Mediaite
Obama did not expand on this, and nor did Anderson Cooper ask a follow up. So did Mr. Obama mean that African Americans are more rooted in American experience than other Americans, or more rooted in American experience than the African experience? Or does it really matter?
Perhaps more importantly, will this become a “gotcha” moment? The quote could imply, at least without proper context, something similar to Sotomayor’s “wise Latina” comment. It could be the calm before the storm – it hasn’t even been a week since the interview first aired. So far it has been picked up only in the context of a discussion on the African American experience.
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“more”?
Oh dear.
Abby Adams on July 20, 2009 at 2:56 PM
The Precedent is an un-American, traitorous idiot who understands nothing about America.
progressoverpeace on July 20, 2009 at 2:57 PM
I am Jack’s total lack of surprise.
DFCtomm on July 20, 2009 at 2:58 PM
And this from the man who promised “hope and change”.
When the President of the United States makes such a blatantly racist comment your skin should crawl.
oldernwiser on July 20, 2009 at 2:58 PM
I don’t accept Obama speaking for Americans of any stripe. That being said, AA’s have been in America for a long time, and aren’t like so many of the more recent immigrants who constantly refer to “my country” and mean their previous one. Makes me puke.
JiangxiDad on July 20, 2009 at 2:59 PM
It matters about as much as Obama’s claim that we’re one of the largest Muslim nations.
Daggett on July 20, 2009 at 2:59 PM
So why was his first SC pick hispanic?
lorien1973 on July 20, 2009 at 2:59 PM
Ask Axelrod, or his speechwriter, or TOTUS.
I’m quite certain original thought is foreign to Obama. Like having any friends that aren’t dyed-in-the-wool Commie Socialists.
fogw on July 20, 2009 at 3:00 PM
Horse manure…but what can one expect from a hopelessly elitist, hard-Leftist, white-man-done-owe-me-forty acres-and-a mule African-American mind? Rev Wright anyone?
RepubChica on July 20, 2009 at 3:01 PM
I always find it telling, how so many blacks purport to only want to be considered for their abilities, and not their skin color; but, at the drop of a hat, the first thing that they concern themselves with – is their “blackness.”
Wanting it both ways is so childish. But, just like a child with a loud mouth usually gets what he wants – if for no other reason than to shut him up, so it is with these race pimps.
OhEssYouCowboys on July 20, 2009 at 3:03 PM
I gotta say, this is a pretty weak gotcha.
Dash on July 20, 2009 at 3:03 PM
I guess if you consider the future of the ‘American Experience’ is “Hope and Chains”, then, uh, yeah….
cntrlfrk on July 20, 2009 at 3:03 PM
Did he think of this while watching the Cubs play football at Soldier Park ??
runner on July 20, 2009 at 3:03 PM
Looks like it means both.
He’s segregating into groups, and saying whites and Asians aren’t as rooted in America because there have been white and Asian immigrants reciently.
His argument is rooted in the supremacy of group identity.
Count to 10 on July 20, 2009 at 3:03 PM
“American experience”
Now there’s an Orwellian term befitting our Dear Leader. It’s like an abstract painting. The artist can’t describe it but everyone else will have their own response to it. Smiles, frowns, “Black Power” salutes, anger, etc. As for me, it elicits a simple “WTF” reaction.
genso on July 20, 2009 at 3:04 PM
My lack of shock and disgust at Obomber’s litany of outrageous comments, lies and diatribes are equalled, if not exceeded, by the media’s collective yawn at them.
The sooner he and liberalism are defeated, the better we will be.
J.J. Sefton on July 20, 2009 at 3:04 PM
Eric Holder has said that The Precedent is right and that he doesn’t want to hear any complaints from a nation of cowards. The idiot who The Precedent had speak at his pathetic inauguration said that he thinks The Precedent is correct and that he’s still waiting for whites to embrace what’s right. The Precedent’s family pastor, the dishonorable Rev. Wright says that whitey should just shut the f#ck up. The first sasquatch grunted something unintelligible … and was awarded five honorary doctorates for it.
progressoverpeace on July 20, 2009 at 3:05 PM
…which is particularly ridiculous considering his family background. The group history of the people he only met in adulthood have more impact on his outlook than the people that raised him to adulthood.
Count to 10 on July 20, 2009 at 3:06 PM
they cut off “than I am, as an Indonesian.”
Ted Torgerson on July 20, 2009 at 3:07 PM
This is not a gotcha moment. Dumb, sure, but the GOP doesn’t need be wading into these waters. Let the media percolate on it. Among the host of things the GOP should be worried about, this is pretty well near last on the list.
