Sarah Palin To John McCain: ‘Take The Gloves Off’

Cross posted from Wake up America

YouTube URL to the video above, found here.

Over the weekend Sarah Palin made a reference to Barack Obama’s ties to questionable characters, but there is another area where Palin believes John McCain should “take the gloves off”, Obama’s association with his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright.

In the video above Sarah Palin speaks to a crowd of supporters and references, not by name, but by actions, Barack Obama’s association with William Ayers, a man who was a domestic terrorist and part of a group, Weatherman Underground, that quote launched a campaign of bombings that would target the Pentagon and US Capitol.

Sarah Palin On Obama’s Ties and Associations.

Palin made the point saying one of Obama’s earliest supporters was a domestic terrorist, then going on to say about Obama “This is not a man who sees America as you see it and how I see America. We see America as the greatest force for good in this world. If we can be that beacon of light and hope for others who seek freedom and democracy and can live in a country that would allow intolerance in the equal rights that again our military men and women fight for and die for for all of us. Our opponent though, is someone who sees America it seems as being so imperfect that he’s palling around with terrorists who would target their own country?”

When criticized by the Associated Press for bringing up the association between Obama and Ayers, with their analysis saying Palin brining up Obama’s past associations was, in their view, racist, Palin shot back with “The Associated Press is wrong. The comments are about an association that has been known but hasn’t been talked about, and I think it’s fair to talk about where Barack Obama kicked off his political career, in the guy’s living room.”

As was reported earlier by Barbara Sowell, information is still coming to light about further Ayers/Obama connections.

Those comments received a lot of play in the press over the weekend, but today there is a report from the New York Times’ columnist William Kristol about a conversation he had with Palin, showing that Ayers is not the only topic where Palin believes John McCain and the campaign’s “gloves” should be taken off.

Palin told Kristol the campaign should be more aggressive is telling the American public “who the real Barack Obama is,” stating Obama had played down his relationship with Ayers and then went on to state she believed another important aspect to speak about is Jeremiah Wright.

Jeremiah Wright.

Jeremiah Wright was the pastor for Barack Obama’s church, Trinity United Church of Christ. Obama met Wright and joined his church in the late 1980s, while he was working as a community organizer in Chicago. Wright officiated at the wedding ceremony of Barack and Michelle Obama, as well as their children’s baptism. In 2007 Wright was appointed to Barack Obama’s African American Religious Leadership Committee. In March of 2008, when videos of Wrights controversial sermonds became public, it was announced that Wright would no longer serve as a member of that committee.

Jeremiah Wright hit the headlines, in a massive manner, when videos of some of his sermons went viral on the Internet, showing him saying things like “God Damn America”, speaking of 9/11 and saying it was the chickens coming home to roost and many other comments to which some have said were racially divisive.

On March 14, 2008, Barack Obama wrote an entry at Huffington Post where he denounced the words from Wright, which had become public, and stated in that post “The statements that Rev. Wright made that are the cause of this controversy were not statements I personally heard him preach while I sat in the pews of Trinity or heard him utter in private conversation…”

Four days later, Barack Obama gave a speech and in that speech, he again denounced the words of his former pastor, but refused to denounce the man himself, as well as admitting that he did, indeed, hear controversial comments made by Wright while sitting in his church.

For some, nagging questions remain. Did I know him to be an occasionally fierce critic of American domestic and foreign policy? Of course. Did I ever hear him make remarks that could be considered controversial while I sat in church? Yes. Did I strongly disagree with many of his political views? Absolutely – just as I’m sure many of you have heard remarks from your pastors, priests, or rabbis with which you strongly disagreed.

In April, Wright made a series of media appearances, as reported by ABC’s Political Punch, where he dismissed Obama’s criticisms of Wright’s controversial comments, saying Obama was doing so because it was “politically expedient.”

After those appearances from Wright, Obama spoke more forcefully against Jeremiah Wright, saying he was outraged and saddened by his behavior, and in May Obama resigned his membership in the church.

Sarah Palin on Jeremiah Wright.

While speaking with Bill Kristol, he asked Palin if Ayers was a legitimate issue, what about Obama’s long standing association with Jeremiah Wright?

Palin responded by saying “To tell you the truth, Bill, I don’t know why that association isn’t discussed more, because those were appalling things that that pastor had said about our great country, and to have sat in the pews for 20 years and listened to that — with, I don’t know, a sense of condoning it, I guess, because he didn’t get up and leave — to me, that does say something about character. But, you know, I guess that would be a John McCain call on whether he wants to bring that up.”

Many have been speaking out about McCain’s hesitance in regards to Obama’s connection with Jeremiah Wright, especially after Obama himself admitted in an interview with Chris Wallace, it was a “legitimate political issue.”

WALLACE: Question: Do you think that Reverend Wright is just the victim here?

OBAMA: No. I think that people were legitimately offended by some of the comments that he had made in the past. The fact he’s my former pastor I think makes it a legitimate political issue. So I understand that.

I think that it is also true that to run a snippet of 30-second sound bites, selecting out of a 30-year career, simplified and caricatured him and caricatured the church.

And I think that was done in a fairly deliberate way, and that is unfortunate, because as I’ve said before, I have strongly denounced those comments that were the subject of so much attention. I wasn’t in church when he made them.

But I also know that, you know, I go to church not to worship the pastor, to worship God. And that ministry, the church family that’s been built there, does outstanding work, has been, I think, applauded for its outreach to the poor.

He built that ministry, and I think that, you know, people need to take a look at the whole church and the whole man in making these assessments.

At the end of the Kristol/Palin interview, Kristol asked if Palin had any advice for John McCain, she said she would tell him the same thing he told her before she walked out onto the debate stage for the vice presidential debate, which was to have fun and be yourself, then she added one more piece of advice, which was “Take the gloves off. ”

.

Sarah Palin To John McCain: ‘Take The Gloves Off’

Cross posted from Wake up America

YouTube URL to the video above, found here.

Over the weekend Sarah Palin made a reference to Barack Obama’s ties to questionable characters, but there is another area where Palin believes John McCain should “take the gloves off”, Obama’s association with his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright.

In the video above Sarah Palin speaks to a crowd of supporters and references, not by name, but by actions, Barack Obama’s association with William Ayers, a man who was a domestic terrorist and part of a group, Weatherman Underground, that quote launched a campaign of bombings that would target the Pentagon and US Capitol.

Sarah Palin On Obama’s Ties and Associations.

Palin made the point saying one of Obama’s earliest supporters was a domestic terrorist, then going on to say about Obama “This is not a man who sees America as you see it and how I see America. We see America as the greatest force for good in this world. If we can be that beacon of light and hope for others who seek freedom and democracy and can live in a country that would allow intolerance in the equal rights that again our military men and women fight for and die for for all of us. Our opponent though, is someone who sees America it seems as being so imperfect that he’s palling around with terrorists who would target their own country?”

When criticized by the Associated Press for bringing up the association between Obama and Ayers, with their analysis saying Palin brining up Obama’s past associations was, in their view, racist, Palin shot back with “The Associated Press is wrong. The comments are about an association that has been known but hasn’t been talked about, and I think it’s fair to talk about where Barack Obama kicked off his political career, in the guy’s living room.”

As was reported earlier by Barbara Sowell, information is still coming to light about further Ayers/Obama connections.

Those comments received a lot of play in the press over the weekend, but today there is a report from the New York Times’ columnist William Kristol about a conversation he had with Palin, showing that Ayers is not the only topic where Palin believes John McCain and the campaign’s “gloves” should be taken off.

Palin told Kristol the campaign should be more aggressive is telling the American public “who the real Barack Obama is,” stating Obama had played down his relationship with Ayers and then went on to state she believed another important aspect to speak about is Jeremiah Wright.

Jeremiah Wright.

Jeremiah Wright was the pastor for Barack Obama’s church, Trinity United Church of Christ. Obama met Wright and joined his church in the late 1980s, while he was working as a community organizer in Chicago. Wright officiated at the wedding ceremony of Barack and Michelle Obama, as well as their children’s baptism. In 2007 Wright was appointed to Barack Obama’s African American Religious Leadership Committee. In March of 2008, when videos of Wrights controversial sermonds became public, it was announced that Wright would no longer serve as a member of that committee.

Jeremiah Wright hit the headlines, in a massive manner, when videos of some of his sermons went viral on the Internet, showing him saying things like “God Damn America”, speaking of 9/11 and saying it was the chickens coming home to roost and many other comments to which some have said were racially divisive.

