Obama Attempts to Clarify “Typical White Person” and Which Offensive Comments He Heard at Church

For someone who was branded as a great orater, he sure does a lot of clarifying…

So the all-time greatest speech on race has Ammendments to its constitution? While we are at it we should probably try to have a budget session on it…..Is there no limit to Obama’s stupidity and arrogance?

Mr. Obama, you stated yesterday that the sky is blue. Can you clarify that?
“Well, what I meant to say, so as not to be misconstrued that beyond a shadow of a doubt, that when referring to the sky, we have to understand what is meant by sky. Is it the atmosphere, the cumulus or nimbus cloud formations yadda, yadda yadda, yakitty schmakitty, blah blah, blah….etc..etc..”
This guy loves to hear himself talk.

With CNN and MSNBC giving him endless air time, he will always have time and opportunity to clarify one statement after another. I wonder how many other candidates have this luxury…

It is matter of time that some documents come out showing he was there. Sad, but it is true

Obama Obama when are you going to stop coming up with more excuses, pointing fingers on others and trying to massage your own words? you should first answer the question of your leadership and ability to change people minds…if you are so great, how you kept silent for so many years, everyone from the ch8rch had access to Rev. Wright tapes, you were there, your friends were there, your wife was there, your daughters were there in many occassions and you now are saying you didn’t heard anything? is that leadership or political cover?
I don’t trust your judgment!

Ok, I just think this is crazy. Just when I thought this controversy was dying out he has come out and re-fueled it. He really shouldn’t have done that. People will find it hard to believe he was unaware of all of this.

Boooo Obama!

Also, if he had not heard any of those comments or was unaware of them, then I would like to know how Sen. Obama knew that his pastor was a “fierce critic” of US policy. What “fierce” criticisms did he hear?

There is still a major contradiction here:
“Did I strongly disagree with many of his political views? Absolutely”
Why would you put someone with whom you disagree on MANY political views on an advisory committee on your campaign?
Can he clarify that for us?

Obama just didn’t get it. The problem is not we think you are a racist as Wright, it is how on earth you don’t see the damage that Wright is doing to your own black community and the rest of the society.
Where is your judgement and where is your leadership?
“A 1990 poll taken by the New York Times/CBS found that 10 percent of blacks in New York City thought the AIDS virus was “deliberately created in a laboratory in order to infect black people,” while another 19 percent thought the theory might possibly be true, a finding that was confirmed in a similar poll by Newsweek/Gallup in March 1990. And the paranoia among blacks has only gotten worse, according to a 2005 study by Rand Corporation and Oregon State University, which showed that half of African Americans surveyed believed that AIDS is man-made, more than one quarter said it was created in a government lab, and 12 percent claimed that the virus was spread by the CIA.”
Thanks to Wright and Obama’s lack of action.

Dogsoldier — So true. Damage control for the damage control for the damage control. The man of “just words” is “just that.”

How many times will he have to clarify his words when he’s on the world’s stage? He is not ready to be president.
Hillary 2008

“What I was trying to express is”…
How many times has this guy had to begin his sentences with this phrase for the past couple of days? How is he known to be eloquent at all when he needs constant damage control for what he says? How would this look on a President to keep coming back to the American people and say “what I meant was”….”what I was trying to say was…” ?

We think that one American is being UNFAIRLY made to carry the entire cross of America’s centuries of racism, WHICH IS NOT OF HIS MAKING!
We also think that many many white men have ran for the Presidency of the US.
AND NONE OF THEM HAVE EVER BEEN ASKED TO BEAR THE ENTIRE BURDEN OF AMERICA’S CENTURIES OF RACISM OR EVEN A WEE BIT OF IT!
And guess who created racism in America?
President Barack Obama is doing MORE THAN his share to help heal America towards a more perfect union.
And a lot of lazy Americans, instead of pitching in, they waste time with divisiveness and the criticize a good, principled and decent human being!

Jay -
You don’t need to be the brightest bulb, because that is exactly what Obama does, just talks and talks and can’t help himself, but he really says nothing at all.

One thing that Obama has made abundently clear is that he is just your typical politician. Backpedal, muddle the issue, change the subject, talk around the question. It goes on and on.

So the whole conspiracy theories about the passports are over now, lol. The Obama camp was hopping that will take the waves from his bigot Pastor. It wont work! even with all the free time on tv given to him by CNN and MSNBC!
Obama, actions speaks louder then fancy words!
I am waiting for Kerry or the press to ask Kerry to answer what he meant about he can change the Arabs and radical Muslims because he is black! Isn’t that the same stereotyping Obama is talking? Oh…wait..he only use the words when is convenient to him.

What about putting an end to the silly fights between Democrats here and elsewhere, since these fights are NEVER on the issues and problems we are facing in this country.
Why not invest all this energy and, if it need be, venom into questioning and attacking John McCain and the Republican agenda for America’s future?
If we don’t rally behind the Democrat who will take up the fight with the Republicans in the general election, we will be facing an even more dramatic and desastrous war in Iraq, who knows in Iran as well (leading us to the bankruptcy of our country), no universal health care, no relief for the middle classes and the poor, no restoration of our schools, etc. etc.
And let’s face the facts. This is what I just read in new article “The Clinton Myth” at Politico: “One important Clinton adviser estimated to Politico privately that she has no more than a 10 percent chance of winning her race against Barack Obama, an appraisal that was echoed by other operatives.
In other words: The notion of the Democratic contest being a dramatic cliffhanger is a game of make-believe.”
I as well think that all the indicators show now that Hillary can no longer, after a long a tough fight, and in no way win the nomination.
Many will very disappointed and even angry about that. But there’s no one to blame other than the majority of voters to this point. Even if we today count the results in FA and MI, Barack Obama still leads the popular vote (and he has an insurmountable pledged delegates lead). It is too late for Hillary to turn the tide.
So, what do we do, as Democrats? Are we going to make sense, as politically engaged people, and focus on what the Republicans are proposing for the years to come? My proposal would be to do just that. Why entertain the Bushes, Cheneys, Rumsfelds, Limbaugh and Coulters of this world with our bickering about a snippet from an interview? Have we lost our spirit?
Thank God I haven’t, nor is the Senator from Illinois who I support.