Patrick Ishmael on July 20, 2009 at 3:08 PM
But you don’t gotta say why, apparently.
Jim Treacher on July 20, 2009 at 3:08 PM
Always with this man…have you ever read any lengthy snippets of his books? I have. Richard Wright redux.
RepubChica on July 20, 2009 at 3:08 PM
One of the WH correspondents mentioned this morning that some officials of the Mormon church are to present Obama today with his “genealogy.” I asked the correspondent if that info. will be made public, but he didn’t answer me.
JiangxiDad on July 20, 2009 at 3:09 PM
I for one think its kind of racist.
Amadeus on July 20, 2009 at 3:09 PM
Regardless of he merits of this quote, it shouldn’t be overlooked that it’s being uttered by a guy who’s own african/american roots are very, very shallow.
mugged on July 20, 2009 at 3:09 PM
Its not a gotcha — it is yet another confirmation of his world view.
Our President is Borg.
Count to 10 on July 20, 2009 at 3:09 PM
But the white settlers did not create any uniquely European-American culture when they settled here? Pilgrim New England? Rhode Island dissenters? Nothing new here? Just carbon copies of the Old Country?
This man is so ignorant of United States history it’s unbelievable.
Wethal on July 20, 2009 at 3:10 PM
Actually, he might be right. You hear all the time (from white people) about their Irish heritage, or their Italian heritage, or their German or Polish or French… etc.
But you don’t hear much from black people about their Nigerian, Ghanian, or even Ewe, Ebo, Yoruba, etc. heritage. Beacause they don’t (or often, can’t) identify with their “recent immigation”, they may indeed be more fundamentally rooted in an “American heritage”.
I’ll have to think about this.
Abby Adams on July 20, 2009 at 3:10 PM
Because it has no rational meaning. In that regard, a lot of what Obama spews has no rational meaning. Sitting in a room with friends and yelling “gotcha” does little. Like Patrick Ishmael says…let the media percolate on it for awhile.
genso on July 20, 2009 at 3:11 PM
How many original colonies were there, Obama? Before we became the 57 United States?
Wethal on July 20, 2009 at 3:12 PM
You mean “let the media cover it up and pretend it was never uttered”.
Cowards!! — Eric Holder
progressoverpeace on July 20, 2009 at 3:13 PM
One big African colony, apparently.
genso on July 20, 2009 at 3:13 PM
Well, right. The media won’t cover it which leaves us claiming, like, some kind of secret gotcha….or something.
genso on July 20, 2009 at 3:15 PM
I’ve read a few, but I don’t really have any intention of funding him by buying one. Maybe I’ll check one out of the library or something.
I’ve also read an essay on how Obama’s books look like Ayers wrote them.
Count to 10 on July 20, 2009 at 3:16 PM
Probably because “white” is seen as backward, racist, and redneck in our culture. Nobody calls the Irish or Italians racist all the time. Also, those of European heritage can point to a thousand years of culture and achievement, Ghanans and Nigerians can’t. You see the same pride of heritage in the Chinese, Persians (not Iranian), and Egyptians.
theotherKate on July 20, 2009 at 3:16 PM
Sooooo post-racial…
D2Boston on July 20, 2009 at 3:17 PM
I am so ashamed of my whiteness; I shall slurk to the nearest corner and contemplate my self imposed, upcoming punishment
Ris4victory on July 20, 2009 at 3:18 PM
We’re just f#cked. It was officially declared on Nov 4th. If we can’t get an AG out whose first words to the public are that we are a nation of cowards (we, being whitey), and then he goes on to let the Black Panthers off of one of the most egregious and public cases of voter intimidation, then there is nothing left of this country. Heck, we just watched a moron be pushed through to the SCOTUS (assumedly) on the back of her wise Latinaness, which is a total joke in and of itself, let alone despicable for anyone looking to sit on the SCOTUS.
This nation declared suicide on Nov 4th and that’s our path. That’s why I say that the only solution to save any vestige of the structures and traditions of the United States, as it was, is in secession.
progressoverpeace on July 20, 2009 at 3:20 PM
I just watched the whole clip (which wasn’t easy because the link had the wrong video embedded — go to CNN, search video for ghana, it’s the 9:18 video). Obama is clearly saying that african Americans are more rooted than white people. It’s his wise Latina moment.
Ronnie on July 20, 2009 at 3:21 PM
Unlike you, of course, who understands everything there is to understand about America. Ugh.
