have to answer for anybody but himself, Obama has disavowed and distanced himself from awkward associations. What the GOP was pulling was wrong, and any submission to their dirty tricks is seen by the GOP as weakness. They'll see Obama's condemnations as surrenders. They'll only pounce more.

Obama is making a serious mistake by denying that he heard his pastor make statements like these. I've watched how the right wing pushes outrage uproars that damage Democrats. One of the most powerful things they can come across is an unknown, a mystery. The wingnuts will provoke endless speculation about whether Obama knew or not. They'll have wingnuts all over the air with theories about how Obama must known. They'll put the whole fate of Obama's public trust on whether Obama is hiding what he knows. Then the wingnuts will lie. And they'll say Obama is covering up for America haters and that that is even more proof that he hates America himself.

To wingnuts, its a power game, and the side that gets to ask questions wins and the side that has to answer questions loses. The rest of the voters have primitive identification with strength and dominance and subconsciously find those to be the qualifications for authority. Authorities question. Losers explain.

This is why I argued so strenuously against Hillary having to produce her tax returns. Once power is given up to those demanding "prove to me you are innocent" there is no end to the witch hunts that will follow. There will always be more questions and accusations.

[jgraz]

27. Say what you want (and I know you will), that is one cool customer.

That's someone who I can see leading this nation. No wild-eyed rants, no I'm-the-victim fake tears, just pure class and intelligence.

[backscatter712]

90. Exactly.

He doesn't play the victim, or use calculated indignation.

He's a class act, and keeps his cool even when it looks like things are blowing up in his face.

His response is pure Presidential leadership.

[Diane R]

249. The contrast with Hillary is stunning. Obama will be a true statesman.

[DerekJ]

28. about f@#$% time

Why don't you wait for another week, barack? Goodness

[KittyWampus]

61. week? this faux outrage only started yesterday- after Ferraro.

[cui bono]

106. Because waiting a week to deal with this would be irresponsible

you know, like the week we all waited for something to happen regardign the Ferraro comments.

Obama addressed this immediately. Why do you seem to think it took a long time?

Wonder how long you've been on this board? I notice your profile is hidden. Hm... smells like a troll, tastes like a troll... at least use facts.

[DerekJ]

155. Troll?! That was a cry of relief, not an attack on Obama.

It seemed like it has been 100 years since this story broke out. If you follow my posts (as few of them as they are) you will notice that I support Obama.

thought by hiding my profile, I will be hiding my e-mail address. If this is not true, I would be happy to unhide it.

[Laurab]

167. It doesn't show your email address in a profile.

(unless you want it too, of course). You're safe. :hi:

[haymakeragain]

29. What, no call for a lynching? Too little, too late.

:-p

[sfam]

30. What a nice cou for Huffington Post...

But no, this won't put it to rest 'cause we'll be seeing it in upcoming Clinton Campaign mailings and ads.

[Hope And Change]

31. Thanks.Time to move on now...

[thoughtcrime1984]

32. He may need to have a press conference just to repeat these words

That piece is well thought out, but the networks are still going to pound him on it until he holds a Q and A with the media about it. There is really nothing to this, and he just needs to hammer it home into the heads of those who are too dense or too nefarious to grasp Barack's message.

[rucky]

39. Yeah, they won't run anything without video. n/t

[americanstranger]

45. I'm hearing that he's going to appear on Hannity & Colmes tonight.

Going straight into the lion's den to refute. Smart move.

- as

[cbayer]

33. Once again, Obama makes an elegant statement.

He is really good at this and I have a lot of respect for how he handles these situations. I think he will positively deflect any of the garbage that will be thrown his way.

And although she didn't say it in these words, Clinton could also have said "I believe that Americans will judge me not on the basis of what someone else said, but on the basis of who I am and what I believe in; on my values, judgment and experience to be President of the United States." with regards to the Ferraro incident.

The faux outrage on both sides is really sad. And will continue and continue and continue.

[donheld]

36. kick into next week, Recommend most strongly!

Thanks for posting.

[displacedtexan]

38. I'm supposed to believe that Obama wasn't present for any of Wright's rants?

I quote Obama:

"And the sermons I heard him preach always related to our obligation to love God and one another, to work on behalf of the poor, and to seek justice at every turn.

The statements that Rev. Wright made that are the cause of this controversy were not statements I personally heard him preach while I sat in the pews of Trinity or heard him utter in private conversation."

