Spin Cycle

I begrudgingly admit it was an excellent speech. Obama played the last 2 days perfectly from as low as he could be to flying high on the words of racial harmony. It will get extended play in the news cycle for at least a couple of days if not the remainder of the week.

Very nice speach - well said and presented - he gets an "A" in public speaking and content, BUT this speach is a case of reaction to events.
This is not Presidential , but the actions of a person running for office trying to put out a fire storm. Did he do it. I do not think so. Will he win – I think he might due to his positioning of his race. He turns out to be a bigger cry baby than HRC..Wah – vote for me because of ( fill in the blanks) – for such a bright fellow and speaker I think he failed to address the Wright issue on a timely basis ( like 6 months ago). I ask you this. What else it out there that is going to require another speech of this sort..

Blah, blah... just another weasle-worded speech from O-blah-ma. This man no longer has any credibility. He should step down now since Hillary is the only hope now for the Democrats.

Neither help nor hurt. Still hollow words...

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2008/03/obamas_race_speech_the_gaping.html

You judge a person by the company he/she keeps. Obama has kept this anti-American, anti semitic racist for 20 years as his pastor and "inspirational mentor" (Obama's own word)

i dont see any other candidate think of doing anything remotely similar to what Obama just did -this show a lot in a person character -something the other democratic candidate lacks (amongst many other qualities she is a paradox on change and whats good for America)

Great speech regarding damage control. However, a few discrepencies stand out. If you say you originally did not attend a sermon which contained inflamitory comments, then in this speech admit you have heard these comments, how then can you say you never heard Wright say anything derogatory about any race, when it is clear he commented on many occasions about the white race?
Another item which stands out, the attempt in trying to pull Hillary Clinton into the conversation - when it was obvious that Geraldine Ferraro was speaking on her own behalf, at a very small function in California that she never thought would reach beyond the conversation she had that day. Obama had an obvious political agenda here, which takes away credibility from the reconciliation theme of this speech.
Well spoken, well written, but still just politically motivated

I think his acknowledgment that he had heard the pastor make controversial statements will hurt him. It contradicts his earlier statements unless they are viewed in a very legalistic fashion. There were more troublesome than healing sound bites.

Think about this for a second. One candidate has a relationship with someone from the Weather Underground, the other candidate spent 5 1/2 years rotting as a prisioner of war defending our freedom. The choice couldn't be more clear!!!!!!

The speech was wonderful, it wasn't political at all.
It came from the heart on so many issues.
I think he has a unique perspective as he is mixed race.
His irish american and african roots give him the middle ground on many issues, as many of us stand on one side. Many people forget the hardships that immigrant endured, the irish faced signs - no irish allowed and many other obstacles to become americans.
Many of you can't see the middle, but in his speech today.. I understood everything.
He is correct to stay at the church. If a person changed churches every time a minister said something , it would be tiring.
I find objections in many things or views of christian leaders.
Friends say things that are wrong in my eyes and we remain friends, because everyone has good in them. A single statement or moment can't define them.

Bravo Barack

As a white, older, female, independent voter Obama's speech brought tears to my eyes. I found him open, honest and believable. I am religious but when happen upon a TV preacher or a Radio preach they all rant and rave, and say things their members MUST, CAN'T agree with. Google John Hagee, Jerry Falwell or Pat Robertson, all guest at the Whitehouse, whom have said racist and anti American statements including 9/11 ref.
But in regards to Obama's speech, I hope it is something that brings honest, open discussion home to the kitchen table, to the office cooler, and in front of our mirrors.

I'm a Reagan Democrat, actually a "Reagan Independent", who's a late-comer supporter of Obama. Only after making the effort to learn what he's done in the Senate, and read his positions, did I became a supporter.

I also follow closely the Conservative media and blogs. There's very little reasoned, well-thought-out, analyses of his politics. Ad hominem attacks, some extremely vituperous, seem to predominate.

