Joe Klein is a degenerate fool

By Michael J.W. Stickings

The ridiculous Joe Klein, who's worse than David Broder -- via The Plank:

Obama... entered the primary as a fresh breeze and left it stale, battered and embittered — still the mathematical favorite for the nomination but no longer the darling of his party. In the course of six weeks, the American people learned that he was a member of a church whose pastor gave angry, anti-American sermons, that he was "friendly" with an American terrorist who had bombed buildings during the Vietnam era, and that he seemed to look on the ceremonies of working-class life — bowling, hunting, churchgoing and the fervent consumption of greasy food — as his anthropologist mother might have, with a mixture of cool detachment and utter bemusement. All of which deepened the skepticism that Caucasians, especially those without a college degree, had about a young, inexperienced African-American guy with an Islamic-sounding name and a highfalutin fluency with language. And worse, it raised questions among the elders of the party about Obama's ability to hold on to crucial Rust Belt bastions like Pennsylvania, Michigan and New Jersey in the general election — and to add long-suffering Ohio to the Democratic column.

Right, because:

-- Hillary, McCain, and the media had nothing to do with waging a negative campaign against Obama over the weeks leading up to the Pennsylvania primary, spreading lies and rumours and innuendos and misrepresentations and otherwise smearing Obama with reckless abandon.

-- It was all his fault, of course.

Look what Klein is doing here. He's spinning the same old smears:

-- He brings up Wright again, neglecting to mention Obama's brilliant speech on race and politics.

-- He brings up Ayers, a casual and rare acquaintance, a non-story being pushed by right-wing nuts, neglecting to mention that Ayer isn't what he used to be and that they hardly have anything resembling a friendship.

-- He brings up the elitism charge, bring so presumptuous as to tell us what's going on inside Obama's head.

-- He brings up white "skepticism" of Obama, playing the race card even when there's no evidence of racism among Democratic voters.

-- He calls Obama "a young, inexperienced African-American guy," a clear insult with racial overtones.

-- He brings up Obama's "Islamic-sounding name," as if people aren't voting for him because of his middle name.

-- He brings up Obama's ease with language, his inspirational rhetoric, suggesting that he is an out-of-touch intellectual, as if being a good speaker and being smart are bad qualities to have.

-- He claims that party "elders" are now worried about Obama's ability to win key states like Ohio and Pennsylvania, and hence his electability generally, as if primary losses to a strong candidate like Hillary would necessarily mean losses to McCain in the general election, as if he has no strengths to offset such possible concerns, as if he wouldn't be a strong candidate in Ohio and Pennsylvania and Michigan and New Jersey... and who are these "elders," anyway?

All in all, another piece of contemptible punditry from the contemptible Joe Klein.