Ummm….what i really meant was….Obama 08 Liar in chief

why title this an ‘attempt’ to clarify? he DID clarify. In fact, if you had listened to him earlier, i.e, Larry King last night, and in other interviews, he had ALREADY explained when he heard those statements and why he did not leave the church. It is only small minded people and the media who want to boost ratings that keep giving this a life. These tactics do not help us resolve our big problems – ecomony, war, health care, and becoming a truly united country. Give it a rest!

So Obama thinks it’s fine to utter the phrase “typical white person” in a speech–
Yet I can’t help but wonder just how his campaign would have pounced had Hillary said “typical black person” in one of her speeches.
Think about it.

I think Senator Obama has credibility problems.

I don’t know about you guys, and ladies, but this article of Obama was as clear as mud. Stay tune, damage control to follow at regular intervals.

Obama the great communicator… why does he have to keep explaining what he really meant?

I think Obama makes perfect sense in this case. Many people disagree with their pastors and pastors often say offensive things. How often do pastors make outlandish statements about gays or abortion and other issues and the parishoners role their eyes and do the opposite? I don’t agree with every single thing my rabbi says. I know many Catholics who are devout, but have serious disagreements with positions of their parish priest and the Catholic Church.
Further, as for those complaining about the “typical white woman” comments about his grandmother – he meant to say (as is obvious from anyone who listend to the context of the phrase) that his grandmother was a typical white woman of her generation, not raised in a racist environment and generally open minded. It is no different than saying that X family is a typical middle class family.
Further, he did not throw his grandmother under the bus. In fact, the story to which he refers is in his Dreams of my Father book – the story has been public record for more than a decade and was a foundational issue for Obama’s thinking about race.
Lastly, those who criticize Obama for choosing one side or the other are silly – if an anonymous Barack Obama was walking down the street, you’d have no way of knowing that he had one white parent. What you see is a black man. As a black man, he is treated as such and vulnerable to those prejudices. It is natural that he would identify as black even though he has one white parent. Similarly, I have a biracial friend raised by a single white mother who looks white. He self-identifies as white. He looks white and no one would think of him as anything but white. Your racial identity is partly a product of how the world reacts to you – race is a social construct and not a genetic one. The way people react to you is based on those external indicators, not the actual percentage of your genome that is white v. black or the color of the person who raised you.

So he did hear some of the comments from Wright. You went on national TV to give a speech about race and said u were never there for any of the comments. Liars don’t come better than that. You tried to fool Americans by pushing your agenda about race, but you lied to all of us.

Obama and Clinton keep digging bigger holes for themselves. Neither can be believed. Both raise doubts about the integrity they would bring to the Whitehouse.
Think hard demos — you have a tough choice to make.

The Senator has been consistent with his comments and has been very clear. Unfortunately, the problem seems to be in the reading/comprehension skills of Americans.
Nothing speaks more highly of the failure of public schools than the comments posted on this blog. I believe functional illiteracy is of far greater danger to our country than terrorists. When people get their opinions, beliefs, and news from 10-30 second sound bites on some of these “news” organizations or You Tube, they do themselves a great disservice.
In summation, the Senator has to keep clarifying his remarks because people can’t seem to comprehend statments that use words of more than two syllables or contains a reading level above 6th grade.

Barack Obama gave what could be deemed as an eloquent and courageous speech the other day on race and racial politics in reaction to the controversy over the comments by his spiritual advisor and pastor of twenty years Reverend Jeremiah Wright. When you get beyond the words and style of the speech, however, questions still remain.
Obama stated that he could not denounce or disavow his pastor any more than he could distance himself from his white grandmother who he says made comments that he found to be divisive or derogatory.
I would suspect that his grandmother has never stated words that rise to the level of blaming America for 9/11, that this is the US of KKK-America, that we should not say God Bless America but God Damn America, and that the US helped South Africa put Nelson Mandela in jail. Yet Barack Obama’s pastor, who he has called his spiritual advisor, whose sermon he used for a title of Obama’s own book, and who baptized his children, has publicly made these comments.
I would also remind Barack Obama that one cannot choose one’s family but he does have a choice as to which church to worship at and what sermonizing to allow one’s children to be exposed to. Barack Obama chose a church in Chicago where the pastor has stated that people live in “white America”, who has met with known anti-American foreign officials and sponsors of terrorism such as Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi, and who honored Reverend Farrakhan.
Throughout his denials over the past week, Barack Obama has repeatedly denied ever having heard directly any of the controversial statements of this pastor; that when his campaign started he only heard about a couple of the statements and then only heard about the rest in the past few days. Then in his speech, he stated that he WAS there for some of these remarks, without stating specifically which ones, and he claimed that while he was bothered by some of these statements, he never discussed it with Pastor Wright. So, was Barack Obama lying when he stated he did not hear about these statements or is he lying now when he says he did? And if Barack Obama could not stand up to his Pastor when he released his anti-American vitriol, how can we count on Barack Obama to stand up to those blocking our withdrawal from the Iraq war, who are not for universal health care, and to those who wish to do harm to this country and their allies?
Notwithstanding a speech that most say was done well, this issue goes far beyond the delivery words. It’s about delivering integrity and sound judgment – on both Barack Obama has failed.

In this interview he admitted that he had heard about 9/11 speech a year ago. Yet, if my memory serves me right, did he not deny that he had heard any incendiary speech?

Akinyele, I think you are absolutly Wright!
Typical “Thinking” white guy, I know what he said. The question is really what he meant. And based on his 20 year affilliation with Rev. Wright what he meant is the question.
New Yorker, we who? Are “we” speaking for all of New York these days? All Americans bear the burden of our history, some by birth, others by choice of immigrating here. From what I can tell Barack Obama and his associatees are doing more to increase the racial divide among Americans than to close it.

218 years and counting…Caucasian American males occupying the office of the Presidency of the United State…218 years. “Four more years! Four more years!”
America the beautiful – “The great melting pot.”
“History is not false”

words….words….words…..

I have never crossed the street when I saw a group of young coming toward me, no matter what race they are, white, black, brown etc. Its true that both white and black people fear groups of young men as threating, but its not just white women. Obama needs to talk about the preduice in his own community, black people judge each other on the lightness or darknes of their skin colour. Its needs quite open discusions, not grand speeches. How many conference has Obama had on this topic with groups, sadly I guess none. He knew one year ago that this was going to happen, it was quite timely that this happened when there is this big break before the next primary, he gets all this air time, hmmmmmm was this timed prefectly me things so.

