The superdelegates have begun to line up solidly behind Obama  --  and that's a good thing.  America needs Obama's optimism and determination to end politics as usual.  We surely don't need Hillary Clinton and her record of supporting Bush, Iraq and corporate special interests.

That being said, I still am concerned about the impact of race on this election.  Every time I hear the name Obama my mind's eye sees a photograph of Al Smith.  If I was from Tennessee, maybe my mind's eye would form an image of Harold Ford, Jr.

Can you imagine the GOP negative attack ads that will run in Mississippi (Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Kentucky too).  A charming young blonde woman will appear in a 30 second spot.  In the beginning, she will appear only in her voice -- "America has never faced such challenges abroad and at home" and we will see images of terrorists, black criminals, etc. and finally an image of Obama under a red, slashed circle (no parking) symbol.  When her image appears at the end of the spot, she will be saying, "We have to keep the liberals in the White House." and the red, slashed-circle Obama image will appear again on the screen.  The racist appeal of such a spot will overshadow its stated message.

The run-off election campaign for the congressional seat in Mississippi may prove to be the GOP play book for the presidential election.  It's as crude as it is rude.  The L-word will become the code for the N-word.  I wish I had enough confidence in myb fellow citizens to believe they will recoil at such blatantly racist appeals.  But, alas, my experiences since 1960 have taught me that a very large portion of the electorate will embrace such racist appeals.

Through it all, Obama will have to remain cool, collected and unruffled.  When his VP (or another Democrat) calls attention to such racist messages, you can bet that Fox (ABC, NBC and CBS for that matter) will find a news story in the "controversy" (Does anyone really find genuine controversy in racism?) and will repeatedly air each such offensive message to a national audience on the evening news.  In the presidential debates, expect the Tim Russerts and Charlie Gibsons to throw John McCain a cookie by giving him a "neutral question" opportunity to denounce such racist appeals to a nationwide audience.  McCain will obligingly hit a home run by denouncing the spot while rejoicing (unchallenged by the questioner) in the support of those who conceived, created and broadcast them.  (The question could have been, "We've seen racist messages from the GOP for 40 years.  Neither you or anyone else in the Republican Party has been able to stop the racist messages.  The people who sponsor, create and broadcast such messages remain influential in the GOP and are key advisors in GOP campaigns.  Why shouldn't voters believe that the GOP is the home of racist politics in America?").

Let's hope that Obama advisors and campaign will find an effective way to counter the racist attacks. 

This Fall let's bring out the Grunts in the Democratic Party to knock on the doors and do our utmost to defeat John McCain and the racist GOP.