At Urban League, Obama Defends Education Reforms, Calls For Race Dialogue
While President Obama's remarks before the National Urban League in Washington
dealt mainly with his education reform initiatives, a sizeable segment of the
media coverage last night and this morning dealt with the issue of race –
which Obama addressed in his speech in the context of the education debate and
in later comments on ABC's The View.
USA
Today, for example, headlines its story on the President's speech "Obama
Urges A Dialogue On Race After Sherrod Case," and reports that "Obama said
Thursday that all Americans should spend more time talking about a sensitive
subject that he has addressed only sparingly since he took office:
race."
Two network newscasts, as well as national print outlets, covered the story
– though CBS only mentioned the President's comments on the Sherrod case.
As part of a larger story on the Shirley Sherrod controversy, the
CBS Evening
News reported Obama "accepted responsibility for the rush to judgment over
what he called a bogus controversy that prompted Agriculture Secretary Tom
Vilsack to ask for Sherrod's
resignation."
NBC Nightly News, meanwhile, reported that "Obama made a high profile
defense of his approach to improving public education, which is "called Race to
the Top" and is a "big and revolutionary approach that's been controversial,
even among many of his own
allies."
The
Washington
Times focuses on Obama's education remarks, reporting that he "credited
the $4 billion strategy with turning around failing schools across the country,"
and "sought to head off arguments that the program is too tough on teachers, as
it calls for states to reward good performance but take sometimes drastic action
to overhaul failing schools, including firing teachers." The
New York
Times reports that Obama "acknowledged 'some controversy' about his
education initiative, which he attributed partly to 'a general resistance to
change, a comfort with the status
quo.'"
The President, says the
Christian
Science Monitor, "made it clear...that he has no intention of backing
down from his education reform agenda, despite criticism from core
constituencies in his own party."
Politico,
meanwhile, reports that "Obama talked about his education plan in a speech
before his toughest critics -- and they
applauded."
Civil Rights Leaders Soften Criticism Of Education Program
Politico
says that "despite their tough rhetoric earlier this week, civil rights leaders
have softened their criticism of the president's education reforms. A 'conflict
in schedules' led the coalition to cancel a Monday press conference to air their
criticism and tout their 17-page framework for
reform."
Obama Addresses Race Relations On "The View"
Politico
says President Obama gave "an uncommonly candid assessment of race relations"
during "his appearance on 'The View,' saying Americans still must confront their
'reptilian side' when dealing with people of different races." Said Obama,
"There is still kind of a reptilian side of our brain -- that part of our brain
that, if somebody looks different or sounds different, that there's part of us
that is cautious. And what we have to do is fight against that." He added,
"When it comes to race, let's acknowledge that of course there is still tension
out there, there is still inequality. ... But we've made
progress."
The
Hill reports that "Obama waded into the national race debate in an
unlikely setting and with an unusual choice of words: telling daytime talk show
hosts that African-Americans are 'sort of a mongrel people.'" On The View,
Obama said, "We are sort of a mongrel people. ... I mean we're all kinds of
mixed up. ... That's actually true of white people as well, but we just know
more about
it."
Sherrod Says Obama Needs History Lesson, Will Sue Blogger
The
Washington
Post notes that "in wide-ranging remarks in San Diego," Shirley
Sherrod" yesterday "talked about the personal toll her firing...had taken. ...
When asked if she thought Obama needed a history lesson, she said, 'Well, yes, I
think he does, that's why I invited him to
Georgia.'"
The
Washington
Times reports that Sherrod said "members of her generation who were in
the civil rights movement 'tried too much to shield that hurt and pain from
younger people. We have to do a better job of helping those individuals who get
these positions, in the media, in educational institutions, in the presidency,
we have to make sure they understand the history so they can do a better job.'"
She added that "Obama is one of those who need a history
lesson."
RCP Average Has Obama Job Approval At 46.1%
The
RealClearPolitics
average of recent polling on President Obama's job approval has the President's
approval at 46%, and disapproval at 48.7%. Approval is up 0.1% since yesterday;
disapproval is up by
0.2%.
A
Fox
News poll of 900 registered voters (7/27-7/28) finds the President's
job approval at 43%, and his disapproval at
50%.
The latest
Gallup
poll of 1,500 adults (7/26-7/28) shows the President with a 45% approval rating
and 49% disapproval.
Rasmussen's
automated survey of 1,500 likely voters (7/26-7/28) finds Obama's approval at
46%, with 53% disapproving of his
performance.
