Growing number say country ready for black president

Posted: 04:01 PM ET

WASHINGTON (CNN) — A new poll suggests that the number of Americans who believe the country is ready for a black president is on the rise.

Seventy-six percent of those polled in a CNN/Essence Magazine/Opinion Research Corporation poll released Thursday say that the country is ready. That's up 14 points from December 2006, at the start of the presidential campaign.

"Some of the increase in the number of Americans who say the country is ready for a black president is a simple recognition of Barack Obama's success in the Democratic primaries," said Keating Holland, CNN's polling director.

"We're not asking this question in a vacuum. In many cases, respondents must have had Obama in mind when giving their answer, even though he is not mentioned anywhere in the questionnaire."

The senator from Illinois is locked in a battle with Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York for the Democratic presidential nomination. Obama currently leads Clinton in states won, delegates pledged, and in the overall popular vote in the primaries and caucuses held so far this year.

The poll also indicates that more white Americans than African-Americans think the country is ready for a black president. Seventy-eight percent of white Americans surveyed say the country is ready, as opposed to only 69 percent of African-Americans polled. Both numbers are up substantially from December 2006.

"Drawing on their own life experience, blacks are a little more skeptical than whites," said Bill Schneider, CNN's senior political analyst. "But blacks, too, have come around, particularly after the Iowa caucuses demonstrated that Obama could win in an overwhelmingly white electorate."

Holland added, "Among blacks, the belief that the country is ready for an African-American president is highest among blacks who share traits with Obama. Optimism about the country's acceptance of a black president is higher among black men than among black women, higher among college-educated blacks than among those with no college degree, and higher among younger blacks than older blacks."

The poll also suggests that more Americans think the country is ready for a black president than a woman president. Sixty-three percent of those surveyed said that the country is ready for a female president. That's 13 points lower than those who say the country is ready for black president.

"Do Americans see more prejudice against a woman than an African-American," Schneider asked. "More likely, they see more negative feelings about this woman than about this African-American. Because it's true. More people have an unfavorable opinion of Hillary Clinton than of Barack Obama."

It's also important to note that the poll asked whether the country is ready for a black or woman president, not whether the respondent would vote for a black or woman president.

"Few people will acknowledge their own prejudices, but they will answer whether they think the country is ready to elect a black or woman president," Schneider said.

The CNN/Essence Magazine/Opinion Research Corporation survey was released on the eve of the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

The poll was conducted by telephone from March 26 to April 2, with 2,184 Americans questioned, including 1,014 blacks and 1,001 whites. The survey's margin of error is plus or minus 2 percentage points for the overall sample and plus or minus 3 percentage points for the questions asked just of black or white Americans.

She's not strong, successful, or powerful? She's useless and a bimbo because only liberals can be feminists and only people who agree with you are valuable?

no! shes the wife of a separatist and sorry the governing a state with the smallest population and being the mayor of a town ... dare i say village of 6,000 no shes not powerful and no lucky seems to sum it up more; especially when you think of how clueless she is and we have already had clueless in the white house and i for one say never again!

She uses her femininity as a crutch when she is under pressure. Things like winking at the camera during a debate are actually setting back the modern woman. If you don't see this, I really don't know what to say.

if i were anyone who cared for her i would be embarrassed.

I'm not embarrassed at all. When she was nominated, I told my husband, "It's a good day to be a woman in America." You may not like her politics, but that doesn't mean she's a bitch, a bimbo, worthless, incompetent, or any other of the personal attacks you've put forth.

I was raised around strong successful and dare i say powerful women... and she is the opposite... she makes me sick cause she is literally useless and is not worthy to reap the benefits of women who struggled and fought for the cause....she has shattered no glass ceiling a woman will do it someday but it will never be that bimbo

Sorry Watcher you lost me on this one. What exactly makes her a bimbo? Calling someone a bimbo b/c you strongly disagree with their politics is dare I say it, sexist. I doubt the strong women who raised you would support the use of such language. Your use of this term makes you come across uninformed and you lose your credibility. I have read your other posts and you have much more thought provoking things to say without the unnecessary name calling. If you were to take the higher road in your argument you would get further.

I agree she is unfit to be our VP much less President but I will not discount her accomplishments in her career. I am mature enough to give credit when credit is due despite the fact I disagree with her politics on every level. She has extremely conservative views which clash drastically with my leftish views. I consider myself more fiscally conservative (have to be I'm a CPA) but extremely socially liberal. She's not my candidate but I will not revert to sexist name calling.

Are you basing this conclusion on her political differences with your view, or something else? Were her political views more in line with your concept of social liberalism, what then would your position be on her qualifications?

.

