We’ve come to expect right-wing activists to push offensive, bogus smears about Barack Obama being a secret Muslim (he’s not), having attended a Muslim madrassa (he didn’t), and being some kind of Islamic Manchurian candidate (please). But no one expects Democratic Party activists supporting rival campaigns to stoop this low.
Regrettably, that’s exactly what’s happened in Iowa.
A day after the Hillary campaign hit the Obama camp for bullying voters in nasty phone calls, the Hillary crew has just acknowledged that an Iowa county chair volunteering for the campaign passed along the now-notorious email that smears Obama as a Muslim by repeating the false claim that he attended a madrassa as a child.
The Hillary campaign confirms that they are asking the county chair to step down from the campaign.
A Kos diarist in Iowa, who supports the Dodd campaign, wrote, “Over the past week or so, I have received two of the most hateful hit pieces on Obama parroting right wing talking points. One was forwarded to me from a Clinton county chair.”
To their credit, Clinton aides acted quickly to address the situation. Clinton campaign manager Patti Solis Doyle said today, “There is no place in our campaign, or any campaign, for this kind of politics. A volunteer county coordinator made the mistake of forwarding an outrageous and offensive chain e-mail. This was wholly unauthorized and we were totally unaware of it. Let me be clear: No one should be engaging in this. We are asking this volunteer county coordinator to step down and are making it clear to every person involved in our campaign that this will not be tolerated.”
That said, the timing couldn’t be worse.
Just over the last week, Clinton has been waging a scorched-earth campaign against Obama, throwing everything possible at him, including questioning his character and integrity (and his kindergarten essays). At the same time, the Clinton campaign has been aggressive in insisting that the Obama campaign is engaged in a series of “dirty tricks” in Iowa.
And now this chain email issues comes to the fore.
Earlier this year, an Obama aide, on his own time, created the infamous “Big Brother/1984” ad criticizing Clinton. The campaign denied involvement, and when Obama’s advisors learned that one of their own was responsible, they fired the aide quickly, arguing they didn’t know. Without any evidence to the contrary, Obama’s team deserved the benefit of the doubt.
Likewise, I find it very hard to believe the Clinton campaign was involved in this email smear. Top aides insist they weren’t involved, and they, too, deserve the benefit of the doubt.
It’s hardly reasonable to hold Clinton responsible for an email sent by one of her county chairs in Iowa, but the incident nevertheless raises the ugliness factor of the race several degrees — and further undermines Clinton’s claim to the high ground on campaign decency.
For what it’s worth, here’s the actual email, practically every word of which is demonstrably false:
*_Most_* of this appears to be true! *I shutter to think!! *Scary guy!
**We checked this out on ‘snopes.com’. It is factual. Check for yourself. ***
If you do not ever forward anything else, please forward this to all your contacts…this is very scary to think of what lies ahead of us here in our own United States…better heed this and pray about it and share it.
THIS DEFINITELY WARRANTS LOOKING INTO. THIS COUNTRY WAS FOUNDED, ‘ONE NATION UNDER GOD’. ALMIGHTY GOD, NOT THE GOD OF The KORAN.
We checked this out on ‘snopes.com’. It is factual. Check for yourself.
Who is Barack Obama?
Probable U. S. presidential candidate, Barack Hussein Obama was born in Honolulu , Hawaii , to Barack Hussein Obama, Sr., a black MUSLIM from Nyangoma-Kogel , Kenya and Ann Dunham, a white ATHEIST from Wichita , Kansas .
Obama’s parents met at the University of Hawaii . When Obama was two years old, his parents divorced. His father returned to Kenya . His mother then married Lolo Soetoro, a RADICAL Muslim from Indonesia . When Obama was 6 years old, the family relocated to Indonesia . Obama attended a MUSLIM school in Jakarta . He also spent two years in a Catholic school. Obama takes great care to conceal the fact that he is a Muslim. He is quick to point out that, ‘He was once a Muslim, but that he also attended Catholic school.’
Obama’s political handlers are attempting to make it appear that Obama’s introduction to Islam came via his father, and that this influence was temporary at best. In reality, the senior Obama returned to Kenya soon after the divorce, and never again had any direct influence over his son’s education.
Lolo Soetoro, the second husband of Obama’s mother, Ann Dunham, introduced his stepson to Islam Obama was enrolled in a Wahabi school in Jakarta .
Wahabism is the RADICAL teaching that is followed by the Muslim terrorists who are now waging Jihad against the western world. Since it is politically expedient to be a CHRISTIAN when seeking major public office in the United States , Barack Hussein Obama has joined the United Church of Christ in an attempt to downplay his Muslim background. ALSO, keep in mind that when he was sworn into office he DID NOT use the Holy Bible, but instead the Koran (Their equivalency to our Bible, but very different beliefs)
Let us all remain alert concerning Obama’s expected presidential candidacy.
The Muslims have said they plan on destroying the U.S. from the inside out, what better way to start than at the highest level – through the President of the United States , one of their own!!!!
Please forward to everyone you know. Would you want this man leading our country?…… NOT ME!!!
Truly ridiculous.