By Robert Laurie ——Bio and Archives--January 20, 2014
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Obama’s election was one of the great markers in the black freedom struggle. In the electoral realm, ironically, the country may be more racially divided than it has been in a generation. Obama lost among white voters in 2012 by a margin greater than any victor in American history. The popular opposition to the Administration comes largely from older whites who feel threatened, underemployed, overlooked, and disdained in a globalized economy and in an increasingly diverse country. Obama’s drop in the polls in 2013 was especially grave among white voters. “There’s no doubt that there’s some folks who just really dislike me because they don’t like the idea of a black President,” Obama said. “Now, the flip side of it is there are some black folks and maybe some white folks who really like me and give me the benefit of the doubt precisely because I’m a black President.” The latter group has been less in evidence of late.This theory hinges on the idea that the massive support, which Obama used to enjoy, was the result of a bunch of bigots who were holding their noses. White voters in 2008 were, secretly, a bunch of racists. Maybe they put it aside or just got swept up in the zeitgeist, but deep down, they despised the idea of a black President. For whatever reason, they buried their true selves and helped put the President in office.
“The conventional wisdom is that a President’s second term is a matter of minimizing the damage and playing defense rather than playing offense. But, as I’ve reminded my team, the day after I was inaugurated for a second term, we’re in charge of the largest organization on earth, and our capacity to do some good, both domestically and around the world, is unsurpassed, even if nobody is paying attention.”The trouble is, they are paying attention. Obama managed to skate through his first term precisely because most people weren't watching him all that closely. He was allowed to squeak by on a host of promises and half-truths. Only when people realized they'd been sold a painfully false bill of goods did the scrutiny begin. Far from being racists, people ignored his skin color and trusted Barack Obama enough to place their hands on the front burner of the liberal stove. As a result, they've been badly burned and are yanking back as fast as they can. Obama's dismal ratings have nothing to do with race. They have everything to do with the failure of his Presidency.
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