Too big a leap of faith for me, Obama.

[haymakeragain]

46. How many objectionable (to you) sermons by Wright

have you heard? If it's 100, then you're probably right. If it two, then you might be wrong.

[displacedtexan]

49. I haven't been a member of his church for 20 years.

ABC News has purchased all of Wright's sermons from the church.

Should be interesting.

[NYCGirl]

60. So you think ALL 1000+ speeches were like those they excerpted? NT

[displacedtexan]

66. I don't know yet. Do you?

[NYCGirl]

76. I would sincerely doubt it. NT

[haymakeragain]

62. That is interesting, not to mention likely of questionable

integrity. That's a big can of worms, no? also, are they gonna comment on all of it, most of it, some of it, or just the stuff that might hurt Obama?

[DemsUnited]

52. That is the problem with the statement

A good chunk of the speeches are available on line, probably dated, and you know that some enterprising journalist or blogger is right now looking for an inflammatory sermon that corresponds to a time when Obama was in attendance.

And in 20 years, I'm sure there are some to find.

[democrattotheend]

53. I believe that.

These sermons were a few out of thousands Wright has made. It's quite plausible that Obama was not present for those particular sermons.

If he had been, I can't believe he would have stayed or would not have asked Wright to tone it down. He had political ambitions and he had to know this would hurt him.

[stillcool]

221. you can wait with bated breath...

for the rest of them to come out. I hope you are not too disappointed.

[BigDDem]

41. Then:

Spiritual mentor
Sounding board
Baptize my children!

Post You Tube:

"he's like that old uncle...." har har har

Yeah, that should put it to rest!!
:rofl:

[jgraz]

44. Are you laughing because you're just so tickled by virulent racist backlashes?

Sorry, but it looks like you'll have to put away the noose for now.

[BigDDem]

51. Actually laughing about how unbelievably naive some

people are.

Message on Huffingtontpost - Brilliant, that should put it to rest, move on now! Right!

[scheming daemons]

57. He's also addressing it head on on Hannity and Colmes....

...

[BigDDem]

65. Right, which I think is hilarious

How many times have the flock shot down anything to do with Fox?
Now the anointed one picks Fox to address the issue.

Fox is the devil!
BO goes on Fox - Yeah!!

Pick one.

[scheming daemons]

67. Fox is the one that started this.... take on the enemies head on.....

...it's a brilliant move.

[BigDDem]

88. "brilliant"

the bar has been lowered yet again

[yellerpup]

135. If the D in BigDDem stands for Dallas

You would be an expert on lowering the bar.

[Danger Mouse]

194. By you.

[Cass]

113. Oh, so now its brilliant. The other day Ferraro was bashed mercilessly here

for appearing on Fox to discuss the comments she made. The hypocrisy and double standards are unbelievable.

[americanstranger]

128. Yeah, because she didn't go to clarify her remarks.

She went on Fox to repeat her remarks. Kinda big difference there.

- as

[knixphan]

188. Bingo.

[Mags]

121. Very good point . But these people will do or say anything to win.

[RestoreGore]

211. FOX is only the devil when your rival appears on it

It's OK for him. Everything is OK for him.

[geek tragedy]

64. Well, Clinton supporters and other Republicans may pick

at it some more, but they're generally pathetic rightwing knuckledraggers.

[IowaGirl]

223. Ironically, my Repub brother-in-law in Dallas said that the Repubs that went to vote in the dem

primaries were pretty evenly split between Barack and Hillary.

[theboss]

43. Notice he took this moment to reaffirm is belief in the Gospel of Christ

He's good.

[earthlover]

248. That's true. I would also point out that as a thinking Christian, I have yet to attend a church....

...whose minister I totally agreed with. For that matter, I am a member of the Lutheran Church and there is some church doctrine I disagree with (I disagree on the concept of the trinity, yet I still consider myself a member).

I am an avid listener of sermons. I find this the best part of the service! Sometimes there is a pastor who I really relate to. Even then I can't remember a pastor I always agreed with on everything he/she said!

I also can say with confidence that pastors within the same faith can and do disagree with each other!

Obviously there were things in Pastor Wright's call that inspired Obama. I see no reason to doubt that Obama may have had misgivings and total disagreement over certain things his pastor said and still be a member of the church. He, after all, attends a church....not a cult!!!!

