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Sunday 27 May 2012

The pastor problem

"If Wright has come to be the poster child for what America fears in a black public figure, he gives Obama an opportunity to be the opposite..." As the clouds gather, Dick Morris offers some sensible advice:

If Obama continues to base his defence on history, he will just wade into deeper trouble. The "I wasn't there; I didn't hear him" defence just invites journalists to interview thousands of members of the congregation to find one who sat next to Obama during one of Wright's racist and anti-American sermons. Just as John Kerry let his candidacy be hostage to the memories of every GI who served alongside him in Vietnam, so Obama will tie his to the recollections of his co-parishioners.

Nor will Obama solve his Wright problem by subtly distancing himself from his pastor and condemning his views, in general, as "offensive" or "not representative of my campaign." Rather, he needs to seize the opportunity Wright presents and rebut the pastor's views, point by point -- as he began to do Tuesday -- and, in the process, define himself and his candidacy.

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