Grow Fins on July 20, 2009 at 3:21 PM
He never misses an opportunity to speak Gibberish to Stupid, does he.
franksalterego on July 20, 2009 at 3:21 PM
What was left out of the interview:
“I, for one, think that a wise Brutha, with the richness of his experience, can certainly rule a country far better than a white man who has not lived that life.”
dmh0667 on July 20, 2009 at 3:22 PM
Perhaps it was a play on words of “Roots”, by the known plagerist Alex Hailey…
Odie1941 on July 20, 2009 at 3:23 PM
And muslims are more close to Jesus than, say, Christians!
SouthernGent on July 20, 2009 at 3:24 PM
You know I’m with you on all of this. Did you hear the Precedent calling out DeMint today over his “Waterloo” comment?
genso on July 20, 2009 at 3:27 PM
Yes, very much unlike me. I understand America, our Constitution, and the intents of our Founders.
The Precedent has no American sensibilities, at all. He acts like someone who has a low IQ, grew up in Indonesia, and spent his life surrounded by Marxists and America-haters. He understands nothing about this country.
progressoverpeace on July 20, 2009 at 3:28 PM
No. I missed that. I’ll have to check it out.
progressoverpeace on July 20, 2009 at 3:29 PM
Look, people, I’m no defender of The One, but I do think here he meant that “African Americans” are more rooted in or relate more to America than Africa. I don’t think it was an anti-American statement in this context. Let’s not make ourselves look like frenzied reactionaries just for the ritual of it.
CP on July 20, 2009 at 3:29 PM
C’mon PoP, we’re going to try and unseat him and his party at the polls. It’s only proper to give Americans the chance to try and undo their mistake. Afterwards, if it’s a no go, we’ll have to consider a Plan B. Remember, all we were ever promised were guns and god and our brains. Those will have to suffice in the end as tools to keep our freedom. Doesn’t seem to be any way of avoiding that reality.
JiangxiDad on July 20, 2009 at 3:30 PM
The link punctuates the quote incorrectly.
It wasn’t
It was
And the word “more” was stressed, which clearly shows he was comparing African Americans to someone else.
Ronnie on July 20, 2009 at 3:32 PM
I’m with CP. Nothing to see here. Move on. (And there is PLENTY to move on TO…
)
mcg on July 20, 2009 at 3:32 PM
Yes I did, right before he said “this isn’t about me nor is it political
Then he ran away from Q&A. I want to know who decided, that after the recent polls from Rasmussen show his support failing below 50% and Dems running from it, thought a groovy idea to have the One repeat the same rhetoric ad nauseum. Can’t wait for Wed night, though the wife is pissed she will miss So You Think You Can Dance…
Odie1941 on July 20, 2009 at 3:33 PM
Obama is The Great Divider
JohnJ on July 20, 2009 at 3:34 PM
Not all white Americans have “recent immigration” memories. Millions of us are descendants of white European settlers who came to this country before it was a country. My first American ancestors were indentured servants from England, who came to the Virginia colony in the early 17th century. Generations later, their descendants (also my ancestors) fought against England in the Revolutionary War. Is Obama seriously suggesting that African-Americans are more “fundamentally rooted” in America than white Americans like me (and the millions of other Americans whose ancestry is similar to mine)? If so, that’s a pretty silly claim.
AZCoyote on July 20, 2009 at 3:34 PM
You mean he’s not white? Why can’t you be honest?
Grow Fins on July 20, 2009 at 3:35 PM
Then why would he stress the word “more” and not “American?”
“In some ways, African Americans are more fundamentally rooted …”
His emphasis.
If he meant to compare their American roots and their African roots, he would not have stressed the word “more,” or he would sound like an idio—
ok, it’s a possibility.
Ronnie on July 20, 2009 at 3:35 PM
No quarter for the president we’ve all come to know as a bonafide, anti-American prick…cheer up, at least we’re not spreading rumors about the true maternity of Sasha and Malia.
RepubChica on July 20, 2009 at 3:36 PM
You mean he’s 100% black?
Ronnie on July 20, 2009 at 3:36 PM
With Sotomayor going on the SCOTUS and the overall denigration of any Constitutional declarations I am just getting very pessimistic that this country can really make its way back without some major event. I am beginning to doubt that that major event will occur, leaving nothing but the secession option. It’s entirely possible that serious talk of secession will prompt some major rethinking and cause the US to right itself, but it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen. It seems as if people are going to continue to let things drift until the nation just snaps. I hope I’m wrong about that, but that’s how it’s looking to me.
