And Don't Be Surprised if Jack Dempsey is in the White House; Cardinal O'Connor, Secretary of the Treasury; Spike Milligan, Minister of Education; Tommy Makem, Secretary of Fine Arts; and Miss Enya, the First Lady

St. Patrick's Day comes early for one Democratic pol:

US Presidential hopeful Barack Obama can now count himself as one of the millions of Americans with Irish heritage.

Research by the genealogy website ancestry.co.uk reveals that Mr Obama's great great great grandfather was born in Ireland, although it is not yet known where….

If Mr Obama gets elected, he would be the first multiracial US president in history - and join a long list of those with Irish ancestry including Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan, and of course, John F. Kennedy.

No word on how this will affect the senator's ongoing black-off with Republican stooge Al Sharpton. Coming soon: The Clinton campaign leaks a dubious report that Obama was educated in a shady IRA bar.

Comments

[David Ross]

I'm sure it will only help against Sharpton.

"Do you not get it, lads? The Irish are the blacks of Europe. ... So say it once, say it loud: I'm black and I'm proud." - Jimmy Rabbitte

[thoreau]

IRA bar? The man's a Protestant!

[joe]

I'm block and I'm prood.

[Guy Montag]

So now it is O'bama?

[gaijin]

So now it is O'bama?

now THAT is funny!

[d]

You know Gillespie will always go for the Mick.

A precious part of the Ron Paul coalition is lost for good.

[Guy Montag]

Yea, just wait until he starts after the Jewish vote.

O'bamastein anybody?

[Cab]

It's a leprechaun thing...you wouldn't understand.

[kevrob]

IRA bar? The man's a Protestant! - thoreau

...as were Charles Stewart Parnell, Wolfe Tone, Robert Emmet and Roddy Feckin' McCorley.

Guy got there first, but in college the future Senator did go by "Barry." Barry O'Bama sounds almost "black Irish."

Kevin
(In training for Saturday)

[LarryA]

If Mr Obama gets elected, he would be the first multiracial US president in history

Well, officially. Truth be told, none of us are as racially pure as we think we are.

To put it another way, he's part of the human race, and what other?

[joe]

"Yea, just wait until he starts after the Jewish vote.

O'bamastein anybody?"

Eh. Wake me up when buys an estate and calls it a "ranch."

[highnumber]

Cue flemur to tell us the Irish are genetically inferior and prone to terrorism.

[Guy Montag]

Eh. Wake me up when buys an estate and calls it a "ranch."

Didn't Edwards do that first?

[James]

I think the idea that Obama would be the first "multiracial" president should wait until previous presidents are genetically tested as well. When genetic testing first started, it was discovered that over half of all "white" South Africans had a black ancestor, of which nearly all of them were completely unaware.

[joe]

Race isn't about biology, James. It's socially constructed.

Obama lived in the United States as a black/multi-racial guy. He's actually had the experience of being the black guy in the store that security kept an eye on, and he's actually had the experience of being the guy in a group of black people who was raised by his white mother.

[parse]

joe, if we're judging race by "social construction," what about Warren Harding? When political opponents claimed his great-grandmother was black, he reportedly said, "I honestly can't say who my great grand-daddy went to the woodpile with." And he's one of the men claimed by J.A. Rodgers to be one of our 5 black presidents. By the rules of social construction, if a popular African-American historian says you are black, are you black?

[jb]

Kevrob:

Oh see the wealthy Democrats, who march with their checkbooks
From New York and Los Angeles, they came to ounty Cook
they came with money to donate, too late, too late are they
For Barack Obama's lost the vote, in the primaries today

Through the party he advanced, smiling, proud, and young
'Til by the Clinton spin machine, his hopes all were undone
So dirty was their ad campaign, it was a bloody fray
And Barack Obama's lost the vote, in the primaries today

[joe]

parse,

"By the rules of social construction, if a popular African-American historian says you are black, are you black?"

No. A populare African-American historian could call you a sponge, but that wouldn't make you a sponge.

[joe]

Ah, we're off to Florida
Screw the Greens, Screw the Greens,
Our union ballcaps shading us from the sun.
And the votes they flew
Like lightening to
The candidate not named Clin-ton.

[lunchstealer]

Coming soon: The Clinton campaign leaks a dubious report that Obama was educated in a shady IRA bar.

Wait, he hasn't been hangin' around in O'Bar with Teddy has he?

[Pro Libertate]

What we really need is a Scottish-American candidate. After all, if it's not Scottish. . .it's crap! Aye, a president in a kilt, carrying a sword. And saying things like, "It's as cold as a witch's teat." Works for me.

Incidentally, "O'Bama" would get him the Alabama vote.

[thoreau]

There can be only one such candidate, PL.

[R C Dean]

Eh. Wake me up when buys an estate and calls it a "ranch."

Didn't Edwards do that first?

I thought Edwards called it one of the Americas.

[Pro Libertate]

thoreau,

Indeed. And, since he was born before the United States existed, I think he could get around the native son requirement.

All the best immortals are Scottish. Even the ones that are Spanish-Egyptian-Whatever. Confusing but true.

