Pastor Creates ‘Guilt by Association’ Problem for Obama
File: Barack Obama with Rev. Jeremiah Wright, pastor emeritus of Obama's congregation, Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago. (AP Photo)
Surrogates for Barack Obama on Sunday downplayed the significance of Obama’s relationship to a controversial pastor and suggested the discussion is a diverson from bigger issues in the Democrat presidential race.
“The fact of the matter is people would like to move on to other things,” said Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut, characterizing remarks by Obama pastor Rev. Jeremiah Wright as “outrageous,” but saying they are not relevant to Obama’s candidacy.
“He’s rejected it. He said no– he doesn’t have any association with it. He finds these comments outrageous,” Dodd, an Obama supporter and former presidential candidate, told “FOX News Sunday.” He added that “guilt by association is not typically American.”
But some political analysts say that comments by Wright could pose a major obstacle for Obama because unlike average Americans, politicians suffer from “guilt by association.”
“This is a man who he chose to be associated with. It’s not a family member. He chose to be associated with Reverend Wright and saw advantage in it. And that’s why he exploited it up to a point when he realized, especially when he was announcing, that he couldn’t have Wright by his side for the announcement in Springfield and now seeks to somehow distance himself. But it speaks to his character, and it speaks to the judgment which is the basis on which Barack Obama has been running his campaign. So I think it could be a big problem,” said National Public Radio national correspondent and FOX News contributor Juan Williams.
It also could suggest an insincerity by Obama, said conservative syndicated columnist Charles Krauthammer.
“This, I think, is a huge story because it contradicts the whole persona and appeal of Obama as a man who transcends race,” Krauthammer said. “I think it ought to be explored a lot more deeply.”
Out on the campaign trail on Saturday, Obama was dogged by questions about comments made by his spiritual leader of 20 years, whose quotes have been sprayed over the news in the last several days.
At a town-hall meeting in Indiana, Obama said he was not in the pews when Wright said, for example, the U.S. is run by “rich, white people” or that the U.S. created the AIDS virus to kill African Americans. The Illinois senator said he “completely rejects” the preacher’s controversial sermons, including one in which he said the United States was asking for the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks because it had supported “state-sponsored terrorism” against black South Africans and Palestinians.
“Although I knew him and know him as somebody in my church that talked to me about Jesus and family and friendships but clearly, if all I knew were those statements I saw on television, I would be shocked,” Obama said.
Obama who is new to disavowing himself from the remarks, told his audience that people should speak up forcefully against comments like Wright’s.
On Sunday, the United Church of Christ defended Wright’s character.
“The Reverend Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr.’s character is being assassinated in the public sphere because he has preached a social gospel on behalf of oppressed women, children, and men in America and around the globe,” wrote Rev. John H. Thomas, the church’s General Minister President in a press release.
Meanwhile, Clinton supporters are refusing to jump on the opportunity to attack Obama for his slow response. “I mean, as you know, I prefer Senator Clinton for a whole lot of reasons, but I don’t cast aspersions on Senator Obama for what somebody else said,” said Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.
Voters should “accept what Obama has said and move on,” said Rep. Nita Lowey, D-N.Y.
The Clinton campaign may be following a well-known operating principle of politics, which is when an opponent is shooting himself in the foot, stand back and let him. According to the results of a new, four-day Rasmussen tracking poll out Sunday morning, Obama’s national lead has narrowed to just 3 points over Clinton.
“The Clinton campaign won’t touch this with a 10-foot poll, but they don’t have to. … It will dribble, dribble out for at least a few more days and in this Internet era there’s no limit to what you can” dredge up, said Democratic strategist Susan Estrich.
Estrich said plenty of more information will come up in the weeks leading up to the Pennsylvania and North Carolina primaries.
“I don’t know, this guy didn’t give just two bad sermons, nobody … does the wrong thing just twice,” she said. “We all have to fill space for six weeks, this is how we’ll fill it.”
According to pollster, Scott Rasmussen, the recent controversy and prolonged fight between the Democrats is also turning out to be a gift for presumptive Republican presidential nominee and Arizona Sen. John McCain, whose numbers are up. That’s a fear Democrats are hoping won’t be realized as the discussion over race and sex issues distract from their overall message of defeating McCain.
