Comments on: Obama: Wright controversy has 'shaken me up'

By: Sled Dog

Sled Dog — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:39:34 +0000

What does Barack mean when he describes the others as conventional candidates? He seems to be the one making distinctions.

I do not believe the odds are against because he is multi-race, but because he as a man has demonstrated poor judgement in regards to his relationships.

The more I hear him speak after this whole Wright issue, the more annoyed and angry I get with Obama. I think he has a real problem, but he just keeps dancing around it. He tries to make these insane analogies to help us understand his perspective, but they just make me feel like we're hearing from a high schooler.

By: Larry Buchas

Larry Buchas — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:39:32 +0000

Enough said, Joe?

Maybe you prefer Bush?

Barack Obama's views have been exposed for the world to see. He faced this race issue where no one else has since Dr. King. He was completely honest and courageous. He would be criticized by the likes of If he left his church.

The views of Reverend Wright are not those of Barack Obama. But you can't accept him saying that? He has far too much cojones than you will ever have. It's people like you that are too frightened to post your full name. Sounds like a Republican to me.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:39:24 +0000

If he is "shaken up" by this, how can he not be shaken up if another country attacks us?

A little disappointing of him!

By: Dan R

Dan R — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:39:19 +0000

Ok lets just be honest about this. The people in Michigan and Florida did have a vote when they voted to put the party leaders in office in there states. Then thoughs party leaders decided to break the rules and move there contests up to the dates in which they did, knowing the outcome. Hillary agreed to this early on as well. An frankly the only CHANGE that Hillary brings is CHANGE to the rules of the game. Go Obama!!!

By: Seam

Seam — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:39:14 +0000

Everytime i see or hear him, the whole wright messages comes up to my mind. i'm sad because i thought he could be the one but he is just the same as the rest...

By: Laura Roslin

Laura Roslin — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:39:07 +0000

Hillary Clinton is boasting that she "won" Michigan, when her major opponents were not even on the ballot.

Her surrogates are in control in PA and FL, and engineered this mess from the very beginning.

Dems in Florida supported the move up of primary, and hoped it would bust the system open.

Letting big states like Florida jump ahead of the line hurts candidates like John Edwards who don't have the multi millionairs supporting them, or who can't loan their campaign $5 million at the drop of a hat.
(Tax returns for the past 8 years hillary?)

That is why the DNC lets some smaller states go first, so that we actually have more candidates to choose from.

If Michigan and Florida are done over, how is that fair to the candidates who weren't on the ballot or didn't campaign?

How is it fair to their supporters?

Edwards can't get back in the contest now, nor can the others.

It was engineered from the beginning.

By: Jeff Lane

Jeff Lane — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:38:51 +0000

Obama is the man he is today because he sat in those pews and listened to PAstor Wright. If Pastor Wrights words moved Obama to want to end racism and fight for equality and get America to the point where any child can believe they can grow up to be President then I applaud the Pastor for being such a good 'bad' example.
Obama at home had to listen to his Mother state she was afraid of American black men, in church he listened to his Pastor say he should be afraid of rich white men.
Today he stands up before America and says he wants to stand for all Americans, be they white, black, men, women, rich, or poor.
Thanks to his upbringing in the church, home, and in his communities where he worked and lived he has become a man who is willing to stand up and make a difference in this country.
I, as a 40 year old white male, look forward to changes he wants to put into place for the betterment of all Americans.

By: reg

reg — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:38:43 +0000

Florida and Michigan knew the rules. They broke them, and therefore they should not have delegates. Sorry, but if we let them revote or do something of the sort it will set a precedent and other states will push primaries up in the next election cycle. Don't blame the DNC or Obama, blame your party leaders in your respective states. They put your rights at risk. Sorry, we need to let this go.

By: JpJ

JpJ — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:38:43 +0000

"Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton bluntly challenged Barack Obama to agree to new primaries in Michigan and Florida on Wednesday and said it was "wrong, and frankly un-American" not to have the two delegations seated at the Democratic National Convention" Where was her anger and outrage at the time they were striped of their delegates? Is it only now that she needs them, that they matter? She agreed not to campaign in either state and also agreed to have her name removed from the ballot in Michigan only to "forget" to file the paperwork. Was it "wrong and un-American" then or only now that they are her last hope?

By: barb in minneapolis

barb in minneapolis — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:38:32 +0000

Good idea raf. I'm cool with Michigan and Florida seceding from the Union. In fact, Michigan and Florida and Hillary Clinton can form their own perfect Union. Problem solved.

