Eds. Note: Te-Ping Chen is currently an intern at The Nation, where she contributes to J Street. Chen joins us this week on TAPPED as part of our weekly guest blogger series.
I appreciate the Obama campaign for being so very generous in its respect for the American electorate's supposed fascination with the Wright story. But there's a point at which that kind of accommodation crosses a line and becomes a sort of self-flagellation. This weekend, Tim Russert, after pushing Obama on the issue for some 20 minutes, asked the candidate if he thought Wright-related questioning was fair. Obama, replied that he thought it was fair, because "when you're running for president, your life's an open book, and ... people have a right to flip the hood and kick the tires." His spokesman echoed the sentiment, saying, 'We deserve scrutiny of our record and plans for the future."
Scrutiny of record and plans for the future, sure, but it's hard to see how a full-frontal fixation on Wright even comes close. Five weeks into this prolonged brouhaha, here's what it would have been nice to hear Obama say: "Certainly, Tim, but as I think we saw after the furor over the last ABC debate, given how strapped the American people are, voters are hungry to hear candidates grapple with how we plan to kick-start the economy, help struggling homeowners and get out of Iraq. I've addressed the substance of your questions already, so let's move on to these real issues with the remainder of our limited time. Have you heard about how the 4th Amendment doesn't apply to American homes any longer?" (He also could've noted that while he promptly rejected Wright's statement the day after ABC broadcast it on Mar. 13, McCain hedged on Hagee's anti-Catholic statements for a week before issuing a repudiation. Or he could have noted that it doesn't seem to be the "people" so much as the "media" that keeps bludgeoning the Wright issue. But perhaps telling Russert how to do his job might've seemed a bit too impolitic.)
As Sam wrote, it's long past time the Wright schadenfreude was over. There's no reason why the Obama campaign should feel compelled to legitimate it any longer.
--Te-Ping Chen.
