Jesse Jackson
The Year of the Celtics and Obama
On a Sunday afternoon 21 Junes ago, James Worthy dove for an impossible loose ball and somehow swatted it to a streaking Magic Johnson, whose early third quarter lay-up ignited the crowd and signaled a decisive shift in momentum. From there, the home-standing Lakers, who had trailed the Celtics by five at halftime, breezed to a 106-93 victory that sealed their 10th N.B.A. championship.
In Los Angeles, there was celebration, and three thousand miles east in Boston, where “Beat L.A.!” served in the 1980’s as the unofficial motto that “Yankees suck!” became earlier this decade, there was dejection.
But not in all of Boston. In the city’s black neighborhoods, whose children had been pelted by rocks just 12 years earlier when court-ordered busing had transported them to white South Boston, the Lakers tended to be treated like the home team. Boston, after all, was the town that Bill Russell once labeled “a flea market of racism.” read more »
How Barack Obama's S.C. Win Differs From Jesse Jackson's
When Bill Clinton pointed out yesterday, while talking about Barack Obama's South Carolina victory, that Jesse Jackson won the state in 1984 and 1988, the former President got plenty of attention.
Clinton seemed to be encouraging the perception that Obama won because of support from black voters, and that his victory was more about racial allegiances than substance.
He was also misrepresenting history.
It's true that Jackson won South Carolina in '84 and '88. But Clinton failed to mention several key points. For one, the state held caucuses back in those days, not primaries, and they attracted only a fraction of the participation that yesterday's primary did. Also, Jackson is a native of Greenville, South Carolina, which gave him an extra advantage. Finally, and most importantly, no one campaigned against Jackson either time, and the contests had nowhere near the same significance to the race. read more »
Vann on Barack Obama '08 and Jesse Jackson '84
After he spoke at Barack Obama’s watch party in Manhattan, I sat down with City Councilman Al Vann of Brooklyn, who compared this campaign to the Rev. Jesse Jackson’s 1984 presidential campaign, which Vann said he spearheaded in New York.
“The primary engine driving that campaign really was the black church,” Vann said of the Jackson campaign. “
Vann goes on to say, “Both have charisma, both drew a crowd. Jesse’s crowd was not the magnitude that Barack would draw.”
Wall Street on Jesse Jackson Foreclosure March: 'These People Are Not Victims'
Despite Jesse Jackson’s warning of an impending “economic tsunami” from the subprime mortgage crisis, the only people marching on Wall Street on Monday afternoon were the business people whizzing past the few dozen protestors chanting “Restructure Loans—Don’t Repossess Homes” on the corner of Broad and Exchange streets.
Most business people strode past picket-wielding demonstrators, nonplussed by the accusations of “predatory lending” and “white-collar crime” being lobbed from the podium inside the metal barricades one block south of the New York Stock Exchange. As one speaker called on “Wall Street to help out the main street," a suited passerby shook his head and muttered, “Yeah, well, don’t buy something you can’t afford.”
Some spectators, like lawyer Angelo A. Paparelli, agreed that the government needs to do more to stem the two million mortgage foreclosures that are expected in the next two years. read more »
High Noon on Wall Street: Jesse Jackson's March Against Foreclosures
Jesse Jackson's march on Wall Street to draw attention to the national foreclosure wave starts today at noon, according to Mr. Jackson's office. read more »
Jesse Jackson Plans Wall Street March Against Foreclosures
Jesse Jackson plans a Monday march on Wall Street to pressure mortgage lenders to help stem the tide of foreclosures washing over the nation. Crain's reports that the rally is meant to lean on lenders to restructure loans and set aside more money for their "victims," instead of waiting for more foreclosures.
Jacksons Split On Obama
Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton both have strong Chicago support stemming from their deep roots in the city. So it only makes sense that some of Chicago's most powerful families are torn when it comes to choosing between a presidential candidate.
First, the warring and wealthy Pritzker family projected their fued onto presidential politics. And as a prominent donor to Barack Obama pointed out to me, the family of Rev. Jesse Jackson, while not bickering, has also distributed its support between the two Democrats.
Rev. Jackson, as we first reported here, is endorsing Obama, despite his long relationship with the Clintons. His son, Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. has been one of Obama's earliest and most vocal boosters. His other son, Yusef, who owns one of the major beer distributors in the Chicago area, was one of the chairs for a big Hillary fund-raiser on June 25th at the Palmer House Hilton in Chicago. (Yusef, of course, is the investor behind the latest incarnation of the magazine Radar; his "silent" partner, it's been widely rumored, is California billionaire Ron Burkle, Bill Clinton's private plane pal.) Earlier this year, Sandi Jackson, the wife of Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr, successfully ran for alderman in the 7th Ward with Obama's endorsement. Her finance chair in that winning effort was Coety Wyse. Wyse now works as Hillary's deputy finance chair for Chicago.
That said, the donor made the case that, generally speaking, Chicago is still Obama town.
On June 8 alone, the donor said, Obama raised nearly three million dollars. He attended two major donor events that brought in $1 million each and spoke at another that raised about $500,000. Later in the day, Obama drew a crowd of about 1,000 young professionals for a $100 event at Union Station.
Not a bad day's work.
Elsewhere: Spitzer, Bloomberg, Jagger
Sewell Chan goes into the history of congestion pricing.
Eliot Spitzer wants to ban flavored cigarettes.