So I ask the church goers here who may be inclined to cast asperagus at Pastor Wright and Obama to look at their own pastor and ask if they agree with everything the pastor and/or the church professes. For example, does your church--like almost every Christian church--consider homosexuality a sin against God? I am not asking whether they will be merciful to those who sinned....does your church consider it a sin and do you agree with this? I for one, cannot agree with such a position....can you? (Ironic thing here...Obama's church is one of the most liberal on gays...). Are you willing to quit going to your church over this issue? Or are there other positive things about your church you value even though you disagree on this issue or others?

I think most thinking Christians find things they don't agree with about their church.

So, in the words of Jesus, he who is without sin cast the first stone....

[kentuck]

47. Excellent !

I was waiting for such an explanation. I hope he gets the time to make these points on H & C this evening?

[scheming daemons]

48. Has the HuffPo blog shown up on MSNBC, CNN, or Fox yet?

...

[Connie_Corleone]

56. MSNBC just talked about it. I'm sure the other networks will too.

Someone said Obama was going to be on Hannity & colmes to discuss it, which I think it's a smart move since that assface Hannity started this.

[Inuca]

58. I do not know about Fox, but

yes, already mentioned on CNN and MSNBC

[rodeodance]

55. Good start but----20 years of bad JUDGMENT.

[haymakeragain]

73. Long arming again.

I believe you might have blocked me, this is kind of a test. If so, you should really face your adversaries with the courage of your convictions.

[rodeodance]

92. hey sweetie---if you think the RW will now toss this aside you are deluded. bye for now

[haymakeragain]

101. well I'm proud of you Rodeo, good on ya.

As for the inbred right, I don't subscribe. You should try to quit too. IMHO, their schtick is drying up with just about everybody.

[Khaotic]

63. K&R

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

69. Has He Been Kicked Off The Campaign Yet?

[haymakeragain]

71. He's on the campaign, what's his position?

hmmmmm.

[scheming daemons]

74. He's never had an official role with the campaign... "honorary" role... and Obama addresses that in

..the HuffPost article.

Read it.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

87. I Did Read It. It Was A Good Article, But I Saw No Mention Of That.

[scheming daemons]

96. Sorry... I read it somewhere else... mixing up my articles...

Comment from his campaign said that the "Spiritual Advisory Committee" is an honorary group that hasn't even met. They hold no official role in the campaign.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

120. Oh Ok. Thanks. I Must Admit I Didn't Know That.

[americanstranger]

132. Here's an explanation of the committee's role, from the Obama web site.

Is the Rev. Wright a part of this campaign?

No. The confusion here, that Obama's opponents and the media make such to-do about, arises from the AARLC. A year ago Obama helped set up the African American Religious Leadership Committee. Wright is a member. This is an independent think-tank that occasionally acts advisory to the Obama campaign. It is not a part of the Campaign, and Obmama has no direct authority over it. It's intenty was to establish a central forum for exploring shared oncerns specific to African American churches of various denominations; the advisory capacity would then make it possible for Obama to draw on the Committee's experience and form a policy on such concerns in an incluisive manner. However, the committee was never intended to be, nor is it, 'part' of the campaign, since it does not exist to raise monies or votes or endorsements.

http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/emmanuelwinner/gGBzRP

---

I was under the impression that he was an official member of the campaign from the article on Politico. that'll teach me.

- as

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

137. I Don't Mean This In A Petty Manner, But Someone REALLY Needs To Use Spell Check On That Site.

That was bad. Really bad.

[americanstranger]

169. Ya pedantic bastid, ya.

Kidding.

I guess I'm lucky I developed good spelling skills, because typos bug me, too

- as

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

173. I Was Just Surprised. Someone Was In A Rush I Guess.

I only bring it up because since this story is getting so much traction, there will probably be many people going to his site to read that. One should put extra effort in such circumstances to make sure it comes off professionally, that's all.

[americanstranger]

202. Got it.

Agreed.

- as

[K Gardner]

75. Can somebody please clue Tweety in that this is up so he'll quit demanding a statement?

[JoFerret]

77. Doesn't do it .

though I don't know what would.

[sudopod]

79. Barack is a better man than me.

I'd have flipped shit. :p

[1776Forever]

81. It's called class and Barack Obama is the epitome of it - The new Pastor of his Church is amazing!

This to me is a generational thing. The older hard hitting and weathered Pastor Wright has seen a lot of things in his life that this younger Pastor won't even be able to connect with. It is a good thing, a VERY good thing, that this country is moving on and can elect an absolutely brilliant man to the Presidency. We are lucky in the country to have Barack Obama and it is up to us to focus and continue to be positive about his accomplishments and vision. :thumbsup:

[BigDDem]

94. "The new Pastor of his Church is amazing!"

