The Chicago Sun-Times today includes Mary Mitchell's column, "We can deny it, but race slithers into campaign." The subheadline reads "Obama, his campaign trying to transcend it -- but can't." The article makes a startling assertion about Senator Barack Obama:
Obama tries to avoid talking about race, as do his surrogates, staffers and supporters.
Say what? Obama's recent remarks that he "doesn't look like all those other presidents on the dollar bills" clearly referred to his race. Even his chief strategist admits that.
And it was hardly the first time he introduced the subject. In June, Mitchell's colleague Lynn Sweet mentioned a pool report from the New York Times's John Broder:
Obama “The choice is clear. Most of all we can choose between hope and fear. It is going to be very difficult for Republicans to run on their stewardship of the economy or their outstanding foreign policy. We know what kind of campaign they’re going to run. They’re going to try to make you afraid. They’re going to try to make you afraid of me. He’s young and inexperienced and he’s got a funny name. And did I mention he’s black?"
If Mary Mitchell isn't an Obama supporter, one of the groups she claims tries to avoid talking about race, she does an excellent imitation. She doesn't exactly avoid talking about race. There was her column last month, "Ebony covers the real meaning of 'black cool'" which begins:
Black Cool. Ebony Magazine has defined Black Cool by giving readers a glimpse of "The 25 Coolest Brothers of All Time."
There's Sen. Barack Obama, of course.
Of course. Mitchell suggests the desperation of Obamatons in today's piece with choice material like:
Indeed, it says a lot that McCain, who dumped his first wife to marry a wealthy heiress, is perceived to possess more of the values that resonate with voters than Obama does, according to some polls.
And a few paragraphs later:
Voters there said Cindy McCain -- a former drug addict and thief -- better fits their idea of a first lady than Michelle Obama, someone who has not had a hint of scandal attached to her name.
But of course the column is really about race and how it has managed to slither into the presidential campaign. Even though Obama and his minions do their darndest to avoid talking about it.