By: jvd

jvd — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:38:29 +0000

Why is Hilary Clinton asking Obamam about re- votes in Florida and Michigan? The democrats in those states violated party rules and should pay. What is un-american is to delibarately ignore rules and expect special consideration.

By the way, Obama's speech was great and instructive about the crucible of race in the US. It is worth noting that white politicians have rarely if ever repudiated or discussed the utterances of the pastors from the moral majority with the coded words about blacks and non-whites masquareding as concerns for a restrictive Christian culture. Does anyone recall this much uproar over Jerry Falwell's comments after 9/11 about God turning letting the US be punished because of gays, the UCLA, and other liberal folks?

I am a black male and well aware that neither my education, erudition, active catholic life, 26 years of marriage, commitment to my 3 children and my spouse, entrepreneurship, good grooming, etc. exempt me from being followed in stores by security guards or from my white peers and colleagues subtly questionning my abilities.

By: Ann

Ann — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:38:24 +0000

Hillary lied about NAFTA and her "foreign policy experience".. Check out her records.. Nothing but hand shakes smiles and visiting foreign attractions..

By: Mark

Mark — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:38:22 +0000

So Obama gave a speech in which he summarized racism in America in broadest, most generic terms. He personalized it by comparing private chats with his grandmother to the public inciting of hatred to a group of 8,500 (not counting the DVD sales). In the end he drew oh so insightful conclusion that racism is bad and we still have a lot of work to do...What am I missing? In what way is this so called "masterpiece" speech not a mediocre freshman essay?

By: nomfundo

nomfundo — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:38:16 +0000

well ldont see how obama lied to anyone ,what he only did was to shed light on the problem that america still faces today and thats racism from both sides...

Anywere who said half white and half black people are black....It must have been a white person...Its funny how far this race thing has gone....l never hear cnn referring to hillary Clinton as the european-american white hillary but l constantly hear you guys referring to Obama as african american .You make it sound as though being black and african is curse .

Obama told the truth and people may hate him for it but the truth will always conquer.When l look back neither white or black are true americans but the native indians...so just suck it coz america is what it is today coz of all races involved

By: Curtis

Curtis — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:37:55 +0000

Joe, he said he had not heard the comments from the video clips playing on the news because he did not attend church on those days. Nobody ever said he hadn't been in the guy's sermons...

By: Ron Paul supporter

Ron Paul supporter — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:37:51 +0000

If you dont like the man, just say it using what someone else said as a "excuse' is weak. He lied and, so did Scooter Libby, Bill Clinton, Don Imus the list goes on and on, we all make mistakes.

" He who has not sinned, cast the first stome"!

By: pat

pat — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:37:40 +0000

Good speech but OBAMA you did lie to us on Friday , then had a different version of what you were aware of on Monday. CHANGE ??? Sounds like politics as usual to me.I think come NovemberI will vote for a candidate who chooses better advisors!

By: John

John — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:37:33 +0000

Yep this is getting good now. Time to put the women and children to bed (this means you Hillary and Obama) and get this election going.

McCain wins in a landslide in November because the dems can't get their house in order.

By: Parvin

Parvin — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:37:28 +0000

Joe....you will need to look back at the QA session in which Obama was asked about Rev Wright's horrible rhetoric. He was aked whether he was in church during that particular taped sermon and he said no although he became aware of it when he started his campaign. Now he was asked later whether he was aware of any other sermons that had controversial tones and he said yes. He also pointed out that he told the Rev he did not agree with that. And early on in his campaign, he has said publicly that he did not agree with some views held by Rev Wright. The question was whether he was in "that" sermon and he said he was not.

By: bwlib

bwlib — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:37:22 +0000

joe (comment 2) can you not read or listen? He didn't lie...he still maintains he hadn't heard those two sermons (indeed it's been proven that he was in Miami for one and they've proven the other). He said in his speech that he has heard controversial remarks in the past but so have many people.You act like he made the remarks.Why are you so stuck on this instead of the message of his speech yesterday and instead of his message instead of that of Rev. Wright as if you're being asked to vote for Rev. Wright. You better worry about GW Bush lying to you about war or Clinton's lying in office, or Rev. Falwell's rhetoric and advising past presidents, etc. and not focus on individuals these candidates may know. You fall for any silly distraction.