What makes him "amazing?"

[1776Forever]

138. Here is his bio. He is truly a very accomplished man! I wish I lived near enough to go there.

http://www.tucc.org/pastoral_staff.htm

Rev. Otis Moss III
Pastor, Trinity United Church of Christ

Prior to joining the pastoral staff at Trinity United Church of Christ, Rev. Moss served as pastor of the historic Tabernacle Baptist Church in Augusta, Georgia. After his arrival, Tabernacle was blessed, through Christ, to go from 125 members to over 2100 disciples.

Rev. Moss received his BA in Religion and Philosophy from Morehouse College where he served as Student Government President. During his matriculation at "the House," he was inducted as a Ford Foundation Scholar, named by the NCAA as an All-American Track and Field athlete and graduated with honors.

He continued graduate work at Yale University and was awarded the FTE Benjamin Elijah Mays Scholarship in Religion and the Yale University Magee Fellowship. Rev. Moss is recorded as one of the few African-Americans to ever receive this award in the schools' 300-year history. Rev. Moss graduated from Yale with a Master of Divinity degree with a concentration in Ethics and Theology.

After finishing seminary, Rev. Moss journeyed to Denver, Colorado to pursue a Ph.D. in Religion and Social Change at the University of Denver/Iliff School of Theology, under the tutelage of African-American historian and theologian, Dr. Vincent Harding. While not completing the program due to his call to serve the Tabernacle Baptist Church he maintains a high level academic commitment to research and teaching. He has been Adjunct Professor of Voorhees College, Guest Lecturer for the Interdenomonatial Theological Center, Emory University, Presbyterian College, Paine College, Dillard University, Howard University, Yale, Harvard University and Morehouse College. While in Denver, he continued his ministry to youth and young adults as the assistant to the pastor and Minister of Youth Programs at New Hope Baptist Church. Pastor James D. Peters, D.Min became a mentor to Rev. Moss and inspired in him a love for African-American homiletics and church history.

Rev. Moss has done extensive research in the areas of African-American culture, theology and youth development. Four-G published his first book, Redemption in a Red Light District, in December of 1999. His essays, articles and poetry have appeared in The African American Pulpit Journal, Sojourners Magazine, and the Urban Spectrum. The African American Pulpit Journal recently named Reverend Moss one of the "20 to watch" ministers who will shape the future of the African American church. Belief.Net named Rev. Moss as one of the future religious leaders who will impact the African-American Church. As a result of his commitment to intergenerational ministry and prophetic preaching Rev. Moss has had the honor of speaking at the Hampton University Ministers and Musicians Conference on three occasions. This is largest African American ecumenical conference in the nation. In addition he holds the distinction of being the youngest lecturer ever to present to this body.

His passion for youth and intergenerational ministry led him to create the Issachar Movement, a consulting group designed to bridge the generation gap within churches and train a new generation of prophetic church leadership.

His love for God and young people has led him to speak and preach in churches, seminaries and colleges across the globe; Including places such as South Africa, Bermuda, Puerto Rico and Egypt. Newsweek magazine cited Rev. Moss as one of "God's foot Soldiers' committed to transforming the lives of youth. Currently Rev. Moss serves as a frequent guest commentator on the Naomi Judd New Morning Show on The Hallmark Network He is the husband of Monica Brown Moss a graduate of Spelman College and Columbia University and the son of Dr. Otis (Edwina) Moss, Jr. of Cleveland, Ohio. They have one son, Elijah Wynton Taylor Moss and one daughter, Makayla Elon Moss.

..........

The Church is very lucky to have this outstanding person as their Pastor.

[kentuck]

82. This was the part he needed to clarify, imo.

And I think he done an excellent job explaining it.
=========================

<snip>
Most importantly, Rev. Wright preached the gospel of Jesus, a gospel on which I base my life. In other words, he has never been my political advisor; he's been my pastor. And the sermons I heard him preach always related to our obligation to love God and one another, to work on behalf of the poor, and to seek justice at every turn.

