Great Moments in Good Timing

Barack Obama finally, finally takes a stand on Detroit's natural disaster of a mayor.

Brent Colburn said in an e-mail Wednesday night "Senator Obama believes that Mayor Kilpatrick's ongoing troubles and the serious charges against him have been a distraction that the city cannot afford."

Presto!

Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick pleaded guilty to a pair of felony obstruction charges on Thursday in a sex-and-misconduct scandal and will step down after months of defiantly holding onto his job leading the nation's 11th-largest city.

Kilpatrick is a massively tragic figure, elected mayor at age 31, running on the energy of a freight train, and completely sexually amoral. I've had people tell me about Kilpatrick showing up early to an a.m. meeting, clad in a purple three-piece suit, all while he was apparently setting up trysts with his chief of staff via text message. But then he did stuff like this (the fun starts at 0:56):

Related (because without Kwame dragging down the Democrats, Obama has a better chance of winning Michigan): I have found the first candidate for the Bob Herbertism I was looking for last night, from Jesse Taylor at Pandagon.

Haha, "community organizer". Barack Obama sold mixtapes out of the back of his Cadillac, that shifty bitch.

If every reference was like that, it wouldn't be so bad.

Comments

[joe]

Why is Barack Obama expected to "take a stand" on the Mayor of Detroit?

Has McCain?

[libertymike]

Joe-

Your boy is the one with the vaunted Ivy pedigree-shouldn't he be smart enough to figure it out?

[joe]

Go ahead, oh insecure one. Answer the question:

Why is Barack Obama expected to take a stand on the Mayor of Detroit?

[libertymike]

Joe-

Denounce the guy's actions. Let people know that you do not support faux cries of racism as that phenomenon is supposed to be utterly at odds with "the new politics".

[stuartl]

joe, I think your question was answered in David's post -- "because without Kwame dragging down the Democrats, Obama has a better chance of winning Michigan"

[Clay Davis]

Sheeeeeeeeiiiit I guess art imitates life.

[libertymike]

Joe-

Upon what factual basis do you posit that I am insecure? Facts, Joe, only facts.

If one is critical of the Ivies, does it therefore mean that one is "insecure"? Reasoning Joe, give us some reasoning, Joe.

[libertymike]

Joe-

Why have so many big cities under black leaderhsip gone to hell?

[J sub D]

Why is Barack Obama expected to take a stand on the Mayor of Detroit?

Kwame Kilpatrick is a Democrat, the leading Democrat, in an overwhelmingly democratic voting city which happens to be 11th largest in the nation. He is mired in scandals that include perjury, malfeasance in office, and assault on a police officer in the performance of his duties.

Barack Obama, as the Democratic nominee for the presidency is perceived as leader of the democratic party. Leadership entails many things but one is certainly holding your subordinates/followers accountable.

Was that really too hard to figure out on you own?

[Episiarch]

Kilpatrick showing up early to an a.m. meeting, clad in a purple three-piece suit, all while he was apparently setting up trysts with his chief of staff via text message

I kinda like this guy. My suit would be pure white, though.

[Jamie Kelly]

Why have so many big cities under black leaderhsip gone to hell?

I hope to fuckshittery that you're not implying what I think you're implying.

[joe]

libertymike,

Yes, saying that you find graduates of Ivy League universities to be "intellectually lacking" most certainly does demonstrate insecurity. No, I'm not going to explain this to you, but rather, point and laugh at the obliviousness which attends denial.

Why have so many big cities under black leaderhsip gone to hell? Like most people with a white-flight mindset, you've got it backwards. Cities that went to hell end up experiencing white fight, leaving a black majority which tends to elect black mayors. Perhaps if you asked an Ivy League graduate, he could explain to you that Detroit was not, in fact, experiencing a protracted period of growth and expansion prior to electing its first black mayor.

[joe]

J sub D,

How many scandalous Republicans has John McCain denounced?

Party. Right, it's about party.

libertymike knows it's not about party.

[libertymike]

Joe-

A proponent of the new politics would, of course, reject any suggestion that my previous question was motivated by racism. If the proponent did make such a suggestion, he would be betraying the new politics in favor of the old, tired, racist driven drivel we have been treated to for decades by the likes of the odious Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, Maxine Waters, Charlie Rangel, Kwesi Nfume, Marion Barry, Douglas Wilder, Devolve Patrick-you get the picture- black racists.

