Race Becomes Divisive In Clinton Vs. Obama

Barack Obama Tells CBS News Clinton's Using Race As A Strategy In "Silly Season"

(CBS)  While a rainbow of faces stood at Sen. Barack Obama's rally in Reno, Nevada, today much of the talk offstage was about the raw and often divisive issue of race.

"Why not pick up the phone and call the Senator and say, 'why don't we stop this back and forth'?" CBS News correspondent Byron Pitts asked Obama.

"It's more back than forth," Obama said. "This is a strategy on their part."

Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign blames Obama's. Its a "who said what" that started last Monday after Clinton said this: "Dr. King's dream began to be realized when President Lyndon Johnson passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964."

Clinton says her words were taken out of context by the Obama campaign, but many took them as a slight on Dr. King.

Race will matter in the all important South Carolina primary - in 12-days - when 50 percent of democratic voters are black.

According to the latest CBS News/New York Times poll, 49 percent of blacks nationwide now support Obama; 34 percent for Clinton. That's a 13 percent jump for Obama since August

So it's no accident, political analysts say, Clinton supporter and Black Entertainment Television founder Robert Johnson pushed back Sunday in South Carolina.

"Hillary and Bill Clinton, who have been deeply and emotionally involved in black issues - when Barack Obama was doing something in the neighborhood … I won't say it, but he said it in his book," Johnson said, alluding to drug use.

Pitts asked Obama: "Bob Johnson seems to suggest that while the Clintons were working on civil rights work, you were doing drugs in Chicago."

Obama said: "I think we're entering into the silly season of politics now."

With the Michigan primary tomorrow and Nevada caucus on Saturday, voters in Detroit are more concerned about jobs than about race.

[samsel3]

We can all talk about the past, but what about now and the future ? Presently the CNP Council for National Policy is planning your future. This secretive organisation of several hundred of the richest men in the USA put Bush & Cheney in office to accomplish their global agenda. In September 2007 they met again in Salt Lake City. Cheney & Mitt Romney were keynote speakers. Romney wants their backing. The CNP wants to continue their agenda in global market control for BIG OIL & allied industry in the next election. National media outlets are owned by their members. Who will expose them? Who will stop their insanity and destruction of constitutional freedom ? Who will stop their misuse of the military to promote their global agenda? Paul Wolfowitz,Don Rumsfeld, Scooter Libby, George Bush, Richard Cheney, Eliot Cohen. Zalmay Khalilzad, Steve Forbes, Donald Kagan, Pete Rodman, Henry S Rowen, Dan Quale, William J.Bennett, Jeb Bush, they are all members of the PNAC Project for a New American Century.

[tibu987]

Eight years as First Lady, planning menus and serving tea simply does not equate into all the experience Hillary would like us to believe.
Nor does having traveled to 82 countries equate into presidential experience. Hillary did not sit in on any national or international meetings.
Just more b^llsh^t that Hillary would like us to believe.
Don''t fall for it.
I am an old guy (71) and I would like to see some young idealistic people get into to office and get the old, more than two term pols out of office. Just look where all that experience has gotten us in the last 40 years, not a very impressive record.
Only Obama fits that model, young, intelligent, idealistic, someone who can mediate with our enemies and better understands the position of the average American.

[tibu987]

We cannot make the world safe for democracy if we don''t make the world safe for diversity.
unknown author

[realpatriot1]

Klingon69,

I wasn''t criticising the south I was criticising a party that has a history of dividing people on racial lines passing judgement on the use of race in the opposing party.

Let''s be clear though. I won''t refight the Civil War with you(I wasn''t going back that far) but the only states rights that the people I mentioned were concerned about protecting was the right for a white majority to suppress a black minority and to deny them their rights. There is no such right in a free country and most people realize that, including most people in the south where I live.

[klingon69]

It''''s pretty pathetic to hear members of the southern strategy party of Jesse Helms, Trent Lott, Strom Thurmond, and david Duke talk abut pandering on race.

Don''''t you guys have a rebel flag to fly somewhere?
Posted by realpatriot1 at 09:29 AM : Jan 15, 2008
Hmmm, your name does not fit. The southerners were the real patriots. They fought a war over "STATES RIGHTS". What have you done?

[sgtrds]

realpatriot1

I don''t buy it. Personally I''m still hoping for an Edwards come back and will vote for Obama before Hillary. That said I don''t see any concerted effort from Clinton or anyone else in this race to bring race or any real mudslinging into it. It''s all a creation of the media.

Slow down, take a deep breath, and look at the facts:

The latest Rusmussen poll shows:

If the presidential election were held last week, the results would be:

CLINTON 38% -- McCAIN 49%
OBAMA 43% -- McCAIN 46%

Whether you are an Obama fan or Clinton fan, the fact is that in the general election in November, Obama has the ONLY chance of winning.

[gunownerdan]

Clinton, Obama, and the KKK agree:

They all believe law-abiding black citizens should not be trusted to own guns.

www.a-human-right.com

"How a politician stands on the Second Amendment tells you how he or she views you as an individual ... as a trustworthy and productive citizen, or as part of an unruly crowd that needs to be lorded over, controlled, supervised, and taken care of."
- Suzanna Gratia-Hupp

[realpatriot1]

SgtRDS,

the media coverage may be much about nothing as it pertains to the specific MLK & "fairy tale" remarks,
but make no mistake, this was a conscious strategy by the Clinton camp to bring him down in the dirt of negativity where she already resides.

She knows she can''t win on her own merits because her nagatives are at almost 50% so she has to make his as close to 50% as she can. They said back in December when she fell out of the lead in the polls they were going to rough him up and that''s when the "shuck n'' jive Muslim drug dealer" garbage began well before the MLK or "fairy tale" mess.

I''d like for any of Hillary''s fans to tell me what he was supposed to do in the face of that? Roll over like Kerry? He waited for a month to respond while she continued the character assassination campaign.

She''s out-Roved Rove.

[sgtrds]

This whole supposed race problem between Obama and the Clintons is a whole lot of media driven BS. Much ado about nothing.