The statements that Rev. Wright made that are the cause of this controversy were not statements I personally heard him preach while I sat in the pews of Trinity or heard him utter in private conversation. When these statements first came to my attention, it was at the beginning of my presidential campaign. I made it clear at the time that I strongly condemned his comments. But because Rev. Wright was on the verge of retirement, and because of my strong links to the Trinity faith community, where I married my wife and where my daughters were baptized, I did not think it appropriate to leave the church.

[DemGa]

85. Sounds like he doesn't know his mentor -- what else escapes his grasp?

[jgraz]

95. jesus, give it a fucking rest

Your "girl" has lost. Start getting in line or start getting the fuck out.

[DemGa]

104. You give it rest "hope and change"---NT

[uponit7771]

109. Baracks dog will bark at the mail person, racist will make it front page news

[BigDDem]

125. "start getting the fuck out"

The new politics of hope and change!!

:rofl:

[jgraz]

129. I certainly HOPE this place CHANGES once Obama is the nominee

[Forkboy]

107. Can't possibly be as much that eludes yours.

[LSK]

115. he cannot grasp how Hillary will get more delegates

But nobody else can either.

[kid a]

91. Very succinct and powerful words - Thank You Barack Obama.

Lets move on with this in our arsenal.

[scheming daemons]

100. Rev Wright was a marine???? Wow... hard to reconcile that with "Un-American".....

...

[haymakeragain]

108. "They" will overcome that, see:

Murtha, Carter, Cleland, Kerry, etc., etc., etc., etc.

[jgraz]

110. yep, Hillary's already printing up the purple-heart bandaids

[uponit7771]

105. I would've told everyone to kiss my ass and I'm not responsible for what my pastors says. But it's..

...a good thing that he gets this out now and the guild by association issues have been responded to quickly.

[LSK]

111. Randi just read this on air

[milkyway]

114. Notice he makes sure to cross the Clinton threshold: he uses "denounce" and "reject."

Let me say at the outset that I vehemently disagree and strongly condemn the statements that have been the subject of this controversy. I categorically denounce any statement that disparages our great country or serves to divide us from our allies. I also believe that words that degrade individuals have no place in our public dialogue, whether it's on the campaign stump or in the pulpit. In sum, I reject outright the statements by Rev. Wright that are at issue.

You satisfied, Hillary?

If I didn't know better, I would think he is almost mocking her, but I'm sure this is just an earnest attempt to make sure no one can claim his denunciation is not firm enough according to the rules established in campaign 2008.

[jgraz]

118. She'll just move the goalposts

Next she'll demand Obama go kick the old guy in the nuts.

[milkyway]

123. LOL!

[Forkboy]

177. So far, the denounce and reject stuff has been my favorite campaign story.

From here on out just denouncing someone will never be good enough again. :rofl:

You'd never know there was a war going on, or an American city still struggling to rebuild two years down the road. I'm glad we get these kind of things straightened out during campaigns, and put our priorities in order. ;)

[libbygurl]

181. So, he's still taking lessons from the more experienced one, no?

nt

[IowaGirl]

226. Nice one, Libbygurl.....

:toast:

[libbygurl]

273. Thank you.

Guess they agree with it, hey?

:hi:

[yellerpup]

119. His is more impressive every day.

Well done. K&R!

[Thurston Howell III]

126. Obama has to call a presser and say it.

Let's face it, if it wasn't on TV then it didn't happen!

On Edit:

Oooops. He is going to be on TV.

[Bake]

133. That's an excellent statement.

I applaud Obama for it, as I have been one of themore vocal critics on the issue for the last few days.

So I do applaud his statement. Very eloquent.

I hope, for the party's sake, it's enough.

Bake

[BigDDem]

136. Now that we know that Saint BO

"vehemently disagrees and strongly condemns" where are all the flock
who were defending "Reverend" Wright?

Cat got your tongue?

[angie_love]

142. Ok, I forgive you Obama. Now just say it on tv and lets move on.

If we can...hopefully.

[bridgit]

144. Reasoned, balanced, flat, emotionless; very BO, lawyerly...sadder it's taken...

what seems nearly 20yrs to actually compose, and now only in response to "the statements by Rev. Wright that are at issue". It is good to start somewhere though :thumbsup:

[JuniperLea]

145. Poor Obama...

It must be hard to say such things about the guy you touted as your spiritual adviser.

I've always felt human beings should look inside, not out, for spiritual advice... men will lead you wrong every time... well, except for Rumi, Gandhi, Buddha and a few other humans.

