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Now that the democratic primary is over, many pundits are speculating on whether Senator Barack Obama will pick Senator Hillary Clinton as his running mate. Some journalists have claimed to have spoken with some Clinton insiders who report that an aggressive campaign to secure the Vice Presidential nomination is underway. The only word from the Obama camp is that they are carefully considering their options. For the past couple of months, responses to inquiries about Senator Obama’s thoughts on a future running mate have been a stilted … “Hillary would be on anyone’s short-list”.The selection of a Vice Presidential candidate is frequently a difficult and politically-charged endeavor for most presidential campaigns. Some have suggested that if Senator Obama does not pick Senator and former First Lady Clinton, it would be seen as arrogance. Rebuffing Hillary’s request to be Vice President will risk alienating all of those women and white working class voters who stood by her until the end. Such a move would truly be audacious. On the other hand a choice for Hillary would have to be made with the hope that Hillary and Bill do not attempt to highjack the executive branch.Many journalists and pundits seem to have forgotten that just a few weeks ago, Senator Clinton spoke of Robert Kennedy being eliminated from the 1968 Presidential primary race by way of assassination. The indignation of Clinton supporters notwithstanding, those comments were - if not nefarious - certainly not helpful. Imagine being the nation’s first African-American to emerge as a presidential nominee from one of the 2 major parties and being pressured to choose a running mate who has spent months calling you an empty suit and who just recently suggested that you could be assassinated. Given this history, if Senator Obama chooses Senator Clinton, one might conclude that the decision is not in keeping with the intellect of an Ivy League graduate and former president of the Havard Law Review. Or, one could conclude that Barack has a mighty big set of …..er um… let’s just say audacity. 

politics

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Hillary Clinton’s ill-fated battle to reform healthcare as first lady is a distant memory for most African-Americans. Other than her decision to “stand by her man” in the wake of Bill’s humiliating peccadillo, has Hillary really done or accomplished anything to fix herself in the African-American consciousness as a hero or friend? Until recently, I suspect that most African-Americans would say … “NO, but she’s with Bill, so she’s okay with us.” Hillary may be tough and smart, but she doesn’t have a fraction of the charisma that Bill did and she sure doesn’t have soul!

Along comes Barack Obama, a magna cum laude Harvard Law graduate who was the first black president of the Harvard Law Review in it’s 104 year history; who has the charisma of a Bill Clinton and who speaks of hope and togetherness rather than fear and war, then BINGO, the “black vote” is no longer with Hillary. Instead of acknowledging that Obama’s success is a talent thing, she and her advisors make it a black thing. After Hillary lost South Carolina, Bill Clinton pointed out that Jessie Jackson won that primary back in 1988. He was implying that Obama is no more credible a candidate than Jessie Jackson. Hillary’s next began her mantra that all Obama has is rhetoric, suggesting that he has style but is otherwise an empty suit. Then, there was the 60 Minutes interview … “As far as I know, there is no basis for believing that Barack Obama is a muslim”. Despite being asked 3 times, she was unable to produce a simple declarative statement like …. “Barack Obama is a Christian”.

In a recent Fox News Radio interview, Geraldine Ferraro, a Hillary supporter and former Democratic Vice Presidential nominee said … “if Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position. And if he was a woman of any color, he would not be in this position. He happens to be very lucky to be who he is.” In other words, if you speak well and you’re black, that is good enough to catapult you to the presidential nomination. Ferraro has basically said that Obama’s success is attributable to his black skin, pretty words and a whole lot of white guilt over slavery and civil rights. This is obviously a huge insult to everyone who has voted for him (13% of U.S. population is African-American and WI, WA, OR, ND, ID, MN & IA have < 5% African-Americans).

Perhaps Hillary Clinton does not appreciate how outrageous the Ferraro comments really are; she may be fatigued. Or perhaps she doesn’t really care that she and her supporters are repeatedly asking voters to ignore Obama’s Harvard Law School honors, his community service, his state and national political career, his books and speeches about hope, because he’s a black guy, so how much substance can there really be. The Republican Party has long questioned why African-Americans have been so blindly steadfast in their support of the Democratic Party. Today, African-American voters are probably still blind; but is it because they are seeing red? Any chance they will return to support Hillary should she win?

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That is the Grammy story the press should have emphasized after Sunday’s Grammy Awards ceremony. While some will undoubtedly argue that Amy Winehouse’s winning of five awards — topped off by an “exuberant” performance shortly after leaving Rehab — makes a better headline, I have heard enough about young mega-stars with poor judgment and drug addictions. Sure, Amy is talented and the accolades for her music are well deserved. But, instead of focusing on the artist whose self-betrayal was evident in her circumstance and worn appearance (isn’t a 24 year-old supposed to look fresh and youthful? ), the press could have focused on a real success story in the music industry.

Like Winehouse, Herbie Hancock was lauded for his technical ability and natural talent when he burst on the scene in his early twenties. Miles Davis sought-out Hancock to be his pianist in the early 1960’s, a time when musicians were also tempted by drugs and a fast lifestyle. Unlike Winehouse, Hancock was not inexorably drawn into the drug culture. Music has been Herbie’s drug of choice and in this realm he has voraciously indulged. Over the decades, Herbie Hancock has had accomplished works in many genres, from pop to soundtracks to various forms of jazz. Like his famous mentor, Miles Davis, Hancock has excelled at collaborating with emerging artists and musical technologies. River: The Joni Letters is a culmination of Hancock’s phenomenal musical and collaborative skills as well as his 5 decades of musical experience. In it, we hear great performances from young artists (Corrine Bailey Ray, Norah Jones) and mature artists (Tina Turner, Joni Mitchell and others), enveloped in the piano mastery and compositional skill for which Herbie is most well known. “Edith and the Kingpin” is truly stunning example of what happens when Hancock provides great composition, space for an accomplished vocalist and seasoned with the distinctive, subtle keyboard genius that is a rare talent.

River: The Joni Letters won Grammy’s for Best Contemporary Jazz Album and Album of the Year. This makes Herbie Hancock only the second Jazz Artist to ever receive this honor. Great talent, good living, hard work and good relationships result in physical and artistic longevity. Isn’t that a better story than that of another barely post-teen artist on the super highway to self-destruction?

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