Not to rain on Barack Obama’s parade, but….

By all accounts, Barack Obama gave a great keynote speech last night. Both the Sullivans — Amy and Andrew — loved it. Amy liked the Patriot Act references because, “not only a good energizing issue for Democratic voters, but it taps anger and suspicion among conservatives and swing voters as well.” Andrew liked the conservative tinges of the speech: “Obama struck many conservative notes: of self-reliance, of opportunity, of hard work, of an immigrant’s dream, of the same standards for all of us…. He framed his belief in government with a defense of self-reliance and conservative values.” Of course, it doesn’t hurt that the rest of Tuesday’s lineup wasn’t too inspiring. Obama is pretty far to the left of me, but I’m always pleased to see someone affiliated with the University of Chicago do well on the national stage. That said, before everyone gets caught up in Obama hype, let’s reflect on a recurrent pattern regarding the Democratic Party and promising African-American politicians. As Bob Novak points out today in the Chicago Sun-Times:

The importance of the black vote for Democrats is seen in the fact that African Americans now have been keynoters at four of the last eight conventions. The late Rep. Barbara Jordan of Texas, a sonorous orator, was the first black to deliver a keynote address in 1976 in New York. She repeated in 1992, also in New York. Rep. Harold Ford Jr. of Tennessee, only 30 years old at the time, keynoted the 2000 Los Angeles convention.

Ford, Ford… that name rings a faint bell — how is the 2000 keynote speaker at the Democratic National Convention doing? Like Obama, Ford was the recipient of a media blitz for being an attractive minority face for the Democrats (side note: I’m getting really sick of hearing the word “articulate” used constantly whenever an African-American politician speaks in a tone that sounds more responsible than Al Sharpton). Since that speech, he was anointed as a future leader of the Democratic Party. So where’s Harold Ford Jr. on the DNC speaker schedule this year? He’s not talking during prime time. Ah, here he is — he’s got the 4:20 PM slot today. Hell, Dennis Kucinich has a better time slot. My point is that Democrats have a recent tendency at conventions to promote a young African American politician as the Next Great Black Hope. It makes for some great TV footage — and then these politicians recede into the background. Maybe Obama will be the Democratic nominee for president in 2012 — or maybe, eight years from now, he’ll have that 4:20 PM time slot. UPDATE: Will Saletan makes the same observation about Harold Ford, and also raises a point that touches on my free trade qualms with the Dems:

Obama, like other speakers at this convention, complains about “companies shipping jobs overseas” and workers “losing their union jobs at the Maytag plant that’s moving to Mexico.” At the same time, Obama holds himself out as a symbol of a diverse, welcoming America. How can Democrats be the party of diversity at home but xenophobia abroad, the party that loves Mexican-Americans but hates Maytag plants in Mexico, the party that thinks Obama’s mom deserves a job more than Obama’s dad does? I understand the politics of it. But what about the morals?