I mean, really… did anyone think otherwise?
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BfNqhV5hg4%5DShe says she’s only human… I call it only a liar.
Of course, she’s now chosen a convenient time to come out with comments about Barack Obama’s Jeremiah Wright problem…
Wow, when I heard this clip on the radio today, I was shocked. Absolutely shocked:
On Philadelphia radio station WIP 610, Obama explained why he cited his white grandmother’s fear of black men in a speech Tuesday. He wasn’t saying that she holds racial animosity, but that “she is a typical white person,” Obama said, adding: “If she sees somebody on the street that she doesn’t know, there’s a reaction that’s been bred into our experiences that don’t go away and that sometimes come out in the wrong way.”
A “typical white person?”
Obamaniacs can try to claim that Jeremiah Wright’s sermons are irrelevant, but this comment, Obama’s own words, cannot be written off. Obama essentially implied that white people are racists. As a white person, Obama must have meant me as well when he suggested that white people are immediately afraid when they see a black person walking down the street. All I can say is “wow.” What an incredibly bad thing for Obama to say.
UPDATE, by Mark Noonan: And Zogby says the people want McCain taking that 3am call.
In what is probably — in the long run — a bad move, Barack Obama is on the verge of giving a speech on race, with the apparent intention of limiting the fallout from the widespread exposure of the anti-Semitic, anti-white, and anti-American rhetoric of Obama’s longtime pastor, Jeremiah Wright.
In announcing the morning address, to be delivered in Philadelphia, Obama would not say specifically what he will discuss, but suggested he wants to cool down the atmosphere after incendiary remarks by his pastor, retired Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr., blanketed the airwaves over the past week.
“I am going to be talking about, not just about Reverend Wright but just the larger issue of race in this campaign, which has ramped up over the last couple of weeks,” Obama told reporters after a town-hall meeting. “Part of what I’ll do tomorrow is to talk a little about how some of these issues are perceived from within the black church community, for example, which I think views this very differently.”
I don’t see this speech being able to help Barack Obama at all. He can’t really expect us all to believe he was oblivious to Wright’s hatred. Are we really to believe that 20 something years going to that church that Barack just conveniently missed every single sermon that was controversial in nature? Give me a break.
Meanwhile, FOX News discovered that Obama’s church altered their website by removing the black supremacist material.
UPDATE: Campaign surrogate John Kerry gives poor defense of Obama on Don Imus show…
Looks like the state of New York can never catch a break. With the slimy Spitzer just barely out of office we learn this about the newly inaugurated governor of the Empire State.
The thunderous applause was still ringing in his ears when the state’s new governor, David Paterson, told the Daily News that he and his wife had extramarital affairs.
In a stunning revelation, both Paterson, 53, and his wife, Michelle, 46, acknowledged in a joint interview they each had intimate relationships with others during a rocky period in their marriage several years ago.
In the course of several interviews in the past few days, Paterson said he maintained a relationship for two or three years with “a woman other than my wife,” beginning in 1999.
As part of that relationship, Paterson said, he and the other woman sometimes stayed at an upper West Side hotel — the Days Inn at Broadway and W. 94th St.
That’s not even the worst part of it:
Gov. Paterson denies using state or campaign money to pay for liaisons with another woman during a rocky patch in his marriage.
Records show that in September 2001, then-Sen. Paterson’s campaign spent $456.46 for two nights at what was then called the Quality Hotel at 215 W. 94th St.
One check was dated Sept. 10 — the day before the 9/11 attacks — and the other Sept. 24. Both are listed as “office” expenses.
In an earlier interview with the Daily News, Paterson mentioned that his campaign paid for a staffer to stay at the hotel around the time of 9/11.
He said he did not remember the exact dates, but he acknowledged putting up one staffer there the day of the attack and another the day before the Democratic primary, which was Sept. 25, 2001.
Who knows if there’s anything to those allegations or not, but regardless, this is hardly the kind of news New Yorkers want to hear after the Spitzer Scandal.