It strikes me as "curiouser and curiouser"...these attacks seem to fall into 3 categories:
1. Those who are not familiar with what he has done...ignorance
2. Those who are threatened by him...fear
3. Those intolerant of someone who is different...hate

Curious...these are the same things that drive bigots!

Sounds like a man, that was caught in a lie. Here he had previously said he never heard any of those comments, then to admit, he had after he claimed he had not. Every word was catering to relive past racial issues. One simple fact. Our ancestors brought slaves to this country, which is a proven fact. But if they had not been brought over here as slaves, where would HE be NOW! Or would he be NOW!

He should have left that church years ago, but obviously he believed in what he heard.

This is yet another one of Obama’s politically expedient speeches. That is his single (and only) asset. Speeches had gotten him to where he is and we can expect more tear jerking speeches that play on mass guilt that he will use whenever things don’t go his way. There are too many questions about Obama that haven’t been answered and won’t be answered by another speech. We need more time (say another 8 years to assess this man).

In Obama’s speech, the only racial issues of consequence are between blacks and whites and slavery is the root of all evils. That’s far too simplistic and exclusive a view. We don’t see every German today and think he/she or his/her parents/grandparents were responsible for the anti-Semitic atrocities of WWII and that’s only 60 years ago. Slavery was abolished more than 200 years ago.

Obama has been playing the race card whenever it suits him. He is very good at exploiting the collective guilty conscience of the masses. How can he make excuses for himself and for Wright, yet giving credence to Ferraro’s impolitic remarks as racially motivated? Discrimination works both directions.

I am sure he wants us to move forward and forget all about his associations with Rezko and Rev. Wright. How convenient.

Barack Obama is the real deal.

It's about time.

MSNBC is now slobbering over him but CNN is worse! Every single person they have on as a guest is a avid Obama supporter. All we hear is most wonderful speech ever that will cure all ills and resolve all issues forever more.

What I heard was a good speech that was frank but filled with the right words for his voting base that he is losing ground in. Not much in there for people who are not already his supporters. In fact his closing part about vote for me or go down the wrong path was horrible.

The speech didn't address the real issues with Barack Obama on these stories that are coming to light and finally getting long over due coverage. The issue is not his growing list of associates that could cause one to pause and raise an eyebrow but rather it is his avoidance to address hard questions at all. Senator Obamas usual first response is always a charming ambiguous answer. We do not like the fact that we have to count on the media to ask the same set of question 2 or 3 times before we get a answer that is clear and straight forward and not some charming ambiguous response.

He has had a rumored reputation of avoid hard questions and issues and he is proving that to be true. He really was gone during the hard vote or voted present on them. That is of more concern to me then the growing list of associates that raise your eyebrow, although that does concern me also but more for electable reasons then anything else.

In no way was this speech as good as the I have a dream speech, even though the people on MSNBC & CNN think so. Here is why, it was a political repair speech. The first part was good and had substance but then he quickly went to pandering for his support base. By the middle of the speech he was so busy hitting us with the right words to reaffirm his voting base to make it anything more then a self serving political press release. The ending was incredible selfish and horrible. For him to have the gall to basically say Vote for me or you will be choosing to go down the wrong path was a total self pandering statement. The convention speech was a victory for all people with no agenda needed or added.

This is democracy at work. Goodby Obama.

I havent heard a speech that moved me this much in 47 years!! Obama just got himself a new supporter in me.

Nice try Obama. Very articulate and eloquent, however you still cant expect me to believe for 20 some odd years you knew none of this was going on.

Either you didn't know, which tells me you're too ignorant to run our country.
Or you did and you're lying to us, which makes you just another self serving politician who really isn't about change after all!!

"Here he had previously said he never heard any of those comments, then to admit, he had after he claimed he had not"

This is your misunderstanding. He said he hadn't heard those comments - those SPECIFIC comments, the ones being played on the news and on YouTube. He's always said he's heard Wright say things he doesn't agree with. There's no lie there.

