Wright's Irish Slur

"SAME people thought that the Irish had a disease when the Irish came here. Did you hear me O'Malley, O'Shaughnessy, O'Reilly? They thought you were - well they might have been right . . ."

Thus did Reverend Jeremiah Wright, Senator Barack Obama's pastor, drag Irish Americans into his strange speech at the NAACP dinner in Detroit on Saturday night.

The speech, of course, exploded into the political arena, as did other appearances by Wright over the weekend. The pastor who was soundly denounced by Obama on Tuesday after some hesitation on the candidate's part certainly sent Irish American writers blogging about his remarks all over the web.

What kind of disease was Wright referring to? What were the "same people" right about? The context was Wright speaking about how groups such as the Arabs were utterly misunderstood in America.

But did his flippant throwaway remark that these "same people" might be right that the Irish had a disease constitute the kind of slur that Wright had claimed other people were aiming at his race?

Either way, the slight at the Irish was the last thing Obama needed as he desperately tries to gain some momentum with the white ethnic Americans who appear deeply disinclined to vote for him.

Consider that the critical primary in Indiana may well be decided in areas like South Bend, home of Notre Dame, where Irish influence is probably higher than in any other state in the country.

Wright is the gift that keeps on giving to the McCain and Clinton camps, and Obama must be desperate to hear the last from his blabbermouth preacher.

Wright Also Mocked Kennedys

THE fact that Wright also made fun of Senator Edward Kennedy and his Boston accent in his remarks no doubt annoyed Obama supporters even more.

If there has been one key endorsement for Obama this election season, it has been that of the Irish American senator who gave the Illinois senator instant credibility with the party establishment.

In his rambling remarks Wright said, "Ed Kennedy, today, those of you in the Congress, you know Kilpatrick? You know, Ed Kennedy today cannot pronounce cluster consonants. Very few people from Boston can. They pronounce park like it's p-o-c-k. Where did you pock the car?

"They pronounce f-o-r-t like it's f-o-u-g-h-t. We fought a good battle. And nobody says to a Kennedy you speak bad English."

In an earlier paragraph in his speech he referred to President John F. Kennedy and how he spoke English. It's a rambling comment, unclear in its meaning, just like his comments on Irish Americans earlier except it undoubtedly is meant as a put down.

"John Kennedy could stand at the inauguration in January and say, 'Ask not what your country can do for you, it's rather what you can do for your country.' How do you spell is? Nobody ever said to John Kennedy that's not English 'is.'"

Why Wright picked on the Kennedys is deeply unclear. Can you imagine, however, if a white pastor with ties to Hillary Clinton stood up and started mocking the syntax or language of Martin Luther King? How do you spell racism and a liberal rush to condemn?

Well, it's racism whether it's white on black or vice versa. The cold fact remains that Pastor Wright is off the wall, and Obama may have realized it way too late to contain the damage that the runaway preacher is wreaking on his campaign.

Another

Irish Taunt

ANOTHER Irish taunt may also come back to haunt the Obama campaign among Irish Americans.

That was the comment in last year by Trina Vargo, head of the US -Ireland Alliance who is apparently handling Irish issues for Obama. She made disparaging comments about Irish American groups seeking immigration reform for Irish undocumented.

Brian O'Dwyer, chairman of the Emerald Isle Immigration Center and a Clinton supporter, had a cutting op-ed in the Irish Echo last week on the topic.

Speaking to this column this week he stated, "It seems now very apparent that two candidates are sympathetic to the undocumented Irish and one is hostile. A Senator Obama administration would not support the Irish on this issue."

O'Dwyer stated that that Vargo was "clearly hostile" to the issue of the Irish undocumented and added that her comment in that Irish Times article that Irish advocates were attempting to "put lipstick on that pig" were outrageous.

"Obviously it will be a long eight years for the suffering undocumented with Ms. Vargo in the councils of the Obama administration," O'Dwyer said.

There has been a disconnect with Obama for some time with the Irish. There was no St. Patrick's Day statement, and his campaign has made no effort whatever to take part in the Irish American Presidential Forum, which Clinton has already spoken at.

In addition, when Taoiseach (Prime Minster) Bertie Ahern was in Washington around St. Patrick's Day, Hillary Clinton made a point of meeting with him while Obama felt a phone call was sufficient. There definitely appears to be a pattern here.