Obamas Spiritual Leader

[Wabash]

This is from http://www.texasmob.com/rikbrooks

This is the transcript of a recent speech by Reverend Jeremiah White – The pastor of Barak Obama’s church. I found the transcript at http://tinyurl.com/2cw9p7 and he simply asked that I attribute it to him – OK, there you are. Let’s take a look at this speech and see if we can tell if the man really is racist. Let’s see if we can tell anything about the man at all without ad hominem attacks. Here’s the speech.

Quote:
Who cares about what I’m going through? Who cares about what poor people have to put up with? Who cares about what a poor black man has to face every day in a country and a culture controlled by rich white people?

Somebody missed that — you got nervous, because we got some white members here. I’m still in bible country. I am still in [unintelligible].

Jesus was a poor, black man who lived in a country and who lived in a culture that was controlled by rich white people. The Romans were rich, the Romans were Italian — which means they were European, which means they were white — and the Romans ran everything in Jesus’ country.

It just came to me with— with— with— within the past few weeks, y’all, why so many folks are hatin’ on Barack Obama. He doesn’t fit the mold. He ain’t white. He ain’t rich. And he ain’t privileged.

Hillary fits the mold. Europeans fit the mold. Giuliani fits the mold. Rich white men fit the mold.

Hillary never had a cab whizz past her and not pick her up because her skin was the wrong color. Hillary never had to worry about being pulled over in her car as a black man driving in the wrong…

I am sick of Negroes who just do not get it!

Hillary was not a black boy raised in a single-parent home. Barack was! Barack knows what it means to be a black man livin’ in a country and a culture that is controlled by rich white people! Hillary can never know that!

Hillary ain’t never been called a n*****! Hillary has never had her people defined as non-persons! Hillary ain’t had to work twice as hard just to get accepted by the rich white folks who [unintelligible] everything, or to get a passing grade when you know you are smarter than that C student sittin’ in the White House!
Ohhh, I am so glad that I got a god who knows what it is to be a poor black man, and in a country and a culture that is controlled and run by rich white people!

He taught me, Jesus did, how to love my enemies. Jesus taught me how to love the hell outta my enemies! And not be reduced to their level of hatred, bigotry, and smallmindedness.
Hillary ain’t never had her own people say she wasnt white enough!

Jesus had his own people sidin’ with the enemy!

That’s why i love Jesus, y’all. He never let their hatred dampen his hope. …

Well, that’s it. There are 427 words in this speech, 28 sentences.

He uses the racially charged phrases “Rich white man” or “Poor black boy” 9 times. 9 sentences out of 28 contain racially charged phrases.

He says that Obama is hated because ‘he ain’t white’. Now that is not in itself a racist statement until you look a second time and realize that Reverend White is calling all those that don’t like this ultra left liberal a racist. Certainly we can’t object to his policies where are the farthest left in all of Congress. No, according to Reverend White if we are against Obama then we are racist.

He goes on to say that Hillary has never had her people defined as non-persons. Ummm, Reverend, neither have you and neither has any other living person in this country.

He says that “Hillary ain’t had to work twice as hard…” Yes, Reverend, she has. Did you notice that she’s a woman? There is a great deal of sexism in this country. Why would you discount that?

Then you call the President a C student – well, you are right. He was a C student in Harvard Business School. I’d say that’s something to be proud of. Even if it weren’t Harvard, a C is average. Are you saying that average people are stupid?

“Hillary ain’t never had her own people say she wasn’t white enough!” Nope, but she’s had her own people say she wasn’t man enough.

So if we look realistically at his speech, it is almost entirely about race. It is derogatory to whites, including Romans and Italians. Does this mean that Obama is a racist? Of course it doesn’t. It only means that Obama insists that his spiritual mentor (Obama’s words, not mine) is a racist.

[Wabash]

I was never taught any of that growing up Christian...if my pastor talked like that about anyone....I'd be out of there for good!

[Wabash]

Obama and his wife and kids have been attending that church for more than 20 years, and have heaped gobs of money on the church... That ass hole even married them.....

If he's been absorbing that hate for all those years and gets the nomination, then what..??? Arabs and blacks dancing in the streets...???

Rush may be right... The demographic white male population selects the POTUS... Hopefully......

The sad part is that the media won't run with this at all......

This guy is outrageously black-power racist....

[Viki]

<<Hillary never had a cab whizz past her and not pick her up because her skin was the wrong color. Hillary never had to worry about being pulled over in her car as a black man driving in the wrong…>>

I heard this on the radio today - what utter bullshit. I've had lots of occasions to recommend Rev. Wright, but he should try to walk in a woman's shoes just one day of his life.