The last straw for me was when the administration called for a federal health insurance company in order to “provide competition” to private companies and nobody really argued that that was so un-American that it turns the stomach. They tried to argue the case on the costs, and other trivialities, but no one went after the fact that the Constitution just doesn’t allow the feds to just open up companies to “provide competition”. What little hope I had left of the US righting itself sort of disappeared with that. I’ve got a tiny little bit left … but it’s very, very small.
progressoverpeace on July 20, 2009 at 3:37 PM
No. I mean, “The Precedent has no American sensibilities, at all. He acts like someone who has a low IQ, grew up in Indonesia, and spent his life surrounded by Marxists and America-haters. He understands nothing about this country.”
progressoverpeace on July 20, 2009 at 3:38 PM
He’s Racist. We knew that before he was elected.
Key West Reader on July 20, 2009 at 3:41 PM
I want to know why he hates the networks so much. His prime-time appearances are only hastening their demise. Heh.
genso on July 20, 2009 at 3:41 PM
Especially those whose black father abandoned them to be raised by the parents of their white communist mother who also abandoned them.
Wade on July 20, 2009 at 3:42 PM
Just tell her she’ll be watching Dancing with the Czars.
Ronnie on July 20, 2009 at 3:43 PM
This statement means everything; and it means nothing.
..Just like every simultaneously utterly imbecilic and infinitely “articulate” statement Barak Obama has ever made.
No one is ever going to “percolate” on this. Every thinking person discounts everything the idiot-savant says.
And no liberal could possibly care less WHAT Obama says. The simple fact of WHO said it automatically makes every word a part of their Gospel. It’s not to be analyzed; it is to be reflected upon. A liberal evaluates his own judgment against Obama’s words — not the other way around.
logis on July 20, 2009 at 3:43 PM
That’s all this is about. Obama’s not serious about reform. If he were, he’d tell his plaintiffs’ attorney contributors to stuff it and undertake tort reform. If he were, he wouldn’t be extending coverage to illegal aliens. If he were, he wouldn’t have the arrogance to proposal some star chamber board to make health care decisions.
This guy is a ghoul and a moron. We’ve turned over our economy to a guy who hadn’t learned the benefits of an interest-bearing checking account until 2005, who’s owned two common stocks in his life, and, with the exception of book royalties, who’s received almost all of his lifetime income by holding out his hand and receiving compensation from the government or private donors.
What worldview does this guy have aside from “gimme”?
BuckeyeSam on July 20, 2009 at 3:43 PM
You know….we give his father and mother too hard a time. Hell…I’d like to abandon him myself.
genso on July 20, 2009 at 3:44 PM
The man is hell bent on antagonizing race relations instead of calming them. He has every power as president to soothe this issue but chooses instead to stoke it. He wants us fighting amongst ourselves while he f**ks our country up beyond all repair.
Total P.O.S. – his black half and his white half are EQUALLY shitty and equally Un-American – I hate him.
Ris4victory on July 20, 2009 at 3:44 PM
Well now. What type of comment would that be? Hmmmmmmmmm?
marklmail on July 20, 2009 at 3:44 PM
LOL.
Me too. Can’t stand the narcissistic little turd. No wonder both parents bailed on him.
AZCoyote on July 20, 2009 at 3:49 PM
Yeah, it’s different when the Exec and Legis are same party. Hard to stop either. But the checks n balances in that cases are the voters. The whole edifice rests on their heads. Fundamentally, we have nobody to blame but ourselves. That’s strangely comforting to me.
JiangxiDad on July 20, 2009 at 3:51 PM
It’s sad that the only way this gets stopped before the mid-term elections is for people to really suffer.
genso on July 20, 2009 at 3:53 PM
It is always about RACE with people like you; you are an appalling disgusting Racist. Be gone !
runner on July 20, 2009 at 3:53 PM
Slam dunk.
Key West Reader on July 20, 2009 at 3:53 PM
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This doesn’t even apply to you, Obooba!!!!!!! Your old man was less than “a recent immigrant” – he was a Kenyan who abandoned his family!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!
Akzed on July 20, 2009 at 3:53 PM
I’m thinking… Returning America’s Wealth To Its Rightful Owners.
Key West Reader on July 20, 2009 at 3:56 PM
I clicked the link and saw the context:
Reading that, imagining anyone other than Obama saying it and I wouldnt bat an eye myself. To me that’s quite clear what he’s saying. African-Americans are more rooted in American experience than African experience. Whether that’s true or not you can debate, but it’s not a Sotomayer-esque “blacks are more american than other americans”
So if we’re playing the do unto libs as they have done unto us, fine. Dissect everything, throw it at the wall and see what sticks be my guest. God f*^%g knows it’s been done to Bush and conservatives, but objectively it’s a weak gotcha and dilutes the many real problems with Obama and liberals.
