Obama Should 'Man Up' Columnist Explains What He Meant
One of the most scathing criticisms of Obama came in a recent column written by The Washington Post's Courtland Milloy, an African-American, who dubbed Obama "the Great Placator" and demanded that he "man up."
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Dade (interviewer): In your column, you describe him as the Great Placator. How does he balance these competing interests but, at the same time, show some authenticity as a black man, which is what you were basically asking for?
Milloy: I don't want to change Obama's personality. I'm told that in private he's a different kind of person. He gets angry, he shows emotion. On the basketball court he swings his elbows and talks a little trash-
Dade: Or gets elbows swung at him.
Milloy: I would like to meet that guy. The person who's in the White House now…I don't really know, I don't think. In my experiences growing up in the South, and then here in the Washington area, I've never seen a black guy like President Obama before.
Dade: Really?
Milloy: No. Never. … There's a person who appears on the podium; who you see walking from the helicopter to the White House that's clearly not the sum total of President Obama. There is a black guy who apparently talks stuff; who shows emotion. I'd like to see that guy.
I'll tell you, he'll be the first…president in my lifetime who had to be that constrained. When he goes out of his way to please those who can't be pleased-meaning the Republicans-and wants to make nice with the Tea Party and is willing to compromise on things that he campaigned on as principle, combined with this demeanor-which is almost a shrinking violet, in some ways-then it becomes problematic.
I remember when the congressman from South Carolina, Joe Wilson, shouted out [to] President Obama "You lie" and President Obama looked at him almost like a schoolmarm would a kid.
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Full interview here Thoughts?
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Dade (interviewer): In your column, you describe him as the Great Placator. How does he balance these competing interests but, at the same time, show some authenticity as a black man, which is what you were basically asking for?
Milloy: I don't want to change Obama's personality. I'm told that in private he's a different kind of person. He gets angry, he shows emotion. On the basketball court he swings his elbows and talks a little trash-
Dade: Or gets elbows swung at him.
Milloy: I would like to meet that guy. The person who's in the White House now…I don't really know, I don't think. In my experiences growing up in the South, and then here in the Washington area, I've never seen a black guy like President Obama before.
Dade: Really?
Milloy: No. Never. … There's a person who appears on the podium; who you see walking from the helicopter to the White House that's clearly not the sum total of President Obama. There is a black guy who apparently talks stuff; who shows emotion. I'd like to see that guy.
I'll tell you, he'll be the first…president in my lifetime who had to be that constrained. When he goes out of his way to please those who can't be pleased-meaning the Republicans-and wants to make nice with the Tea Party and is willing to compromise on things that he campaigned on as principle, combined with this demeanor-which is almost a shrinking violet, in some ways-then it becomes problematic.
I remember when the congressman from South Carolina, Joe Wilson, shouted out [to] President Obama "You lie" and President Obama looked at him almost like a schoolmarm would a kid.
...
Full interview here Thoughts?