Black Conservatives and Obama as President

I have received thousands of e-mails and letters in response to the recent AP story about black conservatives voting for Sen. Barack Obama for president this November. You are correct that I was and continue to be a strong advocate of judging one by the content of his character and not the color of his skin. Yes, I understand very well the severe areas of disagreement with Sen. Obama and our strong and consistent conservative value system.

What’s really dangerous is that he hasn’t yet been forced to explain some of his more, from a conservative view, unsavory positions: that he 1) supports partial-birth abortions; 2) will let the Bush tax cuts expire; 3) is committed to a retreat in Iraq; 4) is anti-trade and protectionist; and 5) favors billions of dollars of public investment in faddish liberal trends, e.g. “green” technologies (if they’re so beneficial, let the market invest in them — misdirected capital investment is what brought you the Asian financial crisis of ’97, the Latin American debt meltdowns, and bubbles like the Internet and now mortgage too numerous to mention). Vote for Obama and that’s what you voted for.

However, my comments about being undecided and having no idea who I would pull the lever for in November remain true and firm. Yes, I know the truth about him and still can't ignore how the hand of God works.

How can you not be moved by the progress of America in this experiment of democracy by reminding this world that we have moved beyond race and labels, and are more than willing to support the best candidate for the White House, whether a woman or American black?

The American people in this election has shown the promise of America and the tremendous progress we've made since the days of slavery, segregation and the civil rights movement. Our country is showing what many of us have advocated for years, that racial hustlers use this issue to divide and conquer us. We must also admit that the Obama campaign represents much hope for this country and truly shows the world that we're still the example and standard-bearer.

It's definitely not certain that I could ever vote for him, but I'm thankful for the maturity in my life that I can at least consider him and the hope (whether misguided or not) that he has inspired around the globe.

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has been condemned by conservatives to the point where they've advocated voting for Sen. Clinton as president and not their party's nominee. Sen. McCain, despite my disagreement with some of his policies, is the most qualified candidate with an impressive and outstanding résumé of experience and leadership.

I am at peace with the fact that it's not a foregone conclusion that McCain will automatically have my vote for the simple reason he is the Republican nominee. All candidates for president should earn our vote based on what their past records show and the policies they would embrace and enact as president. There's no doubt, this November I will vote for the candidate that best represents the values and promise I so dearly hold for our America.

Armstrong Williams can be heard daily from 9-10 p.m. EST on XM Satellite Power 169.