Will Obama Camp Respond To Wingnut Slime Machine And O'Reilly's "Lynching" Comment?
February 20, 2008 -- 5:33 PM EST // //
As you may have heard by now, Bill O'Reilly used the words "lynching" and "Michelle Obama" in the same sentence. This, needless to say, wasn't very nice. Here's the quote, courtesy of Media Matters:
"I don't want to go on a lynching party against Michelle Obama unless there's evidence, hard facts, that say this is how the woman really feels. If that's how she really feels -- that America is a bad country or a flawed nation, whatever -- then that's legit. We'll track it down."The O'Reilly comment was a response to Michelle's claim the other day that her husband's candidacy have made her "really proud" of this country for the first time.
That O'Reilly would traffic in the rank and the despicable is dog bites man, of course. The real question is, Will Michelle Obama or the Obama campaign respond to this?
In addition to O'Reilly, Michelle's comment has had the wingnut machine running on all cylinders for around 24 hours or so, pumping slime of a particularly vile shade of green in her direction. This is, of course, only the merest hint of what the Obamas will face should he become the nominee. Yet there's been no counter-attack or clarification from her until this afternoon, when Michelle said this...
Is this really going to do it? Look, I recognize that the question of whether to engage in a public argument about racially charged comments, such as those by O'Reilly, is a particularly tricky calculus for the Obama camp. And the Obamas have a primary to win right now. But really, it would be nice if the Obama team proved that they're willing to hit back against the wingnut slime merchants -- hard.
I mean, O'Reilly used the word lynching when talking about Michelle. Here you have a perfect opening for Michelle or a designated surrogate to deliver a toughly-worded -- and simultaneously high-minded -- response that nails O'Reilly directly between the eyes for his ugliness and pillories his wingnut colleagues for their phony piety and counterfeit patriotism. Remember how effectively Elizabeth Edwards made hash of Ann Coulter when she called John a "faggot"?
The Obamas obviously have the rhetorical dexterity to do something like this and more. If they did, it would go a long way towards taking the steam out of questions being raised by their rivals as to whether they have what it takes to survive a general election. Seems like a missed opportunity. Of course, even if this wasn't quite the right moment, there will be plenty more such opportunities ahead.
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