Last night, conservative pundits “revealed” a supposedly incendiary piece of footage gathered by the late Andrew Breitbart.
The video features a young Barack Obama during his years at Harvard Law School, and was billed as evidence of quote “why racial division and class warfare are central to what hope and change was sold as in 2008.”
In fact, the video has been available for some time: in 2008 it was released by notorious skullduggers PBS — home of no-goodniks Big Bird and Elmo — as part of an election year special, and has been available online ever since.
Apparently, the promised “racial division and class warfare” refers to then-student Barack Obama pushing for greater diversity among the university’s teaching staff.
Even for crackerjack sleuths like Sheriff Joe Arpaio and his Cold Case Posse, implicating Obama in the politics of his professors is hardly evidence of class warfare and racial division. In fact, the biggest “reveal” of the video is that our president has always possessed singular oratorical talent. Even twenty years ago, Barack Obama spoke with confidence and easy humor, and, more importantly, a passion and commitment to the issues he cared about. If anything, it was a reminder that passion and conviction — not empty rhetoric and divisive posturing — are the things that make a real leader.
Alex Wagner
Alex Wagner is the host of "Alex Wagner Tonight," which airs Tuesday through Friday at 9 p.m. ET on MSNBC. Recommended