The reason Obama has to clarify is that a lot of you are apparently too dense to disect what he says the first time. So he has to break it down in very simplistic terms for you all!!

Obama does just as so many of us, speaks as he has for all his life but now he is the one who has been calling everyone else’s remarks as being racist. He turns out to be the hypocrit.
Richardson has joined him and he is saying he is doing it in order to bring the democrats together. The Gov. should know enough about people that they hesitate to join a hypocrit who has sat for 20 years listing to a friend, mentor and advisor rant out messages of anti-race and anti-Country and did nothing. Now, Obama wants to be a person who brings change. I have to ask, “What kind of change?” The Clintons were very good to the Gov. so now with this action he has taken, I think about the old saying, “He’s anybody’s dog who will hunt with him.” Loyalty to people, loyalty to Country should mean more to people than it appears it does with the Obama’s and their supporters. I can’t turn aside the actions of Obama for 20 years and vote for him. My Country means far more to me than that. There is no way I can see how such a man can bring about change when he didn’t do anything for 20 years to bring about anything except sat for 20 years listening to the same old hate for Country and people. It sure didn’t help his Children to think any different about this Country or most of the people. If he had come out eariler with his history, I might could have had better thoughts on the other hand he wouldn’t be where he is.

Typical White person = My grandmother was like every other white person and not a demagogue.
However there was the other side of my Grandmother that had stereotypes for others. There is nothing wrong with that, any person looking for further explanation should tell Americans how that explanation will solves Healthcare problems.

I think CNN, MSNBC and ABC have done its listeners a disservice. They probably have known about Obama’s 20 years relationship with the Rev. and did nothing because they have been campaigning for him day and night and they knew most of the people would care more for the Country than vote for him. If that had been Hillary and yes, any white man or woman, they would have had it front and center and would still be downing the person. They have gone along with his campaign people accusing everyone of being racist any time any remarks have been said by people who have never been racist. Now it turns out Obama and his campaign people and his supporters talk out of both sides of their mouth. Barbara Walters has always said she couldn’t be for or against anyone because news people have to be objective. That sure has gone out the window her and Diane have been pushing Obama on us for months. Now, she will have him on The View so that is why she has been doing her buttering up. ABC has had nothing but positive things about Obama on day and night and always bringing up something Hillary has done wrong or something wrong about Bill or about anyone who support them. Well, I think the news media and Obama and his campaign people have turned out to be more racist than anyone. I don’t think they care about what anyone says about this Country and most of its people.

“We have to encourage people to, at once, remember the past but also be open to a different future.” – Rebecca Walker
Unfortunately, from reading the posts on this site, I can clearly see that the baton will need to be passed to another generation of Americans, perhaps one several decades down the line. I have confidence that America will fulfill it’s destiny and become the embodiment of its’ ideals. Unfortunately, it appears that will only happen in the lifetimes of our heirs, after many of us have passed from this Earth.
“History is not false”

The reason Obama always has to clarify what he says is because people deliberately distort every word that comes out of his mouth to make him look racist. If you’re not just trying to use his words to harm him, if you give it a fair listen, then what he says actually makes a lot of sense.
It’s amazing how three words – “typical white person” – can have been pounced on and distorted to such an extreme degree. Look, I’m white. K? And when Obama points out that typically, white people are afraid when they see young black men walking toward or behind them down the street, I think “yeah, he’s right.” He’s just cutting through the BS and telling the truth. The only thing is, people aren’t accustomed to politicians being this honest. They’re accustomed to little soundbites… as evidenced by the fact that only the words “typical white person” are criticized. The rest of the sentence is too long to manage.
And it’s so strange to keep hearing the words “under the bus” repeated – it makes me think everybody who uses them is getting them from the same source. It’s honestly as though they’re all mouthpieces for some propaganda machine. Which is it? HRC? Or Fox News?

La in Indiana: Today Obama released a picture of Bill Clinton with a courtesy handshake with Rev. Wright. I quess it is supposed to show that Rev. Wright is mainstream. If Obama is now saying it is ok to use a picture to smear someone then what would you say the picture of him in so called african grab tells us about Obama. What inferences can we draw?

There are only “typical white people” according to Obama. He did not mention black people but who am I to argue with you? You’re a black. I’m not. Guess that makes me a “typical Native America” by your standards.

This is Obama’s first real test and he’s crumbling before our eyes. “…we all harbor stereotypes”… speak for yourself Sen. Obama. This is getting embarrassing.

Attempts to clarify is the right phrase to use in the Title for this post because that’s all it was: a lame attempt. He said what he said and he should just apologize for marginalizing white people and not spin any webs on top of his mistake.

I’m amazed by how some people are willing to advertise their ignorance and their narrow minds by referencing the Huffington Post. Better to reference one of the gossip mags at the checkout stand.

So what he meant to say was “stereotypical white AND black people” are all racists. Well that makes more sense. I’m still offended, and even more concerned, because he must be drawing from some sort of personal experiance and feelings he harbors about black people and obviuously about white people. If only he had said “There are many people even today that still have fear of the unknown, the way my grandmother’s generation did. And often time they express it in a negative or racist way.” I know I’m no smarter than Senator Obama, could he not have expressed it this way? Or did he, as I suspect, leave it as still a negative rather than a positive on purpose? It shows either way that he is not ready to be president.

