Obama in 2001 Talked About ‘Redistributive Change’

Barack Obama’s remarks in 2001 about the failure of the civil rights movement to produce “redistributive change” has conservative bloggers in a tizzy on Monday.

In an interview on Chicago public radio in which Obama, then a state senator, assessed the civil rights movement’s judicial strategy, Obama said that the Supreme Court hadn’t explored wealth redistribution.

He added that:

“…one of the, I think, tragedies of the civil rights movement was, um, because the civil rights movement became so court focused I think there was a tendency to lose track of the political and community organizing and activities on the ground that are able to put together the actual coalition of powers through which you bring about redistributive change. In some ways we still suffer from that.”

(Transcript from Stop The ACLU.)

The Drudge Report and Michelle Malkin have posted the YouTube clip of the interview. Malkin suggests that the interview, along with his “spread the wealth” comment to Joe “The Plumber” Wurzelbacher, is evidence that Obama would try to redistribute wealth as president.

Obama in this year’s campaign has proposed a repeal of President Bush’s income tax cuts for individuals making more than $200,000 and all taxpayers making more than $250,000. He has called for a tax cut for 95 percent of Americans, which includes most people making less than those amounts. The McCain campaign has attacked Obama for his proposals and said that his domestic policies would lead to more spending and taxes.

Listen to the YouTube clip of Obama in 2001 below.