[Yellowdogtexan]

You got to be kidding. This is stupid even for wabby. Here is something that even someone as simple as wabby may understand given that he is probably considered the senile old uncle by anyone who knows him. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/mar/13/barackobama.hillaryclintonIn a meeting with Jewish leaders in Cleveland earlier this month, Obama compared Wright to an "old uncle" who said disagreeable things. He went on to add: "I suspect there are some of the people in this room who have heard relatives say some things that they don't agree with, including, on occasion, directed at African Americans."

His campaign told ABC that Obama did not think of his pastor in political terms.

"Senator Obama does not think of the pastor of his church in political terms. Like a member of his family, there are things he says with which Senator Obama deeply disagrees. But now that he is retired, that doesn't detract from Senator Obama's affection for Reverend Wright or his appreciation for the good works he has done," campaign spokesman, Bill Burton, told ABC in a statement.Wabby, your homophobic and xenophobia views are not automatically held by every member of your congregation or family members.

[Wabash]

<<Hillary never had a cab whizz past her and not pick her up because her skin was the wrong color. Hillary never had to worry about being pulled over in her car as a black man driving in the wrong…>>

I heard this on the radio today - what utter bullshit. I've had lots of occasions to recommend Rev. Wright, but he should try to walk in a woman's shoes just one day of his life.

Recommend him? A belligerent racist?

[Viki]

Recommend him? A belligerent racist?


Sigh ... he is occasionally right, even by accident... know what I mean? :LL

[Lone Laugher]

Wabby,

You are a never-ending source of entertainment. I wonder if you really bothered to follow your own link? It is just fabulous.

Here it is again:

http://tinyurl.com/2cw9p7

Really, Wabums....I am amazed at your unwavering tolerance for the gay agenda! :LL

[BartonX]

<<Hillary never had a cab whizz past her and not pick her up because her skin was the wrong color. Hillary never had to worry about being pulled over in her car as a black man driving in the wrong…>>

I heard this on the radio today - what utter bullshit. I've had lots of occasions to recommend Rev. Wright, but he should try to walk in a woman's shoes just one day of his life.

Maybe that cab driver was smart enough not to pick up an ignorant bastard like Obama's preacher that was out to cause him harm and has a reputation for doing ignorant shit to white people because they can and are excused for it???? Ya think??? I drove a limo and no one in their right mind will cater to criminals waiting to happen. You are grossly naive!

The problem was not the skin was the wrong color the problem was a degenerate and unacceptable outlook and way of thinking. All other colors managed to become a part of something great and they didn't do it by accident. Put the blame where it belongs....put it on the offender...and what that offender has demonstrated itself to be.

[Lone Laugher]

That was a stupid post....even for you. Bart. At least try to be coherent. won't you? You didn't even pick up on Viki's point.

[BartonX]

That was a stupid post....even for you. Bart. At least try to be coherent. won't you? You didn't even pick up on Viki's point.

I picked up on her point perfectly she was blaming the white man, as is the mantra of the simple minded. I took the time to show the other side of the story, one too often ignored by people like you lying in wait to be offended if the inexcusable are exposed for being the problem.

Stupid is ignoring the facts, it is not stupid to present them. By your standards every race is wrong except the one that is the problem. Sorry, your version sucks!

Intelligent discussion requires both sides not just your lame one.

[Lone Laugher]

Uh....I don't think that was her point at all. Try again.

C'mon....you can do it. Just take it slowly and read every word this time.

[Yellowdogtexan]

That was a stupid post....even for you. Bart. At least try to be coherent. won't you?Remember, Doc/Bartonx is the poster who is convinced that Senator Obama must be a muslim because of his name. I am curious how bartonx can reconcile this silly and wrong view with the concept that Senator Obama is a member of a christian church. Expecting a person like bartonx to be coherent is asking way too much.

[Viki]

I picked up on her point perfectly she was blaming the white man, as is the mantra of the simple minded. I took the time to show the other side of the story, one too often ignored by people like you lying in wait to be offended if the inexcusable are exposed for being the problem.

.

ROTFL ...no, really! I have been called sooooo many things, today even, by my Bishop (at whose pleasure I serve), but simpleminded is hardly ever one of 'em... he he ... love it!:akbar:akbar:akbar

[issac the dragon]

<<Hillary never had a cab whizz past her and not pick her up because her skin was the wrong color. Hillary never had to worry about being pulled over in her car as a black man driving in the wrong…>>

I heard this on the radio today - what utter bullshit. I've had lots of occasions to recommend Rev. Wright, but he should try to walk in a woman's shoes just one day of his life.