[J sub D]

The real shits about the whole Kwame thing is that like many corrupt, personally immoral, big city machine politicians he was very fucking competent. After an understandably slow start, he started leading the city forward using rhetoric and stands that were surprisingly not mainstream Dem stuff. I'm too cynical to get outraged about big city political cronyism, it's a fact of life. The perjury was the result of an attempt to cover up an affair that was not all that tawdry, a scandal he could have easily ridden out. That and his arrogance are what ruined what could have been a lifetime tenure as Mayor of Detroit.

[libertymike]

Joe-

No. My opinion that Ivy league grads are not the best and the brightest is predicated upon my life's experiences. By opining that Ivy grads are intellectually inferior (not intellectually lacking-get the words straight) is not evidence that I am jealous or insecure. Your "proof" is lame. It amounts to a tautology. You can do better, Joe.

[joe]

Yes, libertymike, a "proponent of the new politics" would pretend not to notice what you were doing.

It's cute that you'd list Deval Patrick, of all people, as being in the same category as Al Sharpton.

Tell you what, now that you've said that black mayors are the cause of urban decline and been called on it, why don't you make yourself feel good by telling us who THE REAL RACISTS are, and then piss off.

[joe]

I don't think I could do better, actually.

I don't think I could demonstrate you to be an insecure, racist person any better than just letting you run your mouth.

[libertymike]

Jaime Kelly-

It is a question. How about answering it instead of playing the race card.

[J sub D]

J sub D,

How many scandalous Republicans has John McCain denounced?

How many ongoing GOP scandals involve a politician with a national profile even close to Kwame Kilpatrick's?

[furrows brow] Hmmm. That would be about zero point naught. It political reality joe. You know that. The timing of the Kwamsters resignation/plea deal was fortuitous for the Dems, not cynically calculated and orchestrated as blue teamers will likely assert. This scandal has a life of its own far, far removed from the DNC.

[J sub D]

BTW, I've been practicing saying Mayor Cockrel* for a couple of weeks now. I'm ready.

* Ken Cockrel tidbit - He voted against the eminent domain seizure of the Poletown neighborhood to build a GM plant. He's been around a looong while.

[joe]

J sub D,

Kwame Kilpatrick has virtually no national profile. I know you're in Detroit, so it's all over the news, but today's story is probably the first time he's going to get significant play in the national media.

Also, the Justice Department scandals under Gonzo had a much larger profile than Kilpatrick.

. It political reality joe. You know that. It is political reality, and I do know that. I know exactly what this political reality is. I'm just curious to see who's willing to admit it.

BTW, I've never made the charge that this was ginned up to hurt Obama. I know the case has been going on for a long time.

[libertymike]

Joe-

Argument by tautology! Very convincing.

Joe, a racist is one who supports affirmative action. A racist is one who supports trillion dollar wealth transfer programs to people of color on the basis of their color. A racist is one who denounces as racist those who challenge such racist programs. In other words, you and Barky.

[joe]

ZZzzzzzzzzzzz...Funny how "a racist" is someone who doesn't bear any resemblance to what the term has meant for the past 500 years.

Oddly enough, a racist is not somebody who thinks that black people are incapable of governing.

[Pro Libertate]

Couldn't Obama have simply refused to comment?

[libertymike]

Joe-

Its okay to recognize that black people can be racist. That is a fact. Its okay to criticize those who identify first with their color. I find it to be a thoroughly loathsome quality.

[joe]

In 2008, a racist is usually somebody who phrases his points about race in the form of leading questions, in order to allow him to run away from his point when he gets called on it.

Who the hell do you actually think you're fooling?

[libertymike]

Joe-

There you go again. Did I say that black people are incapable of governing? Please do not give me some flaccid notion that I am speaking in code. That dog won't hunt.

[joe]

Is it okay to criticize people who identify failed politicians and troubled cities first by their color?

[Brian24]

libertymike,

You're the only one who drew a link between "failing cities" and "cities with black mayors." As far as I can tell, that's the only racist suggestion that's been made in this thread.

