West: Obama's 'no messiah' Patrick Gavin July 26, 2010 10:48 AM EST

Princeton professor (and spoken-word artist) Cornel West has never been shy about publicly sharing his views, whether about race in America, Obama's Nobel Prize or animal rights. He talks to Playboy for its August issue and is typically candid about what's going on today with the tea party movement, Barack Obama, FLOTUS and more.

A sampling of some of West's choicest quotes:

On the tea party movement: "That's not a movement. Social movements are rare. And these days you've got to distinguish between grass-roots organizing versus AstroTurf networking that appears deep only because of televisual disruptions. The tea party might look a mile wide on Fox News, but it's only a few inches deep."

On Glenn Beck: "I'll fight for the right of Glenn Beck to express his opinion. Even he has a right to be wrong, which he is most of the time. ... Beck appears to have a certain preoccupation with black folk. Why is he so obsessed with black people? I notice he doesn't give the Amish that much attention."

On what President Obama is doing wrong: "While he's made some good, positive changes, I don't think he's a messiah or even a very progressive politician. It turns out when you talk about hope, you have to be a long-distance runner."

On Michelle Obama: "I think she's got a lot of Malcolm X in her, a lot of Ella Baker. But she's had to contain it in a very intense manner to conform to the first lady image. Somebody of her brilliance, somebody of her vision, somebody of her courage confined to keeping gardens at the White House, reaching out to military families, highlighting childhood obesity. I think she could be a great force for change if she could only set herself free. She can't, though. Black sister exercising her power, willing to take a stand, would be too much of a threat."

On "whitewashing within [the Obama] administration": "What happened to the black elites inside Obama's campaign, Valerie Jarrett, John Rogers and Eric Whitaker? They're practically invisible or gone. Instead Obama has a savvy political team — brother [David] Axelrod, Bbrother David Plouffe, brother Robert Gibbs, brother [Rahm] Emanuel — who are eperts at PR. ... Black folk can't be blindsided by Obama's pigmentation and historical symbolism. What I'm saying is I wish he could be more Martin Luther King-like. ... But by necessity, Obama has had to downplay his blackness to appease the white moderates and independents and speak to their anxieties."

On his current relationship with Obama: "He doesn't return my calls. ... I did 65 events for my dear brother Barack on the campaign trail but have not seen him since Martin Luther King Day 2008. ... I couldn't even get a ticket to the Inauguration for my mother. ... I think he has the kind of disposition where he just moves on."