After a string of public appearances by Rev. Jeremiah Wright were cancelled following the circulation of his radical sermons via video in March and his church web site was sanitized, God-o-Meter assumed that Wright was cooperating with the Obama campaign in an attempt to defuse the controversy surrounding his relationship with the presidential candidate. Wright’s performance on Monday blew that assumption to smithereens, and today’s The New York Times traces the long unraveling of the once super-close Wright/Obama friendship, including the mounting tensions between Wright and Obama’s campaign advisors:
Aides say that they and the candidate came to feel that they had no control over the pastor, no sense of what next he might do or say.
With Wright totally off the Obama reservation, he threatens to pop up publicly in coming weeks and months and seek revenge against the campaign (God-o-Meter, by the way, saw this thirst for score-settling a while back). Obama may have denounced Wright this week, but that doesn’t mean the news media will ignore the pastor whenever he appears publicly. He’s somewhat weakened by Obama’s denouncement, but Wright’s nonetheless become a persistent threat to the campaign.
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posted May 1, 2008 at 10:26 am
Exactly right. Obama has a much bigger problem than John Kerry had with Theresa or Hillary has with bill — Wright is a genuine loose canon, and with the weakened ties between the two, Obama has no way to contain him. Will black leaders step in an put Wright under wraps, to keep him from sabotaging Obama’s campaign more than he already has?
posted May 1, 2008 at 11:06 am
The Religious leaders of the black community MUST step forward and actively reduce Wright to the status of a tired, egoistical old has-been radical that is out of date and out of touch with the main stream Black Americans.
Clinton has wisely stayed out of the frey lately and McCain is keeping his cool about it. The only people that really seem to be preoccupied with it are the Media and the Hate Mongers. And you know that NOBODY really cares what they think. Obama will survive this mess by keeping calm and appealing to the common sense of the voters. Those who don’t want Obama to win (for whatever reasons) won’t change their minds, those how love him will stand by him. The rest of us will wait and see and decide when we go to the poles in November. I still admire Obama, but I also like Clinton and McClain. But actually, none where my first choice for president and all are better than the one we have now.
posted May 1, 2008 at 12:59 pm
The best thing Obama can do is just ignore Wright. Obama reacting to him is what is fueling Wright’s comments about Obama.
posted May 1, 2008 at 1:46 pm
Paul,
When you say: “The Religious leaders of the black community MUST step forward and actively reduce Wright to the status of a tired, egoistical old has-been radical that is out of date and out of touch with the main stream Black Americans.”
That seems to me to be an open question. It seems like very few (any?) black church leaders have denounced Wright precisely because he’s NOT considered a self-absorbed radical throwback. There’s a fair and unaswered question about whether Wright is representative of the black church or out of step with it.
posted May 1, 2008 at 2:09 pm
The McCain folks haven’t said anything because they are laughing so hard they can’t get the words out.
posted May 1, 2008 at 9:51 pm
I don’t care what Wright thinks, and if the media were interested in presenting news that matters and not just looking for a sensational squabble, they wouldn’t bother with him. I care what Obama and the others will do about the very serious problems we are facing in this country. When Obama (and either of the other candidates) claim that the public does want to hear about the issues, they speak for me.
posted May 2, 2008 at 10:51 am
“The McCain folks haven’t said anything because they are laughing so hard they can’t get the words out.”
Actually they are staying as quiet as they can – or the press may decide to make more of Hagee’s endorsement!