As in: She had to endure every thing a black man does, and then put up with being put down by black men too. Because she was a woman. Misogyny exists in every race and religion. On top of all the other b.s.

[Wabash]

You got to be kidding. This is stupid even for wabby. Here is something that even someone as simple as wabby may understand given that he is probably considered the senile old uncle by anyone who knows him. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/mar/13/barackobama.hillaryclintonWabby, your homophobic and xenophobia views are not automatically held by every member of your congregation or family members.
Hey, I'm just passing along a comment from a racist, White hating, black man with a bone to pick! My views are common sense and I'm none of the above...no matter how often you lie about it!

Wabby,

You are a never-ending source of entertainment. I wonder if you really bothered to follow your own link? It is just fabulous.

Here it is again:

http://tinyurl.com/2cw9p7

Really, Wabums....I am amazed at your unwavering tolerance for the gay agenda! :LL
I copied that from another forum, with the permission of the person that posted it...I never went to a link, gay or otherwise.....you be assumin again!
Far be it from me to have anything to do with queers!

[Wabash]

Besides LL, it's the message, not the link that matters....

[Yellowdogtexan]

Again, Wabby is just like the crazy old uncle that Senator Obama mentions. He is amusing but no one takes him seriously. Of course, as a hater and homophobe, wabby has a great deal in common with an alleged racist

Again, Senator Obama has made it very clear that Rev. Wright does not speak for him. http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nation/politics/bal-te.preacher16jan16,0,1629577.storyIn a statement released by his campaign last night, Obama responded to questions about Wright's comments on Sunday.

"As I've told Reverend Wright, personal attacks such as this have no place in this campaign or our politics, whether they're offered from a platform at a rally or the pulpit of a church," he said. "I don't think of the pastor of my church in political terms.

"Like a member of my own family, there are things he says at times with which I deeply disagree," he said. "But as he prepares to retire, that doesn't detract from my affection for Reverend Wright or appreciation for the good works he has done."....

If Wright's rhetoric costs Obama some votes, others believe that would be more than offset by voters moved by Obama's ability to bring religion back into the liberal political message.

Ronald Walters, a political scientist at the University of Maryland, notes that Obama is getting the support of many black preachers who flirted with the Republican Party during the Bush administration, finding its position on cultural issues such as gay marriage and abortion appealing.

"Jeremiah Wright is one of the most influential and well-known black preachers in America," Walters said. "His church is in the center of black culture. It is not some cult. It is not something out of the way. It is a quintessential black church."

Hopkins says those who condemn Wright's message as anti-white do not understand it. For one, he notes that this is the largest congregation, and the largest contributor, in the United Church of Christ, a white church.

"And what he says is not against anybody, it is against the internal evils within the black community itself, the need to deal with those and confront them with strong values," Hopkins said.

"The idea that one would come to Trinity and see symbols or rituals that are anti-white America or hear a Wright sermon against white people is very curious to me," he said. "It's impossible to hold 8,000 people together talking against white people.

[BartonX]

Again, Wabby is just like the crazy old uncle that Senator Obama mentions. He is amusing but no one takes him seriously. Of course, as a hater and homophobe, wabby has a great deal in common with an alleged racist

Again, Senator Obama has made it very clear that Rev. Wright does not speak for him. http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nation/politics/bal-te.preacher16jan16,0,1629577.story

Listen up Mr. Dimbulb, Wabash merely relayed information about a black bastard that has proven to be actual and factual. The question is not whether the one making the statements is in fact a black bastard or even much worse but what character defect does Yo Bama have to be a member of that racist group for over twenty years??? (More like 25)

So Mr. Paralegal, will you have the balls to call Yo Bama a racist hater, xenophobe, homophobe or will you pander to his skin oh spineless one?

This so called Preacher said: "The song says God bless America but we say God damn America". Trivialize that Wimpy.:charge

[Wabash]

Listen up Mr. Dimbulb, Wabash merely relayed information about a black bastard that has proven to be actual and factual. The question is not whether the one making the statements is in fact a black bastard or even much worse but what character defect does Yo Bama have to be a member of that racist group for over twenty years??? (More like 25)

So Mr. Paralegal, will you have the balls to call Yo Bama a racist hater, xenophobe, homophobe or will you pander to his skin oh spineless one?