Dash on July 20, 2009 at 3:57 PM
Every day I pray for a few things. One of them is that people suffer just enough to learn right from wrong–different amts. for diff. folks I hope.
JiangxiDad on July 20, 2009 at 3:57 PM
Hugs. And, Chamomille Tea. It does wonders.
Key West Reader on July 20, 2009 at 3:57 PM
This is no biggie. He means that despite their emotional ties to Africa, black Americans are much more rooted in the American experience than they are in their African heritage. It’s not hard to understand.
People are making a fuss about this?
Well-Armed Lamb on July 20, 2009 at 3:58 PM
Yeah….I’m already there.
genso on July 20, 2009 at 3:59 PM
Read it again. He is specifically comparing it to “other groups” that have had more recent immigration.
However, with that stated, this is not an “OMG I can’t believe you said that” moment, it is a moment that clarifies how Obama thinks. The group is more important than the individual. Obama thinks like the Borg.
Count to 10 on July 20, 2009 at 4:00 PM
I don’t think that Barack Hussein Obama is any more rooted in the American Experience or the American Dream than Hugo Chavez is invested in America for its greatness over his failed Nation.
I grew up in NYC during the late 60’s early 70’s riots. Somehow, Barack was sheilded from those days. I grew up with folks of all colors who were coming to terms with diversity and accepting eachother for not what we were, but WHO we were.
Apparently, Barack Hussein Obama missed those lessons and race riots inside our Elementary, Junior High and High Schools. Apparently, he hasn’t been informed that all that chit ended back in uhhh 1979?
Americans have our differences, but by the time the 60’s revolution was over, from the best of my own recollection and experience, I was mighty damned proud (and remain so today) to see the Dream of Martin Luther King, Jr. come to fruition.
Key West Reader on July 20, 2009 at 4:02 PM
You may have mind-reading skills to determine what he meant, but that’s not what he said.
Ronnie on July 20, 2009 at 4:02 PM
Why don’t you watch video, so you can see that he stresses the word “more,” which indicates that African-Americans are being compared to something?
Ronnie on July 20, 2009 at 4:05 PM
If you want to know who/what the man is… look at his wife.
That’s a tale from old, but it rings true from century to century and generation to generation.
If you want to know/learn WHO/WHAT Barack Obama is, study Michelle Obama and you will have your answer.
Key West Reader on July 20, 2009 at 4:06 PM
Eh, chicken and the egg.
Trying to sort through a cluster-f*ck like Obama’s background is always a waste of time. In the end you just have to give up and let it go at the obvious: white trash is white trash.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying it’s completely impossible for someone from a background that messed up to do something useful with his life. But when someone actually takes pride in his abusive childhood, all hope is lost.
And when the same inveterate sociopath goes on to write two pre-middle-age “autobiographies” explaining to the world how his freakshow homelife forged him into the ultimate example of moral perfection… Hell, I don’t even think Hitler was that far gone by the time he was Obama’s age.
logis on July 20, 2009 at 4:09 PM
That is sooo freaking true. (I used to use his car.) But this is much more accurate. Excellent.
btw, I have a GREAT wife, much better than I.
JiangxiDad on July 20, 2009 at 4:11 PM
He goes on …
He’s talking about African Americans and how American they are. It has absolutely nothing to do with how African they may feel. He’s comparing them to white people who “have a recent immigrant experience to draw on.”
Ronnie on July 20, 2009 at 4:12 PM
My first thought when reading that article was that the author was trying to patronize the right by suggesting that they’d misinterpret such an unambiguous statement. It’s clear after all that Obeyme meant that AA’s are more American than African. Try as I might I cannot stretch my perception to read it any other way.
But then reading some of these comments it’s apparent that many here do not have a fully objective sense of judgment. I’d be the first to leap on yet another racially offensive Obama statement, but this is not one of them. The guy is obviously a racist but it doesn’t do our cause any good to attempt to prove it with such flimsy evidence as this. Let’s keep our filters intact, please.
Sharke on July 20, 2009 at 4:13 PM
I’d be interested to know what he meant by that too, as it certainly sounds like another “wise Latina” remark.
changer1701 on July 20, 2009 at 4:17 PM
So you think he said African Americans are more American than African because they don’t have a recent immigrant experience to draw on, and that’s the African American culture that has existed in North America for hundreds of years?
