First came this odd moment at a news conference with Republican-turned-Democratic Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania and President Obama: “Sen. Obama,” Specter said, “before the Democratic primary used to tell me, ‘Arlen, if a Jewish kid from Kansas can carry Pennsylvania, how can a black kid from Kansas carry Pennsylvania?’”
That inspired this from Jon Stewart on “The Daily Show”: “That actually reminds me of a good joke. A Jew and a black guy live in Kansas. They have to move to hold elected office.”
In the interest of accuracy (rather than comedy): Specter was born in Wichita and grew up in Russell, but Obama was raised elsewhere by a mother and grandparents from Kansas.
Registered?
Commenting on WE Blog now requires you to be a Kansas.com member. Use the links above to register, if you haven't already, or to log in.Contact us
Follow us
Daily Archives
-
Recent Comments
- SolDevVB on Open thread 11/23
- okobserver on Open thread 11/23
- okobserver on Open thread 11/23
- ANTI on Open thread 11/23
- ANTI on Open thread 11/23
- Monkeyhawk on Open thread 11/23
- donndublin on Open thread 11/23
- ANTI on Open thread 11/23
- Regular on Open thread 11/23
- XXX on Open thread 11/23
19 Comments
I dunno.
Back on a winter day in 2008, Barack Obama spoke in El Dorado and pronounced it right. His grandmother’s cousin stood up — a nice little old white lady — and he took time out of his stump speech to talk family stuff with her.
He spent some summers in Kansas, just as I spent several summers with my grandmother in Oklahoma when I was a kid. A kid learns a lot from family and places because, to a kid a couple of weeks seems like a long time.
I suspect President Obama, a bright kid who spent some of his childhood in Kansas, learned a lot.
It seems to irk CONs that this President has a good feel for what it’s like to be an American whose father, grandfather, great-grandfather weren’t politicos and Yalies.
In the interest of accuracy (rather than comedy): Specter was born in Wichita and grew up in Russell, but Obama was raised elsewhere by a Mother and Grandparents from Kansas.
- – - – - – - – - – - – - — – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – — – - – - – - – -
Shouldn’t that read: but Obama was born in Kenya and raised elsewhere by a Mother and Grandparents from Kansas.
Right, “Chrisfrommactown” –
How do you get tin foil these days for your hats?
I thought it was all aluminum these days.
“A Jew and a black guy live in Kansas. They have to move to hold elected office.”
No doubt that.
I’m a liberal. The assistant for my Congressional representative, Todd Tiahrt, once responded to one of my emails by telling me that if I wanted representation, the best thing I could do was move.
It would be quite simple for either a Jewish or an African-American person to hold office in Kansas. All it would require is a conservative platform…and then a conservative voting record.
Unlike those who are completely hung-up on race or religion, Kansans vote for people…mostly conservative people. If liberals don’t like that, no one is forcing them to stay in “fly-over” “Jesusland.”
Jon Stewart: That inspired this from Jon Stewart on “The Daily Show”: “That actually reminds me of a good joke. A Jew and a black guy live in Kansas. They have to move to hold elected office.”
I suppose Mr. Stewart wasn’t aware of the Mayor of Wichita.
As far as being Jewish, not sure what that has to do with anything either. Secular Jews are the most liberal of people that can be found – just look at Hollywood actors.
Mr. Stewart appears to like to paint of picture of bigotry and biased towards the state of Kansas. I’m sure Mr. Stewart would be more popular amongst the masses, if he didn’t feel the need to drop so many ‘F-bombs’ every other word.
The problem is that it isn’t a joke. For all that Kansas was founded abolitionist, we have a fairly sorry record on race relations.
I was recently talking with an old friend who was telling me about how Chester Lewis had to use a white agent to buy a home in a white neighborhood, and when the neighbors found out that a person of color had bought it, some proposed burning it down, and most wanted him run out.
I certainly remember all the “Neighborhood Associations” formed here in the 1950’s for the express purpose of keeping out Black, Catholic and Jewish buyers. Members pressured (and sometimes threatened) their neighbors to sign agreements to sell only to White Anglo-Saxon Protestants.
It’s only been in that last few years that any other than wasps have been electible except as token minorities.
How about this man Jed?
A. Price Woodard
Born: Jan 26, 1919
Died: Jan 13, 1972
Occupation: attorney
Wichita’s first black Mayor and black City Commissioner
Served as City Commissioner (1967-68, 1968-69, 1969-70)
A. Price Woodard Park is named after him.
Reggie,
Remember him well. Wichita’s token to race relations in an era of tokenism. He deserved a lot better!
Jon Stewart (and so did Rhonda apparently) overlooked Congressman of the Fourth District, Dan Glickman.