My personal political views are a contributing factor to my opinion that she is not qualified to be my VP. Had her views been more in line with mine I would still have issues with her being qualified. I think many of my personal faults with her could be overcome with a bit of coaching, maturity and experience in a larger environment. I don't believe she comes across presidential with the eye winks and some of the facial expressions. I feel she is currently a bit out of her league, maybe sometime in Washington would help round out her resume.

Come on people....she talks all the time about her foreign policy experience being that she can "see Russia" from Alaska. In fact, there is only one area in Alaska where you can see Russia and she's never even been there. The town is called Little Diomede and it is on the very edge of the Bering Strait, directly across from Big Diomede which is technically Russia. Here, 35% of the population lives under the poverty line and there is no hospital. Citizens are required to go to Nome for heath care. The only politician who has been to this area is Senator Ted Stevens (aka not Sarah Palin). There are many areas of our country that border Mexico and Canada. I am sure that many people here live in areas where they are able to see these countries. Does this mean they have foreign policy experience? On another note...her grammar is terrible. Maybe it is "elitist" of me to want a vice president who has a high mastery of our language. If so, then so be it. Some of the grammar is an act to appeal to a certain type of voter, which is quite condescending. It is mind boggling that we as American's want someone who is on the same level as ourselves running our country. Scary really! It really undermines all of the acomplishments that women have made when this one very visible woman feels the need to "dump on the cute" and "hick it up" when she is being challenged. She is, in effect, super gluing the glass ceiling back together when she does this. For the love of all things sacred, she gave a "shout out" at the vice presidential debate. Need I say more. There are many qualified Republican women, however, she is definitely not one of them.

I'll add a wrench to this conversation, any comments on the current percentage of people who believe we are not ready for a black president?

Since the question isn't are we ready for Barack Obama as our president, I find the almost 30% disagreement rate to be disturbingly high.

Come on people....she talks all the time about her foreign policy experience being that she can "see Russia" from Alaska.

Here's what I posted earlier about that at http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f7/we-rea...l#post1017169:

One GOOD thing that will happen with the debate is that it won't be edited (in contrast to the recent interviews).

Everyone laughs at the media's representation of Palin's answer on foreign policy, the representation of which is that she understands it because Russia can be seen from Alaska. Ha ha. What a silly answer. Isn't she stupid. Mock, mock, mock. But how many of you know the REAL question and answer? The FULL question and answer?

Here it is (parts in bold are the parts edited out of the broadcast):

GIBSON: What insight into Russian actions, particularly in the last couple of weeks, does the proximity of the state give you?

PALIN: They’re our next door neighbors and you can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska, from an island in Alaska.

GIBSON: What insight does that give you into what they’re doing in Georgia?

PALIN: Well, I’m giving you that perspective of how small our world is and how important it is that we work with our allies to keep good relation with all of these countries, especially Russia. We will not repeat a Cold War. We must have good relationship with our allies, pressuring, also, helping us to remind Russia that it’s in their benefit, also, a mutually beneficial relationship for us all to be getting along.

Big difference when you read the whole thing. Her response is that we must always remember that our world is ever growing smaller and we must take this into consideration in any foreign policy matter. It's a thoughtful and reasonable answer when you read the part that was edited out.

The same thing happened with her answer on NATO and war with Russia. When you have edit control, it's amazing what ends up on the cutting room floor -- and how bad you can make someone look.

I recieved the following from a friend... Please enjoy!

I know its alot of reading but its worth it.

Obama/Biden vs. McCain/Palin, what if things were switched around?.....think about it.

Would the country's collective point of view be different?

Ponder the following:

What if the Obamas had paraded five children across the stage, including a three month old infant and an unwed, pregnant teenage daughter?

What if John McCain was a former president of the Harvard Law Review?

What if Barack Obama finished fifth from the bottom of his graduating class?

What if McCain had only married once, and Obama was a divorcee?

What if Obama was the candidate who left his first wife after a severe disfiguring car accident, when she no longer measured up to his standards?

What if Obama had met his second wife in a bar and had a long affair while he was still married?

What if Michelle Obama was the wife who not only became addicted to pain killers but also acquired them illegally through her charitable organization?

What if Cindy McCain graduated from Harvard?

What if Obama had been a member of the Keating Five?

(The Keating Five were five United States Senators accused of corruption in 1989, igniting a major political scandal as part of the larger Savings and Loan crisis of the late 1980s and early 1990s.)

What if McCain was a charismatic, eloquent speaker?

What if Obama couldn't read from a teleprompter?

What if Obama was the one who had military experience that included discipline problems and a record of crashing seven planes?

What if Obama was the one who was known to display publicly, on many occasions, a serious anger management problem?

What if Michelle Obama's family had made their money from beer distribution?

