By now most people interested in politics has heard the news that Rep. John Lewis, rep from GA, has switched his endorsement from Hillary to Obama. This has been a huge story for most MSM. But why did he switch?
Much has been made about Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) switching sides in the Democratic contest. He originally came out and endorsed Hillary Clinton, which was not a surprise since he has been a long time friend of the Clintons. But all changed the other day when he withdrew his endorsement and went to the Obama camp.
The media has made a helluva story out of this. But my favorite has been made by Joe Scarborough of MSNBC's Morning Joe. After watching the interview and hearing Lewis say that he had been a marcher at Selma and the crossing that bridge was no where near as difficult as his decision to change his endorsement from Clinton to Obama. Joe took exception with his statement saying that he thought it was ridiculous to say that jumping ship was harder than marching into the mouth of a beast in Selma, Alabama.
Scarborough used the analogy that if he was to be fired in 5 days that Mika would not desert him in those days. And she agreed. His analogy does not hold water, for everyone on the show seems to desert David Schuster when he was whacked for a slip of the tongue. It appears that Morning Joe is just another one of those on the Clinton bandwagon. He refuses to see that the ship is sinking. But because of a come back in New Hampshire, she is still a candidate even though she has lost 11 contests straight. Would Obama still be in contention he had lost 11 straight? Doubtful.
I have heard that his decision may have been that he wants to be on board with the first serious Afro-American candidate for president. While I cannot speak for Lewis, I can offer my opinion of his decision. I am old enough to remember him and his civil rights work and I think he is a man of principle and not hype. For that reason he is working as a spokesman for his home district and his home district went for Obama. Is that not what we want from a super delegate?
Now I want to address Scarborough’s reasoning on what Lewis has done. To Scarborough it is not courageous to jump ship and leave a friend in a lurch. I disagree! IMO, it is very courageous, he must decide between a long time friend and the will of the people of his district. Does he support a friend or support the candidate that his district voted for? His choice is clear. He was elected to represent the will of the people in his district and he is doing just that.
The decision for Lewis could not have been an easy one and he deserves more respect for putting personal feelings behind and doing what his constituents have elected him to do; to be their voice and vote their will.