It's obviously not in his interest, or in the interest of the movement he has so brilliantly organized, to keep talking about Wright. So he must have the discipline to stop, as of today, having addressed the matter in a very public way at least three times already (two speeches; Fox interview [shudder])..
That's more than enough. The man is Obama's former pastor, he's not his running mate.
Other people who want to keep talking about it can, and will... and boy, will they ever. We know the junior-high-Heathers mentality of our Beltway press, after all. Other interested parties (cough cough Hillary cough) and their surrogates might try to keep it alive, or might not. And if Rev. Wright wants to keep touring the country, trying to get the spotlight, well... there's nothing Obama can (or should!) do to stop him. He's his own man, and Obama said so yesterday.
The real point is that Obama should not say another single word on the issue. Ever. Or OK, at least until he's moving into the Oval Office, and this tempest in a teapot has long since simmered down.
Remember George W. Bush repeatedly addressing his newly discovered drunk driving records towards the end of the 2000 campaign? Yeah, neither do I. That's because Bush refused to talk about it. People could take away what they wanted from it -- and we did! -- but in the end, Bush's campaign starved the press beast.
There are plenty of differences between that situation and this, but in this one instance, Obama can learn from the Republicans. For the most part, they don't keep re-explaining, and don't feel that everyone is owed an answer, on all matters, indefinitely.
Obama needs a line or two or three that he's comfortable saying when he's asked about it -- i.e,, "I've already said all I've had to say about that." And when asked about it, he says that line, and nothing else. When an enterprising questioner persists, say it again. Don't waver. Don't talk about it a little. Don't go meta. Just say the line, and then insist that they talk about issues that matter to the American people : the economy, the war, health care. Gently mock them for not wanting to talk about real issues, if they keep it up too long. But don't say anything else. At all.
It will ultimately make for a boring, frustrating story for anyone covering Obama, and it help this nonsense die down.
Oh, and it wouldn't hurt if anyone representing his campaign, officially or as an unpaid surrogate, adopted the exact same stance on Wright.
This doesn't have to be done obnoxiously, at all. Obama's a charming guy, and even more so when he allows his considerable sense of humor to emerge. But even within that, NO more talk of Wright. Bring it back to the issues, again and again.
In fact, bring it back to McCain's idiotic, incoherent Iraq policy. Bring it back to McCain's plan to keep the Bush economy in place, ruining the dreams of average Americans. Remind us all that these are the real issues, and stick to them with a steely discipline.
The Rev. Wright nonsense has been an unfortunate distraction to a mostly brilliant campaign. But Obama can help the subject fade away by refusing, point blank, to talk about the matter further, and not negotiating on that point. It's done.
Back to the real fight: get the nomination; defeat McCain soundly. Help restore the promise of America, post Cheney-Bush.
Can I get an amen?
(Thanks for indulging this basement pundit.)
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