racism

Wacky Obama Adviser Slated for Attorney General?

by Hans Bader on November 12, 2008 · 5 comments

in Economy, Legal, Personal Liberty, Politics as Usual, Sanctimony

Earlier, I wrote about Obama’s possible appointment of Charles Ogletree, who believes that America is a racist country that is to blame for 9/11, to be assistant attorney general in charge of the Civil Rights Division.

Some commentators, like the award-winning journalist A. Barton Hinkle, wondered whether I wasn’t overstating Ogletree’s links to Obama (by calling him Obama’s “top adviser” on race), given his out-of-the-mainstream views.

Actually, it seems that I understated Ogletree’s links to Obama and possible role in the Obama Administration. As legal commentator Walter Olson notes, Ogletree is now being described as a possible Attorney General — not just Assistant Attorney General — by CBS News and Newsweek.

Moreover, Newsweek describes Ogletree as Obama’s “top criminal-justice adviser,” not just his adviser on race issues. (Neither CBS nor Newsweek discusses Ogletree’s well-documented controversial positions, such as claiming that Obama’s election was only possible because he is part white, and his long-time advocacy of race-based reparations. Among liberal journalists, unlike the general public, these positions may not seem out-of-the-ordinary. But Ogletree’s left-wing positions have attracted a great deal of criticism on talk radio, from broadcasters like Rush Limbaugh, which might help to explain why liberal lawmakers want to shut down talk radio using the misleadingly-named “Fairness Doctrine“).

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You’re Still A Racist, Obama Advisor Says

by Hans Bader on October 29, 2008 · 82 comments

in Legal, Sanctimony

Even if you vote for Obama, you’re still probably a racist, according to Harvard law professor Charles Ogletree, in his remarks at recent events like a panel discussion at my alma mater.   Ogletree, Obama’s top advisor on race issues, explains that since Obama is “biracial,” his election won’t prove that racism has receded.  White America won’t vote for blacks, Ogletree argues, and Obama’s election is possible only because he’s partly white.  The ABA Journal predicts that Ogletree, who has long advocated race-based reparations, will be the Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Civil Rights Division during the Obama administration.

Ogletree has blamed America for 9/11.  Legal commentator Walter Olson notes that Ogletree has attracted controversy over his association with Al Sharpton and history of plagiarism.

On October 31, the Washington Examiner declared Charles Ogletree a “dim bulb” for his racially-charged remarks.

Ironically, Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, who has effusively praised Obama, had a different take on Obama’s white ancestry.

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