That’s gibberish.
The transcript has some convenient errors. Watch the video.
Ronnie on July 20, 2009 at 4:17 PM
A Marxist and a racist.
faraway on July 20, 2009 at 4:19 PM
I am unable to understand how anyone can consider Half Black to be a brilliant speaker/thinker. After the Ricci decision he is quoted as saying “affirmative action is neither the panacea nor the bogeyman that it is made out to be.” So basically that statement is typical verbal vomit and means affirmative action is completely neutral. However his actions show that he feels otherwise.
In my life and career I have often noticed that aff. action hires esp. in academia try to give the impression that they are profoundly deep thinkers and choose their words so carefully. eg: Local college president was asked by the newspaper if his nearly 300k salary was reasonable for this area. Rather than defend it, he answered “that question does not fit the dynamic of the parameters of the discussion.” Works for me.
arnold ziffel on July 20, 2009 at 4:31 PM
Once again, let’s play “What if BOOOOOSH had said it.”
Imagine if you will… a time, not too long ago, when a white man occupied the oval office. Now imagine, if you will, if said white man had said, “British Americans are more fundamentally rooted in the American experience because they don’t have a recent immigrant experience to draw on. It’s that unique British American culture that has existed in North America for hundreds of years long before we actually founded the nation.”
Would Anderson Cooper have failed to follow up?
Would Bush have to apologize?
Would Bush have to apologize every time he showed his face anywhere?
Would the media now be howling with rage?
Would Jessie Jackson, Al Sharpton, etc, be demanding more apologies, reparations, and the resignation of the President?
I think we all know the answer, and it just proves how downright despicable the MSM has become.
Unfortunately, no Republican will dare touch this statement because they don’t want the media howling RAAAAAAACIST at them.
crazy_legs on July 20, 2009 at 4:31 PM
How could African-Americans be rooted in the “African Experience”?
My family came from France. My great-grandmother used to sit around with my grandmother and speak French – I remember it. They cooked some French dishes – they ate a lot of French bread.
But I will tell you – I’ve never thought for even a second that I knew anything about the “French Experience” – if there is one. And after visiting France last year I can say that – if there is such a thing as a “French Experience” – it’s as foreign to me as “snail soup”.
So what exactly IS the “African Experience” and tell me how anyone who’s family is over 100 years removed from it, doesn’t speak the language, and never been to the place … How does one like that “experience” it? Or, is this just another case where we push the “I believe button” because it has something to do with African Americans and some of them would like us too?
HondaV65 on July 20, 2009 at 4:35 PM
A little rule of thumb when it comes to interpreting Obama-ese: reading more words in a row never makes it better; it always makes it worse.
If Obama is saying that African Americans are “more American” than African because some of their ancestors came here before (for example) those God-damned Irish, then what does that make Obama – whose parents moved to America (at most) a couple of months before he was born?
He keeps milking that melanin for all it’s worth. The problem is that it’s kinda hard to be consistantly racist without constantly saying things that sound, well… racist.
logis on July 20, 2009 at 4:35 PM
I am a black conservative, and I agree with Obama on this. I don’t think he meant or said, and I don’t mean that Blacks are “more American” than anyone else, but those of us with slave roots have very limited to no knowledge of our ancestry prior to coming here. Not for lack of trying, I’ve spent the better part of 10 years trying to trace my roots. Those who migrated here freely have more can generally trace back to the generation of immigration, and some before then.
Our known roots are shallow and wholly American, by default. We’re not “better” Americans, or “more” American, and I don’t necessarily consider it a good thing, but it is what it is. I am very envious of anyone who can trace their ancestry beyond the great-great.
rosewaning on July 20, 2009 at 4:36 PM
Have you ever been experienced?
Well, I
havewon!/The
Jimi HendrixBarack Obama ExperienceChristien on July 20, 2009 at 4:38 PM
As I read it, he is saying African Americans are more connected to the US because they have been here for generations, as opposed to say, a recent immigrant from an Eastern Bloc nation or Asia or even Mexico.
A more recent immigrant is more likely to speak a foreign tongue and have a stronger connection to their home nation than the US, whereas an African American will have a stronger association with America.
Dash on July 20, 2009 at 4:42 PM
You can shake it, bake it, slice it and dice it …but it is racism.
CWforFreedom on July 20, 2009 at 4:47 PM
Smartest President ever…
Keep talking Obama. You’ll make people understand you yet. Or I hope they do, as that is our only hope.
