Yahoo News: Could Race Destroy the Democratic Party?

[Bullet1987]

The article below proves what me and others have been saying and how it's being percieved. Read any article on this argument, or go to ANY political message board and this is how it's being transferred. Both Clinton and Obama better watch out that they don't destroy both their chances at getting the nomination, especially Clinton. Obama has been on the defense, it's Hillary that's launching the bombs.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20080114/us_time/couldracedestroythedemocrats">Could Race Destroy the Democrats?

After the past few days, the pertinent question to ask is, is the crack-up happening already? Far-fetched as it would have seemed a month ago, the seeds of self-destruction are being planted in the war of coded words about race between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. The bickering has exploded in the space of a week into Topic A in the Democratic race, supplanting for the moment the war and the economy and health care - and shows no sign of a quick resolution.

So yes, are the Democrats about to screw it up yet again?

................

The mess began - as these things almost always do - in a normal tit for tat between the candidates. After Obama was poised to surge past Clinton after Iowa, Clinton charged that Obama was raising "false hopes" with his soaring rhetoric that emphasized ends over means. Obama skewered Clinton right back in New Hampshire, asking where the nation would be if both JFK - in making a manned mission to the moon a goal - or Martin Luther King Jr. - in his 1963 Lincoln Memorial speech - had instead shut down their visions and told America they were simply too hard to achieve. Delivered with humor and always to soaring applause, Obama's was a devastating rejoinder.

But then Clinton came back and, far less artfully, said that King's visions were great, but it took an experienced politician like Lyndon Johnson to get them enacted. At the very least, Clinton had equated the sometimes crass master of the legislative backroom with one of America's patron saints. (The real problem is that Clinton seemed to put LBJ on a pedestal higher than King's.) That was probably not her intention, but neither was this her best example in the deeds - not - words crusade she was on. In any case, at that point, things began to unravel.

Now we have both campaigns accusing the other of stoking the fire, of deliberately misunderstanding the other (and there is a lot of that going on, here, too) and both sides have had their various lieutenants and seconds trying to "help" explain things, which almost always makes things worse. That much was clear over the weekend, when BET founder Bob Johnson, in trying to defend the Clintons, appeared to all the world to be bringing up Obama's admitted history of drug use (Johnson later claimed he was actually referring to Obama's history as a community organizer, a laughable explanation that only dug the hole deeper.)

[shaniqua6392]

1. The media is making this spin out of control.

Neither Clinton nor Obama have done anything wrong, in my opinion. This is divisive to the party and I hope it stops soon.

[IndianaGreen]

5. Every time Hillary or Bill open their mouths, they do it again!

I am convinced that this is part of some strategy trying to emulate the division used by people like Jesse Helms to win elections.

[Anouka]

6. What exactly has Clinton done right, may I ask?

I don't think the Clintons are in the right in this at all, but that's just me. You obviously feel differently.

To me, to say that neither the Clintons or Obama have done anything wrong is to equate them to each other......... and that damages Obama more than Clinton. He's not the one who runs on race, yet he's being targetted as if he personally made this about race. That's not right.

Also, it's important that the headline is about 'Race', not about 'Sex'.... which, again, damages Obama more than it damages Clinton. The headline doesn't even mention a neutral like 'mudslinging' or 'dirty politics' or 'negative campaigning'.

They distill it down to race. Which is what the Clintons have been up to all along. Which is NOT what Obama has been about.

Which ultimately helps the Clintons.

I can't support this, and I don't understand how anyone else could. But I'm not everyone else.

So I ask you: what have the Clintons done right? How are they equal to Obama? What has Obama done right that is equal to the Clintons?

[Anouka]

2. No. But the Clintons could. n/t

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. Quite brutally honest if there is a party in trouble is NOT the Democratic Party

this is a MSM meme... think WHY and WHO BENEFITS?

