Father Michael Pfleger’s racist and misogynist sermon delivered this past Sunday at Trinity’s UCC gave the liberal/leftist Raleigh News & Observer’s another opportunity to help elect Senator Barack Obama President.
The N&O seized the opportunity. In a brief, five-paragraph story, it told readers nothing about Pfleger’s anti-white rant from the pulpit. It sugared over his nasty misogynist ridicule of Sen. Hillary Clinton. And it buried its distorted rump of a story in a single column in the inside, bottom corner of page 4A. (N&O West edition, 5/30/08.)
What follows is the full text of the "report" of Pfleger's sermen the N&O published, attributed to the A. P. The "report” appears under the positive, but misleading lede: “Obama deals with new clergy dust-up.”
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said Thursday that he was “deeply disappointed” by a supporter’s sermon at his church that mocked Hillary Rodham Clinton.Now folks, here’s the entire AP story. All the paragraphs the N&O left out are in bold.
The Rev. Michael Pfleger, a Chicago activist, also apologized for Sunday’s sermon at Obama’s church, in which he said Clinton’s eyes welled with tears before the New Hampshire primary because she felt “entitled” to the Democratic nomination and because “there’s a black man stealing my show.”
In video circulating on the Internet, Pfleger said the former first lady expected to win the nomination before Obama’s sudden popularity.
Obama won the Iowa caucuses, the first contest of the nominating season, in January. Days later, Clinton’s eyes brimmed with tears and her voice broke as she talked with New Hampshire voters on the eve of the primary, which she won.
Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago has been Obama’s spiritual home for years and also triggered a controversy earlier this spring over remarks made by Obama’s longtime pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wrirght Jr. (This last paragraph appears in no AP text I could find. Local editors can change or add to material off the AP wire. JinC)
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said Thursday that he was "deeply disappointed" by a supporter's sermon at his church that mocked Hillary Rodham Clinton.To help Obama the N&O left out an awful lot that is central to the story - Pfleger's anti-white ranting, the extent and nastiness of the misogynist ridicule, the Pfleter-Farrakhan relationship, and the dissatisfaction of Sen. Clinton and her team with Sen. Obama's failure to fully denounce his friend and spiritual counselor Fr. Ffleger's anti-white racism and misogyny.
The Rev. Michael Pfleger, a Chicago activist, also apologized for last Sunday's sermon at Obama's church, in which he said Clinton's eyes welled with tears before the New Hampshire primary because she felt "entitled" to the Democratic nomination and because "there's a black man stealing my show."
In video circulating on the Internet, Pfleger said the former first lady expected to win the nomination before Obama's sudden popularity.
Obama won the Iowa caucuses, the first contest of the nominating season, in January. Days later, Clinton's eyes brimmed with tears and her voice broke as she talked with New Hampshire voters on the eve of the primary, which she won.
Obama said he was "deeply disappointed" by Pfleger's comments.
"As I have traveled this country, I've been impressed not by what divides us, but by all that that unites us," he said in a statement. "That is why I am deeply disappointed in Father Pfleger's divisive, backward-looking rhetoric, which doesn't reflect the country I see or the desire of people across America to come together in common cause."
Pfleger, the white pastor of predominantly black Saint Sabina Roman Catholic Church on the city's Southwest side, said he regretted his choice of words.
"These words are inconsistent with Senator Obama's life and message and I am deeply sorry if they offended Senator Clinton or anyone else who saw them," Pfleger said.
Clinton's campaign denounced Pfleger's comments.
"Divisive and hateful language like that is totally counterproductive in our efforts to bring our party together and have no place at the pulpit or in our politics," the campaign said in a statement. "We are disappointed that Senator Obama didn't specifically reject Father's Pfleger's despicable comments about Senator Clinton, and assume he will do so."
In March, Pfleger invited Obama's embattled former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, to speak at Saint Sabina, embracing Wright in the church.
Obama recently broke with Wright, who had been his longtime pastor, after video of his sermons blaming U.S. policies for the Sept. 11 attacks and his calls of "God damn America" became fixtures on the Internet and cable news networks and created a political problem for the candidate.
Pfleger, known locally as a community activist and organizer, was arrested in June 2007 with the Rev. Jesse Jackson during a protest outside of a south suburban Chicago gun shop. The criminal trespass charges were later dropped.
He also has hosted Louis Farrakhan, the controversial leader of the Nation of Islam, at St. Sabina and has called him "a gift from God to a sick, sick world."
Father Michael Pfleger, who has his own Chicago church described on his website as a “Word-based, Bible teaching African American Catholic Church,” told the congregation at Trinity that Clinton had engaged in “white entitlement and supremacy” that must be exposed.
“When Hillary was crying, and people said that was put on, I really don’t believe it was put on. I really believe that she just always thought, ‘This is mine. I’m Bill’s wife. I’m white. And this is mine. I just got to get up and step into the plate.’” he said.
“And then out of nowhere came, hey, I’m Barack Obama. And she said, ‘Oh damn, where did you come from? I’m white. I’m entitled. There’s a black man stealing my show.’” Those remarks were mockingly performed in a falsetto, and drew a standing ovation
Yesterday's story was the first the N&O has done in response to Pfleger's abomination. It published nothing on it this morning.
Full disclose - The N&O insists its news coverage is fair and accurate; and free of any political bias.
1 comments:
Another of Obama's Un-Rev.-like clergyman at large--
Pfleger: ["You are going to have to have the balls to fire me,.."]
CHICAGO (AP) Rev. Michael Pfleger:
- He's held hands with Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan.
He's been arrested dozens of times…….
Chicago Sun-Times in 2002.’["You are going to have to have the balls to fire me,"] Pfleger said, sending a message to church leaders. "If you want to fire me, fire me."
Chicago Sun-Times 2008
Obama quickly distanced himself from Pfleger, learning his lesson after foot-dragging to distance himself from Wright. Obama [appeared to feign surprise] in his statement...
“That's just as impossible as Obama claiming not to know Wright's racist, anti-American beliefs after listening to Wright from the pew for 20 years.”
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