Obama throws Rev. Wright under a bus: Too late?

Well Obama finally did the right thing, but it was about the least convincing turnabout ever. This is Obama discussing Write back when he wanted to try and mollify us…

"As imperfect as he may be, he has been like family to me. He strengthened my faith, officiated my wedding, and baptized my children. Not once in my conversations with him have I heard him talk about any ethnic group in derogatory terms, or treat whites with whom he interacted with anything but courtesy and respect. He contains within him the contradictions – the good and the bad – of the community that he has served diligently for so many years. I can no more disown him than I can disown the black community…..These people [Wright and his grandmother] are a part of me. And they are a part of America, this country that I love. " – Obama in "the big speech" earlier this month

Rev. Wright detractors took a lot of heat from Obama supporters between then and now. In some places online (and off I assume, though honestly I haven’t met a single person "in real life" who doesn’t recognize Wright as a racist) it became fashionable to say that Wright was taken out of context. Then the good Reverend started opening his mouth more and more.

No one who is intellectually honest can claim that we don’t know exactly what Wright stands for these days. Hatred, division, racism and anger. That isn’t a shock of course… it is hatred and the feelings of powerlessness built into the siren song of playing the victim that has made Trinity church millions and Wright a personal fortune. The last thing Wright really wants is racial harmony.

Finally when it could be denied any longer. When playing the race card wasn’t working. When the limits fo white guilt were hit, Obama did the thing he had tried to tell us he couldn’t do… he tried to put Wright down like a rabid dog. Then again Obama is the guy who painted his own Grandmother as a racist so you can’t really be shocked.

"You know, I have been a member of Trinity United Church of Christ since 1992. I have known Reverend Wright for almost 20 years. The person I saw yesterday was not the person that I met 20 years ago. His comments were not only divisive and destructive, but I believe that they end up giving comfort to those who prey on hate and I believe that they do not portray accurately the perspective of the black church.

They certainly don’t portray accurately my values and beliefs. And if Reverend Wright thinks that that’s political posturing, as he put it, then he doesn’t know me very well. And based on his remarks yesterday, well, I may not know him as well as I thought, either." – Obama spins like a top [nytimes bugmenot logins]

You know things have gotten bad when Obama is forced by Wright to try and tell us he is just an idiot with absolutely no ability to realize his mentor was a screaming lunatic rather than admit that he knew and didn’t care. The nicest thing I can think about Obama in all this is that he is just an opportunist who played race for all he could with the community of Trinity and beyond. There is certainly enough evidence that much of his book was fabricated to capitalize on race to bring up the question. The alternative is to believe he buys into this crap.

The other component here is the anger. Inside sources say Wright is striking back at what he saw as Obama’s betrayal. This is an problem with the coalition Obama has built. He is beholden to extremists and radicals… if he tries to serve the center he will spark anger and outrage from the radical crazies.

I’d feel bad for him if it wasn’t so clearly a problem of his own creation.

update: You can find links to lots of coverage here