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March 15, 2008
Posted: 06:53 PM ET
Obama campaigned in Indiana Saturday.
(CNN) – Referencing the recent uproar over his former minister's controversial sermons, Barack Obama on Saturday denounced the "forces of division" that he says have become part of the Democratic race for the White House. Speaking to a sold-out crowd in Plainfield, Indiana, Obama again said he sharply disagreed with the some of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright's past statements, saying they remind him of the country's "tragic history when it comes to race." "I knew him and know him as somebody in my church who talked to me about Jesus and family and friendships but clearly had – if all I knew were the statements that I saw on television I would be shocked," Obama said. "And it just – it reminds me that we have a tragic history when it comes to race in in this country – we have got a lot of pent up anger and bitterness and misunderstanding." "But what I continue to believe in is that this country wants to move beyond these kinds of debates," he added. "That this country wants something different." Obama's comments come one day after he formally repudiated Wright's sermons — recently posted on the Internet and the subject of an ABC News report — that have drawn fire. The campaign also said Friday Wright no longer had a leadership position within the campaign. – CNN's Mike Roselli contributed to this report Filed under: Barack Obama |
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