Frank Rich on the New York Times attempts to link John McCain to Pastor John Hagee, as a means of lessening the impact of Jeremiah Wright's hatred of America on the Obama campaign. In the end, all he succeeds in doing is demonstrating that the Pastor Wright story has legs. ...those who try to give Mr. McCain a pass for his embrace of a problematic preacher have a thin case. It boils down to this: Mr. McCain was not a parishioner for 20 years at Mr. Hagee's church. [....]...it is disingenuous to pretend that there isn't a double standard operating here. If we're to judge black candidates on their most controversial associates - and how quickly, sternly and completely they disown them - we must judge white politicians by the same yardstick.Double standards? No. McCain has had contentious relationships with the Christian right in the past. There are no signs that Obama had disagreements with Wright's views for the past twenty years. More importantly, Rich is comparing apples to oranges...(Read Full Post)