[joe]

Please do not give me some flaccid notion that I am speaking in code. That dog won't hunt.

Dude, when you've lost Jamie effing Kelly, it's time to pack it in.

[J sub D]

More from your humble H&R Motown correspondant on Kwame Kilpatrick. He'll leave office, serve 120 days in jail, repay $1 million, surrender law license.

Kwame Kilpatrick has virtually no national profile.

Reasonoids from outside the great state of Michigan, what say you?

joe, I meant to say

The timing of the Kwamsters resignation/plea deal was fortuitous for the Dems, not cynically calculated and orchestrated as blue red teamers will likely assert.

My bad.

[J sub D]

Also, the Justice Department scandals under Gonzo had a much larger profile than Kilpatrick.

I asked about ongoing political scandals. Aside from that, yeah. The Gonzales evil crap was bigger news and more important as well.

[Pro Libertate]

Yes, I meant to comment on that. Kwame Kilpatrick's trial and tribulations have been national news for a while. Detroit's no small town, after all. I haven't paid a lot of attention due to massive indifference, but it's not accurate to say that this has been invisible.

I guess the fact that Obama is, for good or for ill, viewed as a black as well as a Democratic leader makes it difficult for him to avoid this topic. I think McCain could be similarly cornered by a GOP scandal, though we'll only know if that comes up in the next couple of months.

[libertymike]

Racism-

According to dictionary.com, racism is defined as:

1. A belief or doctrine that inherent differences among the various human races determine cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that one's own race is superior and the right to rule other races.

2. a policy, system of government, etc., based upon or fostering such a doctrine;

3. hatred or intolerance of another race.

Asking the question why have so many big cities under black leadership gone to pot does not fall within the aforesaid definitions. However, primarily identifying oneself with one's race and appealing to others on the same basis, is racism. Same thing for affirmative action-it being a policy or doctrine based on race.

[libertymike]

Joe-

The white man has given us:

1. Socialism.

2. The income tax.

3. Gun Control-first implemented to prevent blacks from owning firearms.

4. Corporate welfare.

5. The national security state.

I have posted the above facts on other threads. Funny, nobody accused me of being a racist for so doing. I will admit I tried posting the same facts on a website that is a self described white separatist site and my post was rejected.

Moreover, just yesterday, you read my posts on Ron Bailey's thread concerning the superiority of liberal culture. You know that I was highly critical of the viewpoint that posits our culture is morally superior to all others-and that I specifically mentioned amerika's horrible treatment of black folk. In fact, you know that I have made that point numerous times on other threads. More forcefully than almost any other poster, I might add.

[joe]

J sub D,

What, pray tell, is "freep.com?"

And, even the article you quote states that the case has "transfixed the region." I don't think "region" in this case means "northern hemisphere."

The Gonzales evil crap was bigger news and more important as well. More importantly, it was about the federal government, not a local government, while John McCain was the Ranking Member (huh huh huh huh, yo thaid...) on the Government Reform Committee.

[joe]

libertymike,

It isn't your ideology that's racist, but your reflexes.

[Bingo]

joe:

uh freep.com is owned by the Detroit Free Press. It's a newspaper, one of those things with ink on dead mushed up trees that you read. Freep.com is a link to a website containing the online edition of the dead trees.

Also considering it's on the front page of the Drudge Report, I would say it is getting national coverage, no?

[libertymike]

Joe-

Some of my best friends are........well, statists.

[libertymike]

joe-1:56

Yes and no. I do agree that one's reflexes do not always match one's ideology.

[Dog\'s New Clothes]

J sub,

Are you sure it was Ken Cockrel Jr. who opposed the Poletown plant? His father Ken Sr. was on the city council before him.

I'm not too optimistic about Shrek. Obviously he'll be an improvement over Kwame, but that's a pretty low bar...

[Max]

It's high time to give Omni Consumer Products a chance to run Detroit.

[J sub D]

DNC -

You are correct. I was cofusing the son with the father. Not an excuse, but a dysfunctional city council doesn't get the attention from me that it desrves.

Good on ya.

Like I pointed out upthread, the Kwamster was getting to be an effective competent city leader. He had to go, but I doubt that Cockrel will be as effective running the city.

[Dog\'s New Clothes]

"It's high time to give Omni Consumer Products a chance to run Detroit."

