Can Obama triangulate on race?
I heard the latter portion of Barack Obama’s vaunted speech on racial issues as it was being broadcast live from Philadelphia on Tuesday morning, and like most people I was fairly impressed. The Senator sounded thoughtful, candid, and forthright, seeing both sides of this highly sensitive issue, and it seemed he was living up to sky-high hopes he has raised for racial harmony. After I read the whole speech, however, I realized that he blew his big chance. He was trying to contain the damage stemming from the release of the video of his former pastor Rev. Jeremiah Wright two weeks ago, sparking a multicultural free-for-all. Obama dithered for several days while the controversy heated up, and finally gave a speech laying out his vision for America. This was the key passage: I can no more disown him [Rev. Wright] than I can disown the black community. I can no more disown him than I can disown my white grandmother, a woman who helped raise me, a woman who sacrificed again and again for me
