Velma Hart, Us Black Folk
Despite numerous high profile legislative successes to cap his first two years in office, President Obama has been dogged by negative reporting, which many pundits attribute to a puny White House communications office effort.
In short, President Obama has been getting hammered by the right wing media, which dominates political discourse in these United States. Former White Communications Director Ellen Moran stepped down to take a role as Chief of Staff for the Secretary of Commerce. Her departure could not have come any sooner because by all objective measures, she has done a piss poor job of getting Obama's victories in print, radio or on television.
Daniel Pfeiffer returned to a role he held during Obama's campaign. He has his work cut out for him with mid-term elections looming like a dark cloud over this administration. But there may be a silver lining in that cloud if Pfeiffer launches an all out media blitz championing Obama's accomplishments while cleverly using sound bites conservative talk show hosts wielded like a smoking gun in a collective effort to diminish Obama's record.
One that immediately comes to mind is turning Velma Hart's, Aunt Jemima masquerading as an accomplished successful black woman, critique around, when she stood up on national television saying,
"I am one of your middle class Americans and, quite frankly, I'm exhausted... I'm exhausted of defending you. I'm exhausted of defending your administration, defending the mantle of change that I voted for. And I'm deeply disappointed with where we are right now.
I have been told that I voted for a man who said he was going to change things in a meaningful way for the middle class. I am one of those people and I'm waiting sir. I'm waiting. I don't feel it yet. And I thought, while it wouldn't be in great measure, I would feel it in some small measure... And quite frankly Mr. President, I need you to answer this honestly: Is this my new reality?"
Pfeiffer can accomplish this public relations coup de grâce by spinning it truthfully to say if not for Obama's policies, you would not be in the middle class but cleaning someone's nasty ass.
Levity aside, I do not agree with Obama when he says in response to veiled criticism by black progressives that he needs to do more for blacks folks that a rising tide lifts all boats. I agree with Boyce Watkins, the new marquee black scholar on the block, who writes in response to Ms. Hart notoriety, "if the first black president doesn't help us to overcome [economic] inequality, is his victory anything more than symbolic?"
In short, President Obama has been getting hammered by the right wing media, which dominates political discourse in these United States. Former White Communications Director Ellen Moran stepped down to take a role as Chief of Staff for the Secretary of Commerce. Her departure could not have come any sooner because by all objective measures, she has done a piss poor job of getting Obama's victories in print, radio or on television.
Daniel Pfeiffer returned to a role he held during Obama's campaign. He has his work cut out for him with mid-term elections looming like a dark cloud over this administration. But there may be a silver lining in that cloud if Pfeiffer launches an all out media blitz championing Obama's accomplishments while cleverly using sound bites conservative talk show hosts wielded like a smoking gun in a collective effort to diminish Obama's record.
One that immediately comes to mind is turning Velma Hart's, Aunt Jemima masquerading as an accomplished successful black woman, critique around, when she stood up on national television saying,
"I am one of your middle class Americans and, quite frankly, I'm exhausted... I'm exhausted of defending you. I'm exhausted of defending your administration, defending the mantle of change that I voted for. And I'm deeply disappointed with where we are right now.
I have been told that I voted for a man who said he was going to change things in a meaningful way for the middle class. I am one of those people and I'm waiting sir. I'm waiting. I don't feel it yet. And I thought, while it wouldn't be in great measure, I would feel it in some small measure... And quite frankly Mr. President, I need you to answer this honestly: Is this my new reality?"
Pfeiffer can accomplish this public relations coup de grâce by spinning it truthfully to say if not for Obama's policies, you would not be in the middle class but cleaning someone's nasty ass.
Levity aside, I do not agree with Obama when he says in response to veiled criticism by black progressives that he needs to do more for blacks folks that a rising tide lifts all boats. I agree with Boyce Watkins, the new marquee black scholar on the block, who writes in response to Ms. Hart notoriety, "if the first black president doesn't help us to overcome [economic] inequality, is his victory anything more than symbolic?"
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