On March 14, 2008, Barack Obama wrote an entry at Huffington Post where he denounced the words from Wright, which had become public, and stated in that post “The statements that Rev. Wright made that are the cause of this controversy were not statements I personally heard him preach while I sat in the pews of Trinity or heard him utter in private conversation…”

Four days later, Barack Obama gave a speech and in that speech, he again denounced the words of his former pastor, but refused to denounce the man himself, as well as admitting that he did, indeed, hear controversial comments made by Wright while sitting in his church.

For some, nagging questions remain. Did I know him to be an occasionally fierce critic of American domestic and foreign policy? Of course. Did I ever hear him make remarks that could be considered controversial while I sat in church? Yes. Did I strongly disagree with many of his political views? Absolutely – just as I’m sure many of you have heard remarks from your pastors, priests, or rabbis with which you strongly disagreed.

In April, Wright made a series of media appearances, as reported by ABC’s Political Punch, where he dismissed Obama’s criticisms of Wright’s controversial comments, saying Obama was doing so because it was “politically expedient.”

After those appearances from Wright, Obama spoke more forcefully against Jeremiah Wright, saying he was outraged and saddened by his behavior, and in May Obama resigned his membership in the church.

Sarah Palin on Jeremiah Wright.

While speaking with Bill Kristol, he asked Palin if Ayers was a legitimate issue, what about Obama’s long standing association with Jeremiah Wright?

Palin responded by saying “To tell you the truth, Bill, I don’t know why that association isn’t discussed more, because those were appalling things that that pastor had said about our great country, and to have sat in the pews for 20 years and listened to that — with, I don’t know, a sense of condoning it, I guess, because he didn’t get up and leave — to me, that does say something about character. But, you know, I guess that would be a John McCain call on whether he wants to bring that up.”

Many have been speaking out about McCain’s hesitance in regards to Obama’s connection with Jeremiah Wright, especially after Obama himself admitted in an interview with Chris Wallace, it was a “legitimate political issue.”

WALLACE: Question: Do you think that Reverend Wright is just the victim here?

OBAMA: No. I think that people were legitimately offended by some of the comments that he had made in the past. The fact he’s my former pastor I think makes it a legitimate political issue. So I understand that.

I think that it is also true that to run a snippet of 30-second sound bites, selecting out of a 30-year career, simplified and caricatured him and caricatured the church.

And I think that was done in a fairly deliberate way, and that is unfortunate, because as I’ve said before, I have strongly denounced those comments that were the subject of so much attention. I wasn’t in church when he made them.

But I also know that, you know, I go to church not to worship the pastor, to worship God. And that ministry, the church family that’s been built there, does outstanding work, has been, I think, applauded for its outreach to the poor.

He built that ministry, and I think that, you know, people need to take a look at the whole church and the whole man in making these assessments.

At the end of the Kristol/Palin interview, Kristol asked if Palin had any advice for John McCain, she said she would tell him the same thing he told her before she walked out onto the debate stage for the vice presidential debate, which was to have fun and be yourself, then she added one more piece of advice, which was “Take the gloves off. ”

.

Cross-posted from Wake Up America and permission given by Maggie at Maggie’s Notebook

UPDATE

h/t to Susan at Wake up America for a link to the transcript. If you prefer to read rather than watch, the full transcript is below the video.

I’ve pulled this quote out for posterity:

“Black theology refuses to accept a God who is not identified totally with the
goals of the black community. If God is not for us and against white people,
then he is a murderer, and we had better kill him. The task of black theology is
to kill gods who do not belong to the black community. Black theology will
accept only the love of God which participates in the destruction of the white
enemy. What we need is the divine love as expressed in black power which is the
power of black people to destroy their opinion pressers here and now by any
means at their disposal. Unless God is participating in this holy activity, we
must reject his love.”

Take a look into Barack Obama’s Pastor’s theology, which he, Jeremiah Wright, so proudly professes.

Thank you to netstepinc and YouTube

GLENN BECK

How Radical is Obama’s Pastor?; Supreme Court Hears Second Amendment Case; Millionaire Bails out Hundreds of Illegals

Aired March 19, 2008 – 19:00:00 ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GLENN BECK, HOST (voice-over): Tonight more fallout from Obama`s controversial speech about his former pastor. Does Jeremiah Wright believe in what`s called a black liberation theology? How radical is that school of thought?

Plus a big wig from Boston spends $200,000 to bail out illegals swept up in raids. Is he a hero or a villain? See if you can guess what I think.

And it`s been five years since the war in Iraq began, and except for today, the media has largely ignored the story lately. But the reason they`ve been ignoring the war is actually good. And I`ll explain.

All this and more tonight.(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: Well, hello, America.

After Barack Obama`s speech yesterday on the racially charged anti- American comments of his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, the liberal media held a pity party: “Oh, poor Barack, he`s just got a crazy grandpa. And don`t we all have a crazy grandpa?” No. Here`s “The Point” tonight.

Reverend Jeremiah Wright is much more dangerous than any crazy grandpa any of us might have had. The foundation of Wright`s beliefs are rooted in the theological tradition based in hate, intolerance and racial black nationalism. Here`s how I got there.

I told you just last week that I wouldn`t give any platform to any slinging of any mud for any candidate or any party. And I feel I am keeping my word on this. I am not piling on Obama due to the comments of his former pastor. What I`m doing, and what I think is important that we all do, is shine a light on Barack`s past.

We don`t know, really, who this guy is. We have to kind of piece it together, not only by what he says in the present, but what he has done in the past. Who is Barack Obama? Who has built his foundation?

So what did Barack do in the last 20 years? Well, he`s — one thing, sat in one of the pews of the Trinity United Church of Christ and listened to Reverend Wright`s sermons. He says he counts Wright as a member of his family and his senior spiritual adviser. OK. If that`s true, then I think it`s fair that we find out who Wright is and what he believes.

In the talking points page of the Trinity church`s Web site, Reverend Wright, in his own words, states that the foundation of his beliefs are in systemized black liberation theology and praises James Cone`s book, “Black Power and Black Theology.” This is what James Cone, the man who Obama`s senior spiritual advisor looks up to and whose ideas he preaches, states as black liberation theology. Listen carefully and please follow along.

Quote, “Black theology refuses to accept a God who is not identified totally with the goals of the black community. If God is not for us and against white people, then he is a murderer, and we had better kill him. The task of black theology is to kill gods who do not belong to the black community. Black theology will accept only the love of God which participates in the destruction of the white enemy. What we need is the divine love as expressed in black power which is the power of black people to destroy their opinion pressers here and now by any means at their disposal. Unless God is participating in this holy activity, we must reject his love.”

Wow, America, here is what you need to know tonight. The man who wrote those words contributed to the foundation of Reverend Jeremiah Wright`s ministry. Barack Obama has been Fed a steady diet of those teachings for 20 years. He sat in the pew every Sunday, soaking it in. He never denounced or rejected the Reverend`s beliefs until it was politically advantageous.

So do we believe 20 years of evidence or a 20-minute speech? Forget about me. I want to ask you the question: is this the kind of man you want to have access to the most powerful man on earth?

Ken Blackwell is a senior fellow for family empowerment of the Family Research Council. And Ramesh Ponnuru is the “TIME” columnist and senior editor for “The National Review”.

Ramesh, let me start with you. “Newsweek” called a couple of dozen prominent African-American pastors and asked them how out of step is Jeremiah Wright with what they see coming across the country? What did they find?

RAMESH PONNURU, “TIME”/”NATIONAL REVIEW”: Well, they found that not one of their experts was willing to say that the Reverend Wright had crossed any kind of significant line. They were saying that this sort of stuff is firmly within the mainstream of the churches that they`re talking about, not that all churches are like this but that a lot were.

BECK: OK. Here`s what I don`t understand, Ramesh. Is I`m reading the editorials. I read four papers today. You can`t find an editorial in a mainstream paper today that says anything but that Barack Obama was brave, et cetera, et cetera.

This is poison. This would destroy anybody else`s career. How is this just being dismissed?

PONNURU: Well, partly it`s because, for some of his fans among liberals and in the press, Barack Obama can`t sneeze without it being called eloquence.

Partly it`s because he managed very skillfully to change the subject. The question you`ve been talking about I think is the right question, which is what does his association, his tight and longstanding association with the Reverend Wright say about him, his beliefs and his judgment?

Instead, he made it all about this grand canvas of race relations in this country.

BECK: Right.

PONNURU: So it`s not about his judgment. It`s about all of us, the moral test is of us, not of him.

