Controversy Round-Up

By now, most of you have heard this clip from the Almighty Obama:



I think it's clear from the context that he's not referring directly to Sarah Palin. I also don't think it matters. Based on the crowd reaction, the true believers took it as a Palin slam, based on her famous "Pit Bull with Lipstick" reference in her acceptance speech. This says more about them than it does about Obama. Still, the whole thing does say something about Obama - not that he's a sexist, but that he's a bit of a dolt. He should have known better. And whether you like it or not, elections are often won and lost on this kind of nonsense. It's too early to tell if this is the moment that cost Obama the election, but it has certainly put him on the defensive.

And in politics, when you're explaining, you're losing.

The most interesting thing about this episode, however, is that the sentence leading directly into the lipstick debacle looks an awful lot like the one that appeared in the Washington Post almost a week ago. Rewatch the Obama video and then read the cartoon:




Sad, isn't it?

The oddest thing about this is that the Democrats spend more time running against Fox News commentator Karl Rove than they do against John McCain. Rove is gone, guys. Every election is about the future. You'd do just as well run against Newt Gingrich.

Another scandal percolating out there is a lefty blog circulating the rumor that Sarah Palin referred to Obama as "Sambo" in private conversation. Yikes! Now I'm not sure when the innocuous "Little Black Sambo" story became the embodiment of all things racist, but it seems to have happened sometime over the past decade or so. This is unfortunate, because I know a little boy named Sam who I often refer to as "Sambo." Sometimes I even call him "Sambo Wambo," or even "The Wambo" for short. Granted, this boy is white, but it's the principle of the thing.

I'm not sure what that principle is, exactly, but as soon as I find out, I'll be sure to put lipstick on Karl Rove.