It was an excellent speech, honest and insightful. Take the time to understand it.

It's fine to say that people from the 50's and 60's haven't moved beyond skin color like his generation has. But the point is that somebody that hasn't moved past skin color is up there preaching hatred and trying to teach hatred as well to the "now" generation that supposedly has moved past skin color. This is what Obama grew up with and still listens to every week when he attends services. How about preaching forgiveness?

It's rather interesting how some of the above comments also appear verbatim on the Washington Times and other news outlets and blogs. It would seem that the worst vitriol being directed at Obama either comes from hateful individuals with far too much time on their hands, or perhaps some form of astroturf campaign...

I was writing a comment when I glanced up and found Aengil had already made my argument. It's amazing to me how some just can't comprehend english or choose to distort facts intentionally. I don't know which is worse.

Obama never said he had never heard anything controversial come out of Wright's mouth. And if you spent the time to listen to the speech, rather than looking for something to twist, you might actually learn something.

Simply put from Abe Lincoln: "I must stand with anybody that stand right, and stand with him while he is right, and part with him when he goes wrong."

I can already tell that Barack is not going to be a great leader, and as I see him, he is divisive!

There are those who will not or cannot hear the fullness of this speech. For me, it reaffirms why I am an Obama supporter. I am sure there were those who did not hear the fullness of Marlin Luther King Jr. either, at the time he gave his I Have a Dream speech. The economic system underlying our financial freedoms is in peril; I want a President who will speak the truth about the problems, not call for illegal, knee jerk reactions (freezing interest rates on sub-prime mortages). Hearing this speech, about one of the most unspeakable problems of our times, gives me hope to hear Senator Obama's upcoming economic speech and maybe he can also speak the truth there, instead of simplistic sound-bites.

This is a speach to remember. If he wins it'll be one that childeren will memorize generations to come.

I'm glad he waited a few days to be sure he had the right words to say. I agree that some of the return-to-politics at the end of the speach was self-pandering, but it was as much a political speach as it was a "cant we all get along" speach.

Why does his pastor have so much to change the way he's viewed by the public, however her political mentor and financial assistant working for her is ignored. Obama's speach pointed out that his Pastor and her employee were stating aged, biased, and negative views that cannot be the responsibility of the candidate.

If said woman can be ignored as having issues, why can't this pastor?

IAM NOW AN OBAMA SUPPORTER - ALL THE FKING WAY!!!

What exactly does the general public expect Senator Obama to do in regards to racial issues? No amount of legislation can cure bigotry unless individuals make conscious decisions to judge others by the content of their character and not by the colour of their skin. White America is in denial, it needs to examine it's treatment of "others" both within and outside of it's borders in order to realise where the griveances of said "others" emanate from, extend a genuine mea culpa and then commence on the hard work of building a United States of America.

By virtue of his bi-racial background, Senator Obama straddles both sides of the line and judging from his books, speeches and life choices Senator Obama is a man who has spent years evaluating the facts and arrived to a simple truth, in order to survive we must embrace the good in us and extend it to others. Senator Obama is not responsible for what has gone on in the past however he is offering his services to fashion a better tomorrow. Let those with a vision for a better world join him and let those riddled with fear, hate and bigotry stay in their corner.

We in Kenya, would have him in a heartbeat, but he has chosen you and I tell you , you are lucky to have him.

I'm disturbed by his references to slavery and Jim Crow as the ill for all blacks. Been 7 generations since the Civil War; Jim Crow - OK - valid point taken - but since the '60's major strides have been made - no mention of this in this speech. (Affimative Action anyone?)
I watched the U-Tube clips at lunch time - and I realize all sorts of people with all sorts of agendas can spin anything - but watch them, and then listen to is pathetic defense of Reverend Wright by commenting about his poor grandmother, like its somehow OK for Wright to say these things because his grandmother admitted to a fear of blacks.
This Democrat who helped his father hand out Adlai Stevenson buttons on the streets of Elizabeth New Jersey in 1956 is wondering what happened to his party.
For right now its Hillary.