BECK: OK. Ken, I wanted to have you on, because you were a former U.N. ambassador — U.S. ambassador at the U.N. And you have seen this black liberation philosophy or theology before. Explain. I think this is even more frightening than the stuff that I`ve already read on television. Explain what you`ve seen.

KEN BLACKWELL, FAMILY RESEARCH COUNCIL: Essentially, liberation theology took root in Africa and Central America. It was often offered up by Marxist regimes that knew that they couldn`t uproot the church, so they tried to weaken the doctrine of the church. So it is an alternative doctrine of the church that embraces big government. It advances a collectivist ideal and idea, and it says the state, not the individual is central to society.

And that is very disquieting. But it also gives you a better understanding of the under-girding of Senator Obama`s big-government, liberal philosophy that would increase spending, increase taxes, weaken our military and our position in the world.

BECK: I`ll tell you, it explains the comments of his wife. It explains — you`re exactly right, his big-government ideas. If you understand what this theology is, you do begin to understand Barack Obama, but it is in a — I believe in a frightening way.

However, I`m being labeled the one that`s the hate-monger for asking these questions. How is this theology out there and it not be labeled racist and hate-mongering?

BLACKWELL: Well, it`s part of a series, of parts. Here`s a guy who says that he studied the doctrine of Saul Alinsky, who was an anarchist, a radical. Here is a guy who basically said that, while he was in Reverend Wright`s church, he embraces Louis Farrakhan.

The fact is that nobody has elevated this beyond his race. He can speak eloquently on race and moving towards a color-blind society, but what he can`t speak to is how he got there going to a color-conscious theology and how he got there by embracing, I think, a position that was really radical and antithetical to this whole notion of God as being central to our nation and the individual as being primary.

BECK: Ramesh, do you think, if I had — if I had a gun to your head and made you make a prediction, lay your last thousand dollars on the table and make a bet, does this just tighten Barack Obama`s core, and I think tear us apart even more, make us — you know, pretty much guarantee 1968? Or does this — does this — does he get away with it? Does it — does it do anything to anybody in the end?

PONNURU: I think Obama — you know, we`ve heard a lot of people say, oh, he threaded the needle. And that`s true except for one factor. He may be getting through the primaries this way. But unfortunately, there`s also a general election.

And I`m not sure that this kind of double talk, where he sort of says he`s not excusing the Reverend Wright and his anti-American comments and then gives seven paragraphs of excuses for it, is going to work with the general electorate. I they they`re fooling themselves.

BECK: I have to tell you, I have more respect for Democrats than this. I don`t think Democrats are — are in line in Reverend Wright at all.

Ken, Ramesh, thank you very much.

NOTE FROM MAGGIE’S NOTEBOOK: At this point the Jeremiah Wright-Barack Obama conversation ends. Beck goes on to discuss Iraq, Ban on Guns, Illegal Aliens, and The Economy and Rising Energy Costs.

Technorati Tags: Senator Barack Obama, Jeremiah Wright, Trinity United Christian Church, James Cone, Christianity, Black Liberation Theology, Glen Beck, YouTube

Cross-posted from Wake Up America and permission given by Maggie at Maggie’s Notebook

UPDATE

h/t to Susan at Wake up America for a link to the transcript. If you prefer to read rather than watch, the full transcript is below the video.

I’ve pulled this quote out for posterity:

“Black theology refuses to accept a God who is not identified totally with the
goals of the black community. If God is not for us and against white people,
then he is a murderer, and we had better kill him. The task of black theology is
to kill gods who do not belong to the black community. Black theology will
accept only the love of God which participates in the destruction of the white
enemy. What we need is the divine love as expressed in black power which is the
power of black people to destroy their opinion pressers here and now by any
means at their disposal. Unless God is participating in this holy activity, we
must reject his love.”

Take a look into Barack Obama’s Pastor’s theology, which he, Jeremiah Wright, so proudly professes.

Thank you to netstepinc and YouTube

GLENN BECK

How Radical is Obama’s Pastor?; Supreme Court Hears Second Amendment Case; Millionaire Bails out Hundreds of Illegals

Aired March 19, 2008 – 19:00:00 ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GLENN BECK, HOST (voice-over): Tonight more fallout from Obama`s controversial speech about his former pastor. Does Jeremiah Wright believe in what`s called a black liberation theology? How radical is that school of thought?

Plus a big wig from Boston spends $200,000 to bail out illegals swept up in raids. Is he a hero or a villain? See if you can guess what I think.

And it`s been five years since the war in Iraq began, and except for today, the media has largely ignored the story lately. But the reason they`ve been ignoring the war is actually good. And I`ll explain.

All this and more tonight.(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: Well, hello, America.

After Barack Obama`s speech yesterday on the racially charged anti- American comments of his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, the liberal media held a pity party: “Oh, poor Barack, he`s just got a crazy grandpa. And don`t we all have a crazy grandpa?” No. Here`s “The Point” tonight.

Reverend Jeremiah Wright is much more dangerous than any crazy grandpa any of us might have had. The foundation of Wright`s beliefs are rooted in the theological tradition based in hate, intolerance and racial black nationalism. Here`s how I got there.

I told you just last week that I wouldn`t give any platform to any slinging of any mud for any candidate or any party. And I feel I am keeping my word on this. I am not piling on Obama due to the comments of his former pastor. What I`m doing, and what I think is important that we all do, is shine a light on Barack`s past.

We don`t know, really, who this guy is. We have to kind of piece it together, not only by what he says in the present, but what he has done in the past. Who is Barack Obama? Who has built his foundation?

So what did Barack do in the last 20 years? Well, he`s — one thing, sat in one of the pews of the Trinity United Church of Christ and listened to Reverend Wright`s sermons. He says he counts Wright as a member of his family and his senior spiritual adviser. OK. If that`s true, then I think it`s fair that we find out who Wright is and what he believes.

In the talking points page of the Trinity church`s Web site, Reverend Wright, in his own words, states that the foundation of his beliefs are in systemized black liberation theology and praises James Cone`s book, “Black Power and Black Theology.” This is what James Cone, the man who Obama`s senior spiritual advisor looks up to and whose ideas he preaches, states as black liberation theology. Listen carefully and please follow along.

Quote, “Black theology refuses to accept a God who is not identified totally with the goals of the black community. If God is not for us and against white people, then he is a murderer, and we had better kill him. The task of black theology is to kill gods who do not belong to the black community. Black theology will accept only the love of God which participates in the destruction of the white enemy. What we need is the divine love as expressed in black power which is the power of black people to destroy their opinion pressers here and now by any means at their disposal. Unless God is participating in this holy activity, we must reject his love.”

Wow, America, here is what you need to know tonight. The man who wrote those words contributed to the foundation of Reverend Jeremiah Wright`s ministry. Barack Obama has been Fed a steady diet of those teachings for 20 years. He sat in the pew every Sunday, soaking it in. He never denounced or rejected the Reverend`s beliefs until it was politically advantageous.

So do we believe 20 years of evidence or a 20-minute speech? Forget about me. I want to ask you the question: is this the kind of man you want to have access to the most powerful man on earth?

Ken Blackwell is a senior fellow for family empowerment of the Family Research Council. And Ramesh Ponnuru is the “TIME” columnist and senior editor for “The National Review”.

Ramesh, let me start with you. “Newsweek” called a couple of dozen prominent African-American pastors and asked them how out of step is Jeremiah Wright with what they see coming across the country? What did they find?

RAMESH PONNURU, “TIME”/”NATIONAL REVIEW”: Well, they found that not one of their experts was willing to say that the Reverend Wright had crossed any kind of significant line. They were saying that this sort of stuff is firmly within the mainstream of the churches that they`re talking about, not that all churches are like this but that a lot were.

BECK: OK. Here`s what I don`t understand, Ramesh. Is I`m reading the editorials. I read four papers today. You can`t find an editorial in a mainstream paper today that says anything but that Barack Obama was brave, et cetera, et cetera.

This is poison. This would destroy anybody else`s career. How is this just being dismissed?

PONNURU: Well, partly it`s because, for some of his fans among liberals and in the press, Barack Obama can`t sneeze without it being called eloquence.

Partly it`s because he managed very skillfully to change the subject. The question you`ve been talking about I think is the right question, which is what does his association, his tight and longstanding association with the Reverend Wright say about him, his beliefs and his judgment?

Instead, he made it all about this grand canvas of race relations in this country.

BECK: Right.

PONNURU: So it`s not about his judgment. It`s about all of us, the moral test is of us, not of him.

