Former US Senator Bob Kerrey apologized Thursday for his remarks earlier this week in which he raised the specter of Obama's childhood in Muslim-majority Indonesia.
From Kerrey:
“What I found myself getting into in Iowa - and it was my own fault - it was the wrong moment to do it and it was insulting,” Kerrey told the AP. “I meant no disrespect at all.”
The Obama campaign accepted the apology without much comment, but I'm not going to be so laconic.
Like The Moderate Voice I have a hard time swallowing this. The fact is the damage has been done and we now have the phrases "Islamic Manchurian candidate" and "secular madrassa" injected into our lexicon.
To me this either says Kerrey is either tone-deaf or malicious. It's akin to Biden's "nice and articulate" comments. Ok, we can believe you really meant that, Sen. Biden, but only a fool who speaks without thinking doesn't realize how that's going to play in the media. So, which is it, Sen. Kerrey? Are you a fool or was it intentional?
As what one might call a moderate or independent-leaning Democrat it's shit like this that drives me nuts. I feel absolutely filthy voting for a candidate whose supporters use the phrases "Islamic Manchurian candidate," well-intentioned or not.
In other, non-madrassa news, the latest WSJ/NBC poll has some interesting results. The takeaway:
The Journal/NBC poll may fuel arguments by the Obama campaign that their candidate is more broadly acceptable than Mrs. Clinton, a polarizing figure whose 44% negative rating exceeds her 42% positive mark. The poll shows Mr. Obama leading Mr. Giuliani (49 - 40) by a larger margin than Mrs. Clinton does (46 - 43) -- a change from early November, when the data suggested they would both fare about the same against him.
Against Mr. Huckabee, Mr. Obama leads by 48% to 36%, while Mrs. Clinton has a narrow 46% to 44% edge.
I'm always the first in line to say that a single poll doesn't matter, but good news is good news. Clinton's advantage is her aura of strength and electability. This is why Iowa is so important, even if she never planned on winning it: if Obama wins there makes him seem equally "electable."
These situations don't help, either. Apologies like this make the campaign you support look weak -- precisely what Clinton is trying to avoid.
What's more, if the error was unforced then it shows the Clinton campaign lacks message discipline. If it was intentional then it does a lot to damage them in the eyes of independent-leaning Democrats and others who believe that politics as usual just won't work.
Here's to candidates whose supporters don't stoke anti-Muslim sentiment for electoral gain.