Might as well have just said the President should always be a white man.

The frustrating thing about the Democratic primary so far is that Edwards and Obama have the better policy proposals of the top-tier candidates, but neither of them is convincingly presidential. Meanwhile, Clinton's cool and presidential but her policies suck.

This kind of gaffe just typifies the Edwards campaign so far, though I wouldn't have expected it from Elizabeth.

There's a certain amount of truth to the statement though -- the media does focus novel things -- like totally viable and qualified female or black candidates -- in part because they're novel. There probably will be a retraction/clarification, but there shouldn't have to be.

Chick is dying. She'll get away with saying a lot more than otherwise. (imo)

The only reason she said that is because of the way the presidential race (whoopsie!) is covered by all strata of media, which is to say, superficially at best, and symobologically at heart. Everything is based on gestures, codes, and conjecture. It's all test balloons and provocations. Not only no substance--no hope of substance, ever. No meaning. No thing. Fuck it.

Being black and a woman didn't help Carol Mosely Braun (sp?) get any press. Seemed like a nice lady, and quoted "Dune" on the Daily Show. Someone should give that lady a cabinet position...

I like how you added "only" into her words.

The possibility of being the first black or female presidential candidate from a major party is going to get that candidate some extra press. Some of it negative as well (hello pointless endless discussion of cleavage). It's not necessarily a good thing.

"One of these things is not like the other. . ."

and i just fell into the stupid trap. GAH! withdrawn, with a renewed vow to keep ignoring the so-called presidential race.

It's true, white men always have the uphill path, darnit.

It's crazy to say otherwise. Of course, Obama and Clinton are getting press for plenty of other good reasons, too.

Oh, I bet they say she's exempt from criticism because she has cancer. What horseshit.

Yeah, and by the way, didn't Edwards get press and fundraising out of his wife having cancer? I'm jes sayin....

@6 Carol Mosely Braun had way more problems than being black and a woman, mainly her outspoken views.

As for Elizabeth Edward's comments, let's face it, there's some truth to the statement. Obama's the first viable black candidate, and that is going to get more news coverage. He also has an advantage when it comes to fundraising in the black community.

Clinton, on the other hand, is not reaping the benefits a viable female candidate would normally get, I think in part because the right wing media has spent so much time portraying her as not a real woman.

The Edwards camp is forgetting one untapped attention getting identity: gay! That would make him a real contender.

damn... well who's brave enough to make the big effort to make john edwards like men? I'm not sure I have the self-confidence.

I think we're all missing the obvious reality here: if modern medical science can turn Michael Jackson into a white woman it can turn John Edwards into a black chick.

@14: There's some truth to it, but you're not allowed to SAY it. Race is taboo.

@18. You got it. Taboo. A big booboo.

And Hillary? I'm sympathetic and interested, and surprising myself with my openness to her taking the primary. NO WAY I'm open to what Hillary is offering if she was a man.

#7: I agree. She didn't say that race and gender where the only reasons Obama and Clinton were getting press. She's recognizing that those two things are interesting news pegs that are helping them get attention. No clarifications necessary. I got it.

When Dan Savage wrote this in Oct. 2002 he was saying that the death of children in the Iraq war was acceptable.

\"War may be bad for children and other living things, but there are times when peace is worse for children and other living things, and this is one of those times. Saying no to war in Iraq means saying yes to the continued oppression of the Iraqi people.\\\"

So why don\\\'t we apportion Dan Savage his fair share of the carnage in Iraq? Let\\\'s arbitrarily assign him responsibility for the death of, say, an eight year old Iraqi girl. That sounds about right doesn\\\'t it? That still leaves 649,999 dead Iraqis to be apportioned out to Bush and the neo-cons and other war supporters.

#7 and #20 have it right.

Sanders, I call bullshit: she acknowledged the truth of the situation, which is that the possibility of the first black or first female president is an interesting media narrative, which puts Edwards at a slight disadvantage in terms of coverage.

EE is NOT saying that Obama "only gets press attention because he’s black". It is very very clear that she's not saying that. She's saying that Obama gets SOME press attention because he's black.

If you want to dispute that, then dispute it; but as it is you're simply proving to everyone that your reading comprehension skills stagnated in the fourth grade. It's Fox News-style deliberate miscomprehension, putting words into her mouth to serve your own ends. Bullshit, and shenanigans.

Chill out. It should be okay to mention the fact that Obama is Black and Hillary is a woman and that MAY PLAY SOME ROLE in who support them and why.

Saying this SHOULD NOT BE MENTIONED is stupid and lame.
Here the truth: in politics, as in life, you get support from your affinity groups. From anyone who feels "thy're like me"!
Edwards being a Southern white male has a smaller affinity group within the Democratic PArty than the others.
This is one reason he wiull lose. Don't fault him for recognizing the obvious and trying to deal with it.

Figured out who Greg Palast is yet, Eli?

Yes, let's not get our panties in a twist.

If Obama weren't black, there'd be nothing interesting about him. He's fluff, all rhetoric and inexperience.

Whatever the brouhaha this may cause it wasn't unintentional. Seemingly clumsy omments such as this are not always made by mistake. Edwards is essentially a populist and is trying to capture the wavering middle-of-the-road Republicans and Independents, these folks are traditionalists. This comment says "We're like you". You being of course, the red-neck vote. Edwards camp knows they don't wow liberals, Hillary and Barack have them sewn up. Edwards is going for middle America. This is very much like Nancy Reagan being caught accidentaly-on-purpose speaking near a live mike at a mid-western state campaign rally whispering to Ronnie "Look at all these lovely white people". Nasty? Yes. Bad for the campaign? No. It was exactly the sort of thing all those mid-western lovely white peoplewanted to hear.

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