Obama hit a home run.
1. For those critics above who obviously didn't listen to his speech (comments like "Here he had previously said he never heard any of those comments, then to admit, he had after he claimed he had not.") it really doesn't matter as these dittoheads only believe waht Rush Limbaugh tells them to believe.
2. For those who have believed in Obama from the start - like myself - this confirmed why we recognize him as a true healer for our country. How many politicians have you ever seen speak openly and heartfully about racial issues in our country?
3. The most important group - those 'Independents' and Republicans who have recently been drawn to Obama but were concerned by all the recent negative publicity - I am convinced that Obama won back the vast majority of these.
Any open-minded person cannot listen to his words and react with vitriole. Here is someone - whether you agree with him or not - who truly recognizes the divisive problems we have in this country and is willing (in fact, eager) to address them head on.
Bravo, Obama, I knew you would turn this negative attack into yet another opportunity to demonstrate your steadfastness and ability to stand up for your convictions.

Question:
Why does Obama REMAIN A MEMBER in a church with such hatred toward the white race and such blame toward the USA?

Answer:
Mostly, it benefits him in KEEPING the black vote.

This is a church that accuses the "white" USA of giving the aids disease to black people... (and other racist accusations)

Question:
Why does Obama CONTINUE to support this type of thinking with his money (donations)?
Answer:
Same answer as above.

Question:
Why is it so important for Obama to BREAK his association with the Trinity Church of Christ and with Reverend Wright?

Answer:
"Birds of a feather FLOCK TOGETHER" -
Obama needs to leave this church...
BECAUSE of it's MISGUIDED RACIST BELIEFS.

Obama just does NOT get it. How abominable to for him to compare Jeremiah Wright to his grandmother!

You don’t get choose your family, but you do get to choose your pastors, your spiritual mentor’s, your advisor’s, your close friends (Obama has described Wright as all of these things).

You also get to choose your church. You get to choose whether, Sunday after Sunday , you expose yourself, your wife and your CHILDREN to positive, biblical, Christian messages, or messages that are inflammatory, hateful, racist, anti-white, anti-semitic, and anti-American.

Any man who would sit through these types of messages and count this hateful, racist man as close friend and spiritual advisor, is either mentally handicapped (which we know Obama is not), a racist who hates America himself, or such an incredibly weak man, that he is not fit to be elected dog catcher, much less leader of the free world.

How is Obama supposed to stand up for America, for justice, or for anything, when he won't stand up against the racist monster who has been his pastor for 20 years.

Sen. Obama told us this nation the truth today. How could anyone disagree with anything he said. As Americans we all know that the stain on the "Soul of America" this nation's "Original Sin" was our Founding Fathers not allowing Thomas Jefferson to keep the abolition of slavery in the Declaration of Independence. We all know that the Founding Fathers although men of great courage lost some of that courage at the Constitutional Convention and instead of ABSOLUTELY declaring that "All men are created equal" and deserved "Equal protection under our Constitution" instead settled for the ban on the further importation of slaves into the nation after 1804. That ban set the stage for the further abuse of the slaves, especially African American women that were forced to perpetuate slavery by being forced to produce sons and daughter that would be slaves.
What we saw today was the results of Black American studies being developed in our university system. What we heard today was the rresults of the work of those people that have researched slavery and have written the real history of slavery that our university system is using today.
We have a presidential candidate who has the courage to hold that mirror up to each and every one of us. To show us all how the politicians of the past used FEAR to keep this nation divided. We better heed this candidates message because we now have a new wave of immigrants into this nation that are also not European. They are Latino, Asian and from India. If we do not heed Sen. Obama's message and are not careful the politicians of old will attempt to divide us into five separate groups. White, Black, Brown, Yellow and Red.
One last final comment. Isn't it strange that all the proxies condemning the Rev. Jeremiah Wright failed to mention that he is a man who served this nation honorably as a United States Marine. The vast majority of Americans never knew that until today when Sen. Obama told us. How quick Hillary panders to veterans and states in her speeches "That we must support our troops" as she and her campaign try to destroy Sen. Obama by degrading and demonizing a former Marine. Meanwhile her husband fled the country when he was re-classified 1-A during the Vietnam War and later tried to spin it that he went off to Oxford to become a scholar.
Clintons you name is HYPOCRISY!