“I think we have to lift ourselves out of all of that. Look, we’re talking about running for president of the United States. We’re talking about the leader of the free world. We’re talking about the hopes, the aspirations of the American people being placed — and not like any other job in the world, placed on this person. And I think people are much more interested on the ideas, the vision, the judgment, the plans that people have. And that’s why people are drawn to both of these candidates,” said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, speaking on ABC’s “This Week.” Pelosi has not yet stated her preference for the top of the party ticket.
Why are we suprised when hate filled rhetoric is spewed by the REV. Wright, REV. Al Sharpton or REV. Jesse Jackson? This is the first I’ve heard of a REVEREND defended for using the Lord’s name in vain. Take a good look at what you want representing you in the White house before you vote!!
having been to a black church myself a few times in ind. this is not unusual rhetoric for black minister’s. who cares what that preacher says. if you listen carefully, some of what he says is true. most of his sermon is taken out of context i’m sure. why is fox trying so hard to bring obama down? fair and balanced? time to scrutinze hillary. lots the younger people don’t know about her shady past, as well as her husband. lets hear a lot more about her. i hate to see this kind of bias still going on in this country. time it stopped once and for all.
Ted THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR INSITE! I ALWAYS TRY TO BE AN INFORMED VOTER SO ALOT OF WHAT IS COMING OUT NOW IS DISTURBING, BECAUSE THIS HAS BEEN ON THE WEB FOR A WHILE. I ORIGINALLY WAS LOOKING AT OBAMA TILL I RAN INTO HIS CHURCHES BELIEFS, I WAS NOT RAISED AS A RACIST BUT THIS DOCTORINE RED FLAG ME. I COULD NOT UNDERSTAND HOW YOU CAN UNITE PEOPLE IF THIS IS WHAT YOU BELIEVE.
I AM A IRISH/ITALIAN FEMALE RAISED IN A HOUSE WITH 4 SISTERS AND A BLACK BROTHER WHO MY MOTHER TOOK IN WHEN HIS GRANDMOTHER DIED, WHEN HE WOULD TELL PEOPLE HE WAS WHITE , THEY WOULD LAUGH AND MY MOTHER WOULD TELL HIM YOU DON’T DO THAT BE PROUD OF YOUR HERITAGE. WE REALLY WERE A SITE, PEOPLE COULD NOT FIGURE US OUT, BUT WE LOVED AND CARED FOR EACH OTHER. SO THE RACE ISSUES COMING OUT BECAUSE OF THE OBAMA PEOPLE BOTHERS ME, YOU CAN’T SAYING ANYTHING WITHOUT BEING CALLED A RACIST. IT IS FAIR AND YOUR DUTY AS A VOTER TO FIND THE FACTS AND MAKE AN INFORMED DECISSION ON THEM. NO ONE SHOULD BE CALLED RACIST FOR THIS.
1. FACT OBAMA ASKED HIS PREACHER NOT TO BE PRESENT AT HIS ANNOUNCEMENT FOR PRESIDENT.
2. COUNT THE DIFFERRENT OUTFITS THAT REV. WRIGHT IS IN IN THE NEWS CLIPS, HE WASN’T PRESENT AT ANY OF THESE MASSES, HOW OFTEN DOES HE ATTEND?
3. WHEN THE 9/11 REMARKS WERE MADE IN 2001, OBAMA WAS A STATE SENATOR, SO HE WAS IN CHICAGO, WASN’T HE IN CHURCH.
4. THE CHRISTMAS REMARKS ABOUT HILLARY AND BILL WERE ONLY LAST DECEMBER WHEN CONGRESS WAS ON BREAK AND OBAMA WAS CELEBRATING CHRISTMAS WITH HIS FAMILY IN CHICAGO, BEFORE HE HIT THE CAMPAIGNE TRAIL AFTER NEW YEARS. HE DIDN’T GO TO CHRISTMAS MASS?
5. THIS SHOWS WHERE MICCHELLE OBAMA’S REMARKS COME FROM ” FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MY ADULT LIFE I’M PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN”
THERE ARE REAL PROBLEMS WITH THIS MAN, I JUST HOPE THAT EVERYONE REALIZES IT BEFORE IT IS TO LATE!