This so called Preacher said: "The song says God bless America but we say God damn America". Trivialize that Wimpy.:charge
Thanks Barton...you nailed the Liberal Extremist for sure....he can't possibly agree that this black bastard is a turd...he has to throw shit at me....thing is, he gets it all over himself first....
Hey doggie, clean that shit off your fucking puss, it makes you look like a faggot!!

[BartonX]

Thanks Barton...you nailed the Liberal Extremist for sure....he can't possibly agree that this black bastard is a turd...he has to throw shit at me....thing is, he gets it all over himself first....
Hey doggie, clean that shit off your fucking puss, it makes you look like a faggot!!

You're right Wab, but what can one expect from someone that calls "Reprobate Repulsion", "Homophobia" ? He doesn't have a mind he has an agenda, the sick fuck!

[Trueblue]

Again, Wabby is just like the crazy old uncle that Senator Obama mentions. He is amusing but no one takes him seriously. Of course, as a hater and homophobe, wabby has a great deal in common with an alleged racist

Again, Senator Obama has made it very clear that Rev. Wright does not speak for him. http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nation/politics/bal-te.preacher16jan16,0,1629577.story

Thanks for the facts, I hope that some people are capable of listening.

[Trueblue]

Hopkins says those who condemn Wright's message as anti-white do not understand it. For one, he notes that this is the largest congregation, and the largest contributor, in the United Church of Christ, a white church.

"And what he says is not against anybody, it is against the internal evils within the black community itself, the need to deal with those and confront them with strong values," Hopkins said.

I've heard Wabash and Barton praise Bill Cosby for this sort of statement-it is completely clear that this is a typical Publican smear campaign, and that they can't defend Mc:cane so they must attack Hillary and Obama.

The Publicans cannot get a candidate elected on their own anymore-they have to rely on fear-mongering and smear tactics.

[Wabash]

Thanks for the facts, I hope that some people are capable of listening.
Not the facts TB...it's the coverup! I wish you were capable of thinking outside the box instead of applauding doggie all the time...you are a good follower!

I've heard Wabash and Barton praise Bill Cosby for this sort of statement-it is completely clear that this is a typical Publican smear campaign, and that they can't defend Mc:cane so they must attack Hillary and Obama.

The Publicans cannot get a candidate elected on their own anymore-they have to rely on fear-mongering and smear tactics.
This church well well established and an avenue for Obie Black Street Credentials and divert attention from his Muslim heritage...
How can Obie's beliefs NOT be the same as Pastor Wright's???
It's crap! Are we to believe that the Pastor's views were foreign to them. The Obamas is NO nutty Uncle in the attic. Obie thinks just like Uncle Wright! This guy married them, baptized their kids and his views are their views! The man is full of hate and I can see this same hate in the Mrs. Obama rhetoric....
In short...I think Obie is a liar and the Rev. Wright is VERY MUCH a part of who he is!

[Yellowdogtexan]

Listen up Mr. Dimbulb, Wabash merely relayed information about ...doc, you are in the same category as wabby, i.e. you are the senile old uncle who makes amusing or outrageous comments that everyone ignores. As a homophobe and bigot, your opinions are discounted just like people discout the opinions of the senile old uncle mentioned by Senator Obama. It is not surprising that you and wabby identify with these comnents given your homophobia and other issues.

[Yellowdogtexan]

BTW, doc you were the idiot who insisted that Senator Obama is a muslim solely because of his name. Do I need to copy and paste these silly and stupid posts here? Are you backing down from this stupidity to embrace these latest attempts to discredit Senator Obama? You can not claim that Senator Obama is both a racist christian and a muslim at the same time.

[Saguaro]

This thread has gotten out of hand with insults flying . It is being moved

[Yellowdogtexan]

Here is Senator Obama's latest statement on Rev. Wright. http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/03/obama_i_profoundly_disagree_wi.phpIn an interview with a Pittsburgh newspaper, Obama personally addresses the revelations that Obama's pastor said "God damn America": Q: I don't know if you've seen it, but it's all over the wire today (from an ABC News story), a statement that your pastor (the Rev. Jeremiah Wright of Trinity United Church of Christ on Chicago's South Side) made in a sermon in 2003 that instead of singing "God Bless America," black people should sing a song essentially saying "God Damn America."

A: I haven't seen the line. This is a pastor who is on the brink of retirement who in the past has made some controversial statements. I profoundly disagree with some of these statements.

Q: What about this particular statement?

A: Obviously, I disagree with that. Here is what happens when you just cherry-pick statements from a guy who had a 40-year career as a pastor. There are times when people say things that are just wrong. But I think it's important to judge me on what I've said in the past and what I believe.

