Obama Gets Another Endorsement
Unlike Bill Richardson, Shaaban Abdel Rahim is not a superdelegate. In fact, he's not even an American voter. But he has thrown his support behind Barack Obama for president, as Slate's Christopher Beam explains:
Rahim, best known for his controversial political songs and outrageous style, will soon release a new track celebrating the end of Bush's presidency--and endorsing Obama. In an interview last week with Dar Al-Hayat, Rahim said that Obama is (roughly translated) "a good man, kindhearted, and better than Bush."
Rahim, also known by his nickname "Shaabolla," gained international notoriety in 2000 when he released the song "I Hate Israel." (The song's subtitle, "But I love Amr Moussa," refers to Egypt's former foreign minister and head of the Arab League.) Since then, he's had a rocky relationship with Egypt's censors. They allowed "Israel" to be broadcast but banned his follow-up tune praising Osama Bin Laden. (Its chorus: "Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Bin Laden.") Other songs he has rolled out include "Hey People, It Was Only a Tower" after 9/11, "Don't Hit Iraq" in 2003, and "We Are All Out of Patience" about the Mohammed cartoon controversy in 2006.
Now, of course, Obama didn't seek out this endorsement, and presumably would prefer not to have it. But it does, as Beam notes, cast a not altogether favorable light on the argument some of Obama's supporters make that "a President Obama would change the way the world looks at America."
It also points to a curiosity in the whole practice of political endorsements. If we're supposed to care that Bill Richardson endorsed Obama, why shouldn't we also care that Shaaban Abdel Rahim did?
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