Posted by Dave on 03/18/08 at 09:25:10 am
Categories: Barack Obama, Campaign 2008

UPDATE IV: I know... the last update on the top. That is strange. But this is good. He wrote the speech himself, which makes it that much more impressive.

Barack Obama is going to give a major speech on race and faith in America and in this Presidential campaign, which will start any minute.

You can watch it here.

This could be a huge moment in this campaign.

UPDATE I: He is still speaking... more on that later. But you can read the text of the speech here.

UPDATE II: This was a very good, maybe even great speech. He covered issues well - his summary of the racial context that we all live in was excellent, he summary of the social context in which ALL races have struggles was excellent, and his ability to simultaneously reject Rev. Wright's comments while not throwing him under the bus was done very well.

I am not sure that this speech will change the dynamic of the race, or be any kind of turning point. If anything, I think this may keep the race from changing. The media will love the speech, as they almost always do. The Obama supporters will love the speech. The Clinton supporters will hate it. And the people straddling the fence will probably straddle the fence regarding how the feel about the speech.

In other words... the campaign goes on, much the same as it has been going on.

But I think it is quite clear that Obama does not accept, embrace, or agree with some (or many) of Rev. Wright's offensive comments. I think it is quite clear that Obama has rejected the racist and anti-American sentiments that have come from Wright. And I think it is quite clear that Obama understands the social and racial context that we live in, and the absolute need to make this country better for ALL Americans.

UPDATE III: Here is the speech, in its entirety:

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