Jeremiah Wright may cost Obama the Presidency…

After listening to all of the commentary regarding Jeremiah Wright’s recent comments, he has inadvertently provoked a complete turn around in Obama’s campaign. Wright, who is greatly respected in the Black community, has made statements that now have many whites wondering if they made the wrong choice in supporting Obama. Let me state herethat Reverend Wright is not a racist, nor does he hate his country. The initial comments he spoke during a sermon from September 2001 specifically focused on the sin [past and present] of our nation; questioning when and if America would ever learn that the things that are happening to us and around us is a direct result of sin. Below is an excerpt from Reverend Wright’s speech before the National Press Club to support this message:

“The black church’s role in the fight for equality and justice from the 1700s up until 2008 has always had as its core the non- negotiable doctrine of reconciliation, children of God repenting for past sins against each other. Jim Wallis says America’s racist — sin of racism has never even been confessed, much less repented for. Repenting for past sins against each other and being reconciled to one another — Jim Wallis is white, by the way — (laughter) — being reconciled to one another because of the love of God, who made all of us in God’s image.”

If you are a Christian, or for that matter religious and/or spiritual, this concept is not a surprise. 

But the fact that Reverend Wright has chosen take defend himself via media outlets Bill Moyer and the National Press Club (NPC), he has now gone one step too far. The Bill Moyer interview was excellent; Rev. Wright spoke eloquently about who he is as a person, why he made the comments at that time and the Black experience in America.  The same holds true for his presentation at the NPC; he was prolific and “dead-on” when he spoke of America’s “dirty laundry”, but here is when the message begins to turn:

MS. LEINWAND: What is your motivation for characterizing Senator Obama’s response to you as, quote, “what a politician had to say”? What do you mean by that?

REV. WRIGHT: What I mean is what several of my white friends and several of my white Jewish friends have written me and said to me. They said, “You’re a Christian. You understand forgiveness. We both know that if Senator Obama did not say what he said, he would never get elected.” Politicians say what they say and do what they do based on electability, based on sound bites, based on polls — Huffington, whoever’s doing the polls. Preachers say what they say because they are pastors. They have a different person to whom they’re accountable.

As I said, whether he gets elected or not, I’m still going to have to be answerable to God, November 5th and January 21st. That’s what I mean. I do what pastors do. He does what politicians do. I am not running for office. I am hoping to being vice president.

What Reverend Wright said here, whether he meant to or not, insinuates that Barack Obama only said what he said because he is a politician and because he wants to get elected, not because he believes it. This may have a tremendous and irreversible [negative] affect on the campaign. Consider Senator Obama’s response  below:

“Let me say at the outset that I vehemently disagree and strongly condemn the statements that have been the subject of this controversy. I categorically denounce any statement that disparages our great country or serves to divide us from our allies. I also believe that words that degrade individuals have no place in our public dialogue, whether it’s on the campaign stump or in the pulpit. In sum, I reject outright the statements by Rev. Wright that are at issue. Let me repeat what I’ve said earlier. All of the statements that have been the subject of controversy are ones that I vehemently condemn. They in no way reflect my attitudes and directly contradict my profound love for this country.”

In my opinion, Rev. Wright should have waited until after the election to respond to critics. Number one, why respond to something that you know isn’t true? In addition, as Christians we must be careful not to be distracted by circumstances because many times it causes us to lose our focus; for example, when Obama should be focused on winning Indiana and North Carolina, he has had to refocus his energy on denouncing the remarks of Wright.

I appreciate Wright for all that he has done for this country and for African-Americans; I’m just saddened that he did not discern the “negative forces” that were, and have succeeded, at destroying the friendship that he and Obama shared.

One last thing; you can be in relationship with a person all your life and still not agree with everything they say. I think everyone has experienced this in one way or another…

Add a comment April 30, 2008