the audacity of… audacity

So Obama has captured the hearts and minds of so many over the last year, and now Jeremiah Wright is, for reasons that are totally unclear to me, attempting to undo all that. Obama tried to be gracious when this first came up, and in doing so he produced a truly wonderful speech. Ultimately this thing would have fallen out of public attention, remembered only, perhaps, as fodder for people who already dislike Obama. Now this ridiculous tripe.

As far as supporters are concerned, the very last thing that we should be doing right now is losing hope. Obama’s response today was exactly in line with who he is: an authentic human being who wants to do the right and rational thing.

One of the reporters asked him what this situation says about his judgment. He stuttered through a long answer in which he rightly pointed out that he did not begin vetting the people in his life 20 years ago just in case he would run for president one day. Let me give a shorter answer: it says nothing about his judgment. It says that Wright took a left turn toward cuckoo-ville somewhere along the way, Obama tried to stay loyal and spin it positive, and Wright just kept on trucking toward crazy-land. However, the fact that he stood in front of us all today, stuttering and obviously upset, says everything about his judgment and, perhaps more importantly, about his commitment to authenticity.

When it came down to brass tacks, Obama was hurt and angry, and it showed. Authenticity is not always pretty. It’s not always polished. Obama detractors complain that we’re all bedazzled by his pretty speeches. Well, his words were not very pretty today, and I’m here to tell you that I’m still bedazzled. The man knows when to stop spinning and come clean. He is a leader. I’m not saying he can’t do anything wrong, but I am saying that he’s a far cry from having lost my confidence.

*Image courtesy of Obama’s campaign web site.