I recently wrote about the Viability of Obama, despite the problem of race. Sometimes I'm not so sure. This Post article about racist incidents encountered by Obama campaigners isn't encouraging. Frankly, I didn't know that the types of voters fueling the WV landslide existed -- "Bush Democrats," I've heard them called. You know, those "hard working white Americans." In this more pessimistic mood I'm almost surprised by how well Obama polls so well against McCain nationally, especially in the swing states like Pennsylvania that are supposed to be so difficult for him.
Publius rightly points out that this "race problem" is also an opportunity to escape the necessity to pander to the interests of such voters in order to win elections; to "to usher in a new winning coalition that doesn’t depend upon racist voters."
In more optimistic moods I see this as more a generational than a racial problem/opportunity: a new coalition of younger voters might turn the country in a more progressive direction. See this analysis of the potential effect of the youth and minority vote on the national election.
So I'm putting the question to you as a poll.