He lost to Tiahrt back in 1994 in a dirty campaign in which Tiahrt supported term limits.
Hehehehe
BTW, just to clarify, Glickman is a Jewish name and his family is indeed Jewish.
BTW, just to clarify, Glickman is a Jewish name and his family is indeed Jewish.
–
Glickman, who has a great sense of humor, was as amused as anybody at being appointed Secretary of Agriculture – this Jewish city kid from Wichita running the farm program.
–
BTW, the man he beat, Garner Shriver, was long past his prime. The youthful Dan bumped him right out of office.
–
Dan is now the movie industry’s main lobbyist.
Dennis
Ahhh Kansas, the pulse of America!
Barack Obama’s family background in regard to his mother and her parents in Wichita and his father’s ties to Kenya, Africa are still a study in progress. Some basic information is as follows.
Barack Obama’s mother was born at St. Francis Hospital in Wichita on November 29, 1942, according to notice published in the Wichita Beacon at the time. Even Barack Obama was hazy on the location saying in his book he thought his mother was born in a military base hospital.
Barack Obama’s mother’s name was Stanley Ann Dunham. The name Stanley was her father’s first name … presumably he wanted a son.
Eighteen and a fraction years later, S. Ann Dunham was living with her parents in Hawaii, was dating Barack Obama Sr., a fellow student, and gave birth to his son, Barack Obama (the current President of U.S.)
Barack Obama Sr. was from Kenya, Africa, a member of the Luo tribe, well educated, working on his PhD in Hawaii. Not long after the birth of Barack Obama, Jr., Barack Sr. moved to New York and then back to Kenya.
There is definitely no reason to think that eighteen year old S. Ann Dunham when pregnant with Barack Obama Jr. might have flown around the world to Kenya to give birth to Barack Obama Jr. Her parents who she seemed close to at the time lived in Hawaii. Also it is said Barack Obama Sr. might, emphasis on “might,” have already had a wife in Kenya. Barack Sr. was later killed in an auto accident in Kenya.
Barack’s mother, S. Ann Dunham, remarried, to a fellow from Indonesia and spent many years doing research in Indonesia even though this marriage fell apart also. She later died of cancer.
There are a number of houses in the central part of Wichita particularly in the Delano neighborhood and one in Riverside where Ann Dunham’s parents and grandparents had connections in the 1930’s, 40’s and 50’s. These need to be researched.
A genealogical researcher should travel to Kenya to photograph and record Obama’s family ties there. Perhaps this is already being done.
One has to wonder what the heck Chris/Mac is thinking with his post about Obama. Barack’s birth certificate has been published, along with the newspaper announcement noting his birth in Hawaii.
Maybe it is just the right wing desire to believe any Rush O’Hannity bullstuff that is thrown out there in Con Land.
Gotta feel sorry for those that will swallow any right wing talking point.
Losers.
From what I can tell, Conservatives allegiance is to the Republican Party, not the United States.
I pledge allegiance, to the Flag, of the disenfranchised conservative states of the formerly known as USA. And to the Republicans for which I only have respect for. One nation under Gods, Guns, and Ammo, divisible from liberals, and Justice for Cons.
Amen, god bless the Conservative States of America, and screw the liberal hippy fag states.
It wouldn’t even matter if Obama was born in Kenya. If Obama’s mom was still a citizen of the USA, Obama could have been born on Mars and still have been a U.S. citizen.
http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/citizen.asp
Ok, 8 years ago, we had the largest surplus in our nations history. I guess for Bush his handlers, and Cheney the puppeteer, it was like a kid being handed the keys to a candy store to take over for business. 8 years later, “today” we have the largest deficit in our nations history. O.K. little kiddies, it’s time to go back to the sand box and play, and let adults go about Adult business as usual. If anything the Republicans are trying to save face, by opposing Obama on every issue. Nope, I guess they can’t admit past mistakes, swallow their pride, learn from them, and move on, like any responsible adult can do. Stubbornness is only a good trait, if you have a brain to go a long with it. If the Republicans want any shred of chance of being a respectable party again, they would support Obama on more issues, and try to work with him on issues they don’t quite see eye to eye with. McCain didn’t lose, because less people voted Republicans, McCain lost, because more people than ever voted in this election than ever. People that never voted before, said enough is enough, if you want a sure fire way to tank our country even more than Bush’s Administration did in the past eight years, then it would be to vote for a guy who’s VP pick was a woman who thought Africa was a Country.
Well, given that just over 100 days into this administration, only 20% of voters (and falling fast) will admit to being ‘publican, I wonder if the moldy ole party will have any base at all by 2012. My guess is that a new and moderate conservative party will have to form over the next 8 years for conservatives to find a candidate masochistic enough to take on the Democrats.