John Fund on Barack Obama and what he considers it a waste of time to discuss:

No one suggests that Mr. Obama has ever endorsed any of the actions of the Weathermen [Bill Ayers], which occurred when he was still a child. But to this day he won’t discuss how he came to know him, why he chose to associate with Mr. Ayers and what he thinks of his current opinions about the U.S. government. All that will continue to fuel questions about Mr. Obama’s associations — just as his continued relationship with the Rev. Jeremiah Wright has.

He’s a fellow Hyde Park liberal, is how he chose to associate with him.  But what O. thinks of A’s “current opinions,” which loom large in any commited-liberal mind and influences their decisions, is important. 

O. will never discuss this, and the rest of us will have to decide what we could expect from him as president.  This is standard requirements of a candidate, who is normally expected to do more than make general unexceptionable statements.

Later:  Reader Phil on the Ayers business:

To me this is a bogus issue.  What I’d rather see is someone’s asking BA …Did he ever wonder why a powerhouse political fundraising fixer named Tony Rezko wanted to be, and apparently became, his best friend?

 

Heavy tut-tutting going on among the mid-level, if not high, priests of media-dumb, per Romenesko’s daily Poynteronline, about ABC men’s questioning of Obama the other night:

Stephanopoulos “sounded somewhat taken aback” by criticism

New York Times
Jacques Steinberg says George Stephanopoulos “sounded somewhat taken aback” during a phone interview about the debate controversy. The ABC newsman said he would have approached one critical aspect of his job differently. “I could imagine moving up some of the questions. You can differ over that.” Many thought the early questions were irrelevant, but “we thought it made sense to deal with the core controversies.”

> Some praised ABC’s moderators, but the critics were far more vocal (WP)
. . . . . . .

>Clinton didn’t have a flag, but “she was spared this inane question” (TA)

> Public regard for the media’s role in democracy wasn’t enhanced (WP)

> Welcome to the “Springer Show,” presidential campaign edition (Bee)

This going after O. on his San Fran elitism, consorting with Ayers the unrepentant terrorist, and Rezko connections very much bothered the poo-bahs, who in effect poo-pooh voters’ concerns, in this case about things that tell us something important about the allegedly Something-Different candidate.