MikeA on July 20, 2009 at 4:48 PM
CWforFreedom on July 20, 2009 at 4:49 PM
Nice try
Seems you are a racist too
CWforFreedom on July 20, 2009 at 4:50 PM
I think that’s Obama’s point. They’re more rooted in the American experience. Obama even stated in the interview most African-Americans would never live in Africa.
CP on July 20, 2009 at 4:51 PM
Hi, black conservative. First, I’ll say that it’s been my experience that when people start a comment with “I’m a conservative,” it usually indicates that they’re not, but I will at least take you at your word that you’re black. Do you believe, then, that Obama was saying that blacks are less American? Personally, as a whitey-American, I have never even considered having a debate on how American I am, but Obama seems to think the question is still in the air for African Americans. In fact, they best he could muster was that “in some ways” African Americans are more American, just not all ways. In which ways do you and/or Obama think African Americans are less American?
Ronnie on July 20, 2009 at 4:51 PM
Wow, scraping the barrel here on HotAir. Taking an quote entirely out of context. Is that not what you guys complain about all the time the MSM does? Why did you not add the rest of the conversation about, when they visit Africa they find they are more American than African? Sorta, like if you are Italian American and visit Italy you find out rather quickly your are more American than Italian. If you can’t beat them join them. But then again there is nothing wrong with a little daily race baiting here among friends.
jero_jones on July 20, 2009 at 4:55 PM
he is exactly as much white as he is black. He just uses the black thing for political expediency because he knows blck people dig it.
MikeA on July 20, 2009 at 5:00 PM
Reading the full passage, I’m not going to pick on him for this. It seems to me that in context, he’s saying that blacks, owing to the fact that many don’t have a distant land with a concrete name, have been forced, in a way, to let go of that distant land, thus rooting themselves in the American experience, per se.
I can harken to my Irish or German ancestry, but if all I had was “Europe” to call upon, I’d not bother much with thinking about my roots.
Dusty on July 20, 2009 at 5:03 PM
WHAT? $%$#@%#@$%#
So those of us non-African-Americans are not “rooted in the American experience.” So now people who aren’t black are not authentic Americans or what?
Race-bait much Obama?
johnsteele on July 20, 2009 at 5:04 PM
Pretty rich coming from a guy whose own African-Americanness is rooted all the way back about 48 years ago or so.
Funny how he gets away with comments like this, or calling Southerners bitter clingers, yet Sarah Palin is dangerous because she used the term “real Americans.”
NoLeftTurn on July 20, 2009 at 5:06 PM
I watched the video — saw the context. He said they’re more American because they don’t have a recent immigrant experience to draw on and because they’ve been here since before the country’s founding. So apparently, if your ancestors came here after the country’s founding, you’re less American. Never once does he discuss how African they are, and never once have I considered myself fundamentally rooted in the experience of any country but America — which is odd, because I have a relatively recent immigrant experience to draw on — my ancestors only got here about 100 years ago — and that’s Obama’s test for how American one is.
Ronnie on July 20, 2009 at 5:07 PM
Yeah, my ancestor Samuel Fuller who came on the Mayflower…yeah, I’m not rooted here at all. Screw Obama.
Dr. Manhattan on July 20, 2009 at 5:26 PM
Damn I can’t believe I’m in a position of defending Obama…
But here we go! I have made much the same point in many a conversation. My favorite wanna be down for the struggle raised in the suburbs cousin that “found himself” living DC is quick to rattle off silly things when we start debating the black community. Comments like “we need to stick together like the Jews.” are common place. I have to remind him that we aren’t Jews, we aren’t an immigrant group, we do not share a common history passed down from generation to generation. We have no language outside of English. In short stop trying to imitate and ethnic immigrant minority.
Blacks have a mindset set that America and black people separate. That somehow they are American In Name Only. My cousin’s attitude is a symptom of this belief. It also manifests itself in the idea of Pan-Africanism, African themed social clubs, traditional “African” clothing, etc.. So when a black teenager from inner city Philadelphia goes to Africa he suddenly realizes “I’m an American!” So when debating other black people I have had to remind them that they are American. I remind them that they have no history, language, or religion outside these shores, everything you are came from right here. I tell them you don’t need these things contrived to give you a sense of ethnic identity. A faux ethnicity if you will. Black people are part of the fabric of this country. Heck everything black people think is cool becomes mainstream, the good and the bad…
Are blacks more American than whites? No one wants to play that game it is counter producitve… What’s your metric the number of generations on this soil? The overwhelming majority of black people have a few centuries under their belts. And a large percentage of whites in this country got here in the 20th century. I only make this point when trying to A) make a black person understand exactly how much they have invested in America, and B) to jibe a racist white person. I personally don’t care. But methinks the pissy white people in here doth protest too much.