Yes, they have been launching bombs, but nothing worst than oh lets say McCain had a black baby (push poll) in 2000. So be careful with the memes you swallow

Hell that black baby push poll was far worst than anything these two candidates have done

[napi21]

4. I don't think so, but I find it interesting that so many say "Dems are not

raist or gender biased like the Pubs" but when it really comes down to the real world, it sure looks to me like we have our share!!!

[Anouka]

9. If you blame the other, you don't have to examine (and fix) yourself.

Basically. So it's always Republicans' fault; and if it's Republicans' fault then Democrats have nothing to clean up in their own backyard. If you don't see it, it doesn't exist.

Mothers who refuse to acknowledge that their second husbands are sexually abusing his stepchildren, her children, their children? If you don't see it, it doesn't exist. If you don't want to see it, it doesn't exist.

I saw someone claim that white Democrats who won't vote for a candidate because they are black are irrelevant because they probably listen to Rush. That blew my mind.

And I've also seen people who claim that white Democrats who won't vote for Democrats because those Democrats are black... they're votes don't matter. That also blew my mind. I wondered, how old are these people? It reminded me of the reasoning of High School, Junior High... you know, when you're supposed to put on the front that nothing matters and folks are 'jus jelus'. But in the real world, those votes matter. A lot.

[Arkansas Granny]

7. We are being played by the media. They are looking for ratings

and this just fits the bill for them.

[AnneD]

11. I totally agree....

It is another way to divide us. When there was the bruhaha about Hillary crying, I went back to look at the video and to quote Peggy Lee (and show my age)....

Is That All There IS...

SPOKEN:
I remember when I was a very little girl, our house caught on fire.
I'll never forget the look on my father's face as he gathered me up
in his arms and raced through the burning building out to the pavement.
I stood there shivering in my pajamas and watched the whole world go up in flames.
And when it was all over I said to myself, "Is that all there is to a fire"

<snip>

SPOKEN:
And when I was 12 years old, my father took me to a circus, the greatest show on earth.
There were clowns and elephants and dancing bears.
And a beautiful lady in pink tights flew high above our heads.
And so I sat there watching the marvelous spectacle.
I had the feeling that something was missing.
I don't know what, but when it was over,
I said to myself, "is that all there is to a circus?

SUNG:
Is that all there is, is that all there is
If that's all there is my friends, then let's keep dancing

[jasmine621]

8. Only if the Dem candidates allow the media to get away with it.

Anyone saying that race cannot, should not, or is not playing a role in this election (even on the Republican side) is fooling themselves and really living a "fairy tale." Of course, it is a factor. But it doesn't have to destroy the party or the candidates. The ball is always in the media's court. Whatever they choose to make an issue will be an issue.

Remember JFK had far more sexual indescretions going on in the WH and outside than Bill Clinton ever dreamed about. The media knew about them and CHOSE to keep them from the public. Hence an admired and glorified JFK era. It was only the MSM (and I include all the radio talk shows) that made the Lewinsky issue as huge as it was. AND WE ALLOWED THEM TO DO THAT.

Now we are going to let them, after enabling the Bush administration to get us into an illegal war, finish the job by destroying practically everything that could turn our demise around.

When will we learn?

[napi21]

12. I agree with you, but in all fairness, what can anyone do about it?

Yes, I send aggrivating mail to the TV networks when something irresponsible is done by one of their hosts, and I've stopped watching some programs because of what's been said, and YES I've told the network my reson for no longer watching, but unless there's a dramatic drop in some particular shows viewership and they start to investigate why, I'm sure the few complaint letters they get mean NOTHING!

There's isn't ONE show or ONE network that's pushing this crap either. It's ALL OF THEM! I am NOT willing to stop watching all cable news shows, all broadcast news and all progressive radio just to prove a point! It would bother ME a lot more than it would ever impact them!

I WISH I could stop it, but I really have no idea how!

[Ytzak]

10. This is the 4 year echo of the Dean Scream.

The media has found something that they can play and replay to make the possible nominees into raving racist misogynists.

If Obama and Clinton do not get this under control, they may very well loose, even against a Republican.

Clintonista's and Obamaista's need to back off the ridiculous accusations and unite against the media.