Dorian Gray Guest Post

This is more essay than blog post but it is a fine analysis, I think. It expounds on a similar point I was making this morning. Adult relationships are very complicated. There is no consistent, homogeneous path or clique or political party we can truly resign ourselves to. Why do we expect this from our leaders? Does a black politico really need to choose between the Condi Rice/Colin Powell path OR the Al Sharpton/Jesse Jackson path? Is this necessary? Is this healthy? Can we move on from this?

Sullivan juxtaposes homosexuality and conservatism (his personal experience) to reflect on what Obama is actually trying to do. When you have ten minutes today, give this a go:

The Testing Of Obama:

Today will be a crucial day. It will be a day when we will discover if America’s racial environment – and the emotions and feelings and anger and fears that it entails – can allow for a black man – with all that entails – to become president. Can a man like Obama both relate and belong to a congregation like Trinity UCC and be inspired by a man like Jeremiah Wright and still reach beyond race to white and Latino and Jewish and Muslim and other Americans who may find the specific racial context as impossible to understand as it is absurd to excuse? This is the argument that will come flying back at him:

If John McCain had spent twenty years hanging with Pat Robertson, describing him as his mentor, attending Robertson’s church, having his kids baptized by Robertson, having Robertson officiate at his wedding, giving him the inspiration for the title of his career-making autobiography, collaborating with him in political organizing, and then tried  to dismiss criticism  by calling Robertson his lovable uncle who sometimes goes too far, there is no way on God’s green earth Yglesias or his crowd would call this “trumped up.”

Dorian turned me on to reading Sullivan and I must say I’m very fond of his work and his blog I strongly suggest giving it a read.