Lastly if black people as a whole feel more American they will have a greater interest in preserving it rather than empowering liberals to tear it down. Maybe a black person that feels they are American and have fought and died just as much as any other group to make this country great would oh I don’t know oppose illegal immigration AND use their vote to say so. Maybe a black person that feels they are American and have fought and died just as much as any other group to make this country great would oh I don’t know oppose welfare because they know black people that have not worked as hard as they have are getting things they have not earned. Maybe a black person that feels they are American and have fought and died just as much as any other group to make this country great would oh I don’t know not want Obama to weaken America’s standing as a super power…
Theworldisnotenough on July 20, 2009 at 5:33 PM
“Real Americans” are the ones who understand and appreciate the unique character of this great nation. It has nothing to do with how recently they, or their forebears, came to these shores. It has nothing to do with skin color, or ethnic background, or gender, or sexual preference, or religion, or any of the other categories that Obama likes to divide us into.
It was never Obama’s Kenyan father that excluded him from the ranks of “real Americans.” It is his own “I don’t believe in American exceptionalism” attitude that does that.
AZCoyote on July 20, 2009 at 5:37 PM
Young lady, I am a descendant of slaves. Irish slaves. We were brought into slavery by England in the 1650’s – 1740’s and served our masters.
Africans were slaves along side us centuries later. Originally, Africans were enslaved by the Arabs.
Since the beginning of time there have been slaves. Slavery didn’t start with America. Slavery ENDED with America.
Key West Reader on July 20, 2009 at 5:51 PM
Maybe he should have mentioned that, because it’s not what he said.
He said, “In some ways, African Americans are more fundamentally rooted in the American experience…”
Say that sentence out loud so you’re implying that it’s the American experience as opposed to the African experience. You stress the word “American,” right? He did not. He stressed “more fundamentally rooted,” which is what you would do to indicate that you’re talking about African Americans as opposed to some other group.
Then he gave a reason for it that makes it quite clear that he’s talking about one group being more American than another group. “… because they don’t have a recent immigrant experience.” That’s why they’re more American. So if some group is more American for that reason, another group must be less American for the opposite reason. That’s crap.
He may have meant to say what you were talking about, but he absolutely did not.
Ronnie on July 20, 2009 at 5:52 PM
Ronnie? Please don’t apologize for your/our president. He should be able to speak for himself with confidence, without error and with knowledge.
Best regards,
Key West Reader on July 20, 2009 at 5:55 PM
The man is an hopeless ass. My heritage goes back in this country to well before independence, I am a complete mutt of nationalities, I have a direct ancestor who signed the Declaration of Independence (Robert Morris), and if I were to look closely enough, I probably have some Native American in there, too. He is a second generation immigrant (or first?) who is not even an American Black. What superior experience could this racist possibly mean?
And the horse he rode in on.
tcn on July 20, 2009 at 6:28 PM
Well, this will be the first time I’ve felt less welcome among conservatives than liberals as a black conservative, so thanks for living up to that particular stereotype. To fling around the word “racist” willy nilly is making this site look more and more like KOS and DU than a site that I’ve frequented since the beginning.
Again, I don’t interpret what he said as one group or another is “more American,” or “less American,” rather that our ROOTS are fundamentally more American. I don’t find this racist. It is arguable, but based on my own experience, I agree, simply because most of our roots can only be traced back to our American ancestry, not whatever came before. The (slave descendent) American experience is not comparable to most immigrant experiences we talk about today. Not better, not worse, not more American, not less American, but not comparable. I think that is all he’s saying.
Not to say that we are unique, certainly there have been non-African slaves brought over as well. But I believe that many here are intentionally misreading the statement simply to draw a parallel to Sotomayor’s statement, which is ridiculous.
rosewaning on July 21, 2009 at 11:14 AM
Old Man, not sure why you assume I don’t know this. Obama’s comments concerned “roots.” While it is entirely possible that my ancestors were enslaved by Arabs, other Blacks, or martians, there is no way for us to know so. You can say with some certainty that your ancestors were Irish, and that entered slavery in the 1650s-1740s. My family cannot do that. It can be assumed that we were from the continent of Africa, but not linked to any particular country. In the context of comparing blacks to other immigrants, our roots can only be firmly traced within the context of America. This doesn’t make us “more American,” it is a bit of a nuisance for someone like me who is so obsessed with geneaology.
rosewaning on July 21, 2009 at 11:26 AM