Obama and the Company He Keeps (At a Distance)

With two of the three surviving presidential candidates getting into political hot water over the things their surrogates said or did--Senator John McCain and a Cincinnati talk radio host, Senator Hillary Clinton and former vice-presidential candidate Geraldine Ferraro, it was only a matter of time before Senator Barack Obama stepped into it.

The Reverend Jeremiah Wright is a retired pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, which describes itself as "Unashamedly Black and Unapologetically Christian". Obama and his wife were married by Wright, who has remained a friend and spiritual mentor until recently.

Now Obama is distancing himself from Wright. Tapes of sermons that were broadcast on ABC News show Wright making incendiary remarks over a period dating back to 2001. Among the highlights:

• Following the 9/11/01 attacks, Wright claimed that the government had brought the attacks upon itself. "America's chickens are coming home to roost", he said.
• Recently, Wright claimed that Obama doesn't have nearly as many advantages as Hillary Clinton, such as skin color, when it came to running for president. He even used the N word in describing Clinton.

It's possible that Wright's words may have been taken out of context, the clips chosen by ABC to get a rise out of white voters and the Bush administration. It's also possible that Wright may have a point. It's the way that he said it that's all wrong. Indeed, according to CNN.com, the church released a statement defending the former pastor and criticizing the media for assassinating his character.

As a presidential candidate, Obama (and Clinton and McCain) must moderate whatever views they may have on certain issues to attract the widest possible audience. That means they have to separate themselves from the loose cannons in their lives, whether it's campaign staffers or spiritual advisers, if they want to get elected.

As representatives of the U.S. government, the candidates can't go around trashing their own country. It's as if they have to check their First Amendment rights at the door the moment they run for office.

Obama has enough problems living down the perception that he's not ready to lead the country, without having to deal with controversial preachers and allegedly shady developers. But, as the delegate battle with Hillary Clinton gets tighter and tighter, the more we see of Barack Obama, the less there is to like.