“America is still the No. 1 killer in the world.”
“We believe in white supremacy and black inferiority and believe it more than we believe in God.”
“The government gives [black Americans] the drugs, builds bigger prisons, passes a three-strike law and then wants us to sing ‘God Bless America.’ No, no, no, God damn America, that’s in the Bible for killing innocent people … God damn America for treating our citizens as less than human. God damn America for as long as she acts like she is God and she is supreme.”
“We started the AIDS virus … We are only able to maintain our level of living by making sure that Third World people live in grinding poverty…”
Those are the words of Jeremiah Wright, Obama’s spiritual guide and mentor. Jeremiah Wright isn’t merely some pastor who endorsed Barack Obama.
Barack Obama has been going to Jeremiah Wright’s church for two decades. He officiated Barack and Michelle Obama’s wedding. He baptized their children. The title of Barack Obama’s book, The Audacity of Hope, comes from one of Wright’s sermons. Obama personally thanked Wright after winning his Senate bid in 2004. Obama “prayed” with Wright before announcing his bid for presidency.
In addition to the above quotes, just days after September 11, 2001 he said, “We bombed Hiroshima, we bombed Nagasaki, and we nuked far more than the thousands in New York and the Pentagon, and we never batted an eye … “We have supported state terrorism against the Palestinians and black South Africans, and now we are indignant because the stuff we have done overseas is now brought right back to our own front yards. America’s chickens are coming home to roost.”
This is the kind of anti-white, anti-Israel, anti-American rhetoric that Barack Obama has been listening to for 20 years. And what does Barack Obama say about his church? Just last month he said, “I don’t think my church is actually particularly controversial.”
And yet, Obama’s supporters want us to ignore this story… just push it under the rug. While they’ll align Republicans with any obscure pastor who does or says something controversial, they’re trying to convince us that Obama’s 20-year long close relationship with Wright, including his effective endorsement of him, his church and rhetoric with a $22,500 donation in 2006 is irrelevant.
UPDATE: Wright holds an official position in Obama’s campaign.
UPDATE: Wright leaves Obama campaign.
Obama’s campaign announced that the minister, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr., had left its spiritual advisory committee after videotapes of his sermons again ignited fierce debate in news accounts and political blogs.
Obama urges voters not to reject his candidacy because of guilt by association. I’m sorry, but this goes far beyond guilt by association. Wright’s departing the campaign was a politically motivated cover to protect Obama’s campaign, and clearly not a repudiation of Wright himself or his ministry, as Barack Obama has been connected to Wright for twenty years, and has less than a month ago dismissed criticisms of the church by saying “I don’t think my church is actually particularly controversial.”
UPDATE: Obama actually makes an appearance on FOX News.
UPDATE, by Mark Noonan: Obama defends himself, and not too well:
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.
In other words: “I really want this to go away, and so I’m going to try and narrow it down to a condemnation of ‘anything which makes you mad’ without an actual condemnation of the worldview holding America to be a racist nation”.
Not good enough for me, Senator – I want to know if you believe in Wright’s overall preaching, or whether you disagree with it. Like this – I mostly agree with my pastor, but I disagree with his stance on the war…on the other hand, I believe his stance on the war is a valid position to hold in light of the message of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. I won’t say “I categorically denounce” my pastor’s views on the war even though I disagree with them. Are you, Senator, or are you not, a fully communicating member of “Trinity United Church of Christ”?
The Politico reports this very significant piece of news.
American public support for the military effort in Iraq has reached a high point unseen since the summer of 2006, a development that promises to reshape the political landscape.
According to late February polling conducted by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, 53 percent of Americans — a slim majority — now believe “the U.S. will ultimately succeed in achieving its goals” in Iraq. That figure is up from 42 percent in September 2007.
The percentage of those who believe the war in Iraq is going “very well” or “fairly well” is also up, from 30 percent in February 2007 to 48 percent today.
