Obama campaign finally plays the race card, implies racism is behind Hillary’s criticism of The Golden Boy

We knew it would happen eventually (emphasis added):

A series of comments from Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, her husband and her supporters are spurring a racial backlash and adding a divisive edge to the presidential primary as the candidates head south to heavily African-American South Carolina.

The comments, which ranged from the New York senator appearing to diminish the role of Martin Luther King Jr. in the civil rights movement β€” an aide later said she misspoke β€” to Bill Clinton dismissing Sen. Barack Obama‘s image in the media as a “fairy tale” β€” generated outrage on black radio, black blogs and cable television. And now they’ve drawn the attention of prominent African-American politicians.

“A cross-section of voters are alarmed at the tenor of some of these statements” said Obama spokeswoman Candice Tolliver, who said that Clinton would have to decide whether she owed anyone an apology.

“There’s a groundswell of reaction to these comments β€” and not just these latest comments but really a pattern, or a series of comments that we’ve heard for several months” she said. “Folks are beginning to wonder: Is this really an isolated situation, or is there something bigger behind all of this?”

(h/t: Memeorandum)

First things first, as ya’ll know, I’m no big defender of La Clinton. However, if you read her remarks, she’s pretty close to the mark – and the comments don’t sound racist at all. Both hers and her husband’s comments were made in the context of Obama doing two things: outrageously comparing himself to JFK and MLK, and also touting his Iraq record, with Hillary saying (in so many words) that yeah, MLK did great things, but in the end it took a president (LBJ) with experience to make those civil rights a reality … which was MLK’s goal in the first place. Bill Clinton’s “fairy tale” comment was in reference to Obama’s Iraq record, nothing more.

That said, I don’t feel one ounce of sympathy for the false implied allegations of racism against her, not after what she and her party have done over the years to advance the myth that conservatives are nothing but cold-hearted racists, a vicious tactic liberal Democrats like Hillary Clinton have used routinely for shameless political purposes. I will never forget when Hillary Clinton, along with her husband, piled on during the Trent Lott/Strom Thurmond “praise comment” controversy about how what we heard from Trent Lott in his supposed “praise” of segregation was what the Republican party does on the “back roads” all the time. Here were Bubba’s exact reprehensible remarks:

NEW YORK (CNN) — Former President Clinton said Wednesday it is “pretty hypocritical” of Republicans to criticize incoming Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott for stating publicly what he said the GOP does “on the back roads every day.”

Here’s what Hillary spouted off at the time:

“If anyone thinks that one person stepping down from a leadership position cleanses the Republican Party of their constant exploitation of race, then I think you are naïve.”

And a show of hands from anyone who thought the Obama campaign was above playing the race card in an attempt to gain traction against Hillary going into South Carolina later this month, where the NAACP’s economic boycott against SC over the Confederate Flag contoversy is still in effect, and where both Obama and Hillary both will be marching on January 21st in honor of MLK’s birthday, which will be reminiscent of the Selma march both Hillary and Obama walked in last February?

Remember at that march how chummy Obama and Bubba looked together?

I don’t anticipate a repeat of that performance this time around, although Bubba is trying to “clarify” his “fairy tale” remarks … on the Al Sharpton show (h/t: Mark Halperin).

Amusing. Who’da thought we’d be seeing Democrats using the gender/race/vote-rigging cards against each other anytime, especially during an election year?

Grab the popcorn, ya’ll. Things are startin’ to get real interestin’.

Read more via Jim Addison at Wizbang, McQ at QandO, TPM Election Central

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