[Capitalist]

Thanks for the facts, I hope that some people are capable of listening.

I think that there is plenty to argue about Obama's positions on the issues , no need to do guilt by association.

I can however make a case for it.

Many times repiublicans are called to repudiate christian leaders like Robertson and Falwell.

If they do not or do not do so specifically enough the left calls them on the carpet for it.

This case is a little different, he has personally known and respected this man for 2 decades. This man married Obama and his wife. Obama said that a sermon given by this man inspired him to write his best selling Book, 'The Audacity of Hope'.

This man is also a leader in a group that is an official part of the Obama campaign.

This man is VERY anti-american.


He says aides was developed by the US to commit genocide on people of color.

So I can assume in the future that non of you on the left will make this guilt by association when some right leaning christian pastor says something nutty like that.

[Trueblue]

This is a smear tactic, nothing more or less.

[Ringo]

You got to be kidding. This is stupid even for wabby. Here is something that even someone as simple as wabby may understand given that he is probably considered the senile old uncle by anyone who knows him. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/mar/13/barackobama.hillaryclintonWabby, your homophobic and xenophobia views are not automatically held by every member of your congregation or family members.

Are you telling us that YOU would kiss Wrights ass and endorse what the SICK PRICK is saying?? YOU fuckers always have an excuse for your sick HATE filled Progressive assholes who love Communism and Satanic Islamic types more than you do Americans!! Wabby is twice the man you will ever be and I'm thinking FAR MORE AMERICAN than you can dream about!!

Liberal Excuses:

Teddy was EMOTIONALY and PHYSICALLY exhausted after trying to save Mary Jo's life, and he wandered away in a daze...dead DRUNK!!!

Gary Condit, oh he thought the world of this Intern and would never physically become involved or even consider murder??? Yea Right!!

Hillary & Bill, more excuses for their Criminal behavior and murderous ways than I have time to print!!

[Yellowdogtexan]

Here are some excerpts from a post that Senator Obama made today on this subject. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/barack-obama/on-my-faith-and-my-church_b_91623.htmlLet me say at the outset that I vehemently disagree and strongly condemn the statements that have been the subject of this controversy. I categorically denounce any statement that disparages our great country or serves to divide us from our allies. I also believe that words that degrade individuals have no place in our public dialogue, whether it's on the campaign stump or in the pulpit. In sum, I reject outright the statements by Rev. Wright that are at issue.....

And the sermons I heard him preach always related to our obligation to love God and one another, to work on behalf of the poor, and to seek justice at every turn.

The statements that Rev. Wright made that are the cause of this controversy were not statements I personally heard him preach while I sat in the pews of Trinity or heard him utter in private conversation. When these statements first came to my attention, it was at the beginning of my presidential campaign. I made it clear at the time that I strongly condemned his comments. But because Rev. Wright was on the verge of retirement, and because of my strong links to the Trinity faith community, where I married my wife and where my daughters were baptized, I did not think it appropriate to leave the church.

Let me repeat what I've said earlier. All of the statements that have been the subject of controversy are ones that I vehemently condemn. They in no way reflect my attitudes and directly contradict my profound love for this country.Senator Obama has clearly rejected and denounced these statements. That will not be enought for the conservative idiots who are also claiming that Senator Obama is a muslim but these idiots are too stupid to reason with.

[Trueblue]

An excellent statement.

[Yellowdogtexan]

Are you telling us that YOU would kiss Wrights ass and endorse what the SICK PRICK is saying?? So do you think it is fair to impute or attribute to Senator McCain all of your moronic claims and hold him responsible for the rather stupid statements that you have made on this board solely because you are one of his supporters. If so, then under that standard the Democrats will have no trouble winning the White House in November even if the fight between Senators Obama and Clinton goes to the convention in Denver.

The statements of a supporter can not be inputed or attributed to the leader unless they were either authorized or ratified. I can assure that Senator Mccain has not authorized nor will he ratify your moronic claims and so it would not be appropriate to attribute such statements to Senator mccain and use such statements against Senator McCain in the general election.

By the same token, one can not attribute the statements of Rev. Wright to Senator Obama because Senator Obama has made it clear that Rev. Wright was not authorized to speak for him and that Senator Obama has specifically rejected such statement. If ringo disagrees with this analysis, I will be glad to ask Senator McCain if he wants to be bound by Ringo's statements and if it is okay for the Democrats to attribute the statements of ringo to Senator McCain in the general election.

