Posted on 02/10/2008 6:16:27 AM PST by grey_whiskers
One of the great surprises of the current election cycle has been the popularity and the resilience of one Senator Barack Hussein Obama (rookie – IL), who is bidding to become the Democrat nominee for the President of the United States. There have been several interesting things about his candidacy.
Frst, he is a first-term U.S. Senator from Illinois. It wasn’t that long ago that Senator Lloyd Bentsen uttered his famous line “I knew Jack Kennedy. Senator, you’re no Jack Kennedy” and completely humiliated Dan Quayle, who was only seeking the Vice Presidency under a well-qualified George H.W. Bush. (And speaking of the Bush Family, I recall when George W. Bush was chided for his youth and lack of…gravitas. I don’t see a great deal of it emanating from Sen. Obama.)
Second, he has (so far) taken on the mighty Clinton machine…and won. From surviving allegations of representing a Chicago slumlord, to well-publicized hints of narcotics usage…or worse; from winning unexpectedly in Iowa to the latest three-state-sweep; and in garnering the public endorsement of the grandfather of national Democrat figures, Ted Kennedy (Sot – MA) --Sen. Obama has garnered what is known in politics as “The Big Mo”.
Finally, and most surprisingly of all, Sen. Obama has done something that no other politician has managed to do – garner a significant proportion of the votes in the United States, while running as a black man. Perhaps that is not the way to say it – for he of all people has been the one *LEAST LIKELY* to refer to his race. Which is perhaps part of his magic. Senator Hillary Clinton (cuckolded – NY) compounded her woes in this election cycle by attempting to hint at the race card – for example, hinting that Lyndon Johnson was more responsible for the civil rights movement than was the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., or saying that Sen. Obama had not done the “spade work” necessary to have earned status as a legitimate contender.
But this fact reveals another factor in this election – the times, they are a-changing. Not only is Sen. Obama refusing to rely on the race card for political power (compare and contrast the Rev. Jesse Jackson, for example), but he is succeeding in lily-white states such as Iowa. It is also interesting that the oh-so-‘tolerant’ liberal Northeast went heavily for Senator Clinton, while the supposedly racist South has favored Sen.Obama. By succeeding in such a fashion, Sen. Obama has shown the independence of black America from the traditional political role assigned to it by the Democrat Party – vote for Democrats as a cohesive bloc, because we know you won’t *dare* vote Republican. In return, we will say the right things and provide massive pork-belly social programs. Rush Limbaugh has referred to this arrangement as “The Plantation” – a marriage of convenience, to be sure, but one which encourages victimhood, and so keeps Black Americans from rising to their full potential.
On the other side of the political aisle, there is another more-or-less cohesive voting bloc which has grown impatient with its quasi-permanent home party. That would be the Christian Right, especially the evangelicals. This group has been believed to be widely responsible for the ascension of Ronald Reagan to the Presidency, and responsible for a great deal of the “foot soldiering” necessary for the Republican Party nationally. But there has always been tension between the Religious Right and the so-called moderate (RINO) wing of the party. With the election of Bush ’41 and Bush ’43, enough of the common values of the conservative part of the party have been ignored, or even actively stepped on (think of the border with Mexico, or increased entitlements), that it is clear that the powers that be among Party leaders have begun to think that the conservatives and Christians have nowhere else to go.
The recent victories of Gov. Mike Huckabee (Hayseed – AR) have shown an effort at solidarity by some religious right voters (particularly in strongholds in the Deep South) , aimed at establishing the necessity of such voters to the Party. Rush Limbaugh himself pointed out weeks ago that Gov. Huckabee was playing identity politics. And indeed, he appears to have been angling for the Vice Presidency, the more so as his presence in the race has helped to eliminate two other conservative rivals (Thompson and Romney) for the Front Runner, Sen. John McCain (POW-AZ). But with McCain’s recent (apparent) clinching of the Republican nominee slot, and his showing in Democrat strongholds such as New York and California, it may be that the RINOs have decided that they can win without actively including the conservatives. Discussion has surfaced of possible VP picks for McCain, including Pawlenty (Climate Change--MN), Perry (Trans-TX-Corridor - TX), and various others. None of them are conservative. “Welcome to Big League Politics, Mr. Suck—err, Huckabee, and Thanks For Helping Me Win!”
Could it be that the Christians are being sent to the Republican Plantation just as the blacks are leaving the Democrat Plantation?
...come BACK, FRed!
Interesting observations.
Are you made by Nabisco or home-baked, btw?
Cheers!
I see Obama as the icon for the Great Liberal Catharsis of the 21st Century. Unlike his Democrat opponents, Obama’s political agenda is less abrasive to the senses even though it’s hard left on key issues.
Obama, Romney, Huckabee, and almost-Thompson represent the candidates of tomorrow. Clinton, McCain, and their kind are yesterday’s news.
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