* Carol Moseley Braun was on Fox Chicago last night and said she went on the attack against Patricia Van Pelt-Watkins because she feared being portrayed as a “wimp.” I kid you not. Watch…

Carol Moseley Braun Addresses Crack Comment Controversy: MyFoxCHICAGO.com

Braun is planning a press conference today at 1 o’clock. Should be fun.

* The universal reaction related by the media was one of disgust and anger…

On Monday, Braun supporters struggled to assess the damage from the ugly skirmish with Watkins.

“I’m not sure how much of it was fatigue. These campaigns tend to be physically draining, [but] I was very surprised. I don’t think it represented an ambassador of the United States government,” said Ald. Freddrenna Lyle (6th).

Another Braun supporter, who asked to remain anonymous, said the incident was “killing her out here,” particularly with elderly black voters.

“Seniors are very concerned about appearances. They think it was an embarrassment to have two educated black women out here cat-fighting,” the source said.

I don’t know if I quite believe yet that this incident knocks Braun out of second place. We’ll just have to wait and see. The “killer” snow storm, civil unions, Egypt, etc. are all big stories right now, so it’s competing with a lot of other stuff. I don’t completely agree with this assessment…

What can’t be overlooked is that Watkins and Walls will serve primarily in this election to shave votes from Braun, possibly keeping her from a runoff. I’m not saying that’s why they’re running, but that’s the effect.

From that perspective, a Braun-Watkins spat was unavoidable. The surprise is that it came on Watkins’ terms.

Keeping Rahm Emanuel below 50 percent is Braun’s best bet for getting into the runoff. All she’s doing with this craziness is pushing voters to him. Ignoring Watkins would’ve been the smart play. What Braun may have done, if anything, is help Emanuel avoid the runoff.

* Mary Mitchell…

The nasty exchange between Carol Moseley Braun and Patricia Van Pelt-Watkins exposes the fault line in the African-American community with respect to the mayor’s race.

In a community fractured by class differences, it is nearly impossible for voters to unite behind a single black mayoral candidate.

Last time I checked, Watkins was polling at close to zero. So at least when it comes to black candidates, African-American voters do seem pretty unified.

* Notice, however, that the media has not even touched on Braun’s other claim. Here’s her full comment…

“Patricia, the reason you didn’t know where I was for the last 20 years is because you were strung out on crack,” Braun said. “Now, you have admitted to that. You also were in a cult. You have admitted to that.”

What’s this about a cult? I received a bulk e-mail yesterday with some iffy stuff in it alleging that Watkins’ church is a “cult.” Apparently, Braun believes that, too.