This time it's personal

Obama struck back against the narcissistic rantings of Jeremiah Wright with all of the wrath and fury David Axelrod could stuff into seven minutes. After being the last person outside of China (no youtube) to see Rev. Wright's morning show, Obama returned the favor and threw the right reverend under the bus and backed over him several times. It was a very convincing performance that will go a long way to helping those who want to stay with Obama stay with Obama. What it does for the truly undecided is uncertain.



Obama saw the same problems I commented on earlier this morning. He recognized the corrosive effect that Wright is having in the black community and how Wright stands completely counter to everything that made his candidacy so popular.

The only question is what took so long? When the Wright videos first began surfacing Obama initially declared he wasn't there when he made the comments. In his "race" speech, Obama admitted that he had been there when comments had been made although today he seemed to return to his first position.

It's tough to imagine the show that Wright put on at the National Press Club on Monday or before the NAACP over the weekend being a one-off. It's entirely consistent with the Wright we saw in the videos. If Obama never saw this before, he must have caught the Pastor on off-days. To hear Wright talk about it, this is part and parcel of not only his style but all black churches which Obama rightly repudiated as unjust appropriation.

The Obama supporters are already lining up to patch up the numerous holes in Obama's repudiation. Andrew Sullivan was among the first and most creative.

Cynics may scoff - and certainly will. They will parse every nuance and try to paint Obama as another cynical, positioning pol. I don't believe it. He has more sincerity and integrity than the vast majority of politicians, more honesty, and more resilience in a very tough spot.

You have to admire that. It has all the piety of a Nader voter. I wonder if Obama loses -- might the sun itself go out?