By: Love your neighbor

Love your neighbor — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:37:19 +0000

"He that is without sin, let him cast the first stone." It is interesting how many people are talking about Pastor Wright's hate, and yet I feel the hate in their e-mails. There is a lot of hate coming out in this campaign. And that is a double standard. Everybody needs to check out his/her own heart. Hate is hate whether it is delivered by a black pastor or a white Hilary support.

By: Fred

Fred — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:37:19 +0000

As an independent voter, Barack lost me yesterday. He did not distance himself from his pastor nor his church, and instead offered excuses for them. He cannot be a "healer" if he tolerates & approves of these extreme views. I believe we are just beginning to discover who Barack really is.

By: Belle

Belle — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:37:17 +0000

He was so arrogant for so long, of course he is shaken up. He never expected the media to scrutinize him. Looks like he's blaming everyone but himself. And to lamely bring up the war...again? Makes me think of how Guiliani brought up 9/11 every chance he got.

By: WAYNE

WAYNE — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:37:14 +0000

Obama has had it easy up to now. Now that the heat is on, he's begining to break. If he thinks he's under pressure now, how will he handle the pressure as Commander in Chief?

By: Peter

Peter — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:37:03 +0000

Joe, as with many of you who are so anxious to criticize Obama for anything that you can dream up. With respect to Obama's comments that he had not heard Rev. Wright's comments that were being played over and over on the networks, he said that he did not. Those were not the same comments that he was referring to when he said that he heard him make comments that he considered inappropriate. I am a Clinto supporter, but I believe that putting incorrect negative information out there can only hurt the party. If she wins the nomination, as I hope that she does, then she is going to need the support of Obama and his people to win the general election. Let us bring some reason to this. Tearing him down does not help the party overall, and it may give the republicans something to use against us. Have you and the others who rant and rave either about Obama or Clinton considered the effects of this. Remember that the other party is reading your blogs as well.

By: Cameron Johnson

Cameron Johnson — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:37:01 +0000

"Well, you know, It's clear, this election they're having is not going to count for anything"

- The Senator from New York (HRC)

A move of opportunity at best, and at worst, a further attempt to pervert and supercede the rules of the primary election process.

By: josh

josh — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:36:58 +0000

If we don't stop bickering and stand together McInsane and the Repubes will get the White House.

WWIII, anyone?

By: dee, tx

dee, tx — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:36:56 +0000

for the person who said Barack lied to us...I'm reminded of Hillary's statement during a debate in which she said she was not aware she was voting to go to war in Iraq, the bill was title "....Authorization for war"...so please spare me the outrage.

By: Cory

Cory — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:36:56 +0000

Don't the Hilary-fanatics have anything better to do than blindly rant and rave in every comment section? Do you really think you're convincing anyone at all, or even remotely helping her campaign? How many times must I read "OBAMA IS A LIAR. I SEE IT IN HIS FACE." or "Go Hilary! Obama's a scumbag! Clinton '08" among the countless others. Really, give it up. It's the equivalent of 2nd-grade insults. Y'know, there's this thing called, critical, rational thought--use it, and you all might come up with something to say that's worth my consideration. Please, for the sake of everyone, lift the veil.

By: clinton muehlenbrock

clinton muehlenbrock — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:36:23 +0000

how many of you have hearing problems? Obama said he did not hear the contraversial words from u-tube. He said the pastor has said things he didnt agree with politically but in no way stating he heard the pastors view that is being broadcasted. How did he lie? Fill me in. To the people who support clinton and don't know why, you make a fool of yourself when you speak before knowing or understanding whats being said.

have a wonderful day and 4 more years of jobs being outsourced by bill clintons nafta. You guys are intelligent. Bush senior wrote nafta bill finalized it hahaha vote away nafta is not going anywhere lol.

By: Nicholas Hussein

Nicholas Hussein — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:20:09 +0000

Joe, how did he lie? He wasn't present during the sermon that you've seen on TV, and yesterday re-iterated that he wasn't. He said he has sat through objectionable content before though, and you probably find that reason enough to "reject & denounce" him, huh? Besides, even if he had been at that sermon, what would you really expect him to do? Jump up & say hey, Rev. Wright, I'm planning to run for President, please calm down?! Give the man a break! We ALL have friends whose views and/or lifestyles we don't agree with...you must've missed the explanatory part of his speech yesterday, and the analogy involving his white grandmother... Please, everyone...this is not a political issue. Rev. Wright isn't running for President, Barack Obama is. And Barack Obama has shown pride and love for his country through his actions over the last year - that is undeniable. If you just don't like him because he's black, or because some of his friends are (also) black and (also) angry - you should at least have the guts to admit that THAT is why you don't like him. But calling him a liar only makes you look bad.