[Viki]

I'm sorry, there is absolutely NO WAY Obama didn't know about the complete vitriol Wright has been spewing. As I said in another post I've defended Wright on occasion - even sent parishioners to hear him preach, but I had NO IDEA the rhetoric had become THIS AWFUL.

I say this as a preacher: for him to assume the pulpit and preach such HATE for this country the Sunday after 9/11 is reason enough for him to be defrocked.

If one of MY pastors had even thought about preaching like that I would have dismissed them automatically - no discussion, no questions, no nothing.

Listen, I did inner city ministry for years and my first settled congregation was 99% African American, I get the culture. I LIKE the culture. As a preacher I get hyperbole. But the sermons I have listened to today are inexcusable, and there is NO WAY Obama didn't know it.

In fact, today it was reported on MSNBC (Obama network incorporated) that the Senator and Wright had a discussion months ago that this stuff was going to come out and that they therefore should distance from one another.

[Trueblue]

I'm sorry, if Obama says he didn't know it, then he didn't know it. This goes against everything Obama is trying to do and what he stands for.

[Viki]

I'm sorry, if Obama says he didn't know it, then he didn't know it. This goes against everything Obama is trying to do and what he stands for.

Sorry, friend, he knew it. As stated above, he even planned for it.

[Trueblue]

I really doubt it, and I also don't see anything wrong with deciding how to deal with a controversy in a campaign.

[Trueblue]

So, Viki, did you go to hear Wright at some point in the past?

[Viki]

So, Viki, did you go to hear Wright at some point in the past?

Yes, I tried to, but the week I was in town, he was on vacation - the nerve!!! :)

[Saguaro]

WASHINGTON - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama on Friday denounced inflammatory remarks from his pastor, who has railed against the United States and accused its leaders of bringing on the Sept. 11 attacks by spreading terrorism.

As video of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright has widely aired on television and the Internet, Obama responded by posting a blog about his relationship with Wright and his church, Chicago's Trinity United Church of Christ, on the Huffington Post.

Obama wrote that he's looked to Wright for spiritual advice, not political guidance, and he's been pained and angered to learn of some of his pastor's comments for which he had not been present. Obama's statement did not say whether Wright would remain on his African American Religious Leadership Committee, and campaign officials wouldn't say either.

"I categorically denounce any statement that disparages our great country or serves to divide us from our allies," Obama said. "I also believe that words that degrade individuals have no place in our public dialogue, whether it's on the campaign stump or in the pulpit. In sum, I reject outright the statements by Reverend Wright that are at issue."

In a sermon on the Sunday after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, Wright suggested the United States brought on the attacks.

"We bombed Hiroshima, we bombed Nagasaki, and we nuked far more than the thousands in New York and the Pentagon, and we never batted an eye," Wright said. "We have supported state terrorism against the Palestinians and black South Africans, and now we are indignant because the stuff we have done overseas is now brought right back to our own front yards. America's chickens are coming home to roost."

In a 2003 sermon, he said blacks should condemn the United States.

"The government gives them the drugs, builds bigger prisons, passes a three-strike law and then wants us to sing 'God Bless America.' No, no, no, God damn America, that's in the Bible for killing innocent people. God damn America for treating our citizens as less than human. God damn America for as long as she acts like she is God and she is supreme."

He also gave a sermon in December comparing Obama to Jesus, promoting his candidacy and playing down Clinton.

Questions about Obama's religious beliefs have dogged him throughout his candidacy. He's had to fight against false Internet rumors suggesting he's really a Muslim intent on destroying the United States, and now his pastor's words uttered nearly seven years ago have become an issue.

Obama wrote on the Huffington Post that he never heard Wright say any of the statements that are "so contrary to my own life and beliefs," but they have raised legitimate questions about the nature of his relationship with the pastor and the church.

He explained that he joined Wright's church, Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, nearly 20 years ago. He said he knew Wright as a former Marine and respected biblical scholar who lectured at seminaries across the country.

"Reverend Wright preached the gospel of Jesus, a gospel on which I base my life," he wrote. "... And the sermons I heard him preach always related to our obligation to love God and one another, to work on behalf of the poor, and to seek justice at every turn."

He said Wright's controversial statements first came to his attention at the beginning of his presidential campaign last year, and he condemned them. Because of his ties to the 6,000-member congregation church — he and his wife were married there and their daughters baptized — Obama decided not to leave the church.

Obama also has credited Wright with delivering a sermon that he adopted as the title of his book, "The Audacity of Hope."

"With Reverend Wright's retirement and the ascension of my new pastor, Rev. Otis Moss, III, Michelle and I look forward to continuing a relationship with a church that has done so much good," he wrote.

