The girls of the YouTube videos may need to step aside. The most important “Obama girl” is now likely to be talk show host Oprah Winfrey, who has announced she is to hold a fundraiser for Democratic hopeful Barack Obama at her palatial home near Santa Barbara, California, on September 8.
Obama already has the support of Hollywood moguls David Geffen and Jeffrey Katzenberg, and Winfrey’s fundraiser will be a chance for him to gain even more California showbiz money. Forbes magazine estimates that Winfrey is worth $1.5 billion. Obama has so far raised over $58 million for his White House bid.
I wonder what all the conservative stay-at-home moms who frequently watch Oprah feel about this support and her $1.5 billion net worth. I imagine many don't care, since I'm told she runs an appealing show. I wouldn't know. I have never watched her show. But just how insulated is Oprah from criticism for her partisan involvement (though seemingly inconsequential at the moment)?
Her support may be limited at this point publicly, but surely she is (or her surrogates are) privately working the Hollywood phones to raise $. When actors get political, they open themselves up to controversy. She may have announced her support in a low-key, calculated, tasteful way to avoid offending her conservative viewers, but she's still using her position (provided by many Republicans and conservative Independents viewers) to support a Democrat--a near socialist in some areas.
I know a few of my relatives watch her religiously. I hate to admit it, but it's true. Some of these up-to-now diehards surely can't be lovin' the idea of Oprah throwing herself at Obama the Inexperienced. Maybe, I'm wrong and overstating things. Or maybe Oprah has so much accumulated goodwill that all the NY for Mitt women will quickly rush to her defense.
Update: I read the below quote and shivered. What could she possibly say every day that puts her in 2nd place behind the Pope?
“Oprah Winfrey arguably has more influence on the culture than any university president, politician, or religious leader, except perhaps the Pope.” Vanity Fair Magazine
She's got quite the loyal flock. Will any conservatives in that flock care about her political preferences? What if she supports Barack more visibly in the future? She probably knows better.
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