Jesse Jackson backs Sen. Obama for president

Now I was lukewarm or cool to Obama as a politician even when he ran for the Senate or even as the talk started about him running for President. Still I think this is a great move by the Rev. Jesse Jackson. He's using the kind of language I would use now. From today's Crain's...

Civil rights leader Jesse Jackson said Thursday he's backing Democrat Barack Obama in his presidential bid, giving his support to a new generation of black politicians.

"He has my vote," the Rev. Jackson told The Associated Press in a telephone interview.

Jackson sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988, winning 13 primaries and caucuses in 1988. His son, Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. of Illinois, already has endorsed Obama.

Jackson represents a different era of black politician, battle-tested by the civil rights struggles of the 1960s with Martin Luther King Jr.

Obama, 45, is biracial - his white mother was from Kansas, his father Kenyan - and educated at Ivy League universities.

In his best-selling memoir, "Dreams From My Father," Obama said he couldn't even get in the door at national civil rights groups when he was younger. He wrote letters to them after graduating from Columbia University but said none responded.
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Jackson could help Obama to secure the support of black voters, a critical bloc in the Democratic primaries.

Jackson has a long history with one of Obama's chief rivals, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and her husband former President Clinton. He counseled the two when the president's affair with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky became public.

But Jackson said his history with the Clintons doesn't complicate his decision to back his home state senator, calling Obama Illinois' "favorite son."

"It's not awkward at all," he said, adding, "I don't owe a debt to any of them."

Jackson said he will support the winner of the Democratic nomination, whether it's Obama or not, and he is talking to other candidates because of his agenda that includes the war on poverty and voter protection.

A new generation of black politicians. That how I see Obama. We need new ideas and fresh faces. That's Obama right now. And it's great the Rev. Jackson doesn't feel like he owes a debt to the Clintons. Honestly we already had a Clinton in the White House why elect another one. Just like we got another Bush in the White House over a decade later.

Good move though Rev. Jackson!!!