[dbonds]

147. This may end up being a political stroke of genius.

Planned or unplanned. Enough attention was called to Obama's church to where everyone now knows he is christian. The 'controversy' got the word out. Then the statement clarifying Obama's non-relationship to the controversial parts. So all that is left after the statement is Obama is a Christian.

[ginnyinWI]

148. A very eloquent statement. Hope this ends it. n/t

[greiner3]

150. Fellow Democrats;

Spell check is your FRIEND. If you use Firefox you can download a pretty good dictionary from their add-on pages. This will give you red ink when words are not spelled correctly and save a lot of time and effort. DU's is good also, however you can't add on words and Firefox works anywhere.

I sincerely hope that I have not misspelled any words after this post!

[cooolandrew]

153. Anyone posted this to olberamn send to all liberal outlets.

[cottonseed]

176. He's on Olberman tonight.

So, I'm pretty sure he knows about it.

[Upton]

159. Glad to see such a good response

Clinton supporters must be disappointed

[Ian_rd]

163. Hmmm. He used the words "condemn," "reject," and "denounce." Personally I'm not satisfied.

I demand that he "censure" and "rebuff" Wright. Are you with me, Hillbots?

:sarcasm: :rofl:

[americanstranger]

170. You forgot

'Rebuke,' 'deplore' and 'regret.'

- as

[Liberal Veteran]

174. Don't forget "abjure", "eschew", and "repudiate"....

In fact, he must also sacrifice his first born on an altar and slash his face for penance!

:rofl:

[jackson_dem]

172. This is good. It mitigates the damage but does not erase the past 20 years

The damage was down when Obama returning to the church again and again for two decades.

[Politicalboi]

178. I'm glad Obama spoke out about this

Rev. Wright is a Shock Jock plain and simple. He's right up there with Pat Robertson, Fallwell, Hagee, and Glen Beck. Why are these buffoons ok and this guy is a racist. He's got a mic and he uses it to release his anger. I don't agree with what he says either but it's his church. He's not on TV every night spewing hatred. And after Katrina who can blame him.

[jeffrey_X]

180. bump

eom

[DerekJ]

182. K & R

:kick:

[amborin]

185. good, that was the right thing to squelch this

[Johnny Potpie]

186. Thank you

This should put this issue to rest. Obama denounced Wright's statements. Using Wright's statements is just a ploy from those who can't handle a black man getting the DNC presidential nomination, or desperate Hillary supporters who are insulted that Hillary hasn't just been handed the crown as so many expected. We will unite strongly with Obama once it's all been said and done.

[ozone_man]

189. Well said! Now let's move on to something more substantive.

Like the worsening economy and Iraq war.

[Beregond2]

191. Faith

As usual, Obama responds with decency and common sense. What a blessed relief he is after listening to all the hysterical nonsense that has been flying around here in regard to this non-issue.

[knixphan]

192. dbonds is right

Played into Barack's hands.

What BETTER way to nail it into nascar heads that he's not a Muslim?

Have him talk about the remarks of a Christian preacher. Over and over.

The Muslim e-mails won't work once this is all over.

oh, and free speaking time for Barack.

Barack Obama is a Ju-Jitsu master. Bet against him at your own peril.

[casus belli]

195. Did he "reject AND denounce"?

It doesn't matter if he equated his own pastor to Hitler, and completely rebuked him. For some, it will never be enough, and they will help the media and the right-wing feed on our candidates by spreading this horsecrap themselves.

I'm beginning to think unity is hopeless. Maybe the Republican party is smarter than we all thought and realizes the only way they could win with such an unpopular president leaving office, was to destroy our party from within.

Shame on you people. That you would destroy a good man with words that aren't even his own. I hope every single one of the people pushing this, has to serve time for one of the black sheep in their own family, or loses their own job because of the failings of an unethical boss. Maybe then you'll stop tearing down just for the sake of improving your own chances.

Since they can't attack him, they might as well destroy him with everyone he has ever known. Way to go. Progressive my ass.

[TexasBushwhacker]

198. Excellent response from Obama, but still what the hell ...

was Wright thinking? How could this tirade have possibly helped Obama?

[Danger Mouse]

199. Very strong statement by Obama. This is what he needed to do.

:thumbsup: These are remarks that cannot be spun.

[KamaAina]

200. Trinity is the largest congregation in the entire UCC, with 10,000 members

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity_United_Church_of_Christ

Trinity United Church of Christ is a megachurch, the largest congregation of the United Church of Christ, with 10,000 members.<1> It is also one of the largest African-American churches in Chicago, Illinois. Barack Obama, the junior United States Senator from Illinois and candidate for the Democratic Party Presidential nomination, is the most notable congregant, and a member since 1988.