BECK: OK. Ken, I wanted to have you on, because you were a former U.N. ambassador — U.S. ambassador at the U.N. And you have seen this black liberation philosophy or theology before. Explain. I think this is even more frightening than the stuff that I`ve already read on television. Explain what you`ve seen.

KEN BLACKWELL, FAMILY RESEARCH COUNCIL: Essentially, liberation theology took root in Africa and Central America. It was often offered up by Marxist regimes that knew that they couldn`t uproot the church, so they tried to weaken the doctrine of the church. So it is an alternative doctrine of the church that embraces big government. It advances a collectivist ideal and idea, and it says the state, not the individual is central to society.

And that is very disquieting. But it also gives you a better understanding of the under-girding of Senator Obama`s big-government, liberal philosophy that would increase spending, increase taxes, weaken our military and our position in the world.

BECK: I`ll tell you, it explains the comments of his wife. It explains — you`re exactly right, his big-government ideas. If you understand what this theology is, you do begin to understand Barack Obama, but it is in a — I believe in a frightening way.

However, I`m being labeled the one that`s the hate-monger for asking these questions. How is this theology out there and it not be labeled racist and hate-mongering?

BLACKWELL: Well, it`s part of a series, of parts. Here`s a guy who says that he studied the doctrine of Saul Alinsky, who was an anarchist, a radical. Here is a guy who basically said that, while he was in Reverend Wright`s church, he embraces Louis Farrakhan.

The fact is that nobody has elevated this beyond his race. He can speak eloquently on race and moving towards a color-blind society, but what he can`t speak to is how he got there going to a color-conscious theology and how he got there by embracing, I think, a position that was really radical and antithetical to this whole notion of God as being central to our nation and the individual as being primary.

BECK: Ramesh, do you think, if I had — if I had a gun to your head and made you make a prediction, lay your last thousand dollars on the table and make a bet, does this just tighten Barack Obama`s core, and I think tear us apart even more, make us — you know, pretty much guarantee 1968? Or does this — does this — does he get away with it? Does it — does it do anything to anybody in the end?

PONNURU: I think Obama — you know, we`ve heard a lot of people say, oh, he threaded the needle. And that`s true except for one factor. He may be getting through the primaries this way. But unfortunately, there`s also a general election.

And I`m not sure that this kind of double talk, where he sort of says he`s not excusing the Reverend Wright and his anti-American comments and then gives seven paragraphs of excuses for it, is going to work with the general electorate. I they they`re fooling themselves.

BECK: I have to tell you, I have more respect for Democrats than this. I don`t think Democrats are — are in line in Reverend Wright at all.

Ken, Ramesh, thank you very much.

NOTE FROM MAGGIE’S NOTEBOOK: At this point the Jeremiah Wright-Barack Obama conversation ends. Beck goes on to discuss Iraq, Ban on Guns, Illegal Aliens, and The Economy and Rising Energy Costs.

Technorati Tags: Senator Barack Obama, Jeremiah Wright, Trinity United Christian Church, James Cone, Christianity, Black Liberation Theology, Glen Beck, YouTube

Cross-posted from Wake Up America and permission given by Maggie at Maggie’s Notebook

UPDATE

h/t to Susan at Wake up America for a link to the transcript. If you prefer to read rather than watch, the full transcript is below the video.

I’ve pulled this quote out for posterity:

“Black theology refuses to accept a God who is not identified totally with the
goals of the black community. If God is not for us and against white people,
then he is a murderer, and we had better kill him. The task of black theology is
to kill gods who do not belong to the black community. Black theology will
accept only the love of God which participates in the destruction of the white
enemy. What we need is the divine love as expressed in black power which is the
power of black people to destroy their opinion pressers here and now by any
means at their disposal. Unless God is participating in this holy activity, we
must reject his love.”

Take a look into Barack Obama’s Pastor’s theology, which he, Jeremiah Wright, so proudly professes.

Thank you to netstepinc and YouTube

GLENN BECK

How Radical is Obama’s Pastor?; Supreme Court Hears Second Amendment Case; Millionaire Bails out Hundreds of Illegals

Aired March 19, 2008 – 19:00:00 ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GLENN BECK, HOST (voice-over): Tonight more fallout from Obama`s controversial speech about his former pastor. Does Jeremiah Wright believe in what`s called a black liberation theology? How radical is that school of thought?

Plus a big wig from Boston spends $200,000 to bail out illegals swept up in raids. Is he a hero or a villain? See if you can guess what I think.

And it`s been five years since the war in Iraq began, and except for today, the media has largely ignored the story lately. But the reason they`ve been ignoring the war is actually good. And I`ll explain.

All this and more tonight.(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: Well, hello, America.

After Barack Obama`s speech yesterday on the racially charged anti- American comments of his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, the liberal media held a pity party: “Oh, poor Barack, he`s just got a crazy grandpa. And don`t we all have a crazy grandpa?” No. Here`s “The Point” tonight.

Reverend Jeremiah Wright is much more dangerous than any crazy grandpa any of us might have had. The foundation of Wright`s beliefs are rooted in the theological tradition based in hate, intolerance and racial black nationalism. Here`s how I got there.

I told you just last week that I wouldn`t give any platform to any slinging of any mud for any candidate or any party. And I feel I am keeping my word on this. I am not piling on Obama due to the comments of his former pastor. What I`m doing, and what I think is important that we all do, is shine a light on Barack`s past.

We don`t know, really, who this guy is. We have to kind of piece it together, not only by what he says in the present, but what he has done in the past. Who is Barack Obama? Who has built his foundation?

So what did Barack do in the last 20 years? Well, he`s — one thing, sat in one of the pews of the Trinity United Church of Christ and listened to Reverend Wright`s sermons. He says he counts Wright as a member of his family and his senior spiritual adviser. OK. If that`s true, then I think it`s fair that we find out who Wright is and what he believes.

In the talking points page of the Trinity church`s Web site, Reverend Wright, in his own words, states that the foundation of his beliefs are in systemized black liberation theology and praises James Cone`s book, “Black Power and Black Theology.” This is what James Cone, the man who Obama`s senior spiritual advisor looks up to and whose ideas he preaches, states as black liberation theology. Listen carefully and please follow along.

Quote, “Black theology refuses to accept a God who is not identified totally with the goals of the black community. If God is not for us and against white people, then he is a murderer, and we had better kill him. The task of black theology is to kill gods who do not belong to the black community. Black theology will accept only the love of God which participates in the destruction of the white enemy. What we need is the divine love as expressed in black power which is the power of black people to destroy their opinion pressers here and now by any means at their disposal. Unless God is participating in this holy activity, we must reject his love.”

Wow, America, here is what you need to know tonight. The man who wrote those words contributed to the foundation of Reverend Jeremiah Wright`s ministry. Barack Obama has been Fed a steady diet of those teachings for 20 years. He sat in the pew every Sunday, soaking it in. He never denounced or rejected the Reverend`s beliefs until it was politically advantageous.

So do we believe 20 years of evidence or a 20-minute speech? Forget about me. I want to ask you the question: is this the kind of man you want to have access to the most powerful man on earth?

Ken Blackwell is a senior fellow for family empowerment of the Family Research Council. And Ramesh Ponnuru is the “TIME” columnist and senior editor for “The National Review”.

Ramesh, let me start with you. “Newsweek” called a couple of dozen prominent African-American pastors and asked them how out of step is Jeremiah Wright with what they see coming across the country? What did they find?

RAMESH PONNURU, “TIME”/”NATIONAL REVIEW”: Well, they found that not one of their experts was willing to say that the Reverend Wright had crossed any kind of significant line. They were saying that this sort of stuff is firmly within the mainstream of the churches that they`re talking about, not that all churches are like this but that a lot were.

BECK: OK. Here`s what I don`t understand, Ramesh. Is I`m reading the editorials. I read four papers today. You can`t find an editorial in a mainstream paper today that says anything but that Barack Obama was brave, et cetera, et cetera.

This is poison. This would destroy anybody else`s career. How is this just being dismissed?

PONNURU: Well, partly it`s because, for some of his fans among liberals and in the press, Barack Obama can`t sneeze without it being called eloquence.

Partly it`s because he managed very skillfully to change the subject. The question you`ve been talking about I think is the right question, which is what does his association, his tight and longstanding association with the Reverend Wright say about him, his beliefs and his judgment?

Instead, he made it all about this grand canvas of race relations in this country.

BECK: Right.

PONNURU: So it`s not about his judgment. It`s about all of us, the moral test is of us, not of him.

