James, I think you're right that Obama is describing real
people, or as I like to describe the subjects of Bruce
Springsteen's songs, Real People With Real Problems. But there is
something vaguely pejorative about his description of these voters
and his framing of their issues -- they're bitter, they "cling" to
guns and religion, they have an "antipathy" toward immigrants and
foreigners. This isn't helped by the context: Obama was giving this
little sociology lecture to a bunch of Marin County fat cats.
topics:
Religion