Obama, Now on the Defensive, Calls ‘Bitter’ Words Ill-Chosen

NY Times ^ | April 13, 2008 | KATHARINE Q. SEELYE and JEFF ZELENY

[neverdem]

Senator Barack Obama fought back Saturday against accusations from his rivals that he had displayed a profound misunderstanding of small-town values, in a flare-up that left him on the defensive before a series of primaries that could test his ability to win over white voters in economically distressed communities.

For a second day, Mr. Obama sought to explain his remarks at a recent San Francisco fund-raiser that small-town Pennsylvania voters, bitter over their economic circumstances, “cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them” as a way to explain their frustrations.

Acknowledging Saturday that “I didn’t say it as well as I should have,” he explained his remarks by focusing on his characterization of those voters’ economic woes. He meant, he said, that voters in places that had been losing jobs for years expressed their anxiety at the polls by focusing on cultural and social issues like gun laws and immigration.

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton activated her entire campaign apparatus to portray Mr. Obama’s remarks as reflective of an elitist view of faith and community. His comments, she said, were “not reflective of the values and beliefs of Americans.”

Mrs. Clinton suggested that Mr. Obama saw religious commitment, hunting and concern about immigration as emotional responses to economic strain rather than as deeply embedded values.

“I grew up in a church-going family, a family that believed in the importance of living out and expressing our faith,” she said at a rally in Indianapolis. “The people of faith I know don’t ‘cling to’ religion because they’re bitter. People embrace faith not because they are materially poor, but because they are spiritually rich.”...

--snip--

“It could mean he’s rendered himself unelectable,” Mr. Saunders said. “This is a perfect example of why Democrats lose elections.”

[Mr. Silverback]

Nope, I predict he’ll die the death of a thousand cuts before our eyes on November 4th.

[libs_kma]

"According to DU, Obama is going duck hunting in PA after church with his grandmother!!!"

Not bloody likely. After all, she's a typical white person and she ain't going anywhere with a black man toting a gun. Even if he's only half black!

[farlander]

A liberal piece of crap paper like NY times carries this on the front page ?! Wow. That’s gonna leave a mark.

[supremedoctrine]

Obama has, happily, reached a point of no return , of sorts. You are going to see a “new Obama” of necessity, and it ain’t gonna be one who can even get a nomination, let alone win the Presidency. He has gotten into so much trouble with his words, his wife’s words, his Pastor’s words, that he will either have to revert back to his vacuous “change” speeches from 2-3 months ago, or hire a speechwriter. Either one will sink him, he’ll find it impossible to adapt with his own personality to something
he should already be beyond at this stage in a campaign/
He’s now facing an unnatural phase where he has to present himself in a way no one is used to, and that will make his house of cards come tumbling down.
He’s dead.

[BunnySlippers]

They had a poll over there “Who is Bitter?”

About 50 of them voted they were “bitter” ... only 2 voted the option that they “were happy”.

LOL

[supremedoctrine]

I see it just the opposite-—all this is making Hillary more moderate.

[BunnySlippers]

Grandma’s going to church. Obama’s going duck hunting after church with her. Michelle has planned a picnic.

[farlander]

Just shows you how deranged, condenscending and elitist those people are. Their elitism just ticks me off to no end. Where do they get off looking down on hard working folks in middle America ?!

[Mr. Silverback]

The problem with your theory is that it's virtually impossible for for her to get the nomination honestly no matter how much damage this does, and if she takes it with superdelegates it will rip their party apart.

In the fall we will either face Obama or a Dem party that's been bisected, with the live half pumping arterial spray all over the landscape.

[Nathan Zachary]

Seems Obama has a lot of terrorist pals. It's almost criminal that lame stream media isn't at the very least questioning publicly his association with these jihadists.

[goldstategop]

The point of the matter is Obama has out of necessity, never shared his true beliefs with the American people. If he had, he would never even be within sight of clinching the Democratic nomination today. In the general election, he has to come out with more than just vacuous proclamations of hope and change. Should he ever spell out his real agenda for the country, he'll be political roadkill come November.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[The_Republican]

He didn’t apologize. He didn’t back down. He simply acknowledged he could have used better words to state the same points.

Media, both left and right wing, were hoping that he would backdown and apologize. The fact he didn’t, they still continue to portray his CLARIFICATION of his stance as “defensive” and “apologetic”.

[Earthdweller]

"Mr. Gray also said Mr. Obama was right that voters were bitter, although he said he would have used the word angry. He pointed to a recent poll that found 81 percent of voters believed the country was on the wrong track. He said Mrs. Clinton sounded like “a Pollyanna” in saying that workers were optimistic."

All these twisted political hacks have no idea that some people don't give a flip how much money someone else has. They love their small town life of community, faith and freedom. It's a beautiful life in the countryside of America...people like to live there and it doesn't take a lot of funds to live a good life.

Dems are so ignorant and self serving.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

For bumpers everywhere...

[goldstategop]

The Left is perpetually hateful, enraged and resentful. No wonder that tracks well with people who think their country is on the wrong track.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[Just mythoughts]

When I heard this, first I wondered who his audience was, and secondly I thought, hmmmmm, Obama was paying attention to his preacher all these years.

[Windcatcher]

It’s not as if Democrats can come out and say:

“We think being gay is just as normal as being straight and we think the public schools should teach that. In fact, students who claim otherwise should be forced into counseling (re-education).”

“We believe in socialism, and we intend to take as much money from your wages and give it to the inner cities as we can without all you hard-working people marching on us and shooting us where we stand. Oh, and you’re racists if you don’t agree with us.”

“We think white males are the bane of humanity and it should be possible for anyone else, at any time, to take from them and give to themselves. We’ll make it as easy as possible for them to do this.”

“Don’t carpool? Pay a fine. Drive anything larger than a VW Beetle? Pay a BIG fine. Drive an American-made car? It’s open-season on you.”

“Crimes (especially violent ones) by minorities will not only not be prosecuted, they will be encouraged. Their revenge and jealousy is justified and we want to encourage it.”

I mean, it’s not as if Democrats could be HONEST, after all...

[Godwin1]

Ill chosen, perhaps. But the remarks represent what he really thinks. For Columbia-Harvard Law Elitest Obama—as for other liberals—people who believe in God and affirm their rights under the Second Amendment are not quite the thing. White Trash, unemployed losers, racists and wife beaters, every last one.
Obama himself has no religious beliefs. Neither his mother, nor the grandmother who raised him believed in God. His own autobiography recounts that the Jesus story presented to him by “parched old nuns” during his brief foray in a Catholic school in Indonesia did not move him. And his autobiography virtually admits that his joining the racist vipers’ den posing as a Christian Church under Wright was merely a cynical search for a political anchor on Chicago's Black South Side. God had nothing to do with it.
By the way, I thought the “parched” remark quite racist. Yes, European skin suffers more than African skin under the harsh Indonesian sun. But why this obsession with race and skin tone? And what about gratitude? These women had renounced home, family, and comfort to spread the Good News. A little respect please, Mr. Arrogant godless Liberal.....

[Intolerant in NJ]

“ill-chosen”, “mispoke”, “misstated” - more lawyer-speak for “I was wrong”.........

[goldstategop]

Obama's least attractive quality is his lack of humility. People who know they're wrong apologize. This would be old news already if he realized he had truly erred. Of course he didn't and that's why it remains an issue.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus