Barack the magic negro?

[miir]

What the fuck?

[Ashur]

You're just now hearing about this?

[Animalor]

Story didn't get much traction in Canada I imagine. I've never ehard about this either till now.

Limbaugh actially played this on his show too? Wow..

[Ashur]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6642029.stm

Last Updated: Thursday, 10 May 2007, 11:48 GMT 12:48 UK
US DJ criticised over Obama song
Talk show host Rush Limbaugh
Limbaugh has referred to Barack Obama as "Halfrican American"
US talk show host Rush Limbaugh has come under fire for airing a racially charged song about the Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.

Limbaugh has been playing a song called Barack the Magic Negro, to the tune of Puff the Magic Dragon.

The right-wing talk show host defended himself by saying he is an entertainer and the song is a parody.

Mr Obama, who hopes to become the first black American president, has played down the row.

Rush Limbaugh, whose radio show is one of the most popular in the US, justified running the song by saying that an article by a black commentator in the liberal Los Angeles Times was the first to link the term "magic negro" to Mr Obama.

Limbaugh said liberals upset about the term should be aware that "magic negro" is a historical cultural term, a reference to benevolent African-Americans portrayed in old films.

'Inflaming audience'

The song, he said, was intended to make fun of the problems Mr Obama's candidacy poses to "race-obsessed Democrats", as well as questions from media pundits as to whether Mr Obama was "black enough".

Mr Obama said he had not heard the song but that he did not take himself so seriously as to be offended by every comment made about him.

His campaign team described the song as dumb.

Karl Frisch, a spokesman for Media Matters, a US monitoring group, said the song was consistent with previous comments by Limbaugh, such as referring to Mr Obama as "Halfrican American".

Mr Frisch accused Limbaugh of inflaming his audience.

The song was first aired in March and there has been a lot of internet traffic associated with it.

The CBS News website has temporarily blocked all readers' comments on its stories about Mr Obama.

Mike Sims, the director of the website, said CBS could not collectively delete the derogatory remarks because of their "volume and persistence".

Mr Obama was last week given secret service protection after threats appeared on white supremacist websites.

Yes, Rush is a crass attention whore. Very much like his nemesis Al Franken, the Yin to his Yang.

[Boogahz]

but they just found a MIG buried with sand in Iraq!

[cadalano]

old news but i dont think it was brought up anywhere here. stuff like this is going to make the republican party more impotent in the real world than it already is. which is a bad thing. they need to wise up.

[miir]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ ... ment/home/

[Boogahz]

[Sueven]

Part of the Republican Party's apparent quest for permanent minority status.

Fun fact from Nate Silver: More than half of the House is made up of Democrats who won election by more than 15 points. That is, even if a full 15 percent of the electorate shifted from D to R, the Democrats would still control the House.

[Gzette]

actually Reps. would only needs 7.5% swing. 15% would be a 30-point swing.

I look forward to this trend continuing and a hilarious 2012 Sarah Palin presidential bid. That will be very funny. I think she should consider herself done for, but I hope Palin keeps being Palin. dontchaknow

[Sueven]

You're right Gzette, sorry for the bad math.

The race for RNC chair has evidently turned into a contest to see who can most strongly double down on "reasserting traditional republican values." Sarah Palin and Mike Huckabee appear to be the frontrunners for the 2012 GOP nomination (Jindal has indicated that he's not interested and his mismanagement of Louisiana's economy might knock him from golden child status anyway). No republicans seem inclined to chill out, even a little bit, about the issues (like abortion and immigration) that are killing them. These facts bode poorly for the future of the GOP. I'm sure they'll figure it out and turn it around eventually, but it doesn't look like the GOP resurgence is here yet. Although I don't doubt that the GOP can make some Congressional gains, they will need to move a serious distance from their current position to knock off Obama in 2012.

[Kilmoll the Sexy]

The Republicans have no bearing on the future election....just like the Democrats had no bearing on the last two. The only thing that matters is the perception of the voting public on what the current office holders have done for them. The Democrats had no viable candidate for the previous 2 elections and lost even though there was a general level of uneasiness over Bush in 2004. The same thing happened in the Congress as people swung to Democrat because of unhappiness with the GOP. It is always a cycle.

My guess is you will not see a real candidate emerge with the GOP until the public starts trashing Obama. It could well not occur until after he has a second term...and my gut says Congress will be the first place the turnover happens....and I pretty well believe that will worm will begin its turn in 2010. If the turn on Obama happens by 2012, I am going to say Huckabee or Romney have the best shot. If he makes it through until 2016 I am going to say Boehner ends up the GOP frontrunner. Palin would be a complete waste of time to throw out as their candidate and they know that.

