Race and Obama’s run

Re “Obama’s rhetoric, American realities,” Opinion, Feb. 12

Jonah Goldberg is running scared. He is so desperate not to see Sen. Barack Obama as the Democratic standard-bearer that he plays the race card, insinuating that American whites most familiar with racial problems will not vote for a minority candidate. In this manner, he stoops to the lowest levels of American politics -- places normally reserved for Karl Rove and a few other ultra-conservatives. But the Tuesday primaries show that Obama can win in racially mixed states such as Virginia and Maryland.

The more interesting analysis is that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton has run best in Democratic strongholds such as New York, Massachusetts and California, while Obama has run best in red states that are usually in the Republican camp: Virginia, South Carolina and Georgia. This raises the interesting specter that Obama may capture many of those red states in November, turning the Democratic victory into a landslide. And that is why Goldberg is so scared.

Paul Weissman

Pasadena

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Goldberg says that Obama wins primaries in states without much diversity because “for Obama’s wealthy, white, liberal supporters, diversity is knowing a rich black lawyer, a wealthy Latino accountant and lots of well-to-do gay folks.”

So in other words, Obama lost California because the only blacks, Latinos and gays encountered by working-class voters here are carjacking crack dealers, gangbanging illegal immigrants and sodomy-mad pedophiles? Thanks for clearing things up!

James Dawson

Woodland Hills

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In Goldberg’s analysis, well-to-do whites are above the fray of interracial tensions, so they find Obama an acceptable candidate. But polls also show that the more education a voter has, the more he favors Obama. Perhaps those voters are swayed by a candidate who refuses to accept money from lobbyists, and that is sufficient change from the typical politician to sustain their hope for a better America.

Herbert Molano

Tujunga