Spouse Watch: Michelle Obama on Blacks' Inferiority Complex

Mary Katharine Ham | November 12, 2007 9:54 AM

Voters love being told to "wake up and get it," right? Michelle on Hillary's lead over Obama with black voters:

First of all, I think that that's not going to hold. I'm completely confident: black America will wake up, and get [it]. But what we're dealing with in the black community is just the natural fear of possibility. You know, when I look at my life, the stuff that we're seeing in these polls has played out my whole life.

You know, always been told by somebody that I'm not ready, that I can't do something, my scores weren't high enough. You know, there's always that doubt in the back of the minds of people of color. People who've been oppressed and haven't been given real opportunities. That you never really believe. That you believe that somehow, someone is better than you. You know, deep down inside, you doubt whether you can do it, because that's all you've been told, is "no, wait."

That's all you hear, and you hear it from people who love you. Not because they don't care about you, but because they're afraid. They're afraid that something might happen.

Well, he was elected to national office once already, so black voters can't be too uncertain about his ability to succeed. But competition is stiffer in a presidential contest, and many black voters were big fans of Clinton and have, therefore, a type of established relationship with Hillary and confidence in her abilities. Obama is a new kid on the block to many of them, and simply being black doesn't necessarily make up that margin or convince folks that he's experienced enough to do the job.

Just as Republican voters will vote against Hillary because they don't like her qualifications, not because of her gender, many black voters may look at their options and decide Obama's not their best one. It gives them very little credit to suggest that the decision is based solely on a psychic lack of faith in their own race created by The Man. But, you know, if that's how Michelle wants to woo them, have at it.

Update: Allah's back from vacation and he's on fiyah:

In the meantime, look closely and you can see a whole new layer of loathsome leftist racial politics being formed here: atop the bedrock assumption that no one who’s authentically black would ever vote Republican is placed a new assumption that no one who’s freed himself from white America’s tyranny of low expectations would vote for a white Democrat over a black one. An execrable sentiment, but seeing Hillary’s face rubbed in a steaming pile of it isn’t an altogether unpleasant experience.