[Gzette]

Romney is a clown. I like Huckabee as a person, but his need to attach government to religion scares me more than any other possible candidate (save Palin, who would be a bigger disaster than Bush, but the likelihood of her ever getting election is low low low low).

[Zaelath]

The Republicans have no bearing on the future election....just like the Democrats had no bearing on the last two. The only thing that matters is the perception of the voting public on what the current office holders have done for them. The Democrats had no viable candidate for the previous 2 elections and lost even though there was a general level of uneasiness over Bush in 2004. The same thing happened in the Congress as people swung to Democrat because of unhappiness with the GOP. It is always a cycle.

My guess is you will not see a real candidate emerge with the GOP until the public starts trashing Obama. It could well not occur until after he has a second term...and my gut says Congress will be the first place the turnover happens....and I pretty well believe that will worm will begin its turn in 2010. If the turn on Obama happens by 2012, I am going to say Huckabee or Romney have the best shot. If he makes it through until 2016 I am going to say Boehner ends up the GOP frontrunner. Palin would be a complete waste of time to throw out as their candidate and they know that.

This is the most coherent thing you've ever said on VV, but would you really elect President Boner?

[Kilmoll the Sexy]

I personally believe in a complete separation of the President and him using religion as his guidance for policy, but Huckabee does pull the GOP the religious right vote. The best chance they have outside of him is Romney and I just don't see him being much bigger of a draw than McCain. This of course barring some miracle of a change allowing Swarzenegger to run....but I do not see the Dems making that change and knowing he could every well take the Presidency. The greatest failure of Bush in 2004, in all reality, was not bringing in someoen other than Cheney that was younger that could be a viable candidate for 2008. That was a failure of the entire GOP leadership though. If he had brought some younger solid member of Congress along for the ride, they would have gotten valuable face and media time that the public would remember when it came to election time.

[Boogahz]

The greatest failure of Bush in 2004, in all reality, was not bringing in someoen other than Cheney that was younger that could be a viable candidate for 2008.

I think there were a few more than just his choice of running mate.

[Siji]

2016 will be interesting in that Obama will need to endorse either Biden or Clinton. I don't see Clinton having taken the SOS job without some kind of assurance of support in a possible presidential bid later. On the other hand, if Obama does well in his two terms, it's a shoe-in for Biden. The guy currently has a respectable history, where Clinton does not.

[Sueven]

I don't necessarily agree with that, Siji. 8 years is a lifetime in politics. Biden and Clinton are probably the top two names out there now, but I'd guess that the chances that either of them are the 2016 Democratic nominee are less than 20%.

[Gzette]

BlagoWTFivich 2016!

[Winnow]

STOCKHOLM (AFP) – What are the chances US president-elect Barack Obama will utter the words "banana," "Angela Merkel," or swear during his inaugural speech?

Little to none, according to Swedish online betting site Betsson.

The site has listed the odds of Obama using certain words during his inaugural address on January 20, with "banana" and (German Chancellor) "Angela Merkel" given 1,000-to-1.00 odds on Thursday.

Lowest odds were meanwhile given to "the United States," at 1.01-to-1.00 odds, and "change," at 1.03-to-1.00.

The site also provided odds on the president-elect's choice of puppy, which he has promised his daughters Sasha, seven, and Malia, 10.

The most likely First Pet was a Labradoodle, at 1.75-to-1.00 odds, and in second place a Portuguese water dog, with 3.00-to-1.00 odds. Least likely were a Shetland sheepdog and a bulldog, at 100-to-1.00 odds.

How much if he says, "yes we can" !!

[Boogahz]

si se puede

[Siji]

I don't necessarily agree with that, Siji. 8 years is a lifetime in politics. Biden and Clinton are probably the top two names out there now, but I'd guess that the chances that either of them are the 2016 Democratic nominee are less than 20%.

How often has a vice president of a successful president not run after the Pres's term was over?

Asking because I don't know. But it certainly hasn't happened in awhile.

[Boogahz]

I don't necessarily agree with that, Siji. 8 years is a lifetime in politics. Biden and Clinton are probably the top two names out there now, but I'd guess that the chances that either of them are the 2016 Democratic nominee are less than 20%.

How often has a vice president of a successful president not run after the Pres's term was over?

Asking because I don't know. But it certainly hasn't happened in awhile.

Did you already forget 8 years ago?

[Siji]

8 years ago was Clinton/Gore. Gore ran (and won).

[Badabidi]

8 years ago was Clinton/Gore. Gore ran (and won).

Clearly since Gore's term just ended.