It appears the controversy over Barack Obama's eligibility to be president will stay in the headlines as the nation moves toward the 2012 election whether those who have questions about the issue raise them or not.
That's because Obama himself has been unable to leave the issue alone, most recently repeatedly raising the subject at the Gridiron Club Dinner in Washington.
It was Daniel Kurtzman at Political Humor who noted that the Marine Band was playing "Hail to the Chief" as Obama moved toward the podium, but he waived off the song.
"Play that song we talked about," he told them, and the band started "Born in the U.S.A."
Some things just bear repeating," he joked.
According to Associated Press, Obama also "poked fun" at Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, considered a possible GOP contender in 2012.
"Tim Pawlenty's not here, but he's hit the campaign trail hard," Obama said. "And to be honest, I think the American people are going to have some tough questions for Tim. Specifically, 'Who are you and where do you come from?' Which is OK. Two years into my presidency and I'm still getting those questions," Obama said.
The annual social function mixes politicians and media personalities and it was Obama's first appearance as president there.
Officials say the function does not allow video coverage.
But the subject is one that Obama repeatedly has turned toward.
At a recent Boston fundraiser, he pushed hard on the issue.
"There's no weakness in us trying to reach out and seeing if we can find common ground," he told attendees. "Now, there are going to be times where we can't. I was born in Hawaii. What can I say? I mean, I just ... I can't change those facts."
The "fact," however, still has not been publicly documented, as he's not only refused to release his original birth certificate – substituting instead a computer-generated birth record summary from the state – he's also battled court requests for his school records, college records, records from his years in the Illinois legislature and other documents typically available for prominent leaders.
It was just about a year ago at the White House correspondents' annual dinner when he couldn't leave the subject alone, either:
"There are few things in life that are harder to find and more important to keep than love. Well, love and a birth certificate," he said.
Media reports in Boston explained that under the U.S. Constitution, a president must be a "natural born" citizen, and they acknowledged that Obama's mother was American and his father was Kenyan, making him a dual citizen.
The reports presumed that that qualifies Obama as a natural-born citizen under Article 2, Section 1 of the U.S. Constitution.. But many arguments raised during the time the Constitution was written can be understood as barring dual citizens from being president.
Also, as his birth documentation remains a secret, questions remain about whether he was born in Hawaii, as he insists.
There have been multiple lawsuits over the issue, although judges have dismissed almost all of them.
At the annual Washington prayer breakfast in February 2010, Obama said, "Surely you can question my policies without questioning my faith. Or for that matter my citizenship."
While WND has reported on the challenges and legal cases since before Obama's election, only about half of Americans at that time were even aware of the dispute. Recent polls, however, reveal that more than half of Americans now doubt Obama's proclaimed birth story.
No comments:
Post a Comment