Obama vs. the lunatic fringe

chicagotribune.com
Clarence Page

August 17, 2008

So you think the chorus of white hate groups is seething with rage that Barack Obama could become president? Think again.

Members of the knuckle-dragging set are taking a rosier view, judging by their Internet posts. They say the possibility of a biracial president is helping their recruitment efforts.

"It will be a beautiful day when the masses look at the paper and truly realize they have lost their own country," according to one of the postings spotted by Mark Potok, who monitors hate groups at the Southern Poverty Law Center.

"White people aren't going to do a thing until their toys are taken away from them," says another. "So things have to be worse for things to be better."

So much for the question of whether Obama will be able to reach beyond his core liberal constituency.

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