Mike Huckabee on Rev. Jeremiah Wright, March 19,2008
“And one other thing I think we’ve got to remember: As easy as it is for those of us who are white to look back and say, “That’s a terrible statement,” I grew up in a very segregated South, and I think that you have to cut some slack. And I’m going to be probably the only conservative in America who’s going to say something like this, but I’m just telling you: We’ve got to cut some slack to people who grew up being called names, being told, “You have to sit in the balcony when you go to the movie. You have to go to the back door to go into the restaurant. And you can’t sit out there with everyone else. There’s a separate waiting room in the doctor’s office. Here’s where you sit on the bus.” And you know what? Sometimes people do have a chip on their shoulder and resentment. And you have to just say, I probably would too. I probably would too. In fact, I may have had a more, more of a chip on my shoulder had it been me.” – Mike Huckabee
“History is not false”

All I and other democrats who can’t back Obama want is a fair run but that is too late. Obama hasn’t played by the rules he tried to make everyone think he was playing by. He has played the racist thing more than anyone, he has intentionally deceived everyone about his close relationship with the Rev. and his church. His wife has never been proud to be an American until this year. Now tell me, is there anyway people would have voted for Hillary or any other person if all of that came out on them at the beginning of the primaries? No! I know, I will be called a racist. Some people just can’t take the truth. Pres. Clinton wasn’t being a racist when he made his comments, Geraldine wasn’t being a racist when she made her comments. But Obama and all the network made them into racist comments. We talked to and about Black people the same way we do white people. We compliment a man when we say he is clean cut and good looking but lord for forbid if we say that to a black man. Now, how can we get together if simple words of praise make people cringe and feel insulted? We say about a white man he speaks well and holds himself well but we can’t say that about a black man. If Hillary had said anything like that Diane would have her on GMA drilling her on what she said as she did to Ferrari. It just amazes me that people don’t think it is wrong for anyone, black or white to stay in a church for 20 years listening and joining in a ranting Rev. denouncing this Country and hating most of the people. You sure would hate Hillary if she had stayed in a church that long. Obama could have changed the Rev. more by leaving the church telling him why. But instead he joined him and is still with him. And deep in my heart I believe he is still the same person who clapped and said amen when the Rev. damn this Country and its people.

Why are white people just “white people”, but blacks are “African-Americans”. From now on I want to be known as a “German-French-Scottish-American”. My children are “Dutch-Indonesian-German-French-Scottish-Americans”.

If Obama did not know of all this material from Rev. Wright, after 20 years ,with all the video available, that means the man can’t connect the dots we will have another Bush in our hands. Bad judgement , forget about the speach he gave (which he took from Cheney , who had said the same thing, when he was with Bush senior), he is an idiot.

Mark-Wright is playing on Fox Wright now if you’d like to view. Nope. No white guy there.

“We have to encourage people to, at once, remember the past but also be open to a different future.” – Rebecca Walker
Unfortunately, from reading the posts on this site, I can clearly see that the baton will need to be passed to another generation of Americans, perhaps one several decades down the line. I have confidence that America will fulfill it’s destiny and become the embodiment of its’ ideals. Unfortunately, it appears that will only happen in the lifetimes of our heirs, after many of us have passed from this Earth.
“History is not false”

Sean — read the polls and investigate the underlying demographics. Then, we’ll see how optimistic you are.

Obama dedicated his book…20 years of his church going life…and about 2,000$ a week to a hate spewing bigot….he calls “like a uncle to me”….
And I am supposed to be worried about Clintons judgement?
Blah Blah …Hope.. (hate)… Blah Blah… Change.. (same old thing)… Blah Blah … Hope and Change..( just another politician)… Blah!
This guy has no chance against McCain now and he and his wife have helped solidify the mistaken belief that liberals “hate” America.. Thanks Obamabots!!!
NOBAMA 2008 Hypocrisy Tour.
Featuring his #1 Hit
“Words Matter”

Yeah god forbid if only blacks get an apology. Nevertheless if it will make everyone feel better then so be it.

What do I think? That Obama said exactly what I thought he said. Not exactly rocket science.
The question I have is how some JORUNALISTS could have been confused. Surely their job requirements include having a strong grasp of the English language and being capable of understanding ‘nuances’ (which apparently now means the use of language above the elementary school level)? Or are some of them just overly sleep-deprived and not thinking clearly?
To refresh your memory (from Obama’s speech):
“But the remarks that have caused this recent firestorm weren’t simply controversial. They weren’t simply a religious leader’s effort to speak out against perceived injustice. Instead, they expressed a profoundly distorted view of this country….”

My fear now is that Obama’s candidacy will ironically end up widening the racial chasm and breaking apart the Democratic Party. He doesn’t fully understand it yet, but his candidacy is done. This issue will not go away and every utterance he makes on it and every picture of Bill Clinton with Rev. Wright he releases only makes him look worse.

I find it ironic that Obama would refer to his grandmother as a “typical white person” after he had confessed to the same concerns in his book:
Then I guess Barack must be a “typical white person” too because he confessed to the same concerns in his book:
– Barack Obama from ‘Dreams of My Father’,
“When his grandmother wants a ride to work because the day before, while awaiting the bus, she was threatened by a black panhandler, he is outraged — at his grandparents. . . Later, when he moves to the South Side of Chicago in 1984, he eventually discovers that, like his grandmother, he’s sometimes scared of black males on the street, too.”
And the concerns are shared by others:
– The Reverend Jesse Jackson, as quoted in US News, 3/10/96,
“There is nothing more painful to me … than to walk down the street and hear footsteps and start thinking about robbery, then look around and see somebody white and feel relieved. “

I am a Democrat ( yellow dog) and I can tell you I will not vote for this guy if he gets the nom…
I will just stay home or vote for Nader.
I could never bring myself to vote for Mccain.

In all of this I feel like black people are being blamed for slavery and all of its many blessings. (Not) And who ever decided to use this for political fodder was wrong for doing so. This is an unresolved issue and an apology for slavery and lynchings would be nice so we can really move on and stop sweeping the issue under the rug.

218 years and counting…Caucasian American males occupying the office of the Presidency of the United State…218 years. “Four more years! Four more years!”
America the beautiful – “The great melting pot.”
“History is not false”

I wish Obama would stop talking about race. From what i read on the comments here most people can’t handle a mature discussion on race. Any attempt to have honest discussion about race will make you racist in most people eyes Mr. obama.
Why don’t you just say there is no black america and there is no white america and ride the wave to the white house.

If he was not aware of all those statements his pastor said so, he has NO SECURITY for his own church. Especially he has been attended to his church for 20 years.
How could he be aware if anything happen on this country?
He surely can’t .

