Obama Faces Black Resistance In S.C.

Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) faces two major obstacles in South Carolina, the first Democratic presidential primary testing ground for black support: the popularity of the Clinton name and doubts among many blacks that white America is ready for a minority president. The candidacy of the 45-year-old, half-black, liberal Democrat elicits genuine excitement in a state where blacks comprise about half of the primary electorate. Yet coupled with that emotion is a strong degree of skepticism about the freshman senator's experience and whether he can win. Sen. Obama also is up against Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), the Democratic front-runner who enjoys strong support in the black community and is married to former President Bill Clinton, who is wildly popular among blacks.

The racial doubts was an issue that Sen. Obama confronted on his first trip to South Carolina in February, telling people who doubted he could win because he's black: "Don't tell me I can't do something. ... I don't believe in this can't do, won't do, won't even try, style of leadership. Yes we can. Don't believe in
that." Sen. Obama's plea was directed not only at voters, who will participate in the Jan. 29 primary, but State Sen. Robert Ford of Charleston. State Sen. Ford, who is black, garnered national headlines when he said he was backing Sen. Clinton in part because he was skeptical that Sen. Obama could win the presidency and feared that his nomination could hurt other Democratic candidates. "Every Democrat running on that ticket next year would lose — because he's black and he's top of the ticket. We'd lose the House and the Senate and the governors and everything," said State Sen. Ford. He drew widespread criticism for his comment and later apologized.

However, Associated Press interviews suggested the view is prevalent among blacks, along with concerns across racial lines about whether Sen. Obama has enough experience to be president. Greenville County Democratic Party chairman Andy Arnold hears it frequently among blacks, who are supporting Sen. Clinton in greater numbers in recent polls. "A lot of the African-Americans are with Hillary because I think they don't believe white America is ready for a black president," said Mr. Arnold, who is white and uncommitted in the race. "They want to win and so in a way, I think it is a barrier to him. And it may be more so in the South where the remnants of the old South are still in the older folks mind. They just can't believe in their right mind that white folks will elect a black man president, so let's not put ourselves through that agony."

Sen. Clinton is a favorite of black women in current polls, due largely from goodwill for her husband and her lifelong focus on issues affecting families and children. Much of her lead comes from women and blacks, and it's strongest among black women. According to Associated Press-Ipsos polls taken this summer, 59% of black women said they support Sen. Clinton and 27% support Obama. The South Carolina primary, coming after heavily white Iowa and New Hampshire vote, and Nevada casts its ballots, is crucial for Sen. Obama. In 1984 and 1988, Rev. Jesse Jackson won the state's primary.

The Obama campaign launched radio ads this week with a direct appeal to black voters and has embarked on a labor-intensive effort to reach voters in their homes. Sen. Obama has about 40 staffers in the state, more than double any of his rivals. His top-ranked fundraising — he has raised nearly $60 million — allows him to invest in advertising and staff through the primary race. Part of the campaign's strategy is to host small meetings in voter's homes.

My response: I still don't get it. Sen. Obama is as liberal as anyone else in the race, opposed the war in Iraq from the beginning (which appears to be a strength of his among liberal Democrats). While he has been a U.S. Senator for less time than Sen. Clinton, he overall has more legislative experience than she does. Yet black liberals are still partly doing that crabs-in-a-barrel thing, with some folks even questioning Sen. Obama's blackness (the other part is the real feeling about whether white folks will vote for a black man, but why preemptively cut him out if he would otherwise be your guy?). As I've said before, it may well be black folks who most undermine his candidacy.