AND TO THE BLACK PEOPEL OUT THERE, PLEASE LOOK AT THE REAL HERO’S IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY’S SUCH AS COLIN POWELL, BILL COSBY,JAMES EARL JONES, MAXINE WATERS,GOVERNOR PATTERSON OF NEW YORK, MARTIN LUTHER KING, HARRIET TUBMAN, ROSA PARKS, ECT.
I thought this was an interesting read about the double standard that exist in this country between black and white preachers who offer critique of this country and government. Please pass this on…
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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/frank-schaeffer/obamas-minister-committe_b_91774.html
Ted Walker, thank you for reminding me there are some people with sense still left in this country.
To me, the whole theme of all this preaching is one, victimization (”The fact that I can’t get ahead is someone else’s fault/or related to things that happened 400 years ago”) and two, complete segregation of races and promotion of the same old racist ideology that has gotten this country NOWHERE over the past how many centuries? Each individual in this country is responsible for his or her own destiny; some have roadblocks others don’t. I can’t understand why Obama would want to hear God Damn the USA. Clearly I don’t want this man to be President of a country he would allow someone to defame and damn. This is my country, I am serving in its military and while I don’t always agree with its ideals and choices, it certainly has offered me a better way of life than most other countries out there.
As a proud AMERICAN you stand up and walk OUT OF THE BUILDING when someone speaks such trite nonsense. As an American who has been proud to be an American more than the one time Michelle Obama claims, I would literally be nauseated to listen to such bogus rhetoric. As an American soldier I would not want to be in the presence of such an anti-American individual; and as a true Christian I would not want to be exposed to such hatred and vulgarity. It’s not necessary and it’s certianly not very Christlike to be happy that people died in 9/11. This person is a sorry excuse for a human being and anyone associated with him is as vile and hateful as he is.
And he didn’t KNOW this person thought this way, but considers the man a personal friend and advisor? That’s like saying “I’m a Catholic but I didn’t know the Pope was Pro-Life.” There’s NO WAY…
What a piece of work this person running for president of the United States of America is…if he didn’t know what kind of preacher Wright was…then he must have been sleeping through the sermons, along with his wife sleeping through them also…it is a funny thing that obama was never there and never knew about these radical sermons..but that the man is his mentor…what was he mentoring then…how much money did the obama give to this church to support this kind of hatred…what kind of CHANGE is he up to…more hatred. These things have been known for along time…and so much more; will they now bring out the rest of his SINS, the media has kissed his behind for such a long time that is weird that they are finally getting wise to this phoney…I am not afraid to pledge my alligience to the flag, I am not afraid to thing that America is great, I am not afraid to say I do not have hatred towards our country….why would anyone vote for a person who demonstates hatred to our country and our brave people, now and in the past who have fought for our freedom.
Perhaps, Barak Obama has found a running mate, “Reverand Jeremiah Wright”, and/or Secretary of Defense!
How blind are Americans? This is NOT guilt by association. This is 20 yrs of belief. This is his spiritual advisor and now it’s not convenient so he dumps him and says don’t judge me I didn’t know so I have 2 questions for Obama:
1. Are you saying that I who never new about this man happen to know more about his anti-american and racist constant than you who attended his church for 20yrs?
2. You said that you were never present in all of 20 yrs during one of these controversial sermons….well why is there proof that you were seen “nodding in agreement” during one of these rants on July 22 of last year?
You’re all done…you are divisive.
America you’ve been punk’d!!!
bo said “most of the time the sermons were social sermons”
that’s polical speak for yeah, i heard the racism sometimes, but i am going to manipulate my statements so the public doesn’t know that!
vote hrc… she and her husband have NOT discriminated against americans. she wants to be everyone’s pres.
I am disgusted with the racists rants of Obama’s pastor. How stupid does Obama think Americans are that we actually would believe he had never heard any of his racists comments after being a church member there for 20 years. No Obama was not the one up there speaking that venom but the apple does not far from the tree. Looks like the rooster came to roost for Obama and his church. I was a full fledged supporter of Obama up until this broke. I am glad I live in PA and have the opportunity to vote AFTER finding out about Obamas true feelings/values. I will be voting for Clinton and if Obama gets the Democratic nomination I will then be voting for McCain It is now time for REAl Change…”NO”Bama ‘08