The Rev. Jackson's "Cutting" Remarks

If this campaign gets any weirder, well, I don't know what I'll do.

The other day, the 66 year-old Rev. Jesse Jackson, the civil rights leader and former presidential candidate, was on a talk show on the Fox network about the election. When he thought the microphones were off, he said that Democratic Party presumptive nominee, Sen. Barack Obama was, "talking down to black people" when the candidate was making speeches at black churches. Senator Obama's crime? He apparently was telling the audience that black parents need to set better examples for their children..particularly fathers.

"Too many fathers are AWOL (absent without leave), missing from too many lives and too many homes," Sen. Obama said.

For some reason, this angered the Rev. Jackson, who then said, referring to Obama, "I want to cut his --- off," (you can find the exact quote elsewhere) according to the Fox News Web site.

Immediately, the punditry went into high gear. Of course, the Rev. Jackson was angered. As a two time presidential candidate (class of '84 and '88) who came nowhere near winning, he is probably angered at Senator Obama's success at becoming the first African-American to win the nomination of a major party and perhaps the first African-American to win the office of president. Jealousy? Envy?

I report, you decide.

But is Senator Obama talking down to "black people?" His advice could apply to people of any race. It isn't just black fathers who are AWOL in their childrens' lives. But it is a particular problem in the black community.

For instance about ten years ago, 57.7 percent of all black children, 31.8 percent of all Hispanic children, and 20.9 percent of all white children were living in single-parent homes. Entertainer Bill Cosby has spoken out about this quite regularly; he, too, has been criticized for doing so.

Nevertheless, the Rev. Jackson began to apologize to anyone who would listen and reemphasized that he remained a supporter of Sen. Obama. Gee, I would hate to hear what he had to say if he was an opponent :-)

Even his own son, Jesse Jackson, Jr., a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, blasted his dad (although he said he loved him) for the comments. There's family...and there's politics.

But the real hoot (at least to me) was the instant analysis of whether or not this would "help" Senator Obama with working class white voters who are a tad more traditional than either the Rev. Jackson or Sen. Obama. Their verdict? It would!

"It reinforces Obama's effort to present himself as an advocate of responsible personal behavior, a position that Republican candidates like to secure as uniquely their own," said Mark Rozell, Professor of Public Policy at George Mason University.

Please....

Voters may select candidates for a variety of odd reasons (he has a mustache, I never vote for a person with a mustache; she wears loud color dresses and looks drab; he's too young) but this is not one of them. I doubt anyone is going to pull the lever in November based on an insult made in July. And an insult that is going to be viewed as one of personal pique.

This won't have any effect at all; it highlights the way pundits think American voters are like children. It angers me at times that something like this would even be considered to "help" or "hurt". I think voters make decisions based on a lot more than that...all right, at least most voters.

But it may point out a little quiet divide between older civil rights leaders and Senator Obama, the "post-racial" candidate. If Senator Obama wins the presidency, you can expect a great deal of heavy pressure put on him by the civil rights establishment for long-time cherished goals like increased social spending for blacks, reparations legislation, and more.

Will Senator Obama go along, or believe his path to mastery over U.S. politics lies somewhere in the middle?

In American politics, the middle ain't a bad place to be.