Obama in 2008! Time for the CHANGING OF AMERICA into what it should have been in 1789.

How was this different from his other stump speeches? It addressed a new topic in the same way he's draped everything he discusses, in generalities and hyperbole. Nowhere did I hear a suggestion of taking responsibility for supporting and even exposing his children to the divisive beliefs of Rev. Wright for 20 years. In a campaign he himself has framed around judgement he refuses to acknowledge how bad a decision it has been for him to stand by those who propagate radical racial views.

Sen Obama can preach about ending divisiveness all he likes now but his failure to address it in his life and with the congregation he spent most of his adult life in speaks volumes about how deep his convictions are. If he refused to tackle the very issue he claims to hold paramount to all others in his community why would anyone believe his speech today?

Sen Obama simply uses race and high ideals as tools to serve his political interests. This speech was just another creative use of playing the race card to meet the ends that benefit him.

Healing should have started at home and two decades ago Mr. Obama.

Obama called for Imus to be fired about one year ago for his remarks about the Rutgers basketball team, yet Jeremiah Wright JUST got fired even though Obama's known about these incendiary comments for quite some time. Here's the link and some of his comments. Obama is smooth my friends, more so than Slick Willy himself.

http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=3031317&page=1

Leave your church Senator,Save your campaign Consult with
a real Reverend of fair mind ,Rev. Calvin Butts.
The Rev. Wright condemned "all White people" that's the same racist
jingle jangle as saying "all Blacks" it's wrong and such a statement
in Britain would actually be illegal by slander law and
tantamount to causing a riot or, suggesting one.
Now if one in the UK says SOME Whites Etc. that's OK because it does not
condemn a whole people.

Barak seems to have been hiding his black racist feelings during this entire campaign! Why?
Is the United States still this racist today? I do not see this in my circles.
Is he attempting to fight a very old problem which no longer exists?

Sen Obama showed courage in giving a risky speech

He wrote it himself - and as a product of a unique heritage Sen Obama is in a position unlike 99% of the rest of us -- he has grown up and come of age in the white and black cultures of this country

Barack Obama represents something we have not hadfor many years in this country -
authenticity
brillance
courage
vision

He spoke to us as if we are an intelligent populace

An amazing speech by the most definitive American politician since JFK. He is a league apart from both Clinton and McCain.

This was an incredibly moving speech. I really don't understand how anyone can not be impressed by this. Some call it damage control, I call it answering a call to address an issue which has come bubbling to the surface whether he wanted it to or not.

I call it brutal honesty.

I call it a realization that first comes a dream, then careful thoughts, then plans, then actions. Not the other way around which is exactly what has got us into the mess we are in.

As a Hillary Supporter, I too, as a bi-racial American thought this was the second best Civil Rights Speech in History. I am now going to through my support behind this Imperfect, but Inspiring Man.

This man needs to go, just like the republicans.

I don't believe that we need a racist and a liar who is pro-abortion in the White House. Farewell Mr. Obama.

If you found no positive impressions from that speech then I must assume you are deaf, blind, and dumb. I also question what your idea of a perfect union would be, and whether I would fit into it.

My only question now is not if Barack Obama deserves the presidency, but if the presidency deserves Barack Obama. I can only hope this nation is mature enough to move forward.

I don't believe that we need a racist and a liar who is pro-abortion and pro partial-birth abortion in the White House. Farewell Mr. Obama.