BECK: OK. Ken, I wanted to have you on, because you were a former U.N. ambassador — U.S. ambassador at the U.N. And you have seen this black liberation philosophy or theology before. Explain. I think this is even more frightening than the stuff that I`ve already read on television. Explain what you`ve seen.

KEN BLACKWELL, FAMILY RESEARCH COUNCIL: Essentially, liberation theology took root in Africa and Central America. It was often offered up by Marxist regimes that knew that they couldn`t uproot the church, so they tried to weaken the doctrine of the church. So it is an alternative doctrine of the church that embraces big government. It advances a collectivist ideal and idea, and it says the state, not the individual is central to society.

And that is very disquieting. But it also gives you a better understanding of the under-girding of Senator Obama`s big-government, liberal philosophy that would increase spending, increase taxes, weaken our military and our position in the world.

BECK: I`ll tell you, it explains the comments of his wife. It explains — you`re exactly right, his big-government ideas. If you understand what this theology is, you do begin to understand Barack Obama, but it is in a — I believe in a frightening way.

However, I`m being labeled the one that`s the hate-monger for asking these questions. How is this theology out there and it not be labeled racist and hate-mongering?

BLACKWELL: Well, it`s part of a series, of parts. Here`s a guy who says that he studied the doctrine of Saul Alinsky, who was an anarchist, a radical. Here is a guy who basically said that, while he was in Reverend Wright`s church, he embraces Louis Farrakhan.

The fact is that nobody has elevated this beyond his race. He can speak eloquently on race and moving towards a color-blind society, but what he can`t speak to is how he got there going to a color-conscious theology and how he got there by embracing, I think, a position that was really radical and antithetical to this whole notion of God as being central to our nation and the individual as being primary.

BECK: Ramesh, do you think, if I had — if I had a gun to your head and made you make a prediction, lay your last thousand dollars on the table and make a bet, does this just tighten Barack Obama`s core, and I think tear us apart even more, make us — you know, pretty much guarantee 1968? Or does this — does this — does he get away with it? Does it — does it do anything to anybody in the end?

PONNURU: I think Obama — you know, we`ve heard a lot of people say, oh, he threaded the needle. And that`s true except for one factor. He may be getting through the primaries this way. But unfortunately, there`s also a general election.

And I`m not sure that this kind of double talk, where he sort of says he`s not excusing the Reverend Wright and his anti-American comments and then gives seven paragraphs of excuses for it, is going to work with the general electorate. I they they`re fooling themselves.

BECK: I have to tell you, I have more respect for Democrats than this. I don`t think Democrats are — are in line in Reverend Wright at all.

Ken, Ramesh, thank you very much.

NOTE FROM MAGGIE’S NOTEBOOK: At this point the Jeremiah Wright-Barack Obama conversation ends. Beck goes on to discuss Iraq, Ban on Guns, Illegal Aliens, and The Economy and Rising Energy Costs.

Technorati Tags: Senator Barack Obama, Jeremiah Wright, Trinity United Christian Church, James Cone, Christianity, Black Liberation Theology, Glen Beck, YouTube

Cross-posted from Wake Up America and permission given by Maggie at Maggie’s Notebook

UPDATE

h/t to Susan at Wake up America for a link to the transcript. If you prefer to read rather than watch, the full transcript is below the video.

I’ve pulled this quote out for posterity:

“Black theology refuses to accept a God who is not identified totally with the
goals of the black community. If God is not for us and against white people,
then he is a murderer, and we had better kill him. The task of black theology is
to kill gods who do not belong to the black community. Black theology will
accept only the love of God which participates in the destruction of the white
enemy. What we need is the divine love as expressed in black power which is the
power of black people to destroy their opinion pressers here and now by any
means at their disposal. Unless God is participating in this holy activity, we
must reject his love.”

Take a look into Barack Obama’s Pastor’s theology, which he, Jeremiah Wright, so proudly professes.

Thank you to netstepinc and YouTube

GLENN BECK

How Radical is Obama’s Pastor?; Supreme Court Hears Second Amendment Case; Millionaire Bails out Hundreds of Illegals

Aired March 19, 2008 – 19:00:00 ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GLENN BECK, HOST (voice-over): Tonight more fallout from Obama`s controversial speech about his former pastor. Does Jeremiah Wright believe in what`s called a black liberation theology? How radical is that school of thought?

Plus a big wig from Boston spends $200,000 to bail out illegals swept up in raids. Is he a hero or a villain? See if you can guess what I think.

And it`s been five years since the war in Iraq began, and except for today, the media has largely ignored the story lately. But the reason they`ve been ignoring the war is actually good. And I`ll explain.

All this and more tonight.(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: Well, hello, America.

After Barack Obama`s speech yesterday on the racially charged anti- American comments of his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, the liberal media held a pity party: “Oh, poor Barack, he`s just got a crazy grandpa. And don`t we all have a crazy grandpa?” No. Here`s “The Point” tonight.

Reverend Jeremiah Wright is much more dangerous than any crazy grandpa any of us might have had. The foundation of Wright`s beliefs are rooted in the theological tradition based in hate, intolerance and racial black nationalism. Here`s how I got there.

I told you just last week that I wouldn`t give any platform to any slinging of any mud for any candidate or any party. And I feel I am keeping my word on this. I am not piling on Obama due to the comments of his former pastor. What I`m doing, and what I think is important that we all do, is shine a light on Barack`s past.

We don`t know, really, who this guy is. We have to kind of piece it together, not only by what he says in the present, but what he has done in the past. Who is Barack Obama? Who has built his foundation?

So what did Barack do in the last 20 years? Well, he`s — one thing, sat in one of the pews of the Trinity United Church of Christ and listened to Reverend Wright`s sermons. He says he counts Wright as a member of his family and his senior spiritual adviser. OK. If that`s true, then I think it`s fair that we find out who Wright is and what he believes.

In the talking points page of the Trinity church`s Web site, Reverend Wright, in his own words, states that the foundation of his beliefs are in systemized black liberation theology and praises James Cone`s book, “Black Power and Black Theology.” This is what James Cone, the man who Obama`s senior spiritual advisor looks up to and whose ideas he preaches, states as black liberation theology. Listen carefully and please follow along.

Quote, “Black theology refuses to accept a God who is not identified totally with the goals of the black community. If God is not for us and against white people, then he is a murderer, and we had better kill him. The task of black theology is to kill gods who do not belong to the black community. Black theology will accept only the love of God which participates in the destruction of the white enemy. What we need is the divine love as expressed in black power which is the power of black people to destroy their opinion pressers here and now by any means at their disposal. Unless God is participating in this holy activity, we must reject his love.”

Wow, America, here is what you need to know tonight. The man who wrote those words contributed to the foundation of Reverend Jeremiah Wright`s ministry. Barack Obama has been Fed a steady diet of those teachings for 20 years. He sat in the pew every Sunday, soaking it in. He never denounced or rejected the Reverend`s beliefs until it was politically advantageous.

So do we believe 20 years of evidence or a 20-minute speech? Forget about me. I want to ask you the question: is this the kind of man you want to have access to the most powerful man on earth?

Ken Blackwell is a senior fellow for family empowerment of the Family Research Council. And Ramesh Ponnuru is the “TIME” columnist and senior editor for “The National Review”.

Ramesh, let me start with you. “Newsweek” called a couple of dozen prominent African-American pastors and asked them how out of step is Jeremiah Wright with what they see coming across the country? What did they find?

RAMESH PONNURU, “TIME”/”NATIONAL REVIEW”: Well, they found that not one of their experts was willing to say that the Reverend Wright had crossed any kind of significant line. They were saying that this sort of stuff is firmly within the mainstream of the churches that they`re talking about, not that all churches are like this but that a lot were.

BECK: OK. Here`s what I don`t understand, Ramesh. Is I`m reading the editorials. I read four papers today. You can`t find an editorial in a mainstream paper today that says anything but that Barack Obama was brave, et cetera, et cetera.

This is poison. This would destroy anybody else`s career. How is this just being dismissed?

PONNURU: Well, partly it`s because, for some of his fans among liberals and in the press, Barack Obama can`t sneeze without it being called eloquence.

Partly it`s because he managed very skillfully to change the subject. The question you`ve been talking about I think is the right question, which is what does his association, his tight and longstanding association with the Reverend Wright say about him, his beliefs and his judgment?

Instead, he made it all about this grand canvas of race relations in this country.

BECK: Right.

PONNURU: So it`s not about his judgment. It`s about all of us, the moral test is of us, not of him.