More--and video of Rev. Jesse Jackson reading Rolling Stones lyrics at Al Sharpton's convention this afternoon--after the jump. read more »
Biden Talks To Sharpton
Sharpton welcomed Biden to the program and then praised him for not trying to backtrack or wiggle out of his remarks.
"You have stood straight up on this," said Sharpton.
Sharpton, aformer presidential candidate, nonetheless took issue with the notion that Barack Obama was the first "articulate" and "clean" mainstream African American candidate for president. He asked Biden if that's what he said.
"Al, that's exactly what I said," said before quickly adding that the intention of his comment was to compliment Obama as someone new and fresh and exciting in American politics. He also offered the first of many compliments and peace makers to Sharpton.
"You're one of the most articulate people in the country," he said.
Sharpton said the problem he had with the describing Obama as clean was that it insinuated that since Obama is "Harvard trained" he somehow different from the other black candidates who have come before him, and, as a result, is "less connected to the African American community."
Biden said he understood that concern among black leaders like Sharpton and Jesse Jackson.
"I get it and that's what I regret," Biden said, stressing that he himself came of political age during the civil rights movement, to which he feels closely connected.
"That's where I come from," Biden said.
Sharpton then turned uncharacteristically optimistic, and said that he hoped all the focus on Biden would give the Senator the chance to raise the level of public attention on issues important to the black community. Biden in turn talked about the government's failure in Katrina and Iraq.
After a commercial break, during which Sharpton answered his phone, watched some television and checked the Internet, Biden began a full scale schmooze offensive.
Speaking about social justice issues, Biden said, "Al, you have been the one driving this, you have been the one driving this since the last campaign." He pointed out that as a Senator, he had a 100 percent voting record with the NAACP and a "very high" record with civil rights groups. He emphasized that he wasn't in anyway criticizing Sharpton, Jackson or Shirley Chisholm and reiterated his explanation that his use of the word "clean" to describe Obama in this case could be substituted with "fresh."
"I have overwhelming respect for you and what you did," said Biden.
With that, there was a hiss of dead air, and it seemed that Biden's line had dropped.
Sharpton asked if he was still there. Biden said he was.
"I thought you were drowning in giving me flattery," said Sharpton.
Biden ignored the quip and continued. He said he was "going to compete for every black vote," an assertion that literally raised Sharpton's eyebrows.
After the interview, Sharpton told reporters that "in some weird way" Biden might be bringing issues important to blacks to the fore and, though he though Biden's remark went "a step passed George Allen's calling an Indian Macaque" he didn't want to go after Biden, because it would seem suspicious if he, as a potential candidate, tried to knock an announced candidate out of the race.
--Jason Horowitz
In Full View
Has anyone else noticed the weirdly compelling photography that's been showing up on the City Council's website lately? Images like the above, and like this one, were captured by William Alatriste, who started out as one of the guys who wrote proclamations for the City Council -- an under-appreciated art if ever there was one.
The picture of Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson in mid-whisper was taken on Martin Luther King Day.
-- Azi PaybarahElsewhere: Hillary, Silverstein, Spitzer
Hillary Clinton spoke to Wall Street leaders at Jesse Jackson's conference today.
Not everyone in the legislature is honoring Eliot Spitzer's self-imposed ban on fund-raisers in the capitol.
Ben wonders if Eliot Spitzer set expectations too high.
The city's top lawyer went to Albany to argue against open primaries in judicial races.
The Working Families Party wonders which politician is next to go topless.
Larry Silverstein wants to build low-income rentals on 42nd Street.
A candidate for Yvette Clarke's City Council seat in Brooklyn wants the city to do more about 421-a housing.
For the first time ever, a majority of people in Utah don't support the war in Iraq.
Howard Kurtz wonders if John Edwards is candid or super-scripted.
Oliver North contradicts Joe Lieberman on Iraq, according to Greg Sargent.
And pictured above are three men (and associates) in a room.
--Azi PaybarahCuomo Embraces King, Ducks Barrett
Surrounded by more reporters than have covered his campaign so far, King said he received phone calls from Rev. Jesse Jackson and Rep. Charlie Rangel telling him its time to support the person who is going to win.
Cuomo said King was "exactly right" on a number of issues he raised during the campaign. Both suggested -- but stopped short of explicitly requested -- that Mark Green drop out of the race.
Before leaving, Cuomo was asked three times about relationship with Andrew Farkas, which Wayne Barrett describes in his Village Voice article this week. (Short version: While he was at HUD, Cuomo sued Farkas -- a developer who was involved with some dirty schemes invoving federally funded housing projects -- before going on to become Farkas's employee and a major recipient of his campaign contributions.)
Cuomo said he that he hadn't read the article. When I asked him again about the story, Cuomo quickly walked away to say hello to some supporters. Moments, trailed by a few more reporters, Cuomo said the story of his relationship with Farkas was first "written four years ago" and is "factually incorrect."
He didn't say precisely how.
-- Azi PaybarahThe Morning Read: August 3, 2006
Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson lend their support to Ned Lamont while Joe Lieberman makes an issue of Lamont's fortune.
More here.
—Nicole BrydsonNot Parody
Also, Osama and a Jesse Jackson mug shot.
American Jews Unprepared For Attacks From the Left
American Jews Unprepared For Attacks From the Left
More About Al Sharpton Than You Wanted to Know
[Sharpton ally Harold] Doley told the Voice: "I said to Sharpton, 'I'm going to bring Jesse down and make you the man.' Al said, 'I'm ready.' " read more »
And here, there's um, shocking proof that Al's not a moral paragon.