That was a brilliant speech, it was an honest speech and if you dissing it you were hoping this Wright thing was going to swiftboat Obama.

These people saying Obama should have rejected his church, rejected his pastor - thrown people under the bush - get stuffed.

Then he would be a man without honor. And if he doesn't win the Presidency because you and your kind have brought up one person after another from his life to flay, character assassinate and push him to reject and enough fellow Americans have brought into that then America obviously doesn't want a leader of admirable character and is quite happy to be duped into doing the bidding of others that don't have their best interests at heart - much like they have been duped for the last 8 years really - and the state of the country is all blimmin' Xmas now isn't it? Yeah right-o matey potatee.

Let's face it - there are a lot of people on these boards whose interests and affiliation are elsewhere and would like nothing better than for Obama to fall flat on his face. So take your trumped up indignations and peddle them elsewhere.

After reading some of these comments from Obama supporters, I must say I am a little discouraged with some people's ignorance. Sincerity really?Don't act like he is some kind of martyr for making this speach.He had to!! It was political damage control.

No matter what he says it is quite obvious that he knew his pastor was an anti-American,anti-semitic racists.Give me a break!!

To those who don't see through this, you might never see the truth because you are seeing him through rose colored glasses. Many horrible world leaders have come to power because people refused to accept the truth when it was staring them in the face. Please wake up people.

Katie --

You have it right. This speech was nothing less than damage control. Perhaps one wouldn't leave their church if their pastor made one wrongdoing but... that is not what has happened here! His pastor and inspirational mentor made these types of speeches over a long course of time.

In case you didn't know, there is nothing Christian about using God's name in vain. A true Christian would NEVER say G-- D---- anything! This pastor, and what Obama perceives as part of his family, is anti-American and racist.

Wake up and say no to Obama!!

Why do we 'judge people by the company they keep'?

Why not judge a person by the person?

Anyone who thinks this speech was anything less than great is simply a Hillary or McCain supporter. No big deal, but how you see it is completely colored by your choice for pres.

My choice is Obama. This speech makes me no more likely to vote for him because I was already going to. That's why the polls you see on the speech will show 2% thought it had a positve effect and 30% negative and 68% no effect. The anti-Obamas will all say negative or no effect; the pro-Obama's will all say no effect.

I never have understood the fascination with Obama and his speeches. The speech yesterday was no different and the only reason Obama gave it was to save his political butt. I hate to burst the Obama bubble, but one cannot run as a democrat or republican in the United States without "playing the political game" and Obama is no different. The fact is, other than the liberals on the far left, Obamas association with an anti-american, radical extremist will cost him. My guess is the democrats are already trying to figure out how to unload this guy. Sorry, making another empty speech doesn't cut it.

The media's desire to continue talking about race day after day in articles such as this makes me sick, and makes me question the intelligence of my fellow countrymen. Did it help, or did it hurt, blah, blah, blah, will whites be upset because he's talking about race? Well, I'm a white, and no, I'm not. I am still supporting Obama. "Skeptical" whites probably weren't voting for Obama in the first place. They likely ate that whole madrassa thing up with a spoon -- I know my white parents did. Don't you have any better news to report than a bunch of "what ifs"? If I want gossip, I can go talk to some Clinton supporters (elderly women)...

Furthermore, I cannot believe how many people do not understand that you can admit to hearing some remarks, and claim to have not heard others, and not be contradicting yourself. Pay attention to the details of the sentences you read/hear, not just the overall flavor the first couple of words leaves on your biased tongues.

It's clear and simple. Obama is a member and still a member of a racist church. he is endorsed by the Black Panthers. Has not appoligized about his church offending the white people of America. Like the overwhelming vote of the white race in Idaho for example.I will not vote for him and never will trust him. He's fake and almost got away with it. Put him in the White House and the Black Panther ( a terrorist group) will be there too. American be very carefull what you wish for.