Okay. Joe Biden caused some controversy by saying the following about Barack Obama:
“I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy,” he said. “I mean, that’s a storybook, man.”
Or, alternatively:
“I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American. Who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy,” he said. “I mean, that’s a storybook, man.”
Either way, it was a bone-headed thing to say that is going to cause Biden grief (both deserved and undeserved). Someone noted the famous riff of Chris Rock, and it definitely bears repeating in this context.
Whenever Colin Powell is on the news, white people give him the same compliments: ‘How do you feel about Colin Powell?’, ‘He speaks so well! He’s so well spoken. I mean he really speaks so well!’ Like that’s a compliment, sh*t. ‘He speaks so well’ is not a compliment, okay? ‘He speaks so well’ is some sh*t you say about retarded people that can talk. What do you mean he speaks so well? He’s a fuc*ing educated man! How the fu*k you expect him to sound, you dirty motherfuc*er? ‘He speaks so well.’ What are you talking about? What voice were you expecting to come out of his mouth? ‘Imma drop me a bomb today’, ‘I be Pwez-o-dent!’.”
Great comedy is made when a funny person makes a really great point that hits home in a painful way and it still makes you laugh. Chris Rock absolutely nailed his point on how blacks are given points just for being able to speak clearly and how that is incredibly insulting. And a lot of people are feeling that same sting from Biden’s remarks. I can’t dismiss those feelings. They’re legitmate feelings. But I gotta say something.
Barack Obama is not articulate for a black man. Barack Obama is one of the most articulate politicians in American society today. If I were to make a list, I would put Bill Clinton at the very top. And I don’t want to strain my brain here, but Obama would come very shortly thereafter. The most striking thing about Obama is his charisma, and his communication skills are the biggest part of his charisma. Yeah, he is nice looking. He has a captivating smile. He has kind eyes. He has a warm and comforting voice. He has a whole package. But his clear enunciation, his excellent syntax, his sentence construction, and his gift of emphasis are all parts of a remarkable oratorical skill. And he’s as good one-on-one on Jay Leno as he is in a stadium before a national television audience. Obama’s speaking skills and charisma are what makes it less than flat-out insane for a two-year veteran of the Senate to have the presumption to run for President.
Anyone that doesn’t mention the articulateness of Barack Obama isn’t expressing the nature of his personality and the root of his power as a national politician.
Obama is not articulate. Joe Biden is articulate. Barack Obama is exceptionally articulate.
And everyone knows this. In fact, the bulk of the criticism I have seen from Democrats about Obama is that his only virtue is his articulateness. People want to see more than nice presentation, they want some details and red meat.
Joe Biden was, first of all, trying to express the appeal of Obama. See…first he gives you the good points and then he tells you why they aren’t good enough. He’s giving us a reason not to vote for Obama, but he is doing it the second part of comment and not in the part being quoted.
Biden is saying that ‘yes, he’s mainstream, he’s black but that isn’t gonna hurt him because he has cross-over appeal, he’s not just some fringe candidate like Keyes or Sharpton, he’s the real deal. He’s articulate. He doesn’t have a lot baggage. He’s not going to get accused of corruption. He’s a great looking guy. I mean…shit yeah…that’s a dreamy combination. How could you not like the guy? But…’
And here’s what Biden said next.
But—and the “but” was clearly inevitable—he doubts whether American voters are going to elect “a one-term, a guy who has served for four years in the Senate,” and added: “I don’t recall hearing a word from Barack about a plan or a tactic.”
Biden’s saying that the guy is not up to handling Iraq and that the public is gonna look at him and like him but at the end of the day they are not gonna see Obama as ready for the big time.
Now, I know people are looking at other things Biden has said recently that were less than stellar from a racial sensitivity standpoint. But even taking that into account, I think people are just wrong to attribute some kind a latent racism behind Biden’s remarks.
Any asshole that takes away bankruptcy protection from single mothers is obviously suffering from a lack of compassion for minorities in this country. I am not about to suggest Joe Biden ‘gets it’. He clearly does not. He’s out of touch and he is a joke on urban issues and looking after the poor. But he doesn’t have hate in his heart. He didn’t mean to offend anyone with this remark. He’s running for President. He was trying to explain why Obama is a compelling candidate but that he is a better qualified candidate.
You wanna kill him for it? Go ahead. I just wanna be fair to the guy. I think he is getting a raw deal.
