The political reality is that Obama and his advisers must know that racial tension and the absence of national leadership fostering a national discussion of race issues in our country is the Sword of Damocles dangling over this presidency. If the mere act of a reporter like Maureen Dowd reconsidering her ideas and coming forward with an indictment can cause a media frenzy, how much more so the first African American president? It will be worth it. Long after medical care has changed to the point that this era looks like bloodletting and leaches, long after the US economy has shifted and adapted, gone through reforms and reboots, this administration and this president will be remember for one thing above all else:

Obama will forever be either the man who healed this septic wound that runs across the back of this nation, or the man who turned away from the mirror to solve more "practical" issues.