Sharpton Speaks Out on Obama's Win

Barack Obama's historic Iowa caucus win is giving him momentum for the New Hampshire primary, but it's also prompting discussion of how other black candidates have failed in the past. The Reverend Jesse Jackson, who won a number of primaries in 1988, ultimately lost the nomination to Michael Dukakis, and the Reverend Al Sharpton didn't gain many delegates in 2004.

On CNN, conservative commentator Bill Bennett made some comments that suggested America doesn't want a black candidate in the lines of Jackson or Sharpton. From Media Matters:

Barack Hussein Obama, a black man, wins this for the Democrats.

I have been watching him. I watched him on Meet the Press. I watched him on your show, watched him on all the CNN shows -- he never brings race into it. He never plays the race card. Talk about the black community -- he has taught the black community you don't have to act like Jesse Jackson; you don't have to act like Al Sharpton. You can talk about the issues. Great dignity. And this is a breakthrough, and good for the people of Iowa.

Naturally, Sharpton weighed in. The Daily News reported Sharpton made a defensive statement, "This almost laughable notion has been repudiated consistently by Mr. Obama himself," referring to the idea that Obama doesn't support Sharpton's civil rights activism. Indeed, Obama appeared at the "Sharpton primary" - aka Sharpton's National Action Network conference in April - and had dinner at Sylvia's with Sharpton in November. And Sharpton added, "If Mr. Obama is successful in becoming President, that will not automatically solve racial injustice in America, and therefore the need for advocates for racial justice is needed."

Back in March, Sharpton and Obama chatted on the phone, and the Reverend said, "We had a good conversation. He said he's got a lot of respect for me and what I've done."

Photograph of Sharpton and Obama at Sharpton's National Action Network Conference in April by Frank Franklin II/AP