The implications of this poll are very big. Since the two Democrats running for their party’s nomination are both against the war and for an immediate retreat, the increasing support for the war effort won’t help either of them in a general election campaign.
Geraldine Ferarro had to resign from the Hillary campaign for saying “If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position. And if he was a woman (of any color) he would not be in this position. He happens to be very lucky to be who he is. And the country is caught up in the concept.” For this comment, she’s been called a racist. Was there really anything racist about it? No. Of course not. It all comes back to the ultimate truth that Barack Obama is a media star and has avoided a lot of scrutiny because of his race. Hillary has gone from presumed frontrunner for the Democratic nomination to fighting for survival because while the media has treated her far more severely than Barack Obama.
I’ve watched the two of them debate a number of times, and it was ridiculously apparent that she was getting tougher treatment. She can’t even attack Obama without accusations of racial insensitivity being raised. To bring up Obama’s past cocaine use is apparently racist. To mention his middle name is xenophobic and racist. To show his picture in an attack is racist. Barack Obama has become virtually untouchable in this campaign because his race has been used as a shield to protect him scrutiny.
Ferraro may have not chosen the best words to make her point — certain in defending herself she seems to be digging herself further into an whole — but there was nothing racist about what she was saying. Keith Olbermann equating her words with that of David Duke actually quite proves Ferraro’s point.
I’m sorry, but Geraldine Ferraro’s comments are far less offensive than the rhetoric of Barack Obama’s pastor and spiritual mentor, Jeremiah Wright:
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAYe7MT5BxM%5DBut, I’m sure I’ll be called a racist for daring to talk about this.
UPDATE: More from Michael Graham.
New York Governor Eliot Spitzer will be giving a statement at 11:30 a.m. ET. I’m hearing that the resignation will take effect on Monday. There is a lot of speculation about a possible deal with prosecutors in return for his resignation…
The hypocrisy of this whole situation is astounding. The sex aspect is nothing in the big picture:
As attorney general, he once broke up a call-girl ring and locked up 18 people on corruption, money-laundering and prostitution charges. He ruthlessly investigated the pay packages of Wall Street executives and was so familiar with shady financial maneuvers that he rose to become the top racketeering prosecutor in Manhattan.
But in the end, it appears that Spitzer may have been done in by the same behavior he built a career out of prosecuting.
In fact, it seems he was tripped up by some of the very financial accounting methods he used so successfully against multibillion-dollar Wall Street firms.
For one thing, the governor initially drew the attention of federal investigators because of cash payments to an account operated by a call-girl ring, according to a law enforcement official who spoke on condition of because of the sensitivity of the case.
Banks are required to file Suspicious Activity Reports to the government whenever they observe something they fear may be a crime.
In court papers, Client 9—identified by another law enforcement official as Spitzer—hurried to get more than $4,000 in cash to pay a call girl at a Washington hotel.
That kind of activity, repeated over time, is just the kind of thing that would set off alarm bells with a bank’s compliance officer, who is trained to be on the lookout for what is called structuring or “smurfing”—a pattern of transactions aimed at hiding the nature or purpose of certain money.
There is a lot more to this story, particularly since, as Rep. Peter King has noted, the link between prostitution rings and organized crime:
At least a dozen New York members either didn’t return calls or gave variations on “no comment” or “we’re monitoring the situation” when Capitol Briefing asked for a reaction. One of the few exceptions so far was the always media-friendly Rep. Peter King (R), who passed along his thoughts right before sitting down for a CNBC interview on the subject.
“I was absolutely shellshocked,” King said of the Spitzer news. “I’ve never heard any rumors, any whispers, anything at all.”
King added that he believed Spitzer should resign, since “prostitution rings are invariably linked to organized crime” and the governor’s behavior “leaves himself and the state susceptible to blackmail.”
The question remains what is the ultimate fate of Spitzer? Will he avoid prosecution and jail time?