By: Hussein

Hussein — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:02:39 +0000

Joe, from what I understand, Obama said, on Friday, that he had not heard the comments by Wright speifically shown in the clips which had begun to circulate–not that he had never heard him say anything bad in all 20 years. This is consistent with his position in yesterday's speech. FYI.

By: Mig

Mig — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:59:51 +0000

If someone else close to Hillary or McCain would've said what Obama's Rev. Wright said... people (like the media) would not be as forgiving but for some reason Obama get's way with very thing... I'm so tired of him... Note... I will vote for McCain if Obama is running against him... and a lot of my friends and family that are Hillary supporters are going to do the same... the media needs to stop protecting Obama.

By: joe

joe — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:59:51 +0000

Oh, wait. I see now. He said he wasn't present for the sermons shown on youtube. But he has heard other comments. He's reasonable. Hence, me not typing in CAPS anymore!

By: NC4Obama

NC4Obama — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:59:43 +0000

Obama, I don't hold you responsible for what your former Pastor said......the ones who say they wouldn't vote for you because of something Rev. Wright said means that they weren't going to vote for you anyway. I will continue to admire your stength and integrity.

Mr. Huckabee came to your defense and I'm proud of him for that.

By: VIVIAN

VIVIAN — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:59:34 +0000

Joe, He did NOT say that. He siad he had heard him say contraversial things before but he was not at the church when the reverend said the stuff you heard. He was not lying. You don't know the truth when you hear it!

By: Brenda

Brenda — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:59:32 +0000

Joe,

Don't be a hater.

By: Len

Len — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:59:19 +0000

Correction: Obama admitted he had sat in the pastor's church through some sermons that bore some of the messages we heard, but not in that particular one being shown everywhere. He had also said, he disagreed with the pastor and made his opinion known to him.

By: yett0004

yett0004 — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:59:18 +0000

You continually tell us all of the ways that you will be a better president than Clinton and that you are more likely to win the Presidency against McCain than Clinton and now you're telling us that the odds are against you winning?

This nomination isn't about being able to tell people that you were cool enough to make the Democratic nomination, this nomination is about becoming our next leader. If you believe that the odds are against you, maybe you should just drop out...

By: marilyn

marilyn — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:59:18 +0000

If Obama was as much of a gentleman as everyone says he is, he should get out of the race now. Then there wouldn"t be any problems for the democrates. I don"t know how any true american could vote for him now. Wonder if his kids have heard the preacher speak. Think how confused they could be. If he does get elected, I'm really scared for this country.

By: Andrienne

Andrienne — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:59:16 +0000

Obama, I am with you and the American people are behind you. We are praying for you. Do not be discouraged.

By: CHERYL

CHERYL — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:59:00 +0000

HERE IS A BOOK FOR YOU!!!!!!

THE AUDACITY OF OBAMA!!!!!!!!

By: maggie

maggie — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:58:44 +0000

Please...didn't he lied to Anderson Cooper just days ago about quiting the church if he knew about wright's comments? and now he's claiming he's fighting the odds because he's black. cry fowl when you are desperate..the ugliness is beginning to show on Obama.

By: Slick

Slick — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:58:40 +0000

Rules were broken. "but it's not fair" wha wawa wawa!

Get over it we can live with 2 less states.

By: bo

bo — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:58:34 +0000

Way to go Michigan and Florida, don't follow the rules and expect to get away with it. Sounds like a bunch of Bushies to me.

By: Juan Gonzalez

Juan Gonzalez — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:58:31 +0000

In my opinion the "We had tremendous success" like he said is just because the american people did now what they now now about his controversial if I will said "Spritul Adviser".

By: Maria

Maria — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:58:29 +0000

Why is Michigan and Florida an issue. The rules are the rules.

By: Dan in Chicago

Dan in Chicago — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:58:29 +0000

I don't get how Barack thinks his campaign is different from everyone else's. That campaign is so full of itself.

By: Hillary supporter

Hillary supporter — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:58:28 +0000

to joe:

Are we the only people who caught this? Why are people ignoring the truth. I knew the Harvard grad would give a big speech and lecture us on race relations. I'm so offended by it all. Offended that he really thinks we are all stupid. Not so, Mr. Obama!!

By: kenny

kenny — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:58:20 +0000

People get over it and move on and joe you wasn't vote for him anyway