What if the Obamas had adopted a white child?

You could easily add to this list. If these questions reflected reality, do you really believe the election numbers would be as close as they are?

This is what racism does. It covers up, rationalizes and minimizes positive qualities in one candidate and emphasizes negative qualities in another when there is a color difference.

Educational Background:

Barack Obama:

Columbia University - B.A. Political Science with a Specialization in International Relations.

Harvard - Juris Doctor (J.D.) Magna Cum Laude

Joseph Biden:

University of Delaware - B.A. in History and B.A. in Political Science.

Syracuse University College of Law - Juris Doctor (J.D.)

vs.

John McCain:

United States Naval Academy - Class rank: 894 of 899

Sarah Palin:

Hawaii Pacific University - 1 semester

North Idaho College - 2 semesters - general study

University of Idaho - 2 semesters - journalism

Matanuska-Susitna College - 1 semester

University of Idaho - 3 semesters - B.A. in Journalism

Education isn't everything, but this is about the two highest offices in the land as well as our standing in the world. You make the call.

GIBSON: What insight does that give you into what they’re doing in Georgia?

PALIN: Well, I’m giving you that perspective of how small our world is and how important it is that we work with our allies to keep good relation with all of these countries, especially Russia. We will not repeat a Cold War. We must have good relationship with our allies, pressuring, also, helping us to remind Russia that it’s in their benefit, also, a mutually beneficial relationship for us all to be getting along.

ok that is mindless babble

in the words or the principal in Billie Madison: Mrs.Palin, what you've just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.:biggrin:

I recieved the following from a friend... Please enjoy!

I know its alot of reading but its worth it.

Obama/Biden vs. McCain/Palin, what if things were switched around?.....think about it.

Would the country's collective point of view be different?

Ponder the following:

What if the Obamas had paraded five children across the stage, including a three month old infant and an unwed, pregnant teenage daughter?

What if John McCain was a former president of the Harvard Law Review?

What if Barack Obama finished fifth from the bottom of his graduating class?

What if McCain had only married once, and Obama was a divorcee?

What if Obama was the candidate who left his first wife after a severe disfiguring car accident, when she no longer measured up to his standards?

What if Obama had met his second wife in a bar and had a long affair while he was still married?

What if Michelle Obama was the wife who not only became addicted to pain killers but also acquired them illegally through her charitable organization?

What if Cindy McCain graduated from Harvard?

What if Obama had been a member of the Keating Five?

(The Keating Five were five United States Senators accused of corruption in 1989, igniting a major political scandal as part of the larger Savings and Loan crisis of the late 1980s and early 1990s.)

What if McCain was a charismatic, eloquent speaker?

What if Obama couldn't read from a teleprompter?

What if Obama was the one who had military experience that included discipline problems and a record of crashing seven planes?

What if Obama was the one who was known to display publicly, on many occasions, a serious anger management problem?

What if Michelle Obama's family had made their money from beer distribution?

What if the Obamas had adopted a white child?

You could easily add to this list. If these questions reflected reality, do you really believe the election numbers would be as close as they are?

This is what racism does. It covers up, rationalizes and minimizes positive qualities in one candidate and emphasizes negative qualities in another when there is a color difference.

Educational Background:

Barack Obama:

Columbia University - B.A. Political Science with a Specialization in International Relations.

Harvard - Juris Doctor (J.D.) Magna Cum Laude

Joseph Biden:

University of Delaware - B.A. in History and B.A. in Political Science.

Syracuse University College of Law - Juris Doctor (J.D.)

vs.

John McCain:

United States Naval Academy - Class rank: 894 of 899

Sarah Palin:

Hawaii Pacific University - 1 semester

North Idaho College - 2 semesters - general study

University of Idaho - 2 semesters - journalism

Matanuska-Susitna College - 1 semester

University of Idaho - 3 semesters - B.A. in Journalism

Education isn't everything, but this is about the two highest offices in the land as well as our standing in the world. You make the call.

HAHA I looooved this. Well worth reading.:biggrin:

She has still *never* seen Russia though. She knows very little of Russian politics. Being next door will not be a reminder that the world is small and we should all get along. I'm sorry.

Watcher....I got that from a friend as well....very interesting. The educational differences alone are astounding. No one can dispute that.

Plenty of politicians get on the job training and do better than career politicians who've lost touch with the real world.

You can't make the argument that Palin is not experienced enough to be VP when you are willing to bet the farm on Obama. He has no more experience than Palin.

Remember used car salesmen are very smooth talkers but they're still selling you used goods.

You can't make the argument that Palin is not experienced enough to be VP when you are willing to bet the farm on Obama. He has no more experience than Palin.

:biggrin: :thumbup: :thumbup: Well said.