BECK: OK. Ken, I wanted to have you on, because you were a former U.N. ambassador — U.S. ambassador at the U.N. And you have seen this black liberation philosophy or theology before. Explain. I think this is even more frightening than the stuff that I`ve already read on television. Explain what you`ve seen.

KEN BLACKWELL, FAMILY RESEARCH COUNCIL: Essentially, liberation theology took root in Africa and Central America. It was often offered up by Marxist regimes that knew that they couldn`t uproot the church, so they tried to weaken the doctrine of the church. So it is an alternative doctrine of the church that embraces big government. It advances a collectivist ideal and idea, and it says the state, not the individual is central to society.

And that is very disquieting. But it also gives you a better understanding of the under-girding of Senator Obama`s big-government, liberal philosophy that would increase spending, increase taxes, weaken our military and our position in the world.

BECK: I`ll tell you, it explains the comments of his wife. It explains — you`re exactly right, his big-government ideas. If you understand what this theology is, you do begin to understand Barack Obama, but it is in a — I believe in a frightening way.

However, I`m being labeled the one that`s the hate-monger for asking these questions. How is this theology out there and it not be labeled racist and hate-mongering?

BLACKWELL: Well, it`s part of a series, of parts. Here`s a guy who says that he studied the doctrine of Saul Alinsky, who was an anarchist, a radical. Here is a guy who basically said that, while he was in Reverend Wright`s church, he embraces Louis Farrakhan.

The fact is that nobody has elevated this beyond his race. He can speak eloquently on race and moving towards a color-blind society, but what he can`t speak to is how he got there going to a color-conscious theology and how he got there by embracing, I think, a position that was really radical and antithetical to this whole notion of God as being central to our nation and the individual as being primary.

BECK: Ramesh, do you think, if I had — if I had a gun to your head and made you make a prediction, lay your last thousand dollars on the table and make a bet, does this just tighten Barack Obama`s core, and I think tear us apart even more, make us — you know, pretty much guarantee 1968? Or does this — does this — does he get away with it? Does it — does it do anything to anybody in the end?

PONNURU: I think Obama — you know, we`ve heard a lot of people say, oh, he threaded the needle. And that`s true except for one factor. He may be getting through the primaries this way. But unfortunately, there`s also a general election.

And I`m not sure that this kind of double talk, where he sort of says he`s not excusing the Reverend Wright and his anti-American comments and then gives seven paragraphs of excuses for it, is going to work with the general electorate. I they they`re fooling themselves.

BECK: I have to tell you, I have more respect for Democrats than this. I don`t think Democrats are — are in line in Reverend Wright at all.

Ken, Ramesh, thank you very much.

NOTE FROM MAGGIE’S NOTEBOOK: At this point the Jeremiah Wright-Barack Obama conversation ends. Beck goes on to discuss Iraq, Ban on Guns, Illegal Aliens, and The Economy and Rising Energy Costs.

Technorati Tags: Senator Barack Obama, Jeremiah Wright, Trinity United Christian Church, James Cone, Christianity, Black Liberation Theology, Glen Beck, YouTube

Cross-posted from Wake Up America and permission given by Maggie at Maggie’s Notebook

UPDATE

h/t to Susan at Wake up America for a link to the transcript. If you prefer to read rather than watch, the full transcript is below the video.

I’ve pulled this quote out for posterity:

“Black theology refuses to accept a God who is not identified totally with the
goals of the black community. If God is not for us and against white people,
then he is a murderer, and we had better kill him. The task of black theology is
to kill gods who do not belong to the black community. Black theology will
accept only the love of God which participates in the destruction of the white
enemy. What we need is the divine love as expressed in black power which is the
power of black people to destroy their opinion pressers here and now by any
means at their disposal. Unless God is participating in this holy activity, we
must reject his love.”

Take a look into Barack Obama’s Pastor’s theology, which he, Jeremiah Wright, so proudly professes.

Thank you to netstepinc and YouTube

GLENN BECK

How Radical is Obama’s Pastor?; Supreme Court Hears Second Amendment Case; Millionaire Bails out Hundreds of Illegals

Aired March 19, 2008 – 19:00:00 ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GLENN BECK, HOST (voice-over): Tonight more fallout from Obama`s controversial speech about his former pastor. Does Jeremiah Wright believe in what`s called a black liberation theology? How radical is that school of thought?

Plus a big wig from Boston spends $200,000 to bail out illegals swept up in raids. Is he a hero or a villain? See if you can guess what I think.

And it`s been five years since the war in Iraq began, and except for today, the media has largely ignored the story lately. But the reason they`ve been ignoring the war is actually good. And I`ll explain.

All this and more tonight.(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: Well, hello, America.

After Barack Obama`s speech yesterday on the racially charged anti- American comments of his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, the liberal media held a pity party: “Oh, poor Barack, he`s just got a crazy grandpa. And don`t we all have a crazy grandpa?” No. Here`s “The Point” tonight.

Reverend Jeremiah Wright is much more dangerous than any crazy grandpa any of us might have had. The foundation of Wright`s beliefs are rooted in the theological tradition based in hate, intolerance and racial black nationalism. Here`s how I got there.

I told you just last week that I wouldn`t give any platform to any slinging of any mud for any candidate or any party. And I feel I am keeping my word on this. I am not piling on Obama due to the comments of his former pastor. What I`m doing, and what I think is important that we all do, is shine a light on Barack`s past.

We don`t know, really, who this guy is. We have to kind of piece it together, not only by what he says in the present, but what he has done in the past. Who is Barack Obama? Who has built his foundation?

So what did Barack do in the last 20 years? Well, he`s — one thing, sat in one of the pews of the Trinity United Church of Christ and listened to Reverend Wright`s sermons. He says he counts Wright as a member of his family and his senior spiritual adviser. OK. If that`s true, then I think it`s fair that we find out who Wright is and what he believes.

In the talking points page of the Trinity church`s Web site, Reverend Wright, in his own words, states that the foundation of his beliefs are in systemized black liberation theology and praises James Cone`s book, “Black Power and Black Theology.” This is what James Cone, the man who Obama`s senior spiritual advisor looks up to and whose ideas he preaches, states as black liberation theology. Listen carefully and please follow along.

Quote, “Black theology refuses to accept a God who is not identified totally with the goals of the black community. If God is not for us and against white people, then he is a murderer, and we had better kill him. The task of black theology is to kill gods who do not belong to the black community. Black theology will accept only the love of God which participates in the destruction of the white enemy. What we need is the divine love as expressed in black power which is the power of black people to destroy their opinion pressers here and now by any means at their disposal. Unless God is participating in this holy activity, we must reject his love.”

Wow, America, here is what you need to know tonight. The man who wrote those words contributed to the foundation of Reverend Jeremiah Wright`s ministry. Barack Obama has been Fed a steady diet of those teachings for 20 years. He sat in the pew every Sunday, soaking it in. He never denounced or rejected the Reverend`s beliefs until it was politically advantageous.

So do we believe 20 years of evidence or a 20-minute speech? Forget about me. I want to ask you the question: is this the kind of man you want to have access to the most powerful man on earth?

Ken Blackwell is a senior fellow for family empowerment of the Family Research Council. And Ramesh Ponnuru is the “TIME” columnist and senior editor for “The National Review”.

Ramesh, let me start with you. “Newsweek” called a couple of dozen prominent African-American pastors and asked them how out of step is Jeremiah Wright with what they see coming across the country? What did they find?

RAMESH PONNURU, “TIME”/”NATIONAL REVIEW”: Well, they found that not one of their experts was willing to say that the Reverend Wright had crossed any kind of significant line. They were saying that this sort of stuff is firmly within the mainstream of the churches that they`re talking about, not that all churches are like this but that a lot were.

BECK: OK. Here`s what I don`t understand, Ramesh. Is I`m reading the editorials. I read four papers today. You can`t find an editorial in a mainstream paper today that says anything but that Barack Obama was brave, et cetera, et cetera.

This is poison. This would destroy anybody else`s career. How is this just being dismissed?

PONNURU: Well, partly it`s because, for some of his fans among liberals and in the press, Barack Obama can`t sneeze without it being called eloquence.

Partly it`s because he managed very skillfully to change the subject. The question you`ve been talking about I think is the right question, which is what does his association, his tight and longstanding association with the Reverend Wright say about him, his beliefs and his judgment?

Instead, he made it all about this grand canvas of race relations in this country.

BECK: Right.

PONNURU: So it`s not about his judgment. It`s about all of us, the moral test is of us, not of him.