Article 1, Section 2, Paragraph 3 of the United States Constitution…and I quote “three-fifths of all other person” – a reference to the counting of America’s slaves as 3/5 of a human being, in terms of the apportionnment of the representatives of Congress.
Excerpt from the Declaration of Independence…and I quote, “He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us” (slave revolts) “and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages”
America the beautiful…
“History is not false”

Thomas Jefferson: “a contemptible hyprocrite” – Alexander Hamilton, January 16, 1800

A good politician’s answer. Obama does himself no favors, though, by claiming that he wasn’t aware of Wright’s most controversial statements, because he probably was, and when that is proven, he’ll be called, justifiably, a liar.

Thank you for this article. I had assumed this was the case with Obama–that he hadn’t heard the most outrageous comments by Wright before he saw them on the internet, and that there really wasn’t a contradiction, but it distressed me that so many pundits were jumping to the conclusion that he was lying. I do not understand why people are allowed to be journalists if what they do is jump to conclusions. I so appreciate the question being put to Obama so that he is given an opportunity to address this.

Who appointed Obama our “race adviser in chief”? He seems to think that because he has a diverse ethnic background that he’s an expert on the subject of race relations. I hate to break the news to him, but most Americans have a diverse ethnic background.
And to the person who said “most people can’t handle a mature discussion on race” . I trust you include Obama himself in your statement – especially considering his immature comment about “typical white people”.

How many “Frdiay clarifications” has BHO issued? Be it the illegal immigrant drivers license gate, $250K Rezko contribution gate, the Canadian NAFTA gate, the Powers Iraq gate, the Wright hate sermon attendance gate- there appears to be a pattern of lies and spin. Is this Change we can “believe” in?

Do you support child molestation?
Have all Catholics left the church and renounced the Pope and the priesthood? The Catholic Church has sheltered and protected the child molesters among the priesthood. Does this mean that Catholics approve of child molestation? Have all Catholic women had every possible conceivable (pun intended) child they could? Have Catholic women used birth control? Are all Catholics against birth control because the Church is? Have all Catholics had sex ONLY for procreation? Do all Catholics believe in sexual abstinence unless the sex is for making a baby? We can go on and on and not just about the Catholic Church.
Everyone picks and chooses which tenets of their church they will follow and ACTUALLY believe. Why is Barack Obama targeted because his church leader is (justifiably) angry about the racism Blacks have experienced?

I’m a yellow dog democrat that will not vote in November if Obama is the nominee. The grandmother comment? His wife’s comments about not being proud of her country? A bigoted pastor? Rezko?
I just don’t see a man of great judgement here.

At this point I don’t know what to think.
Obama’s speech not only addressed issues almost all politicians avoid as being a third rail, but it was an inspiring, beautifully written speech that received, and deserved, rave reviews.
Now that I’ve read some of the comments posted here and elsewhere (including those by supposed ‘journalists’), I’m wondering if he would have been better off writing it in netglish (aka ‘internet english’ or ‘simple english’). So many people misunderstood so much of it. If they’re representative of Americans in general, I find that shocking. When I was in school, ‘reading comprehension’ was considered important. What happened?!

“Obama’s speech not only addressed issues almost all politicians avoid as being a third rail”
And therein lies the problem….Obama’s not even smart enough to avoid the political third rail. Yet again another example of his poor judgment.

The past is the past, right? According to Obama, Americans want to progress to a more perfect union. Why is he affiliated with a church that comforts its followers with the mindset that African Americans have been oppressed and continue to be so by “rich white people”? How is he going to be the “great uniter” if this is the kind of thinking he has followed for the past 20 years? I’m confused.

Obama knows his run for the presidency is over. Now he’s just making a last ditch effort to sell his books. He’ll suspend his campaign when his books start selling well again.
Look at this article – he mentions both books by name in this interview. He’s doing the same thing in most of his recent interviews.
Bye bye Obambi – and remember you heard it here first!

New Obama slogan:
“LIES YOU CAN BELIEVE IN”
1. Lied about Canada
2. Lied about Rezko amount of money
3. Lied about not knowing what Wright says in church
4. Lies about wanting to unite the country when he has been in public office for years and has no evidence to support any attempt to unite his own state
5. Lies about wanting to change politics in Washington…today’s proof – releasing a photo of Bill Clinton with Wright after slamming Hillary’s campaign just a few weeks ago about releasing his own photo in Somali clothes
I could go on and on and on but so many people already believe in his lies so appropriately vote for Obama:
” LIES YOU CAN BELIEVE IN”

I think that Hillary’s problems are her own and not due to Obama. She had everything to start with and she just could not manage or win this campaign. Just one simple example, she had no game plan post Super Tuesday. She had mismanaged her finance. She keeps changing her message and her themes, she keeps whining, crying and then trying to tell us all that she is strong at 3am….come on, Americans get confused…don’t they see that??? what a frustrating thing to watch such stupidity. Even, kindergarten kids will run a better campaign. She ain’t no good. Period. Nothing wins like winning…. and Hillary is a GUARANTEED LOSER….

You are right Mona. Hillary has no instinct for what is right, because Clintons have no respect for moral values. America definitely deserves a better political leader for the 21st century. A time comes and a time goes. Clintons had their time. Its over. Turn the page folks. Hillary will be blunder for us in November.

It needs a Clinton to clean up after the Bush…Hillary keeps repeating, as if Americans are stupid not to remember. Except for blue dress Bill Clinton and his bad character as a womanizer, America would not have had the second Bush in the first place. You got a Bush mess because of a Clinton mess. Don’t again vote for another Clinton, please. They create these endless polarizations and degradation for Americans. Hillary go away….don’t divide the party more!!!

“Wright is angry because of the failed promises of America to the black race.” Obama spoke that as if he felt the same way. What about the failed promises to all the other races? We hear the lies too. We feel the pain too. We suffer too. You can make lemonade out of a lemon or you can suck on that lemon the rest of your life. Life is about decisions not hatred, not staying in the role of victim but in the role of an overcomer. Every creed has the option to rise or fall. It’s all up to the courage and determination of the individual no matter what their color. If you stay down once you’ve fallen because you want to don’t expect me to feel sorry for you or to give you the world. I’m struggling in mine. I’m not responsible for what someone else has done. At some point it becomes time to move on, to be better, to put the past behind. Racism lives and breathes because it’s in the hearts and on the lips of those who live on it and gain from it. It’s been turned into a suscessful business for many. The poor get poorer and those people get richer. Don’t cry foul to me. I’ve reason to be angry too… but I’ve moved on to be better because the role of a victim is no life to live.
Wright was his spiritual advisor. What was he going to advise him to do? Turn against Israel? Give the black race their own country which The New Black Panthers are demanding? Anyone that knows anything about the God of Abraham knows that the people of any nations that comes against Israel will be destroyed in a horrible way. My God doesn’t breed hatered. It’s pearlious times we are living in. The black value system which every member of that church has to adhere to is based on a book written by a human. It’s a church. It should be about Jesus Christ and the doctrine should be based on the word of God.

lies, just lies.
avert, blame, clarify, distract, explain, fudge, gloss, hide, invent, justify, kvetch, lie, misstate, needle, obfuscate, pander, quarrel, restate, slander, twist, understate, vilify, whine, xerox, yield, zigzag.
the obama alphabet.

