The Clinton campaign is risking the election with this racial divide.

[TheWraith]

If she got the nomination, she's running the risk of turning off black voters with all these attacks on Obama. If black people don't care enough to vote, even the easiest race is suddenly a big f-ing problem.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

1. No, Democrats are risking the election by buying into a sordid media narrative

This "racial divide" is a media driven event.

Every supposed incident in this skirmishing is less than meets the eye, but is spun mercilessly, and primarily by media not by the campaigns themselves.

[avaistheone1]

29. I think the Clinton and Obama camps are blowing it.

Both camps will suffer blowback from voters as a result of all this ugliness. imo

[maddiejoan]

2. Hillary is not race baiting

you are buying into a media driven distortion.

[sniffa]

17. Yes she is

You are buying into Clinton denials.

[maddiejoan]

26. and you, apparently

are buying into the MSM's mighty wurlitzer.

I suggest you back away from the television

[Adelante]

3. Oh, noes

No more.

[aquart]

4. Attacking an opponent is wrong if it's Obama?

But NOT wrong if it's a woman?

Who outnumbers whom?

[sniffa]

18. i love the way some here turn this into "you can't attack him or you're racist"

that's a great deflection, and a complete dismissal of sincere grievances.

[TankLV]

27. exactly...that's the WHOLE POINTabout this nonsense...

[durrrty libby]

5. um..They are not causing any divide. It is the Obama

Distortionist Contortionists who take things out of context and twist the

meaning

Obama is the one who will eventually suffer the big backlash

[Proud2BAmurkin]

6. yup that's why Obama finally had to come out today and said the Clintons weren't racist.

eom

[durrrty libby]

8. Oh? I missed that

[quinnox]

7. Mountain over a molehill

This is not important at all. Obama said today he doesn't question Hillarys commitment to civil rights.

This story will be a mere blip on the radar by November.

[DURHAM D]

10. No it won't. The damage has been done.

The party will suffer. Obama's comment came several days too late.

[durrrty libby]

12. Yes, He encouraged the tortured words. Let them stew awhile.

Then panicked when he saw the back lash coming over the hill...Amature

[ShaneGR]

9. I'm confused about the whole LBJ thing....

I mean, LBJ had just as much impact on civil rights for blacks as Martin Luther King. Seriously, he pushed it. He even said before he signed the new laws that Democrats were going to lose the south for a generation. But he still did it. He put principle ahead of politics.
nt.
I don't understand the logic behind criticizing the comment. Yes, Martin Luther King had a tremendous impact, that's why we name streets after him, but without LBJ, none of it became law at the time.

So what's so controversial about it, and did Hillary say it or someone connected to her campaign?

[IsItJustMe]

11. I think it's called hyseria, or another word for it is insanity. I don't geti it.

[Quixote1818]

13. Shows you just how careful Hillary is at crafting out race bating

The way she made that statement she knew it would create a firestorm even though if you look close it's actually a correct statement. Even Skinner read the statement and said "Not good" or something of the sort and he has to remain neutral here on DU. I am sure if Skinner had looked close he would have seen that the statement is OK but the damage has already been done by the Clinton camp. If you offend someone even if you didn't mean to you still need to apologize if you did a poor job communicating yourself especially if it could create racial tensions and divide the whole fucking party.


Of course a few Obama people complain just a little then Hillary gets on Meet the Press and says Obama is making this about race when he was silent on the issue.

Great job Hillary! You are dividing the whole Democratic Party!

[ShaneGR]

25. My real question is, did Hillary say it or did someone else?

It's a current theme in the campaign, the Obama campaign blows up about an advisor, or even just a supporter, that's my question.

[durrrty libby]

14. The Obamamites are desperately searching for anything to bring

her down.The strategy is to distort and twist words. It is all a sham
and will backfire on them

In your post you got it right. Her point was that you need a president to enact the big ideas.There was no disparaging of MLK There is no real controversy. All contrived. All a sham

[Quixote1818]

15. Seems to me the Obama people have hardly said anything about this

No one made an official statement but a couple of people thought the comment was poorly crafted then the Media turns it into Obama vs Clinton on race. Sure a lot of Blacks are upset but who says they are in Obama's camp? Many sound like they were in Hillary's camp and are jumping ship. Obama has nothing to do with them. And today Obama put an end to all this.

I support Edwards by the way.

[durrrty libby]

21. Who do you think decided Hillary was disparaging MLK?

Obama surrogates. The cherry on the cake was Jesse Jackson Jr

He is a co-chair for BO. He ramped up the idiotic rhetoric

Obama thinks he put an end to it. I think not

[demo dutch]

16. Duh.. Have we not learned anything? This is exactly what the GOP is hoping for

Both candidates need to calm down and because the country will get REAL tired of this REAL soon too. Dems fighting among ourselves is a ercipe for disaster meanwhile McCain (Mr. Moderate GOPer) will capitalize on this and present himself as the candicate can deal with the issues at large and unite the country.

[BluegrassDem]

19. People on DU are so clueless...try hanging around some black people

And you'll see how angry black folk are. I don't care who is driving this scandal, it's working and black people are really fired up over it. Hillary supporters can blame anyone they want, but the damage is done. Her and Bill have turned off so many black people. You guys on here should try listening to black radio sometime and see if black people aren't upset about it.

Hillary is playing with fire and she will get burned. She may win the nod in the end, but she'll never be elected president without good black voter turnout. She will NOT carry the big midwestern states if enough black people don't show up at the polls.

[NMMNG]

24. With all due respect, (to BluegrassDem and all)

Now do you have the slightest clue how we LGBTs have been feeling--particularly for the past +/- four months ?

Every single election cycle we get told in one way or another to STFU lest we "lose the election" for the Dems. We get told that our issues are just not important enough, or are just too divisive, or whatever the excuse dujour is. And when we protest we get told to "get over it". Then there's, "you're a minority so we certainly can't cater to you" and the ever popular, "what are you going to do--vote Republican?".

And then there's that whole McClurkin et. al. mess. And we have been told repeatedly to "get over it". Should we tell black people to "get over" their complaints of racism?

Has anyone read any LGBT blogs lately? Does anybody care to? Or are we just a bunch of uppity queers who only become important when our votes are needed?

Maybe we should stay home from the polls.

[TankLV]

28. So you "black people" are voting based on - race? Thanks, I'm clear now...

thank you buffy for explaining it to them...

[laureloak]

20. She keeps throwing divisive things out there to avoid the issues.

A Rove tactic.

[durrrty libby]

22. LIke what? What has she "thrown" out there?

[BenDavid]

23. HRC attacks, (plural )obama? Other then what she said to fox

about Dr. King and LBJ,just what are the other attacks hrc has leveled at obama?

[BenDavid]

30. Oh, so it's all the clintons fault? How do I know it was obama's

campaign that plays the race card. Well, as this as gone on for several days the comments have always been President Johnson. Now this afternoon late obama does not use President Johnson he says a "white politician"....You have got to catch the lil' shit like this from Obama and his campaign......

[Two Americas]

31. I don't know about this

I am an Edwards supporter, but I have to defend Senator Clinton on this. Are we sure we know where all of this is coming from? I am very suspicious. I have political differences with the Senator, but I do not believe that either Bill or Hillary Clinton would engage in or tolerate appeals to racism to advance a political campaign.

I urge caution on this. Who is behind it? Who is stirring it up? What good can come from it? It certainly does not help the Obama campaign, and it can only hurt the Democratic party.