BECK: OK. Ken, I wanted to have you on, because you were a former U.N. ambassador — U.S. ambassador at the U.N. And you have seen this black liberation philosophy or theology before. Explain. I think this is even more frightening than the stuff that I`ve already read on television. Explain what you`ve seen.

KEN BLACKWELL, FAMILY RESEARCH COUNCIL: Essentially, liberation theology took root in Africa and Central America. It was often offered up by Marxist regimes that knew that they couldn`t uproot the church, so they tried to weaken the doctrine of the church. So it is an alternative doctrine of the church that embraces big government. It advances a collectivist ideal and idea, and it says the state, not the individual is central to society.

And that is very disquieting. But it also gives you a better understanding of the under-girding of Senator Obama`s big-government, liberal philosophy that would increase spending, increase taxes, weaken our military and our position in the world.

BECK: I`ll tell you, it explains the comments of his wife. It explains — you`re exactly right, his big-government ideas. If you understand what this theology is, you do begin to understand Barack Obama, but it is in a — I believe in a frightening way.

However, I`m being labeled the one that`s the hate-monger for asking these questions. How is this theology out there and it not be labeled racist and hate-mongering?

BLACKWELL: Well, it`s part of a series, of parts. Here`s a guy who says that he studied the doctrine of Saul Alinsky, who was an anarchist, a radical. Here is a guy who basically said that, while he was in Reverend Wright`s church, he embraces Louis Farrakhan.

The fact is that nobody has elevated this beyond his race. He can speak eloquently on race and moving towards a color-blind society, but what he can`t speak to is how he got there going to a color-conscious theology and how he got there by embracing, I think, a position that was really radical and antithetical to this whole notion of God as being central to our nation and the individual as being primary.

BECK: Ramesh, do you think, if I had — if I had a gun to your head and made you make a prediction, lay your last thousand dollars on the table and make a bet, does this just tighten Barack Obama`s core, and I think tear us apart even more, make us — you know, pretty much guarantee 1968? Or does this — does this — does he get away with it? Does it — does it do anything to anybody in the end?

PONNURU: I think Obama — you know, we`ve heard a lot of people say, oh, he threaded the needle. And that`s true except for one factor. He may be getting through the primaries this way. But unfortunately, there`s also a general election.

And I`m not sure that this kind of double talk, where he sort of says he`s not excusing the Reverend Wright and his anti-American comments and then gives seven paragraphs of excuses for it, is going to work with the general electorate. I they they`re fooling themselves.

BECK: I have to tell you, I have more respect for Democrats than this. I don`t think Democrats are — are in line in Reverend Wright at all.

Ken, Ramesh, thank you very much.

NOTE FROM MAGGIE’S NOTEBOOK: At this point the Jeremiah Wright-Barack Obama conversation ends. Beck goes on to discuss Iraq, Ban on Guns, Illegal Aliens, and The Economy and Rising Energy Costs.

Technorati Tags: Senator Barack Obama, Jeremiah Wright, Trinity United Christian Church, James Cone, Christianity, Black Liberation Theology, Glen Beck, YouTube

Timely Media Research Center Updates–Barack Hussein Obama and Iraq

Also posted at Digg! here; GOP Hub here; Grizzly Groundswell here and Real Clear Politics here (unless of course they continue to censor me and remove yet another post).

We all know by now the MSM isn’t going to cover either Barack Hussein Obama or Iraq in a fair and balanced manner. In fact, we flat out KNOW they’re going to sweep any good news about Iraq under the rug until they plain have no other choice except reporting it, and then it won’t be full coverage. As to BHO, they will gloss over the most egregious information or flat out mis-report it (I heard a commentator today refer to Wright’s comments as “the RECENT comments by Wright” when we have previously shown they were ongoing over a several year time span–there was nothing RECENT about them).

So, straight from Media Research Center:

1. Instead of Wright, NBC Touts Childhood Pals: ‘Good Luck Barry!’
Friday’s NBC Nightly News allocated a mere 22 seconds to Barack Obama’s condemnation of what fill-in anchor Ann Curry vaguely described as “inflammatory remarks that his long time pastor made about Hillary Clinton and the nation,” but instead of informing viewers of any of those remarks, such as Reverend Jeremiah Wright’s suggestion that the U.S. deserved 9/11, the newscast then devoted three minutes to a celebratory piece about how excited Obama’s childhood friends in Indonesia are about his candidacy. In a story which began and ended with a picture of Obama’s classmates in front of huge “Good Luck Barry!” lettering, reporter Ian Williams trumpeted the wonders Obama is doing abroad: “The fact that Obama lived in Jakarta and studied at this school has really captured the popular imagination. It’s already working wonders for America’s battered image here.” A local commentator oozed over how “Obama’s candidacy confirms the romantic ideals people like me have held since childhood that America’s the land of opportunity.” Williams concluded with how “friends remember Barry playing barefoot in the paddy fields with a real spirit of adventure,” and so now “hope there’ll be no turning back on his journey to the White House. And Barry might attend their next reunion as President of the United States.”

2. On Wright Blaming U.S. for 9/11: ‘How Do We Get Away from This?’
Instead of acting as an impartial journalist who would express interest in probing why Barack Obama may say he disagrees with the incendiary anti-U.S. left-wing rants from his minister while he has remained close to him, Friday afternoon on MSNBC Norah O’Donnell fretted about how “Rush Limbaugh went nuts today on his program about this story” and wondered: “How do we get away from this?” Guest Michael Crowley of The New Republic assured her: “I don’t think this reflects anything on what Barack Obama believes.”

3. Study: Broadcast Networks Fell Down on Covering Jeremiah Wright
As Jeremiah Wright’s screaming sermons have gone from ABC across the media on Friday, many are asking: where were the networks on this story? A Nexis search of network transcripts shows that up until now, Obama’s church and minister have been barely mentioned — and usually as an Obama defense mechanism. Up until March 13, NBC has done nothing. CBS has devoted about a minute to controversy in a February 28 CBS Evening News story. ABC’s Jake Tapper offered Obama’s church-and-minister defense against charges he was a Muslim three times in November and December.

4. Ongoing Blackout of Wright’s 9/11 Rant, Only ABC Covers Him Monday
The broadcast network evening show blackout, of Reverend Jeremiah Wright’s 2001 charge that the U.S. earned the 9/11 attacks, continued Monday night as neither CBS nor NBC touched the Wright issue and ABC ran a full story which included Wright’s “U.S. of K-K-K-A” hate speech and how Obama has been close to Wright for 20 years, but concluded with how “many African-Americans do not understand” the controversy since the “kind of fiery language Wright uses is not uncommon in black churches.”

What struck me today was the backhanded, bigoted slap BHO gave to his own grandmother–first he talked about her sacrifice and love of him, but then babbled how she said things about her fear of black men on the street that made him cringe.

He has no problem forgiving Wright and “understanding” where Wright’s “anger” comes from, but he’s not able to extend that same understanding to his grandmother and her fear. That makes him cringe.

His lies also stood out like huge red flags. Three days ago, according to him, he never heard Wright say these things, he wasn’t present when these things were said. Then he started getting “squishy” and stated he MAY have heard a few things–today he admits to hearing these things.
Not once. Not twice, but…20 years worth, by his choice. His choice to listen to this hate monger, his choice to admire him, his choice to rely on him for spiritual and personal support and help.

He truly showed how he would handle a crisis if elected to the White House. Between his lies, his wishy-washy actions, his tepid, forced denunciations of Wright and Farrakhan–he has shown he failed this test miserably.

Go home little boy and grow up. Maybe you’ll be ready for the White House in about 100 years. NOT a second sooner.

Timely Media Research Center Updates–Barack Hussein Obama and Iraq

Also posted at Digg! here; GOP Hub here; Grizzly Groundswell here and Real Clear Politics here (unless of course they continue to censor me and remove yet another post).

We all know by now the MSM isn’t going to cover either Barack Hussein Obama or Iraq in a fair and balanced manner. In fact, we flat out KNOW they’re going to sweep any good news about Iraq under the rug until they plain have no other choice except reporting it, and then it won’t be full coverage. As to BHO, they will gloss over the most egregious information or flat out mis-report it (I heard a commentator today refer to Wright’s comments as “the RECENT comments by Wright” when we have previously shown they were ongoing over a several year time span–there was nothing RECENT about them).

