What’s more, Obama is enormously popular among wealthy liberals, and among the African-American voters of Maryland (which has the fourth-highest percentage of black residents of all states, just slightly behind Georgia). If anyone could swoop in and get Maryland Democrats to focus on the greater goal of ousting the Republican enemy, it is him. And let’s not forget that the Democratic Party is at a historical low ebb at a time of extreme political crisis, with a loopy Republican president and cronies committing crimes left and right. The nation desperately needs as many good Democrats in elected office as possible.

But not only is Obama refusing to even endorse Jealous (who incidentally would be the first black governor in Maryland history), he is also campaigning openly for a deeply compromised white male billionaire. Pritzker is a man who is not just a milquetoast centrist with millions in overseas tax havens, but also was caught on federal wiretaps in 2008 cynically speculating with then-Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) about how local black opinion might be manipulated through choice of appointment to Obama’s vacant Senate seat.

So why is Obama sticking his neck out for this guy, but not Jealous?