My Confession: I will no doubt be considered a typical white person for syaing this, but I didn’t realize that there was a nationwide racial division today. Of course, there are racists of every color, gender and age. From a micro perspective, there are some areas, cities, neighborhoods, streets where you find hateful bigotry. And that racism needs to be addressed and ended forever. But in the America I live in I see people of all colors and religions having the same opportunities — evidenced by a woman, african-american, and hispanic running for president. As a country, I didn’t know that we were all hating each other until Barack Obama told me (and Rev. Wright provided me with explicit detail). For months, I looked at Obama as being a possible, but somewhat inexperienced presidential candidate. Anybody I talked to was looking at the wonderful range of candidates that democrats had to choose from. Period. We didn’t talk about black, white, male, female. Now everyone’s talking making race a central issue.
Did it start with Pastor Wright? Did it start with Oprah making an endorsement saying “it was our time”? Did it start with Michelle Obama, the media? All I know is that it was validated by Obama himself this past week.
I guess we do have a race problem here in America now. Thanks for uniting us, Barack Obama.

How can you comment when you did not listen to the speech of Obama. Even if you did you would not comprehend it because you first have to take a course in reading comprehension.

He’s not my candidate, neither is Hillary or Macaine. It’s all one big mess and we have three evils to choose from.

Hillary is the biggest Monster running around. She will break the democratic party very soon!!! Dems go to hell… Hillary will do the job for the Republicans. McCain 08!!!

I will never vote for Hillary. She is the worst type of politician, who will say anything and do anything to get back to Whitehouse. FOX news said this evening that Monica was about to endorse Hillary, but Bill said, it can be handled in private.

Now we see the true feelings of Obama toward whites. As you might have guessed from his long association with Rev. Wright, he feels the same way about the white man. He is a blatant racist. I am very afraid of what will happen when he is elected. He will attempt to effect black liberation theology in this country.

mallard fillmore, you are right that obama believes in black liberation theology. but you fear for what will happen “when he is elected.” i continue to believe that americans will not be that stupid.
to those of you who try to con people with stuff from dailykos huffpo, or politico – please learn something about considering the source.

pp, you are so right about that. we dems know how to pick loser nominees, but we don’t run them twice. so the only good that could come out of nominating obama would be that we’d be rid of him forever. i’d still prefer, hillary, however.
preference 1 – hillary as nominee, hillary as president
preference 2 – obama as nominee, mccain as president
notice there’s no preference choice for obama as president? that’s right!

The Obama supporters desperately need a history lesson. The left wing of the Democrat party has never picked a candidate who won the general election. That means the “Keith Olbermann” candidate is virtually certain to lose.
Since the 1950′s, every Democrat who won the presidential general election was either moderate or conservative.
Obama is the lefty candidate – history proves that’s a huge strike against him. His radical preacher is another strike. His “typical white person” gaffe is another strike. Rezko is another strike. Naftagate is another strike. And I’m certain they’ll be many more before November.

Barack Obama’s racist comments gneralizing a “typical white person” show that he is not ready to be EVERYONE’s President. Or is this just a “typical black man” who is unable to admit his own bigotry?

Wasn’t there another politician who tried to make things “clear” back in the 60′s or 70′s?
Oh, yeah!
Richard Nixon!
What a fitting parallel of words for Barak Obama!
What I find amazing is that initially Obama didn’t hear any of Jeremiah’s vicious and hateful statements.
Then, about four days later Obama’s story changed and he admitted to hearing some of the statements.
Now, Obama’s story is that he can pick out exactly which statements he did and didn’t hear!
Amazing!
Obama’s next statement should be, “I am not a crook.”

It looks to me like the DNC has decided that Obama must be the nominee–largely for fear of alienating his core: young people, blacks, and the upper-class white liberals that are the movers and shakers in the party.
I suspect they think an Obama candidacy, whether he wins or loses, will help the Democratic “brand” with younger voters and hurt the GOP, which will be surely perceived as just as racist as the new Co-Grand Dragon, Bill and Hillary Clinton, racists extraordinaire.
But the problem, as many have pointed out, is that this is actually taking the party “brand” back to the old white, liberal elite + blacks. They will alienate the Blue Dogs, who tipped the 2006 election their way. They cannot win with the old Carter-Mondale-Dukakis coalition. Swing voters will swing hard for the GOP and probably stay there if the GOP remodels itself as a more centrist party under McCain.
In short, the DNC thinks it’s making a bold move to shore up the party for a generation, win or lose. As usual, they’re about to be done in by their own, classist, shortsightedness and hand the GOP an amazing victory and rebuilding opportunity.

White people of his grandmothers generation – she was anything but typical – she welcomed her Black son-in-law and raised her half white grandson – and what does he do – under the bus – if a white politician would have said “typical Black” they would be done!! George Allen
Just words – all words and no leadership or JUDGMENT

Sorry, I watched the videos and I listened to the Obama interviews. All smoke, mirror and lies!!

I find it interesting that so many people are outraged that Obama discussed his WHITE grandmother recently. If she had been BLACK (or other NON-WHITE) would they have been so outraged? I think not. I think what is clearly happening is that white people identify with the white grandmother, and feel defensive about any suggestion about their own biases.
Bias is a part of the human experience. It’s not limited to race, but it includes race. It doesn’t have to be outright prejudicial, but we can’t eliminate bias and prejudice by stubbornly claiming that we “don’t see color” and never thinking about it. The only way to eliminate prejudice is to periodically reflect on one’s thoughts and actions and ask how one can be fairer and more just in one’s actions on a daily basis.

