When I See Obama I'm Reminded Of Matt Santos - The West Wing.......

[global1]

and am wondering if this TV program has sensitized the country to accepting a minority candidate as President. After watching that last season of The West Wing and seeing behind the scenes of how a campaign is run - it would be neat to be Obama's - Josh Lyman.

I'm sure now that I want to support Obama. Though I like Hillary - I think she has too much old baggage to beat the Repugs in '08.

She voted for the war. She sometimes seems to be too smart for herself - almost in a non-trusting way. And - She's a Clinton - which I think many in this country and especially Repugs will hold against her - even women.

Obama I think has the ability to even excite non-Dems and I think he is our best hope to win in '08.

Global 1 Disclaimer: I will however support whomever is the Dem candidate for Pres in '08.

[goclark]

1. I will support the Democratic Candidate yet Obama has my heart

He said all the things I have dreamed of today.

[mtnsnake]

2. Same here.

He said all the things I have dreamed of today.

He's a dream candidate, period.

[Olney Blue]

3. The West Wing also presented an ethical reasonable conservative

played by Alan Alda. The GOP has yet to provide one.

I miss that show!

[bklyncowgirl]

5. I imagine that character was based on John McCain--before he sold his soul that is. nt

[Olney Blue]

7. I don't even recognize McCain any more.

[bklyncowgirl]

9. I hear you, it's sad, I used to like the guy.

Back in 2000 he was a Republican that I might have actually considered voting for. I probably wouldn't have actually voted for him but I would have at least listened.

It seems like there's some life that's gone out of him since 2004.

"What does it profit a man that he gains the whole world but loses his soul."

I don't think that McCain will gain the whole world--or even the Republican nomination.

[Olney Blue]

11. How could he possibly win, with * tied around his ankle?

The train has left the station. He missed it.

But I do believe the world would have been a much different place if he had been the GOP nominee in 2000.

[lisa58]

4. Whoever he chooses as VP better be careful n/t

[Hippo_Tron]

6. Santos is probably an idealized version of Obama in many ways

In certain respects he has some elements of Dennis Kucinich. He has no attachment to the party insiders and favors single payer universal health care.

But I think the idealized Obama is mostly like it. Bartlet was very much a more idealized version of Clinton although in some ways he was just an inside look at the fact that Clinton was personally uncomfortable about some of the compromises his administration made with the GOP.

[mbali]

8. Something always bothered me about the Matt Santos character

I can't understand why the show's writers had the character married to a white blonde woman instead of a Latina. It's not like there weren't enough white women or even white blonde women with featured roles on the West Wing. It's bad enough that the show had very few black characters. The unfortunately named Charlie was written in as the President's "butt boy" only after people began complaining that the supposedly liberal Bartlett's White House had no people of color in anywhere in sight, much less in his inner circle included no people of color and he wasn't exactly a major policy adviser. But black women were virtually non-existent and black women involved in any relationship were nowhere to be found. Even Charlie's girlfriend - the President's daughter - was white.

So when the Santos character appeared, I was sure that his wife would be Hispanic like him and was looking forward to seeing a healthy, happy relationship involving a woman of color. But sure enough, when the wife appeared - another white woman and blonde, to boot!

I loved The West Wing and particularly enjoyed the Matt Santos story line. But it really bothered me that the show's producers and writers kept sending a message that women of color just weren't part of their fantasy of life in the upper echelons of politics.

Sorry - I know I'm off-topic, but I've always wanted to get that off of my chest.

[prolesunited]

10. There's far too minorities in TV period

but you seem to leave out the fact that the writers had Charlie dating the president's daughter.

[beaconess]

12. Read the post again - she did say that - right in the first paragraph

That was a big problem for me, too. Didn't Charlie know any black women - he lived in Washington, DC, a city full of single black women. He couldn't find one to date, so instead, he hooked up with the president's daughter?

Bad message to the sisters.

[frankenforpres]

16. so interracial relationships=bad?

interesting.

[beaconess]

19. Not at all -

If every character on the show was involved in an interracial relationship, that would have been one thing. Or if the show portrayed an occasional interracial relationship, no problem.

But while most of the white people dated white people, all of the people of color (at least those the writers bothered to write a life for) seemed to date and marry white people.

The message was a negative one - as a black woman, I resent the fact that not one man of color with a regular part on that show was involved with a woman who looked like me, but instead every black or Hispanic man in a relationship was in a relationship with a white woman.

[Bucky]

21. Surely in all of TV there's many examples of same-race minority couples you can find

You're talking about just two relationships in a show that, for the most part, wasn't about people being in relationships. In most of television, however, I think you see that noninterracial dating is the norm being depicted.

[beaconess]

23. I'm not talking about other shows. I'm talking about the West Wing

which was full of relationships between people. Yet the only two regular male characters of color were involved with white women. And none of the black women on the show had relationships at all.

Shows send messages. I don't like this one sent by the West Wing. It might not bother you, but it bothered me and obviously others.

[Olney Blue]

13. Great post.

[SharonAnn]

14. National Security Advisor was a black woman.

[beaconess]

15. But she wasn't a regular and she had no life beyond the situation room

Do you even remember her character's name? Did she have a family? A husband or boyfriend or significant other?

Of course, we don't know since her character was completely one-dimensional and only occasionally appeared on the show.

[Bucky]

18. Also she never lost any paper work or overlooked direct threats to national security

So obviously not based on what's-her-name.

[Bucky]

17. Santos was supposed to be from Houston. As a Houstonian, I can tell you it rung true.

There's not much attention being paid these days to ethnicity in the under-40 power couples.

If you want to see a strong woman of color in politics on a TV show, check out "24". Sherry Palmer wasn't just a good political spouse, she kicked ASS all on her own.

[beaconess]

20. Every Hispanic man in Houston is married to a white woman?

Who are the Hispanic women marrying?

If every woman of color on the West Wing was involved in relationships with white men, I would have found that problematic, but not as bad. However, the black and Hispanic women on the West Wing had NO relationships with anyone. And the tiny handful of black and Hispanic men with regular roles fell all over themselves falling in love with white women. What kind of message does that send about the writers' and producers' opinions of women of color?

Don't you think it's interesting that two black women (I assume Mbali's black) in this thread seem to have exactly the same reaction to the West Wing's approach to black women?

I think it's great that 24 has a strong woman of color. But this string isn't about "24" and Mbali's and my comments aren't directed to that show.

[Bucky]

22. Well, I did say "under 40 power couples", not all of the Hispanics in town.

It's a generational thing and it's an economic class thing. But if you go to a crowded nice restaurant in Houston and not find an mixed couple of some sort, you're running against the odds. I accept the fact that you find offense in what happened in all of two relationships shown on a TV series that ran for seven years. But no, I don't give any more or any less weight to your arguments based on the fact that you're black or that you're a woman.