Also Friday, the United Church of Christ issued a 1,400-word statement defending Wright and his "flagship" congregation. John H. Thomas, United Church of Christ's president, lauded Wright's church for its community service and work to nurture youth. Other church leaders praised Wright for speaking out against homophobia and sexism in the black community.

"It's time for all of us to say no to these attacks and to declare that we will not allow anyone to undermine or destroy the ministries of any of our congregations in order to serve their own narrow political or ideological ends," Thomas said in the statement.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080314/ap_on_el_pr/obama_pastor;_ylt=Ap8iE96uXG497j8rz8e171Cs0NUE

[Trueblue]

That is too bad, I would have liked a first hand report.

[Viki]

I really doubt it, and I also don't see anything wrong with deciding how to deal with a controversy in a campaign.


Chris Matthews just quoted the conversation between Obama and Wright again ... check out the New York Times, April 30. 2007.

Obama knew what the problem was and he talked about he was going to dodge it.

[Trueblue]

Dodge it-nice neutral term.

[Ringo]

Crooked ass Hillary, and Un American O Dummy, what a damn pair to draw to, and yet YOU people admire thier asses so much!! I don't believe God wanted HATE from the Pulpit, anymore than he wanted the Satanic Islamics spreading their HATE in the World, and Wright is a little of BOTH!!:godzilla

[Trueblue]

You are correct, God doesn't want hate from the pulpit, or anywhere else. I'm sure you realize that admiration for Obama doesn't translate into admiration for his minister.

[Yellowdogtexan]

I found this analysis to be interesting. http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0803/14/acd.01.htmlGERGEN: I hope, in the next segment, we can come back to understanding that there's a discourse, there's a conversation in the black community....There has been for a long time, which is different from what is in the white community. And we ought to understand and appreciate the differences ... and not expect everybody to be just the same in this country.

(commercial break)

COOPER: ....David Gergen brought up an interesting point.... about the African-American experience, the African-American experience in church versus white American experience in church and the tradition. Different traditions.

Is there -- is there something that -- I mean, white people looking at this interpret differently -- you can't generalize like this, but that African-Americans looking at this may see it differently or hear things differently than white Americans listening to this?

COOPER: David, you brought this up. Why do you think that's an important point?

DAVID GERGEN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, because there's a long tradition, Anderson. And among black leaders to have a different view of American history, going all the way back to Frederick Douglass, who was one of the greatest American heroes of the 19th century, you know, who -- who gained his freedom from slavery in a great order.

He was invited the a July 4th celebration to give a July 4th speech in 1852, and he showed up and said, "You know, you whites see July 4 very differently from what I see it. This is not a day of celebration for us."

And I have found that in my classroom with black students frequently. When they speak their minds and when they speak their hearts, they have a very different view. I've had a young woman tell me, "July 4, we still can't celebrate it in my family, because of what's happened to us."

And I think that we as whites have to be understanding and empathic toward that and try to understand that, that people who are African-Americans legitimately have a different perspective on what American history has meant and take that into account as we hear this.

And it's not a lack of patriotism. It is a different form of patriotism. Actually, Reverend Wright may love this country more than any of us but feel we've fallen short of what we preach and believe.

[Viki]

I found this analysis to be interesting. http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0803/14/acd.01.html

As I've said my children are African American, I lived in the inner city for 17 years, I served two calls as pastor to an African American congregation, I get the culture. I like the culture. Like any culture they have their own unique perspective on everything. And partly I agree with Obama that Wright harkens back to a different day and time.

But there's still no excuse for Obama not being honest about what he knew and when he knew. For goodness sake I knew and I've never met the man. Really, it's ridiculous and disingenuous.

AND Wright's remarks go way beyond a specific cultural position. Calling Natalie Holloway a slut??? That's cultural? Puh-leeze.

[Trueblue]

As I've said my children are African American, I lived in the inner city for 17 years, I served two calls as pastor to an African American congregation, I get the culture. I like the culture. Like any culture they have their own unique perspective on everything. And partly I agree with Obama that Wright harkens back to a different day and time.

But there's still no excuse for Obama not being honest about what he knew and when he knew. For goodness sake I knew and I've never met the man. Really, it's ridiculous and disingenuous.

AND Wright's remarks go way beyond a specific cultural position. Calling Natalie Holloway a slut??? That's cultural? Puh-leeze.

Do you have a link to where he used the word slut? Because I've found something interesting about this accusation.

