Obama’s people, including Ill. State Senator and president of the senate Emil Jones are saying O. is not to be criticized because he’s black, argues this fellow, convincingly:

Obama needs to distance himself from this crap, and fast, or he will risk losing my support (and I bet I’m not the only one). The prospect of having a president who will allow his surrogates to cry “racism” whenever anyone criticizes him — about anything, no matter how unrelated to race — is not something I want to deal with for four or eight years.

This is a principled defense of the Clintons, if you can believe it.

Fred T. makes the radar screen at NYT:

“But then last night — we hadn’t even been thinking about him — all of a sudden it was clear he was the one,” said Mr. Berenberk, a retired teacher [who had just watched the recent SC debate]. “The bluntness, the forcefulness. He was really impressive.”

Whether this was a new Fred Thompson, or just a sign of mirage-inducing campaign fatigue among voters, many people attending Mr. Thompson’s campaign rallies here on the day after the debate reported having similar revelations.

The wise campaign watcher will keep eyeballs peeled for this lawman from Tennessee.

Update:

A reader comments below on Fred’s lymphoma, telling how bad it is, but not reporting what his doc said last April:

About Thompson’s consideration of a possible presidential bid, [Dr. Bruce D.] Cheson said: “I would strongly encourage him, if this is what he wants to do, to go ahead with it. His disease and eventual treatment for this disease should not impact on his ability to perform this job.”

Some 22 percent of people with the disease have the type of lymphoma that typically follows a benign course, Lichtenfeld said.

Thompson appears to have that type, suggesting that “his outlook is, in fact, excellent,” he said.

Still, he added, “Nobody’s saying it won’t come back.”

It’s old news indeed, and self-refuting at that.  And speaking as one who recently left a Green Line train in fine fettle and now celebrates his fifth week of double-casting thanks to a fall from the grace of sprightly step, there breathes no man or woman who by thinking can add one cubit to his stature.  (Thus Matthew.  See also Luke.)

Another update: Reader D. offers some medical site items:

+ According to Associated Press releases (August 2000), U.S. Senator and war hero John McCain has been found to have a dangerous form of skin cancer, melanoma, for the second time. The senator who was a prisoner of war in North Vietnam may now be in for the battle of his life. Melanoma is the most dangerous form of skin cancer . . .
+ In 2000 the press had: Mayor Giuliani embarked on the fight of his life yesterday as he told the city he has prostate cancer. Standing alone at a podium . . . the mayor confirmed he had been diagnosed with the disease that killed his father in 1981 and has now thrown his Senate campaign into question.
+Barack is prone to Sickle Cell Anemia, no?
+Hillary, on the other hand, will do quite well if she continues to drink from the caldron containing eye of newt, bat wings, a wild onion and heifer blood.

I found the last observation especially noteworthy.