So what about the other 9,996 members? Are they all evil America-hating racists, too, because they didn't walk away the minute their pastor said something more controversial than "turn the other cheek"? :sarcasm:

[Tommy S]

203. Judgement

I do not believe Mr. Obama is a racist, nor do I believe he should be held accountable for the sermons preached by Rev. Wright. Especially, "the statements that have been the subject of this controversy." However, Mr. Obama's presidential campaign has been focused on bringing about change and about questioning judgement. It appears, in listening to some of the language used by Rev. Wright, there are some undertones of racism. Also, Rev. Wright's connection to Louis Farrakhan, does not help Mr. Obama's situation.

It appears Mr. Obama's pronouncement in "vehemently disagreeing" and "strongly condeming" Rev. Wright's statements are a bit delayed. It is understood that Mr. Obama did not agree with the Reverend's statements back in January, as well. However, the relationship has been there amongst the two of them for the past twenty years. He himself, as well as, his children have been baptised by the Reverend, and I suppose I could believe that Mr. Obama never attended a sermon where some sort of racist overtone was projected; However, I find it difficult to believe that he was never aware, or never heard of any racist overtones of Rev. Wright's sermons.

It just seems to be another politician stating that they disagree with what someone says to suit their agenda. I don't see the change. I see another politician like John McCain, Hillary Clinton, Mitt Romney and so forth. Again, I don't believe Mr. Obama is a racist. But, I do question his connection, that has run deep for twenty years, with someone who is prejudice and important enough to baptise his children.

[creeksneakers2]

238. I don't believe the pastor is racist

He does promote black causes but I scoured the website about a year ago and didn't find a single instance of the pastor saying anything anti-white.

[Name removed]

272. Deleted message

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

[creeksneakers2]

274. He doesn't reach the standard I used

I would call it racism if he said white people deserve to be hated. I'd also flag it if he said something terrible about white people as a race. I don't count it as racism when he points out that this nation has been racially divided and that blacks were oppressed. Wright has lots of opinions I don't agree with but that doesn't mean his opinions are racist.

Many whites have complained that blacks combining to promote improvements in the conditions blacks live under is racist. The logic given is that if whites did the same, such as forming a white power movement or promoting a white church the whites would be called racist. This does seem unfair, and it would be were it not for history. There's a history.

Whites generally have the upper hand in our country. If blacks work together to improve their lives, its taking a step toward equality. If whites work together to improve their status as a group, that would produce inequality. If the whites were successful they'd have even more of the upper hand than they do now. The majority has far more power to oppress the minority than the minority has to oppress the majority.

Declarations that an institution is a white institution are symbolically offensive. Historically, those institutions that called themselves white were in fact racists. They aimed to keep blacks down. All modern white power movements I observed hate minorities. So there is a strong association there with "white" meaning racist.

In my lifetime, blacks lived under segregation. The terrible injustices of the past could not be remedied without disallowing whites to work together as a race against blacks. America has great shame for its past so it does not tolerate even small amounts of white racism. While this may look like a double standard by itself, it must be remembered that we start off with a double standard that favors whites. What we have now is intended to balance the scales.

[Vattel]

204. Gee,

I thought the pastor was right on the mark on most things.

[IowaGirl]

205. This is a really, really lame denunciation.......

Even I had heard of Wright's remarks when they were first made and I had never even heard of Obama at that time. I just can't believe that Obama hadn't heard of this until after his campaign started. Even though Hillary is flawed, I still think this kind of stuff is why Obama can't survive the general election. This whole thing is just sad for the whole democratic party. It's all coming out too late to really thoroughly investigate and disclaim. Remember McGovern and his vp scandal. :cry:

[RestoreGore]

207. What else was he going to say?

[IowaGirl]

210. Darned if I know, it's a no win scenario.

That's why I'm not a politician--thank God!!

[RestoreGore]

214. I hear that!

[parkeradison]

217. Regarding Obama rejection of Wright

That's a pretty direct response. Do you think it will be good enough for Hannity? Ha, ha.

[VotesForWomen]

222. 20 years too late, isn't it? nt

[MirrorAshes]

229. So Obama is responsible for everything this man has ever said?

and should have had the forsight to see the effect it could have on his presidential run 20 years down the line? riiiiiight.

