Say No to Sycophantism

Here's the thing about being a Democratic Presidential nominee: you're quiet
frequently attacked from the right (baby-killer, terrorist-lover,
gun-stealer, tree-hugger etc. etc.), but nobody ever questions you from a
leftist (read: democratic) perspective. I've been hoping that this will now
start to happen with the Olbermann/Maddow juggernaut on MSNBC, but so far
I've been beyond disappointed. Olbermann acts like a complete fox-newsish
sycophant when talking about any Democrat except Hillary Clinton (and no I
have no love lost for Hillary). His interview last month with Obama was
behind-licking at its very worst.

But, I've always thought that Maddow has been the more balanced, the more
sane, and the less-blowhardish of the two, and part of that has obviously
been due to necessity: Olbermann paved the way for Maddow to be more civil,
because Olbermann had to fight for his spot and Maddow followed his
coattails. But I have high hopes for Maddow's interview tonight. I hope she
asks questions like the following:

1. "Senator, you've visited churches and synagogues during the course of
your campaign, why have you not visited a mosque?"
2. "Sir, is there something wrong with being a Muslim in America?"

Obama's a politician, probably a once-in-a-generation type politician, and I
love him. I understand he's playing to win, and by distancing himself from
muslims he thinks he has a better chance of winning. I get that. But that
doesn't mean that he shouldn't be asked about it and be forced to make clear
what is right and what is not. The right (except Colin Powell) thinks that
it's perfectly dandy for Obama to distance himself from Muslims and cast
them as the "other". The left stays silent on the issue. Democracy and
religious freedom are the losers.