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Posted on 06/26/2003 11:50:35 PM PDT by LdSentinal
The Rev. Al Sharpton, the bombast from New York who is a 2004 White House hopeful, is trying to win the endorsement of the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson Sr.
I bet he will not get it. But Sharpton, a second-tier long-shot candidate, is trying hard. The centerpiece of Sharpton's platform was adapted from the writings of Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.). Sharpton supports the lawmaker's drive for constitutional amendments to guarantee equality in public education, health care and voting rights.
Sharpton's entry into the 2004 presidential race adds an interesting chapter to the history of Sharpton and Jackson Sr.'s long-running, rough and tumble relationship. Sharpton was the youth director in 1969 for Operation Breadbasket, the precursor to the Rainbow/PUSH organization.
The Democrats have nine people running for president, and seven showed up in Chicago last Sunday for a forum hosted by the Rev. Jackson's group. Having weathered his personal scandals of 2001, the Rev. Jackson remains a commanding presence within the Democratic Party.
At other forums, I've seen Sharpton hog the stage. Not Sunday. He was subdued. The most remarkable thing was Sharpton's very unpresidential slouch. Sharpton, as always, was an effective communicator. There are "too many elephants running around with donkey jackets on,'' said Sharpton. Subtle, Sharpton is not.
Sharpton, in his closing, declared that he was a "Jesse Jackson Democrat.'' He said he supported Jackson Sr., Jackson Jr. and, in a reference to a hard-fought local race, freshman state Sen. James Meeks (D-Chicago), who is on deck to succeed the Rev. Jackson, the Rainbow/PUSH founder. That was a lot of kissing up, but Sharpton needed to do some repair work.
When the Rev. Jackson hit a low in 2001--news that he fathered a baby girl whose mother, Karin Stanford, worked in Rainbow/PUSH's Washington office brought scrutiny of Rainbow/PUSH finances--Sharpton did nothing to help and threw gas on the fire.
Now that Sharpton is in the presidential race, he wants the Rev. Jackson's help. "We are hopeful that at some point in the not-too-distant future [Jackson] will endorse us,'' said Sharpton campaign manager Frank Watkins.
Watkins has long been associated with the Jackson family. He handled press for Operation PUSH; he's been through the Rev. Jackson's two presidential campaigns and went to work for Jackson Jr. after he was elected to Congress. Rep. Jackson's thoughtful political road map, a book called A More Perfect Union, Advancing New American Rights, was written with Watkins.
Watkins knows the background between the Rev. Jackson and Sharpton. There "have been some things said, some things written which have not contributed to the relationship,'' Watkins told me. "Which makes it more complex.''
Watkins took a leave from Rep. Jackson's congressional office to work in Sharpton's campaign, but that alone is not as telling as you may think when it comes to endorsements. Another member of the father-son political circle, Steve Cobble, is helping the presidential bid of Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio).
Watkins set a few conditions for taking the Sharpton job. He asked Sharpton to embrace the amendment agenda. He asked him to lay off his carping against the Democratic Party and its chairman, Terry McAuliffe. And Sharpton needed to treat the Rev. Jackson respectfully.
Watkins has had a tremendous impact on Sharpton. But Sharpton is what he is: a divisive figure. He supported Tawana Brawley's gang-rape claims, later discredited. Sharpton is a serial failed candidate who at some point will add the 2004 contest to his resume, along with his other failures--runs for New York mayor, 1997; U.S. Senate, 1992, 1994, and New York state Senate, 1978.
The Rev. Jackson is usually neutral in presidential races. He helps neither himself nor his son by taking on a marginal player. Sharpton may have the right message for the Jacksons, but he sure is the wrong messenger.
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