Obama and Iowa Celebrate!

There are primaries this Tuesday in Oregon and Kentucky. A big win in Oregon should give Obama more than half of the pledged delegates. So.... Obama has elected to celebrate with the ones who brung 'im, "Obama to Return to Iowa, Possibly to Claim Victory." (NY Times)

An overwhelming victory in Oregon for Obama is definitely in the air as "75,000 Attend Obama Rally in Portland." on Sunday. (MSNBC Firstread) Obama's biggest rally of the campaign to date.

It was Obama's Iowa caucus win over John Edwards and Hillary Clinton that breathed life and viability into his historic quest to become the Democratic candidate for president.

Against the odds of a scorched-earth Clinton political machine, the sniping of a terrified GOP preferring to run against a high-negatives Hillary, the lingering whiff of racial bias, the high-octane destructive rants of Obama's former pastor Rev. Wright.... even the conniving of Limbaugh dittoheads voting for Hillary Clinton in Operation Chaos...

Against all of these odds it seems an almost certainty that Obama will become not only the first African American candidate for the presidency, but has a better than 50-50 chance of becoming the first African American president of the United States.

On Tuesday Obama will revisit Iowa where his feet were firmly planted on the path to the White House.... 95 percent white Iowa, with politically-educated caucus-goers who listened and were energized by his politics of hope, inclusion and change.

Iowa, a swing state in November, won't forget Obama now. His second beginning starts Tuesday in Iowa.... the pledged-delegate benchmark heralding the beginning of Obama's national campaign. It's fitting that Obama.... Iowa's "favorite son".... touches home.

Obama: Shed Wright

He's heavy, and he's not Barack Obama's brother, in any sense of the word. In fact, he's not even a pastor Obama can turn to.

It's obvious.... Obama and Wright are different kinds of men. Wright is unforgiving and bitter, looking for his 15 minutes of fame.... and he doesn't care if he tramples the hopes of the black community, and much of the nation, under his scrabbling feet.

Obama has tried mightily to spare Wright's legacy as the minister of a church that accomplished many good works.... to explain and even justify the reckless rants of the angry pastor he sees as a "crazy Uncle." He's turned the other cheek and shown Wright the forbearance of the true Christian that Wright only claims to be.

Wright claims a lot of things, including that he represents all black churches, and an attack on him is "an attack on the black church."

This statement gives us the lens by which to bring into focus Wright's megalomania. The reality of course is that African American churches are diverse. Yet Wright insists on being seen as something he's not: "an archetypal representative of the African American church. In fact, he represents one twig of one branch of a very large tree."

So explains Eugene Robinson today in "Where Wright Goes Wrong" (WaPo) .... "Historically and theologically, [Wright] was inflating his importance in the pride-goeth-before-the-fall kind of way. Politically, by surfacing now, he was throwing Barack Obama under the bus."

With so much at stake for the nation, Robinson sadly advises Obama, ".... it's time to return the favor."

Reverend Wrong

You would think that the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, former pastor of Barack Obama's church, would be buoyed up, proud, downright hallelujah happy that a member of his flock was making history..... very close to being the Democratic nominee for President of the United States.

Think of the good Obama could do for the African-American community, the inspiring example he would set for young people, the positive winds of change he could champion with his presidency.

But no, the Rev. Wright not only doesn't help Obama, he seems determined to grab the public megaphone to loudly broadcast his strident and divisive opinions, enabling Obama's detractors to paint Obama into a campaign-shredding by-association corner. (WaPo)

Once again, the African-American community is not well-served by a leader. If Obama succeeds, it'll be no thanks to his former pastor. It'll be because voters see the self-serving and destructive egos lined up against Obama.... Wright, Billary, the "Limbaughs" everywhere.... for what they are. Spoilers.

The Rev. Wright says he wants to bring people together. Looks like the only way he could accomplish that would be to get out of Obama's way!