Israel Matzav

Obama: What you see is what you get, Part 2: An endorsement from the Jew-hater Farrakhan

Writing in the Washington Post on January 15, my friend Richard Cohen - of all people - discussed what he called Barack Hussein Obama's Farrakhan test.

But the rap on Obama is that he is a fog of a man. We know little about him, and, for all my admiration of him, I wonder about his mettle. The New York Times recently reported on Obama's penchant while serving in the Illinois legislature for merely voting "present" when faced with some tough issues. Farrakhan, in a strictly political sense, may be a tough issue for him. This time, though, "present" will not do.

Yesterday, the issue was presented: The Jew-hating Farrakhan, the leader of the 'Nation of Islam,' endorsed Obama. Will Obama disavow him? Don't hold your breath. (Hat Tip: Memeorandum)

The 74-year-old Farrakhan, addressing an estimated crowd of 20,000 people at the annual Saviours' Day celebration, never outrightly endorsed Obama but spent most of the nearly two-hour speech praising the Illinois senator.

"This young man is the hope of the entire world that America will change and be made better," he said. "This young man is capturing audiences of black and brown and red and yellow. If you look at Barack Obama's audiences and look at the effect of his words, those people are being transformed."

Farrakhan compared Obama to the religion's founder, Fard Muhammad, who also had a white mother and black father.

"A black man with a white mother became a savior to us," he told the crowd of mostly followers. "A black man with a white mother could turn out to be one who can lift America from her fall."

Farrakhan also leveled small jabs at Hillary Rodham Clinton, Obama's rival for the Democratic nomination, suggesting that she represents the politics of the past and has been engaging in dirty politics.

Farrakhan's keynote address at McCormick Place, the city's convention center, wrapped up three days of events geared at unifying followers and targeting youth.

Obama's answer? So far, it's this:


Maybe Richard can convince him to step up to the plate and address the issue. Or maybe Obama plans to have Tawana Brawley campaign for him in November. Jesse Jackson was forced out of the 1984 Presidential campaign for far less.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 10:57 AM