Given that Obama has been able to call Jeremiah Wright a “good friend” even as he ignored publicly expressed views that are “completely unacceptable and inexcusable”, I truly believe that he is the only candidate that can befriend Ali Khamenei and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as well. Given his desire for dialog with Iran, we can only hope that he will do a better job influencing the religious leaders of Iran than he did influencing the religious leaders of his own presidential campaign.

I think Obama, being mixed, just doesn’t think of race as a big problem of course. That’s why he usually doesn’t talk about it & why should he. He’s both black & white. And that’s really what’s needed in an environment where the media is always trying to make mountains out of mole hills & tap racial divisions for dollars.
I don’t think Obama is a racist. I think he just made a stupid statement out of ignorance because he probably just hasn’t really given the subject as much consideration as all of the other “pure” blacks & whites have been forced to by the media in this country.
I considered him the best candidate this country has seen in decades before he made that statement, and it hurt him I think, but I’ll still swing-vote for him over McCain. I just wish that if someone who is white makes a stupid statement like that it change everyone’s minds about them either, but that’s not Obama’s fault.

A’m I confused, Or a’m I the only one watching the WRIGHT CRAP.. This has to prove how angry OBOMA really is, It’s sad to say but its true, cause no matter how good he did , he was still black. why else would a father expose his young daughters to this extreme prodigies against a race which they are at least 25%.. Seems to me this would harder to deal with. Please let me now if I’m wrong or just confused.

Obama is toast in the general. I think just about everybody except the Obama worshipers and MSM have already figured that out.
It’s not just the Wright problem, it’s also Rezko; the Florida and Michigan primaries problem; his lack of experience and substance; his arrogance, etc. And this is only March, there’s going to be plenty more dirt come out on him before November.

How many times does Obama lecture to use using the phrase, “I want to be very clear.” It makes me want to vomit everytime I hear it. Anyone else as tired of hearing that phrase?

the issue really is that obama is cut slack by the media at every turn he makes. so-and-so was a typical black person. let’s see now, if hillary or geraldine ferraro said such a thing, good lord! they’d be crucified! if hillary’s mentor and spiritual advisor of 20 years said ‘god d*mn america’ because the country is sexist, one gender speech wouldn’t do anything. go ahead and nominate obama – he cannot win the swing states. he’ll even lose a couple of blue states. then we won’t have to listen to him or the rest of his glazed eyed minions anymore. welcome to the real world – it sucks sometimes, huh?

so saddened…I think he threw the kitchen sink under there with her.

marianna, thanks for the feedback. sadly, i must admit that i was 18 when nixon first got elected. my reaction was the same – how can they vote for him? can’t they see how much better the dems are? this can’t be happening…., etc….. (in nixon’s case, we know how it worked out, but that doesn’t change the reality that we were fooling ourselves about how the country would agree with us).
obamaites have much to learn. sadly, we shall all pay for their education.

WHO CARES? Do you know how much consumers are paying for chicken in Giant these days? HOW ABOUT THE ECONOMY? Sheezzz ENOUGH ALREADY

one last thing. . . .lolol (I am contributing to this madness). I found nothing offensive in Rev Wrights sermon. It was all true. His sermon pales against some of the ones preached by Jesus. Read the bible.
It isn’t always pretty but . . . truth is truth.

Hey Dan from Pensacola — You said — If John McCain went to a church for twenty years, that openly proclaimed hatred for black people, he’d be run out of town.
My challenge to you — Provide proof on Obama or Rev Wright proclaiming hatred for any racial group.
Regarding the McCain statement – I will give you one name – you can do the research HAGEE. McCain seeked his support in this 2008 nomination. Look it up. I personally don’t hold McCain accountable for Hagee or any of his controversial supporters stances. To do so is completely irrational and unreasonable. But to respond to your statement — Hagee. That is just 1 individual. I am sure you will come across more on your own if you honestly do the research.
Blessings to all. I am out.

dotheresearch…Unfortunately I have listened to the whole thing. Do you read what you write? Doesn’t seem like you’re moving forward-and the Jesus comment was just plain out there. The stage reference was for Obama and his Reverend not you. I’m sorry you’re confused.

Hey dotheresearch — If Rev.Wright’s comments were not racist, reprehensible, hateful and incendiary, then why did Obama reject and repudiate them? Because they are hateful and disgusting and devised to separate, brainwash and anger his congregation… if not, they would not be called incendiary. Get it? Your fearless leader even thought they were out of line. This is the real problem here. You can NOT be on the Unity ticket and be anti-American and justify your idiotic, naive, hateful position as you are doing. By the way, Wright’s comments against Hillary and Bill were just as hateful and yes, racist. Too bad you are too naive not to know that.

B. Obama said – “The point I was making was not that my grandmother harbors any racial animosity, but that she is a typical white person. If she sees somebody on the street that she doesn’t know – there’s a reaction in her that’s been bred into our experiences that don’t go away and sometimes come out in the wrong way and that’s just the nature of race in our society.
B. Obama can explain it away however he wants but there is no “typical white person” other than the phantom white he has shrunk down and exists only in his own psyche. If his white family (or indeed he himself)is racist and/or ignorant that does not mean that racism is universal among the majority of whites. If B. Obama feels that he belongs to “one of the finest churches in Chicago”, even though hate, racial superiority, warped conspiracy theories and anarchy are preached there, that is his right – in turn it is the right of Americans to gauge his suitability to be our next president by the very same ideals.

I just wish that to justify his comment he would have left his grandmother, the woman who raised and supported him, out of it. He put her in danger. Recently a mob marched to her home and burned an effigy of her. Jesus! How could he have done that to her. She’s old, bedridden and now in danger. I feel so sorry for her.

