NPR, All Things Considered, March 12, by Michele Norris
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88154039
Echaveste: She diminished herself. Basically she says that I was selected as a vice presidential nominee because I was a woman. It had nothing to do with qualification. And I found that just appalling. And so she crossed a line because in some way she left the impression that somehow Senator Obama has reached this particular point solely because he’s black and that’s just unacceptable.
Edley: It’s also incorrect…. Barack did not call her a racist. I don’t think anyone in the campaign that I know of has called her a racist. I think that it’s undoubtedly the case that his race, like Hillary’s gender, has been a political plus and a political minus. I think that if this year has taught us anything it’s that we need to revisit a lot of the conventional wisdom about the way that race can play into politics.