So, straight from Media Research Center:

1. Instead of Wright, NBC Touts Childhood Pals: ‘Good Luck Barry!’
Friday’s NBC Nightly News allocated a mere 22 seconds to Barack Obama’s condemnation of what fill-in anchor Ann Curry vaguely described as “inflammatory remarks that his long time pastor made about Hillary Clinton and the nation,” but instead of informing viewers of any of those remarks, such as Reverend Jeremiah Wright’s suggestion that the U.S. deserved 9/11, the newscast then devoted three minutes to a celebratory piece about how excited Obama’s childhood friends in Indonesia are about his candidacy. In a story which began and ended with a picture of Obama’s classmates in front of huge “Good Luck Barry!” lettering, reporter Ian Williams trumpeted the wonders Obama is doing abroad: “The fact that Obama lived in Jakarta and studied at this school has really captured the popular imagination. It’s already working wonders for America’s battered image here.” A local commentator oozed over how “Obama’s candidacy confirms the romantic ideals people like me have held since childhood that America’s the land of opportunity.” Williams concluded with how “friends remember Barry playing barefoot in the paddy fields with a real spirit of adventure,” and so now “hope there’ll be no turning back on his journey to the White House. And Barry might attend their next reunion as President of the United States.”

2. On Wright Blaming U.S. for 9/11: ‘How Do We Get Away from This?’
Instead of acting as an impartial journalist who would express interest in probing why Barack Obama may say he disagrees with the incendiary anti-U.S. left-wing rants from his minister while he has remained close to him, Friday afternoon on MSNBC Norah O’Donnell fretted about how “Rush Limbaugh went nuts today on his program about this story” and wondered: “How do we get away from this?” Guest Michael Crowley of The New Republic assured her: “I don’t think this reflects anything on what Barack Obama believes.”

3. Study: Broadcast Networks Fell Down on Covering Jeremiah Wright
As Jeremiah Wright’s screaming sermons have gone from ABC across the media on Friday, many are asking: where were the networks on this story? A Nexis search of network transcripts shows that up until now, Obama’s church and minister have been barely mentioned — and usually as an Obama defense mechanism. Up until March 13, NBC has done nothing. CBS has devoted about a minute to controversy in a February 28 CBS Evening News story. ABC’s Jake Tapper offered Obama’s church-and-minister defense against charges he was a Muslim three times in November and December.

4. Ongoing Blackout of Wright’s 9/11 Rant, Only ABC Covers Him Monday
The broadcast network evening show blackout, of Reverend Jeremiah Wright’s 2001 charge that the U.S. earned the 9/11 attacks, continued Monday night as neither CBS nor NBC touched the Wright issue and ABC ran a full story which included Wright’s “U.S. of K-K-K-A” hate speech and how Obama has been close to Wright for 20 years, but concluded with how “many African-Americans do not understand” the controversy since the “kind of fiery language Wright uses is not uncommon in black churches.”

What struck me today was the backhanded, bigoted slap BHO gave to his own grandmother–first he talked about her sacrifice and love of him, but then babbled how she said things about her fear of black men on the street that made him cringe.

He has no problem forgiving Wright and “understanding” where Wright’s “anger” comes from, but he’s not able to extend that same understanding to his grandmother and her fear. That makes him cringe.

His lies also stood out like huge red flags. Three days ago, according to him, he never heard Wright say these things, he wasn’t present when these things were said. Then he started getting “squishy” and stated he MAY have heard a few things–today he admits to hearing these things.
Not once. Not twice, but…20 years worth, by his choice. His choice to listen to this hate monger, his choice to admire him, his choice to rely on him for spiritual and personal support and help.

He truly showed how he would handle a crisis if elected to the White House. Between his lies, his wishy-washy actions, his tepid, forced denunciations of Wright and Farrakhan–he has shown he failed this test miserably.

Go home little boy and grow up. Maybe you’ll be ready for the White House in about 100 years. NOT a second sooner.

Obama Rationalizes Wright’s Rhetoric

Cross posted from Wake up America

The recent firestorm that ensued after certain comments were published from Pastor Jeremiah Wright, (video found here) who is Barack Obama’s pastor and has been for 20 years, forced Barack Obama to step up and give a speech today to supporters at Philadelphia’s National Constitution Center.

The full text of the speech can be found here.

Obama’s speech will, of course, be seen differently from a variety of people, die hard Obama supporters will see that he denounced specific comments made by his Pastor, moderates and independents might be left with some additional questions about his rationalizations almost excusing the more controversial aspects of the Pastor’s “God Damn America” rantings, and the Republicans and conservatives will have definite ammunition to use against Obama if he ends up being the Democratic nominee of choice to run for presidency of the United States.

What his supporters will take to heart regarding the specific controversial remarks.

I have already condemned, in unequivocal terms, the statements of Reverend Wright that have caused such controversy.

[…]

But the remarks that have caused this recent firestorm weren’t simply controversial. They weren’t simply a religious leader’s effort to speak out against perceived injustice. Instead, they expressed a profoundly distorted view of this country – a view that sees white racism as endemic, and that elevates what is wrong with America above all that we know is right with America; a view that sees the conflicts in the Middle East as rooted primarily in the actions of stalwart allies like Israel, instead of emanating from the perverse and hateful ideologies of radical Islam.

As such, Reverend Wright’s comments were not only wrong but divisive, divisive at a time when we need unity; racially charged at a time when we need to come together to solve a set of monumental problems – two wars, a terrorist threat, a falling economy, a chronic health care crisis and potentially devastating climate change; problems that are neither black or white or Latino or Asian, but rather problems that confront us all.

The rationalization that might give moderates and independents pause..

Given my background, my politics, and my professed values and ideals, there will no doubt be those for whom my statements of condemnation are not enough. Why associate myself with Reverend Wright in the first place, they may ask? Why not join another church? And I confess that if all that I knew of Reverend Wright were the snippets of those sermons that have run in an endless loop on the television and You Tube, or if Trinity United Church of Christ conformed to the caricatures being peddled by some commentators, there is no doubt that I would react in much the same way

But the truth is, that isn’t all that I know of the man. The man I met more than twenty years ago is a man who helped introduce me to my Christian faith, a man who spoke to me about our obligations to love one another; to care for the sick and lift up the poor. He is a man who served his country as a U.S. Marine; who has studied and lectured at some of the finest universities and seminaries in the country, and who for over thirty years led a church that serves the community by doing God’s work here on Earth – by housing the homeless, ministering to the needy, providing day care services and scholarships and prison ministries, and reaching out to those suffering from HIV/AIDS.

The portion that will give conservatives talking points against Obama.

For some, nagging questions remain. Did I know him to be an occasionally fierce critic of American domestic and foreign policy? Of course. Did I ever hear him make remarks that could be considered controversial while I sat in church? Yes. Did I strongly disagree with many of his political views? Absolutely – just as I’m sure many of you have heard remarks from your pastors, priests, or rabbis with which you strongly disagreed.

The take aways from these portions of the speech, for Obama supporters will be that he did denounce specific comments.

Moderates and independents, who have only seen those snippets of Wright’s speeches and do not know Wright separate from what has been plastered in every newspaper and throughout the world wide web, over the last week, will see Obama rationalizing and excusing Wright’s behavior and words.

Conservatives will see that Obama admits to having heard divisive and controversial comments and political views he claims are not representative of his own views and yet he continued to have a close association with him, even stating in this speech, “As imperfect as he may be, he has been like family to me. He strengthened my faith, officiated my wedding, and baptized my children.”

The question that remains is, did Obama go far enough in this speech to stop the damage that has been recently reported where 56 perecent said that Wright’s comments, “made them less likely to vote for Obama.”

If conservatives were the ones polled there, that figure would not matter much at all because conservatives would not be voting for Obama in the general election anyway…. but 44 percent of Democratic voters were included in that figure.

Since 66 percent said they have seen, read of heard about Wright’s comments, the takeaways from this speech of Obama’s will be significant in scope, and time will tell if he went far enough in denouncing Wright or if the rationalizations will continue to damage him in the polls.

A very curious theme is developing in the blogosphere from those talking about this speech from Barack Obama.

All sides of the issue are happy with his speech, for different reasons.

Obama supporters are happy he denounced the specific Wright’s comments and philosophy, Clinton supporters are happy that he rationalized and excused the man while only denouncing the rhetoric, giving them the opportunity to accuse him of “tap dancing”, and McCain supporters are happy because they feel he opened himself up for criticism by trying to distance himself in a non distancing way and giving a “non-apology apology”.

After reading the whole speech, do you think Obama went far enough in denouncing just the comments but not the man?

All Miss Beth’s Barack Obama posts can be found on one page here.
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