Cornel West's Obsession With Obama

By: Michael H. Cottman | Posted: May 29, 2012 at 12:37 AM

Cornel West (Frederic J. Brown/AFP)

Is Cornel West being petty, or does he really think that black Americans will be better off if President Obama loses his bid for the White House in November? author Michael H. Cottman asks in an analysis of the professor's comments at BlackAmericaWeb.

Cornel West is obsessed with criticizing President Barack Obama.

Every few months West rolls out new material to beat-up on Obama whenever he has an opportunity to meet with the media.

In a recent interview with the Financial Times, West insists that it’s Obama who is fanatical.

“I think at this point he’s obsessed with being on Mount Rushmore, he wants to be a great figure in the pantheon of American presidents," West, the outspoken Princeton University professor, told the Financial Times. “If you’re thinking about Mount Rushmore, you’re thinking about your legacy, your legacy, your legacy. Puh-lease.”

When asked to critique Obama's first term in office, West said Obama is "much much better than Mitt Romney" but he remained critical of Obama.

"Mitt Romney is a catastrophic response to a catastrophe, whereas Obama is a disastrous response to a catastrophe,” West said. “Is disaster better than catastrophe? Yes it is. I wish we had a third candidate who could actually do something, but we don't at the moment."

West was also tough on the president’s foreign policy.

"The Obama administration is involved in some very ugly killing of innocent people," West said.

West was once one of Obama’s most steadfast supporters, but he has turned on Obama over the years and some black Democrats accuse West of being disrespectful toward the president.

It’s unclear why West feels so compelled to lash out at Obama and why he needs to evaluate Obama through the media. Some of his criticism has been bitter -- and downright hateful.

Read Michael H. Cottman's entire blog entry at BlackAmericaWeb.

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