Upon READING the Barack Obama speech I was extremely moved and impressed. However, I understood (as I am sure he understood) the backlash that it would cause. He spoke candidly, sympathetically, and honestly to Blacks about the issues within the Black community. He challenged us to cast off mentalities of hopelessness AND anti-white sentiments that some may harbor. He attempted to explain to the Black community the feelings that the racial majority may feel when he says, “Most working- and middle-class white Americans don’t feel that they have been particularly privileged by their race.” He demanded that Blacks look at life through the eyes of White America as well as the African Diaspora that we are used to. He asked us, the Black Community to reach out to our “young men and, increasingly, young women who we see standing on street corners or languishing in our prisons, without hope or prospects for the future”, but he also reminds that often times the anger or negativity we harbor (due to racism & discrimination) is “not always productive; indeed, all too often it distracts attention from solving real problems; it keeps us from squarely facing our own complicity in our condition, and prevents the African-American community from forging the alliances it needs to bring about real change”. I am black, and I don’t think that the moral, spiritual, or political demands he posed to our community were unwarranted. And I don’t hear ANYONE saying that he was too hard on the Black Community. I don’t think anyone said he stereotyped Black America. No, there were no issues with those statements, so I can only assume that the majority of America had not problem when he told Black America to acknowledge their shortcomings. What he said about Blacks was considered accurate and correct. But when he ALSO asked the same of White America the overwhelming reaction seemed much different to me. A couple of my white coworkers were offended and immediately became defensive that Obama highlighted injustices and problems that they may contribute to (knowingly AND unknowingly). As I attempted to explain that he pointed out the flaws of BOTH minorities AND majorities in America I was reprimanded harshly. I just wish people were focusing on the true reason for his speech. To sum it up he was saying, “Race is STILL an issue that America ignores and downplays. We, as a nation, have not decided whether we are color-conscious OR color-blind. It is time to address the issues of the past in order to move forward. Racism STILL exist, and it’s not going away unless we all take a moment to introspect! It is time out for appearances of equality, and it it time that we get HONEST!” He said the things that Blacks, Whites, Latinos, Asians, and everyone else says when they don’t have to be politically correct. We, as Americans, claim we want an honest politician, but when we have a man stand up as address the very REAL discontentment felt by most of the minorities in this country HE is labeled a racist? If someone did not understand WHY he said the things he said they should have made it their duty to find someone who SHARED his views and try to UNDERSTAND the life experiences that birth these mentalities. At the same time you could express your point of view. This speech was given to encourage open and honest dialogue amongst and within racial and socio-econimic classes. Instead we have resorted to politics as usual. We continue to bash each other, degrade each other, and dismiss the emotions, opinions, and feelings that don’t line up with our own. In a country that claims to be tolerant enough to cherish free speech, it amazes me that we are not intelligent enough to accept words spoken freely.

For all his ‘freshness & youth’, Obama is still a ‘typical’ politician; he makes speeches, watches how it affects people, then adjusts (clarifies) the meanings of his statements to get the more votes, watches for the reactions of his ‘clarifications’ and readjusts accordingly (A.K.A. ‘damage control’).
His wonderful, uplifting orations remind me (now that I’m catching on) of the ‘typical’ TV preacher who only wants your money for his own creature comforts and a few ‘token’ good works (this does not defame the genuine preachers, only the self-interested). The prize, in this case, is your vote for Obama.
His words of ‘change’ and ‘a united America’ are ‘typical’ also. How many times have those same words been used in political campaigns over the years? But some act like Obama has come up with this ‘new’ idea (Wow, why didn’t we think of this before?! How could we have missed it?!?!”)
As for why didn’t he leave the church earlier? Well, he seems to have missed most of the racist preaching (Obama says); either he seldom went or perhaps one padded pew is as good to sleep on as another. Or maybe he thought sermons are just words, after all; that ‘sticks & stones, words can never hurt you’ thing. And it seems he might have been confused & thinks Rev. Wright saved his soul instead of Jesus (Jesus doesn’t require you to have a sponser, Obama!). Jesus never preached like that! Jesus preached regarding our souls, not our race.
I will not vote for Hillery because she’s a woman and gosh, we’ve never had a woman president before. I will not vote for McCain because he’s white and we’ve always had white, male presidents. I will not vote for Obama because he’s black and, gosh, we’ve never had a black president before. Nor will my vote go to the Democrat just because I’m a Democrat or the Republican just because I’m a Republican. It will go to the one who I think will do the most good and/or the least harm to this country as a whole.
THIS IS NOT AMERICAN IDOL, PEOPLE. IT’S NOT ABOUT VOICE QUALITY, SONG CHOICE AND ‘CUTENESS’!!!
IT’S ABOUT THIS DAMN WAR IN IRAQ, THE ECONOMY AND TAXES (to name just 3 issues)…AND OUR COUNTRY!!!
Obama & Hillery both promise to ‘end the war in Iraq’ & to give us ‘universal health care’.
If either one of them yanks us out of Iraq as quickly as they ‘promise’, it will only make the present situation much, much worse in the long run. The war in Iraq seems to be the major thing they try to defame McCain with, “Oh, McCain is a Republican JUST LIKE BUSH, WHO SENT US INTO IRAQ. ANOTHER 4 YEARS OF BUSH!”. Bush should not have invaded Iraq but should have stayed focused on the Al-Qaida who, unfortunately for the Afghanis, were hiding in Afghanistan with the Taliban. This was Bush’s own choice; no one twisted HIS arm. Unfortunately, THAT Pandora’s box (Iraq) has already been opened; we have to deal with the present situation, not ‘what might have been’. We can’t just slam the box lid closed on this one (Which is what Obama & Hillery seem to be implying they can do).
Universal health care? And just who will pay for that? Why, the average taxpayer, of course; taxes, taxes, taxes! No offense, but the liberal Democrats in office seem to be so generous spending other people’s (we taxpayers) hard-earned dollars (Who cried the loudest against the elimination of earmarks???) but seem to give much less of their own money to deserving charities (unless they’re campaigning for office, that is.). And Obama is one of the most liberal Democrats there is (from what I’ve read…. & taken with a grain of salt… but actions speak louder than words.)
I urge you all to look beyond the pretty words, promises & ‘endorsements’. Pay attention to what’s said and what’s NOT said; there’s other words between them lines in many cases. Watch out for those smooth words meant to get your knee-jerk reaction (& vote), pay close attention to those ‘clarifications’ & vote for who YOU feel will do their best for our country.
IT’S NOT ABOUT RACE, IT’S ABOUT AMERICA!

Obama and Hillary are both hypocrites and liars. I’m not too crazy about McCain either, but if chooses Mitt as his running Mate this country might just have a chance at survival!