[GarbagemanLB]

255. I'm going to make a new name: VotesForWhites. Or maybe, VotesForMen. Like it?

[mckara]

227. Where's the Beef?

I played videos of Wright yesterday, and watched the news today. Seems to me, Rev. Wright has read more history books than 99 percent of the American people, and probably, has read 100 percent more history books than those people who found Wright's comments "offensive."

Let's face it, all great powers make mistakes, and the United States has made its share of blunders. Rev. Wright didn't have the luxury of living in a desegregated America as a young man. God knows, he witnessed social injustices firsthand, and likely, endured those same injustices. Anyone with any sense can empathize with Wright's views after they walk a mile in his shoes, or study American history with the intent of developing an objective view of America's social fabric. A person will quickly realize that there is ample evidence for substantiating every one of Wright's claims.

After people understand their own history as well as Rev. Wright, then they have a right to debate with him on the issues. If you have a rah-rah, "America can do no wrong" interpretation of history, you will lose a debate with Wright, and appear more foolish to others than this whole "controversy" appears to me!

GROW-UP AMERICA, understanding what is WRONG with America will help us make this country a GREATER NATION! :patriot:

[WoodyM]

230. After twenty years

of attending, participating in, and financially contributing to this church, he is running for the presidency of the US and categorically denounces his pastor’s statements as “inflammatory and appalling. Just about twenty years too late.

[TankLV]

267. funny - you noitced that "small" point, too - huh?

so much for his "saint hood"

looks like is halo is not only tarnished but rusty and made of cheap chinese imports...

[FreeStateofWinston]

232. End of Story. Time to move on.

:thumbsup:
Thanks for putting that issue to rest Barack. Now maybe you can get back to the main issues of this campaign: Getting our troops out of Iraq, affordable Universal Health-care for all Americans, building a stronger economy and putting Americans back to work in descent paying jobs, unifying the American people for a common purpose, and restoring America's image around the World.

[Bluebear]

233. 'All of the statements that have been the subject of controversy are ones that I vehemently condemn.

Well, that's easy, lol!

[kelligesq]

237. Bullsh-t - he refused to reject the Pastor - Bye Bye Obama

said on tv he's known him for many years and cannot denounce him or
reject him.

Get a good load of Obamas double speak and wake up.

[sorrybushisfromtexas]

247. Hannity has had the tapes for weeks and he got less than 30

seconds of questionable words, there may be more, but as a regular church goer for about 35 years, I have heard (at 3 sermons a week)over 2,000 sermons my pastors have preached. Let me see. I can really remember 1 real well, and it was last weeks. How do you know that Obama knew diddly squat about these controversial words. By the way I really believe that God Damns slavery, jim crow, separate but equal, our treatment of Native Americans, Concentration Camps for our Japanese citizens, the KKK, Oklahoma City, do I need to go on. By the way I really love America, with all its warts. I also think Obama is the better of the 2 candidate.

[greyghost]

254. Agreed, this is a big problem for Barrack. I keep asking myself

why he didn't cut himself loose from this guy long ago. The post damning
video is from Xmas last year!

Anyone asked Michelle Obama about this yet?

[Name removed]

260. Deleted message

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

[TankLV]

268. now that was a good post - all nicely wrapped-up I'd say...

Welcome to DU!

keep up the good work...

[trevjr]

269. Rev. Wright was a Marine too.

Obama addresses this stuff quickly, unlike Hillary who leaves it out there for days to fester. Rev. Wright didn't say anything wrong, the way he said it was inflammatory. It can be proven with audio and video that Hillary and her campaign are liars. Where is the outrage over that? Now Hillary wants to steal pledged delegates and seat MI and FL as is. Doing anything to win, when it is now obvious she cannot.

[Name removed]

271. Deleted message

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

[humbled_opinion]

275. Leave Obama ALLLOOOONNNNEEE!!!!!!

Or do I have to make a Youtube.... Lets get real this is all Hillary people trying to start racial shit...... Stop the division, Barrack stands for equality not division, Barrack will end this stalemate in politics and actually get things accomplished and the sooner you wise up to that the better.... If Hillary continues this crap and trys to steal this election... I for one will never vote for her... I will campaign and support Obama as a Third Party Progressive independent and he will beat both Hillary and McCain and really transform the government....

Obama is the voice of the people ... Lets come together as one voice... It is our time.