Apparently, to be somebody these days, you have to have 3 intials. Well, watch out for MTB. How you like me now!
Seriously though, the point is that lately, one has to keep up with its history book to figure out which initials belong to who! In this matter, it’s not about who’s right, who’s wrong as I do not believe HRC is that blinded by black support that she would think she has permission to tell them about their beloved leaders. The comment in itslef does not have any negative connotation and in another context wouldn’t have seemed to diminish Dr King’s legacy. Clinton stressed the role of President Lyndon Johnson, over Martin Luther King Jr., in the civil rights movement:
“I would point to the fact that Dr. King’s dream began to be realized when President Lyndon Johnson passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, when he was able to get through Congress something that President Kennedy was hopeful to do, the president before had not even tried, but it took a president to get it done,” she said, in response to a question about how her dismissive attitude toward Obama’s “false hopes” would have applied to the civil rights movement. “That dream became a reality, the power of that dream became real in peoples lives because we had a president who said we are going to do it, and actually got it accomplished.”
In all fairness, I do believe belittling Dr King’s work was not her intention here (how stupid would that be a week before NC primary!), but she did step her foot in her mouth!The context in which she made the remarks is what makes people believe she was diminishing his impact. Her point was Obama is no MLK, and sure no JFK, and that change only comes with the blessing of poeple in DC (exactly the type of change people are longing for). What she meant was that MLK could not have done what he’s done without LBJ’s consent. Half true. Nevertheless, had blacks not marched, stomped, boycotted, Lyndon Johnson might have not signed the Civil Rights Act. On the other hand, had LBJ been opposed to any type of advancement for blacks, he could’ve kept to the old white ways. Unfortunately, the analogy, the time and the messenger were all wrong. I think even Obama would have taken a lot of heat with this type of comment, and HE IS black. It is not for her to say. WJC being crowned the first black president might have gotten to his wife’s head in thinking she can tell black america how it is. Well, not just yet! In trying to tag Obama’s message as “false hopes” and comparing that to MLK’s hopes, she might have just caught the attention of prominent African Americans who are now interested in what she has to say (yet not the kind of attention she wants) and who are now turned off by her petty attacks. After all, BHO is one of them, blacks can say what they want about him and judge him not black enough (the dumbest comment ever might I add), but for a white candidate, even HRC, to attack him on an issue of race is troubling. Even more troubling that she would use MLK’s legacy. I will forever give up on African americans if they do not massively defeat HRC in NC and show that race should have absolutely no grounds in this race.
Then, there is issue with WJC himself! The one who gained most from black support after “Monicagate”. His all time support for blacks gave HRC an edge in this campaign. But that’s just it, an edge, not the whole damn pie! He called Obama’s stance on the war in Iraq a “fairy tale” and took some heat for it as some perceived it as condescending. He was talking about the war, but some took it as: it’s a fairy tale that Obama thinks he can win this race. BHO might just be the nightmare opponent the Clintons and any other candidate could have. Squeaky clean, african american, well spoken, Harvard Graduate and inspiring. How can you bring him down when he sounds so positive?
On top of all of that, attacks on Obama came from none other than Bob JOhnson, Founder of BET. This @$$*%$# at a rally for Clinton tried to be sarcastic about Obama’s drug use. He said:
“And to me, as an African-American, I am frankly insulted that the Obama campaign would imply that we are so stupid that we would think Hillary and Bill Clinton, who have been deeply and emotionally involved in black issues since Barack Obama was doing something in the neighborhood – and I won’t say what he was doing, but he said it in the book – when they have been involved.”Moments later, he added: “That kind of campaign behavior does not resonate with me, for a guy who says, ‘I want to be a reasonable, likable, Sidney Poitier ‘Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner.’ And I’m thinking, I’m thinking to myself, this ain’t a movie, Sidney. This is real life.”
Anybody seen “Guess who’s coming to Diner?”. It’s a 1967 movie in which Sydney Poitier’s caracter goes to have diner at his girlfriend’s (Katharine Houghton). Only the parents are in for a shock when they realize the boyfriend is black. Sydney Poitiers plays this well manered, well spoken and brilliant doctor. The perfect suitor. So what is there to be offended about.?The fact that Bob Johnson seem to imply and reinforce Clinton’s critic of Obama of being utopic. Even the Clintons are trying to distance themselves from the comment since WJC went on to say : “I think we have to take it at his word,” the former president told Martin, adding that “nobody knew” what Johnson would say, and “it wasn’t part of any planned strategy.”
For all of these cut throat politics, nasty remarks only depict Clinton as exactly what she is: a political machine ready to stoop to the lowest to get rid of her opponents. The same kind of tactics that made her loose Iowa. Where are the tears now? Whatever happened to choking on “this is personal… I just don’t wanna see us fall backwards…” Get a grip! The Claws came out and she looks as ugly on the inside as on the outside.
Obama is to be careful as well since this is the kind of dirty politics that turn the voters off, whether you answer or not. Stay atop of issues that are real concern to America and don’t try to defend your character so much. At least, not on the issue of race. The more she says, the more she defends herself, the worst she makes it! Let her talk. Rise up and you’ll come out the bigger man! Get Race out of the race!
In the words of Socrates: “Imagination is more important than knowledge”
Tchuss,
M.
January 16, 2008 at 4:39 pm
All she had to do to cry on queue was to think about Obama winning Iowa and her slipping in the polls!