Romer says voters will 'get over' the race issue

By Berny Morson, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Friday, May 16, 2008

Judy Dehaas / The Rocky

Former Gov. Roy Romer adjusts his glasses during an interview Friday at the Rocky Mountain News. The superdelegate said this week that his vote will go to Barack Obama.

Americans will "get over" the race issue long before the November presidential election, former Gov. Roy Romer said Friday.

Romer, a superdelegate to the Democratic National Convention, announced on Tuesday that his vote will go to Barack Obama.

"I'm confident that they (voters) are going to eventually get over the issue of what color this man is, what his racial characteristics are," Romer said. "The reason being this nation really respects talent, and this is a very talented man.

"They want someone to be an effective president, and they've got a president now that they are totally disappointed in on a daily basis."

Romer said Obama has the ability to "rise to a higher level of understanding and analysis of the problem and a higher level of reconciliation."

That was the case when Obama confronted the racial issue following disclosure that his former pastor had made extremist comments, Romer said.

"It was an elevating discussion (of race)," Romer said of the speech Obama delivered in Philadelphia. "This country needs to face that squarely."

National Public Radio broadcast racist comments by several white voters who rejected Obama in the West Virginia primary on Tuesday.

"There are some," Romer said of those voters. "But I think as the campaign unfolds and as they get to know Obama, I think they will begin to see this man is a pragmatic wise man who has good judgment and I can support him. There are going to be a few who won't."

Obama has had "some wild stuff" thrown at him in the race so far.

"I've been a candidate many times. Never did it occur in my campaign what my minister was saying," Romer said.

morsonb@RockyMountainNews.com or 303 954-5209

• May 17, 2008

  3:04 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  longpasttime writes:

  I "got over" the race issue long ago. If it's all the same to Roy Romer, I will still not vote for Obama based on his politics. He is far left liberal, even more so than Kennedy. I hate to say this, but Hillary is looking better every day.

  I dislike all the candidates this year. In a country of 300+ million people, it's hard to believe that these three stooges are the best we can do. We are in desperate need of a real, viable, able candidate to lead us, and these three are most definitely not up to the job!

  By the way, Roy, we are known by the company we keep - fair or unfair, we judge others on their choices of friends.

• May 17, 2008

  4:57 a.m.

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  Oh_Wise_One writes:

  Roy- who is the most liberal person in the Senate? the Obamessiah. You Dhimmicrat(ic)s are the ones caught up in race. Get. over. it. yourself.

• May 17, 2008

  9:03 a.m.

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  dilligaf writes:

  Republicans will never get over the race issue. They will always be known as the hate party.

• May 17, 2008

  11:43 a.m.

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  Buckwheat writes:

  I have to agree, all the people on this continent, and this is the best we can do??? Gonna be a long 4yrs....

• May 17, 2008

  1:56 p.m.

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  Gene writes:

  Romer? Are you back in Colorado? Glad to see your wife is still by your side. Sorry about our little race problem.

• May 17, 2008

  2:22 p.m.

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  SASQUATCH writes:

  Hillary and BO will continue their race war right until the bitter end. So race will remain front and center as long as these 2 keep it there. What do you expect from a party as Balkanized as the Dems?

  Agreed, this is the worst 3-some ever since grandma got thrown out of the 3-man life raft by Manny, Moe and Jack.

• May 17, 2008

  3:14 p.m.

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  Gene writes:

  I shouldn't take it personally, Mr. Romer. I mean you lecturing me about moral issues. Actually, I guess it is not aimed at me. Must be toward Democrats only. They are the only ones voting now on issues of race, if you want to look at it that way. The problem is not that your candidate is white or black or a comination thereof, but he is green. Green as in wet behind the ears, with no experience or life lessons in dealing with world leaders. So I will 'get over it,' but I was never one of your voters anyway.

• May 17, 2008

  3:49 p.m.

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  Oh_Wise_One writes:

  dillgaf- You must be a moron or you wouldn't stereotype an entire political party. I've met more racists that are Dems than are non-Dems.

• May 17, 2008

  9:57 p.m.

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  natasha writes:

  Romer, maybe you're the one that needs to get over the race issue. To me it's a policy issue. Wow you're a racist!

• May 17, 2008

  10:57 p.m.

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  Openminded1 writes:

  I think its time the Rocky Mountain News remove the comment section from their articles. It's no longer being use for its intended purpose. I hope young minors never get hold of these comments, they might learn something about people by reading some of these comments. Its pretty sad.

• May 18, 2008

  5:57 a.m.

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  samsmargolis writes:

  I love the picture that accompanies this article. The caption for the picture should read: "Romer removes head from rectum to try clear view of the world - fails miserably. See article for details."

• May 18, 2008

  9:11 a.m.

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  Gene writes:

  Openminded1,
  Might be a good time to shut down comments if the wrong things are discussed. . . That would be closeminded?
  What about his mama? Why is she one of the 57 things we cannot ask about Obammama? We had glimpses of Virginia Clinton, and heard stories of how William Jefferson Clinton had to protect his mother once from a drunken abusive father. What about Obammama's? Why did his grandmother, the white one who he claims is a racist have to raise him? What about his mother? His Obammama Mama?