Did Hillary just alienate black voters?
James Forsyth 10:48pmHillary Clinton has been trying to raise doubts about Barack Obama by talking about the limits of hope. Obama has counter-punched by pointing out that many of the greatest advances in American history were due to hope and that hope is an essential American quality; one that inspired the Colonists in 1776, the abolitionists and the civil rights movement among others. The trailblazing nature of his candidacy makes this a particularly effective rejoinder.
Now, Ben Smith is reporting that Hillary said this to Fox News: "Dr. King's dream began to be realized when President Johnson passed the Civil Rights Act," Clinton said. "It took a president to get it done."
This idea that civil rights were somehow dispensed to African-American voters, understandably, irritates them and Clinton by saying this might just have seriously ticked them off.
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dearieme
January 8th, 2008 1:50pmCivil Rights was a triumph for King and his allies. The politicians boarded the wagon rather late, though LBJ deserves some credit and JFK almost none.