Gwen Ifill, VP Debate Moderator, Releasing Pro-Obama Book Co-Inciding With Inauguration

I can see the dust-up coming from vice presidential debate moderator Gwen Ifill’s new book. The book focuses on blacks who are “forging a bold new path to political power,” but I am sure the right wing won’t care much about that. So, she has a book coming out? Is there a perceived conflict of interest afoot here? There might very well be. I understand the premise of her book, but if there appears to be some conflict of interest, then it would be in her best interest to have someone else moderate the debate.

According to World Net Daily, Ifill is writing a book to come out about the time the next president takes the oath of office that aims to “shed new light” on Democratic candidate Barack Obama and others. Gwen Ifill of the Public Broadcasting Service program “Washington Week” is promoting “The Breakthrough,” in which she argues the “black political structure” of the civil rights movement is giving way to men and women who have benefited from the struggles over racial equality.

She has faced criticism before for not being “fair” to Republican candidates. During a vice-presidential candidate debate she moderated in 2004 – when Democrat John Edwards attacked Republican Dick Cheney’s former employer, Halliburton – the vice president said, “I can respond, Gwen, but it’s going to take more than 30 seconds.” “Well, that’s all you’ve got,” she told Cheney. I can’t see how mean she was being to Cheney. The fact still remained that all he had was 30 seconds.

She also was cited in complaints PBS Ombudsman Michael Getler said he received after Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin delivered her nomination acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn., earlier this month.Some viewers complained of a “dismissive” look by Ifill during her report on Palin’s speech. According to Getler, some also said she wore a look of “disgust” while reporting on the Republican candidate. She’s not the only one who has been disgusted to with Gov. Sarah Palin. Many conservatives are piling on that bandwagon.

She told BlackAmericaWeb.com about the upcoming Biden-Palin debate that she thinks debates “are the best opportunity most voters have to see the candidates speaking to issues.” She said she is concerned only about getting straight answers from candidates.”Four years ago, when neither John Edwards nor Dick Cheney proved capable of answering a question about the domestic epidemic of AIDS among African-American women, viewers flooded me with reaction,” she said.

In an online video promoting her book, she is enthusiastic about “taking the story of Barack Obama and extending it.” The book focuses on four people, “one of them Barack Obama of course,” she said.”They are changing our politics and changing our nation,” she said. She also describes how she met him at the 2004 Democratic convention and since then has interviewed the Illinois senator and his family. She also boasted that by the time of the debate, “I’ll be a complete expert on both” Palin and Biden.

Here we go, the right wing slinging mud, which may or may not be warranted, depending on who you ask. Let’s see where this goes……

Filed under: Barack Obama, Gwen Ifill, Joe Biden, John McCain, Sarah Palin