Is Obama playing the race card?

The Democratic National Committee has released a video clip of President Obama appealing to "young people, African-Americans, Latinos, and women who powered our victory in 2008 [to] stand together once again" in the 2010 midterm elections. Conservative bloggers say Obama is "playing the race card," but Ben Smith says in Politico that the president's "unusual demographic frankness" is merely an acknowledgement that Dems need to turn out the base to avoid defeat in November. Was Obama's statement divisive? (Watch Obama's appeal.)

Obama's desperate, so he's playing the race card: President Obama is joining "the sordid ranks of the race hustlers, like the Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton," says Wesley Pruden in The Washington Times. But no politician makes such a risky move "unless absolutely necessary." Now we see, "the race card is all he's got left."

"It's time to play the race card"

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The right's race-baiters should be ashamed: The right's "race card" accusation is "unspeakably dumb," says Matt Gertz in Media Matters. Obama only did what all sane politicians do—"urge the constituencies that elected them" to turn out and vote. Right-wingers like Wes Pruden, who actually compares Obama's innocent appeal to "the racist screeds of ardent segregationists," are the ones guilty of race baiting.

"Wash. Times' resident race-baiter pushes Drudge's 'race card' claim"

There's no denying demographics will matter in November: Obama isn't "exactly playing a 'race card,'" says Allahpundit in Hot Air, but he is framing the 2010 midterms in an "unusually exclusionary" way. By subtraction, the only people Obama doesn't want to go to the polls are older white and Asian men.

"Obama plays 'race card' in call for 2010 elections?"

This kerfuffle bodes ill for the 2010 campaign: Obama is "encouraging his base to come out in support of likely beleaguered party members in an upcoming election," says Glynnis McNichol in Mediaite. "Pretty tame stuff." But if the Right is fired up enough to twist this into a scandal, the next six months clearly "are not going to be pretty."

"Obama plays the race card?"