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MO'KELLY REPORT: The War on Barack Obama
Morris W. O'Kelly
*As they say, “be careful what you ask for…you just might get it.”
Illinois Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) has officially announced his candidacy for the presidency of these United States; which was great news for his supporters and idealists who’ve been waiting with baited breath.
Obama is by most accounts the first candidate of African descent to have a legitimate shot to gain the Democratic nomination. And if you ask Senator Joe Biden (D-DE), he’s the first “clean and articulate” African-American candidate at that.
And so “it” begins… (sigh)
Many of us imagine the prospect of a legitimate African-American presidential candidate, with fancy and folly. Many of us have been of the opinion that Barack Obama could in fact obtain the Democratic nomination and even win the general election.
Not so fast, slow your roll. Don’t forget that there’s still Scylla, Charbydis a rock, a hard place and the gates of hell that stand in his way in the meantime.
Before Obama gets to hum Hail to the Chief, a bevy of events will take place. Not “might” take place, but WILL take place. When they do, ‘We’ will have to remind ourselves that hell AND high water are inevitable in such situations. ‘We’ should prepare accordingly.
Obama will have to defeat the ignorant mentality which is “surprised” at the idea of a former president of the Harvard Law Review and present U.S. Senator actually being “clean” and “articulate.”
"I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy," Biden said. "I mean, that's a storybook, man." -- Senator Joseph Biden (D-DE)
That’s no small task.
Obama will come under fire from the African-American electorate who will openly question whether he is “Black enough” to advance the supposed “African-American Agenda.” Without a doubt, Obama will catch hell from African-American political and civic leaders in the coming months.
“Right now we’re hearing a lot of media razzle-dazzle. I’m not hearing a lot of meat, or a lot of content. I think when the meat hits the fire, we’ll find out if it’s just fat, or if there’s some real meat there.” -- Al Sharpton
“Barack Obama claims an African-American heritage. Barack Obama and I have the same race, that is…physical characteristics. We are not from the same heritage. My ancestors toiled in slavery in this country. My consciousness…who I am as a person, has been shaped by my struggle, deeply emotional and deeply painful, with the reality of that heritage.” -- Alan Keyes
You can also be sure that Obama will catch the worst of holy hell from a political machine that will bring to light any purported sins, be they by thought, word or deed…even if they aren’t true. If there is ever to be an all-out assault on a singular man of African descent, to emasculate him before his family and African-Americans as a whole; this will be it.
Are ‘We’ ready to stomach the very worst the American political machine has to offer?
It’s one thing to besmirch someone’s character through purported drug experimentation twenty years ago or question whether he may have embellished his military record. That’s been reserved for the other, “regular” candidates in the past. There’s something altogether different in store for Barack Obama with twice the potency.
With all due respect, Rev. Jesse Jackson was never a legitimate threat to take the White House. Rev. Al Sharpton was never a legitimate threat to even file his taxes in a responsible manner, let alone to win the White House. They may have garnered America’s attention, energized the political discourse and changed the way the game might be played but neither was a danger to win “the game” outright. Retired general Colin Powell was never likely to gain the support of a Republican base during the height of its neo-con revolution and challenge for the White House. None of the aforementioned was on the verge of making the founding fathers of this country shiver in their graves.
Senator Barack Obama, as of this missive is one Senator Clinton gaffe away from being the front-runner for the Democratic nomination during a time in which Republicans enjoy their lowest level of popularity in more than 12 years. Obama is a serious threat with historic implications. Serious enough in which America will not only throw the kitchen sink at him, they’ll go ahead and throw the whole city block just to be sure. Think “War of the Worlds” and Obama is Tom Cruise running down the street trying to dodge being vaporized by the 50-foot death machines.
Having said all that, let’s come to some agreement about Senator Obama and prepare ourselves for the inevitable moments of pain and discomfort that certainly await us as ‘We’ watch this assault unfold.
Barack Obama will not ever be all things to all people and will be raked over the coals for it. He will never be “Black enough” to appease African-Americans and will always be “too Black” to everyone else, as evidenced by their denigrating references of “Black candidate” instead of “candidate.” There will be points in this process in which both sides will seek to dismiss and deny his credibility. This is the fee required for fielding a legitimate presidential candidate with more in common with Sally Hemings than Thomas Jefferson. This is the price to be paid for someone as equally comfortable with discussing Langston Hughes or Howard Hughes.
There will come a time in which the lynch mob of media will seek to hang him from the gallows in Hi-Def if the opportunity arises. ‘We’ should neither be surprised nor even angered when it comes to pass. These are the dues assessed for a legitimate presidential candidate with more than the Jim Crow maximum of one drop of African blood running through his veins. Manage your emotions now, because it is coming as sure as the sun rises in the east.
Barack Obama will repeatedly be accused of being a Muslim sympathizer (read: terrorist) due to alleged schooling in a Muslim seminary in Indonesia. This is the inevitable result of living in a post 9/11 world. Obama will be considered “too close” to Osama in more ways than one. Quell your anger now, because it is coming. Wait, check that…they already have.
If that wasn’t enough, he’ll be accused time and time again of being a Marxist/socialist. Don’t get mad…just get ready, it is coming. Oops, too late…it’s already here. Well, if you’ve think you’ve heard the last of it…think again.
If you thought the mudslinging, mean-spirited and factually inaccurate ad campaign that sought to embarrass Tennessee senate candidate Harold Ford was bad…just you wait and see what’s likely in store for Barack Obama. Start to deep breathe and count to ten right now…because as sure as sugar is sweet, it’s coming.
Barack Obama will be accused of being anything and everything antithetical to the supposed “American” ideal as Mo’Kelly will submit that the very idea of a Black man is still…”un-American.”
And what else says “un-American” better than accusations of Marxism and Islam?
Exactly…
In 1988, the political ad campaign against Michael Dukakis included the infamous rapist and murder Willie Horton, to play upon the fears of the Black man and what he’ll “likely” do if “free.” That will likely pale in comparison to what awaits Barack Obama; as for many Americans, he and Willie are one-in-the-same.
His White detractors will call him everything but the N-word in public, yet saving it for private discourse. His Black detractors will call him everything BUT the N-word, likely alleging he’s not “Black enough” to “earn” the twisted term of endearment. The war on Barack Obama stands to be nothing short of phenomenal. There will be other casualties, collateral damage to include his family and friends.
Just remember, this is what many of us asked for…and now we got it. The fleas come with the dog and hatred comes with a presidential candidate of African descent with legitimate chances.
‘We’ have long wished for a legitimate candidate of African descent to make a run for the White House in earnest. To this day, Mo’Kelly is still skeptical as to whether either a woman or a “Black” presidential candidate could ever win the general election…but we shall see.
In fact, we shall see plenty.
We will get an unbiased, unfiltered and unflinching look at whether this country can measure up to the idea of democracy we’ve been so blithely touting and exporting around the world.
Many of us have been ready for Barack Obama to announce his candidacy, but are ‘We’ ready for all that it entails?
The Mo'Kelly Report is an entertainment journal with a political slant. It is meant to inform, infuse and incite meaningful discourse...as well as entertain. For more Mo’Kelly, http://mokellyreport.blogspot.com. Morris W. O'Kelly can be reached at mokellyreport@sbcglobal.net and he welcomes all commentary.
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