[kohlrabi]

Pro-

Steve Forbes? He is a piper after all...

[Pro Libertate]

Ach, laddie, nothing like the pipes.

Incidentally, I just saw some Highland games performed at the Bay Area (Tampa version) Renaissance Festival. Looked painful. It reminded me of the saying about Scottish cuisine--everything looks like it was originally based on a dare.

[Guy Montag]

The Clinton campaign leaks a dubious report that Obama was educated in a shady IRA bar.

Would that be the one on King St. in Alexandria, VA?

[parse]

Okay, joe, so what does it take to make Warren Harding the a mixed-race president? If significant numbers of people accept Rodgers' account, does he qualify?

Interesting that there are some African Americans who say, because race is socially constructed, Obama is not black--he has not had the black experience. Debra Dickerson claimed on the Colbert Report that, in the American politcal context, Obama is not black. Would you agree?

[Guy Montag]

I hear he uses a lot of dihydrogen monoxide in his whiskey. I swear I did not hear it from a Clintonista . . .

[David T]

"Coming soon: The Clinton campaign leaks a dubious report that Obama was educated in a shady IRA bar."

No, Fox broadcasts a dubious report that Obama was educated in a shady IRA bar, and dubiously *attributes* it to the Clinton campaign in order to smear both Democratic candidates.

(I know, I know. Fox would never do such a thing, because it's too fair and balanced to do so..)

[Guy Montag]

(I know, I know. Fox would never do such a thing, because it's too fair and balanced to do so..)

Don't put it past Imus.

[joe]

parse,

In my opinion, somebody would have to be aware of having a minority parent, who others realized was non-white, to of mixed race. My Italian grandfather probably had almost as much African blood as European, but he wasn't biracial, he was Italian. Again, it's not a blood thing.

"Debra Dickerson claimed on the Colbert Report that, in the American politcal context, Obama is not black. Would you agree?" Sort of. I agree that Obama's cultural background is distinct from Americans of African descent whose ancestors came here as slaves. The terminology is all up in the air, apparently, but it would seem that we need a more general term for Americans with African ancestry, and a more specific terms for those Americans of African ancestry whose forebearers were slaves, or at least, who were here during the era of slavery.

[Guy Montag]

I will say, before this news I did consider the Senator from ILL. to be 100% human.

What's next? french blood?

[Russ 2000]

To borrow from the George Carlin bit, Barack Obama is openly white.

[NoStar]

Bill Clinton was our nation's first Black President. I'm sure I heard that from the mainstream media. So, it hasta be true.

[kevrob]

jb, it's a good man you are! joe, you have your moments, too.

Kevin
(Up Roscommon!)

[Hugh Akston]

"In my opinion, somebody would have to be aware of having a minority parent, who others realized was non-white, to of mixed race. My Italian grandfather probably had almost as much African blood as European, but he wasn't biracial, he was Italian. Again, it's not a blood thing."

So wait, if he were trying to get elected in Chicago and he was half-Irish, then he would be mixed-race?

[LarryA]

The terminology is all up in the air, apparently, but it would seem that we need a more general term for Americans with African ancestry, and a more specific terms for those Americans of African ancestry whose forebearers were slaves, or at least, who were here during the era of slavery.

Then we need a term for people of European ancestry who moved here after the era of slavery, so they don't get blamed for it even though they're "white."

And another term for "Americans of African ancestry whose forebearers were slaves, or at least, who were here during the era of slavery" who are passing as white. (We already have "Oreo" for those who just vote the wrong way.)

And...

What's wrong with being "human?"

[Guy Montag]

What's wrong with being "human?"

Nothing at all. But they keep lumping in these creatures who can not even get a tan if it were painted on as "human". Gotta stop somewhere.

[joe]

Hugh A,

"So wait, if he were trying to get elected in Chicago and he was half-Irish, then he would be mixed-race?"

You mean my grandfather? Uh, no, he'd be Irish-Italian. According to the construction of race in our society, people with Irish and Italian ancenstry are counted as white. You didn't know this?

Larry A,

"Then we need a term for people of European ancestry who moved here after the era of slavery, so they don't get blamed for it even though they're "white."" Oh, boo hoo, you have it so tough being white. How about you let your sense of persecution go on a holiday long enough to notice that, in 2007, people whose ancentors arrived here from Europe in 1850 are cultural indistinguishable from those who arrived here in 1900?

'What's wrong with being "human?"' Nothing. What's wrong with noticing that there are people different from you?

[joe]

Larry A,

Is it ok, pretty please, if I don't undergo years of psychological deconstruction in order to make me forget that I have a cultural, community, and family identity that goes beyond the category "human?"

Can I at least notice that I'm an American? Or does that offend your "colorblind" sensibilities as well?

Where did this lunacy that we all have to be the same to be equal come from, anyway?

[ChrisO]

Nice Parliament reference in the headline.

So I guess it's Carrot City, rather than Chocolate City?

[kevrob]

Carrot? Nah, red hair is a minority among the Irish. It's actually more common among the Scots, and the Scandinavians gone a-Viking spread it all around Britain and Ireland.

I'd go with "Pratie City" - (Cathrach na pr?ata??)

Kevin