[Trueblue]

As I've said my children are African American, I lived in the inner city for 17 years, I served two calls as pastor to an African American congregation, I get the culture. I like the culture. Like any culture they have their own unique perspective on everything. And partly I agree with Obama that Wright harkens back to a different day and time.

But there's still no excuse for Obama not being honest about what he knew and when he knew. For goodness sake I knew and I've never met the man. Really, it's ridiculous and disingenuous.

AND Wright's remarks go way beyond a specific cultural position. Calling Natalie Holloway a slut??? That's cultural? Puh-leeze.

I'm sorry, there is absolutely NO WAY Obama didn't know about the complete vitriol Wright has been spewing. As I said in another post I've defended Wright on occasion - even sent parishioners to hear him preach, but I had NO IDEA the rhetoric had become THIS AWFUL.

I say this as a preacher: for him to assume the pulpit and preach such HATE for this country the Sunday after 9/11 is reason enough for him to be defrocked.

If one of MY pastors had even thought about preaching like that I would have dismissed them automatically - no discussion, no questions, no nothing.

Listen, I did inner city ministry for years and my first settled congregation was 99% African American, I get the culture. I LIKE the culture. As a preacher I get hyperbole. But the sermons I have listened to today are inexcusable, and there is NO WAY Obama didn't know it.

In fact, today it was reported on MSNBC (Obama network incorporated) that the Senator and Wright had a discussion months ago that this stuff was going to come out and that they therefore should distance from one another.


http://forums.thepoliticalasylum.com/showpost.php?p=194693&postcount=35

:think

[Viki]

I don't get the head scratching... what am I missing?

[Saguaro]

ABC News' Sunlen Miller reports: During an interview with MSNBC's Keith Olberman, Sen. Barack Obama confirmed that the Rev. Jeremiah Wright is no longer on the Obama campaign spiritual advisory committee.

When asked if the decision came from the campaign or from Wright, Obama was short on specifics, saying only, "I think there was a recognition that he’s on the verge of retirement, he’s taking a sabbatical and that it was important for him to step out of the spotlight in this situation."

Obama said that the did not know the extent of Wright's controversial comments until recently. He confirmed that he was not in the church when Wright made the comments that were reported this week.

"I wasn't in church during the time that these statement were made," Obama said. "I did not hear such incendiary language myself, personally. Either in conversations with him or when I was in the pew, he always preached the social gospel."

Obama reiterated his condemnation of Wright's remarks, saying it is something he strongly objects to. But Obama stopped short at repudiating the man, Jeremiah Wright, saying he was like an uncle to him.

"I would not repudiate the man," Obama said. "It's like a member of your family that says something that you really disagree with: You don't stop being a member of the family but you have to speak out forcefully on the issue."

He said Wright represents the older generation of African Americas "that came of age in the '60s -- an African American man who because of his life experience continues to have anger and frustration," and that Obama's own generation is different, the generation that benefits from Wright's generation's struggle.

Obama said he knows that this will be used as a political tool into the future -- and hopes the American people will trust his own values.

Obama was pressed further in a subsequent Fox News interview. Obama admitted that he would have quit his church had he witnessed and heard Wright's statements firsthand.

"If I had heard them repeated, I would have quit," he said. "If I thought that was the repeated tenor of the church, then I wouldn’t feel comfortable there."

But in a third interview with CNN, Obama said he will not quit the church now.

"As he's about to retire, I have no intention of leaving the church itself," Obama said.

He argued that the frequency of the statements matter, saying that Wright's most controversial statements were strung together and complied in the media out of hundreds of sermons over the course of his lifetime.

Obama said that he knew of one of two of the controversial statements before this week -- and that he didn't know it was as "problematic" as it has been revealed in the last few days. But what he knew before was not enough to distance himself from the church or Wright at the time.

"I didn't know about all these statements," he said. "I knew about one or two of these statements that had been made. One or two statements would not lead me to distance myself from either my church or my pastor. ... If I had thought that was the tenor or tone on an ongoing basis, then yes, I don't think it would have been reflective of my values."

"My belief was this was something out of the ordinary, and obviously these statements indicate this was happening with more frequency," he added.

On another story swirling this evening, Obama on MSNBC addressed his interview with the Chicago Tribune this afternoon in which the newspaper reported that Tony Rezko played a larger fundraising role for Obama than previously known. The Tribune reported that Rezko has raised as much as $250,000 for Obama.

Obama debunked the "newness" of the information and said, "We talked about the fundraising he has done for my two state races, congressional race as well as a U.S. Senate race. The total amount is the figure they put forward, and is not particularly new or different."

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2008/03/obama-comments.html