UPDATE 11:45 am.: Spitzer resigns with his wife at his side.
UPDATE: Robert Stacy McCain hits the nail on the head:
In many ways, Spitzer’s resignation statement was classy, and notably lacked the kind of “accuse the accusers” tactic that Bill Clinton taught us to expect from Democrats caught red-handed.
However, Spitzer’s repeated use of the phrase “my private failings” was a dishonest evasion. What would Spitzer, as a former prosecutor, say about an accused dope dealer who spoke of his crime as a “private failing”?
In patronizing prostitutes, Spitzer was engaged in a criminal act. Crime is an offense against the citizenry, which is why the prosecution of Spitzer for federal money laundering charges — if such a prosecution is indeed pursued — will be called “United States vs. Spitzer.” And no crime can be more public than a crime committed by a powerful public official, such as the governor of New York.
And this guys platform was all about routing out corruption..
Gov. Eliot Spitzer has been caught on a federal wiretap arranging to meet with a high-priced prostitute at a Washington hotel last month, according to a person briefed on the federal investigation.
An affidavit in the federal investigation into a prostitution ring said that a wiretap recording captured a man identified as Client 9 on a telephone call confirming plans to have a woman travel from New York to Washington, where he had reserved a hotel room. The person briefed on the case identified Mr. Spitzer as Client 9.
UPDATE: While I am commuting back home on the train I would like to add that considering the dark ethical cloud hanging over Spitzer’s office since he became governor — his office was the subject of multiple investigations — it is somewhat unfortunate that this alone is what people will remember about his downfall.
UPDATE: Video of Spitzer apologizing…
UPDATE, by Mark Noonan: Spitzer’s prospective replacement – Lt. Governor David Patterson, formerly NY Senate Minority Leader – also has an issue to deal with:
A US District Court judge has rejected the Senate Democrats’ effort to block a discrimination lawsuit filed by a white photographer who claims he was fired by former Minority Leader David Paterson only because he wasn’t black.
The ruling, first reported by the New York Law Journal (subscription only), makes for some interesting reading.
Paterson, now the lieutenant governor, asserted he axed the photographer, Joseph Maioriello, because he was a holdover from former Minortiy Leader Marty Connor’s regime. Paterson said he was unsure where Maioriello’s loyalties lay and was worried that Connor, whom he ousted in 2002, and others were “plotting” to re-gain control of the Democratic caucus.
Maioriello was replaced by an African-American photographer, El-Wise Noisette, who last worked for former state Comptroller H. Carl McCall (the first black gubernatorial candidate who lost his challenge to Republican Gov. George Pataki in 2002).
But Paterson insisted he had no idea about the race of either man due to the fact that he is legally blind.
“Given my visual impairment, I did not know for certain the race of either the plaintiff or Noisette,” Paterson stated in his deposition.
There’s just too many jokes to say about this…I’ll hold fire.
UPDATE, by Mark Noonan: Kossacks, naturally, blame President Bush:
If Spitzer has a taste for call girls, I won’t defend that… Neither am I prone to jump on it and go to town. I’m strictly of the Larry Flynt camp…Let it all out, and let the hypocrites wither in the light of day.
But I have a very discerning internal alarm. and that alarm tells me that this story only hit the news because the NSA, or the FBI…was snooping on this guy because he is so on the record as a trust buster and corporate cop.
Mark my words…this has the Bush Administration’s fingerprints all over it…and if the MSM digs a little deeper, they will find what Congress is afraid to look for…evidence that Bush’s wiretap program has less to do with terrorists than it has to do with political foes.
UPDATE: As the New York Times notes, this is a federal crime…
Federal prosecutors rarely charge clients in prostitution cases, which are generally seen as state crimes. But the Mann Act, passed by Congress in 1910 to address prostitution, human trafficking and what was viewed at the time as immorality in general, makes it a crime to transport someone between states for the purpose of prostitution. The four defendants charged in the case unsealed last week were all charged with that crime, along with several others.
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