I'd buy that for a dollar!

[Dog\'s New Clothes]

Dysfunctional would be serious understatement. The city council sludge investigation has been pushed out of the spotlight by the Kwame stuff, but we could see some indictments coming down pretty soon.

[joe]

Bingo,

Detroit Free Press? Like I said - not a national story.

The second part of what I said was "Before Today." "Mayor being investigated" is not a national story. "Mayor steps down, cops plea" is a national story.

J sub D,

That reminds me of Vincent Buddy Cianci of Providence, RI. Became mayor, did a bang-up job, went to jail (beat his wife's lover unconscious with a fireplace log). Became mayor, did an even better job, went to jail again (bribes in City Hall).

Providence came a long way under his administration, but he was still crooked through and through. Like something out of the 1890s.

[Naga Sadow]

Dammit!!! I feel like I was rickrolled by Weigel . . . again! I was expecting Jerry Springer and got Political Theatre instead.

J sub D,

Sorry but I'm happy reason has moved off of Mississippi for a while.

[Mo]

It's Kwame's fault the Detroit went to hell. And here I thought it was the collapse of the auto industry. Silly me and my knowledge of economics.

It's also Ray Nagin's fault that Katrina hit New Orleans.

[Abdul]

joe,

Kwame was a national story. The AP and other national news wires have been covering him since his sexy text messages came out. I live nowhere near Detroit, but have been following the story for months(mostly for the to-hit-or-not-to-hit analysis on Kwame's girlfriend).

Also, Kwame was a superdelegate for Democratic National Convention. Obama's lack of comment on Kwame during his scandal could be interpreted as political cowardice for not wanting to alienate a guy who would cast a vote for Obama and against Hilary.

[Naga Sadow]

Mo,

Katrina didn't hit New Orleans. It was a near miss for them. Their crappy levees broke. Nagin squandered the fed money to fix the levees before the storm.

[Mo]

Naga,
That's news to the Army Corps of Engineers. They said, "We have now concluded we had problems with the design of the structure," and admitted fault.

[Naga Sadow]

Mo,

It's long and complicated but I'll give it a try. Basically, the Corp built crappy structures in the beginning due to corruption and/or incompetence. Apparently, Hurricane Andrew caused some major damage to the older and crappier levees that then received crappy repairs. At some point in time before Katrina the Corp was talking up building and/or repairing the older and crappier levees. Nagin tried to hold out until a crisis was nearly upon New Orleans in order to get more federal money. Cue Katrina.

[Naga Sadow]

Mo,

I lived in Biloxi proper at the time and had my own problems from Katrina. I never really have given a damn about New Orleans or why their levees broke from the storm surge.

[John]

The Corps was as responsible as anyone for the levies breaking in NO. But, the Corps hands out a lot of money to a lot of people. The last thing the pork barons in Congress want to do is get in the way of that. So, it was all FEMA and Bush's fault.

[Melba]

Memphis is just as bad with King Willie Herenton and the Ford family.

[Jilly]

Never thought Detroit would have a Mayor worse than Coleman Young. Glad I left but I miss the food.

[Mo]

I wasn't really trying to rehash the whose fault is Katrina, but trying to demonstrate that cities go to shit for reasons way out of the mayor's hands.

[Pro Libertate]

I'd blame Katrina on any Sith Lords living on the Gulf Coast at the time, myself.

[Bingo]

joe,

RE: National story.
You're being purposely obtuse, fuck off.

[joe]

Abdul,

You could find the story if you wanted to, but it wasn't something that got picked up by the networks, or featured in the papers.

Also, Kwame was a superdelegate for Democratic National Convention I did not know that. That's an angle.

[Naga Sadow]

Sure Pro Lib. Blame it on the Sith Lord. We build 1 Death Star(the other was never finished) and suddenly it's like "Somethin' bad happened, must be those damn Sith"! Waaaaah, that's all I ever hear. Alright, I've had my say, got a lotta torturin' to catch up on.

[Pro Libertate]

Sith Lords are soooooo whiny.

[Naga Sadow]

Pro Liberate,

Is this about Vader crying over Padme? One little bitch in the ranks and suddenly we're typecast as whiny! Sheeessshhhh!