Bill joins Hillary and Obama in Alabama march
Bill Clinton will join Hillary Rodham Clinton and
Barack Obama at a commemoration of the 1965 civil rights march in Selma,
Ala..
The American presidential campaign
comes to Alabama, this weekend, and our entertainment circus media continues to
offer up the usual melange of non-history and press releases. Perish the thought
they should accidentally contrive to produce journalism with
depth.
Bill Clinton will join Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton at a commemoration of the 1965 civil rights march in Selma, Ala., on Sunday, bringing his star power and popularity among African Americans to a weekend of events that had been shaping up as a showcase for the candidacy of Sen. Barack Obama. It will be the former president’s first major public appearance with his wife since she launched her campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination last month.
Obama announced several weeks ago that he would deliver the keynote speech at a service honoring the march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, joining Rep. John Lewis and other veterans of the civil rights movement in marking the historic event. Obama has gained significantly among black voters in recent months, according to a recent Washington Post-ABC News survey, jeopardizing Clinton’s early lead in the Democratic primary field.
The convergence of the Clintons and Obama in the small Alabama town that became the focus of national attention during a series of police beatings and civil rights demonstrations that ultimately helped pave the way for the Voting Rights Act of 1965 sets the stage for an extraordinary political showdown — and media circus.
In 1965, Nixon was busy invoking the “southern strategy” — code words for “we can offer a better home for racist politics than the Democrats”. But, a number of leading Republicans in the House and Senate, from Dirksen to Taft, stuck to principals and endorsed the same civil rights legislation fought for by the brave people who crossed that bridge in 1965.
There were Republicans who joined that original march. There often are Republicans who join John Lewis in the commemoration, every year. But, not this year. What passes for leadership, nowadays, in the Republican Party decided that partisan politics is more important than any struggle against racism — once again.
So, no McCain, no Giuliani, no Romney.
Bill Clinton will join Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton at a commemoration of the 1965 civil rights march in Selma, Ala., on Sunday, bringing his star power and popularity among African Americans to a weekend of events that had been shaping up as a showcase for the candidacy of Sen. Barack Obama. It will be the former president’s first major public appearance with his wife since she launched her campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination last month.
Obama announced several weeks ago that he would deliver the keynote speech at a service honoring the march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, joining Rep. John Lewis and other veterans of the civil rights movement in marking the historic event. Obama has gained significantly among black voters in recent months, according to a recent Washington Post-ABC News survey, jeopardizing Clinton’s early lead in the Democratic primary field.
The convergence of the Clintons and Obama in the small Alabama town that became the focus of national attention during a series of police beatings and civil rights demonstrations that ultimately helped pave the way for the Voting Rights Act of 1965 sets the stage for an extraordinary political showdown — and media circus.
In 1965, Nixon was busy invoking the “southern strategy” — code words for “we can offer a better home for racist politics than the Democrats”. But, a number of leading Republicans in the House and Senate, from Dirksen to Taft, stuck to principals and endorsed the same civil rights legislation fought for by the brave people who crossed that bridge in 1965.
There were Republicans who joined that original march. There often are Republicans who join John Lewis in the commemoration, every year. But, not this year. What passes for leadership, nowadays, in the Republican Party decided that partisan politics is more important than any struggle against racism — once again.
So, no McCain, no Giuliani, no Romney.
Posted: Sun - March 4, 2007 at 10:39 AM