What About Bob?

Johnson--founder of Black Entertainment Television and owner of the NBA's Charlotte Bobcats--stands at the pinnacle of the black elite and embodies its longstanding ties to the Clintons. He didn't respond to a request for an interview, but three people familiar with the Clintons' Anguilla trip confirmed that Johnson--an old Friend of Bill--spent time with the Clintons on the island, where he owns a home. And while Johnson isn't a prominent public figure in American politics, he's a major behind-the-scenes power crucial to a central front in Clinton's campaign for president: a full-court press on the African-American elite.

"He's not built to be the black candidate," said a Clinton adviser, speaking on the condition of anonymity. "I don't think he wants to play to the Jesse Jackson wing of the party, and I'm not convinced that he wins them overwhelmingly either. His youth and inexperience play against him in that world--he's the young whippersnapper who didn't pay his dues." [snip] [Minyon] Moore's own presence on the campaign appears to be part of that story. A White House aide to Bill Clinton, she advised Obama last year before returning to the Clinton camp. She described Obama yesterday as "a very well-spoken young man." [Emphasis added.]