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Now, that's not to say that religion is without controversy. Recently, attention has been focused on the construction of mosques in certain communities -- particularly New York. Now, we must all recognize and respect the sensitivities surrounding the development of Lower Manhattan. The 9/11 attacks were a deeply traumatic event for our country. And the pain and the experience of suffering by those who lost loved ones is just unimaginable. So I understand the emotions that this issue engenders. And Ground Zero is, indeed, hallowed ground. But let me be clear. As a citizen, and as President, I believe that...

Former presidential candidate Gary Bauer on Saturday said that President Obama's comments at a White House dinner in support of a mosque at Ground Zero was "proof positive" that he has lost touch with his fellow citizens and that his break from them can no longer be repaired. The president of American Values and chairman of the Campaign for Working Families made the following statement: "Last night at a White House Iftar dinner in celebration of the Muslim holiday of Ramadan, President Obama chose to endorse the building of a mosque on the hallowed soil of Ground Zero. In doing...

I always find it repugnant when Barack Obama pretends to articulate and apply America’s moral values. As products of Saul Alinsky’s finishing school for Marxist protégés, Obama and his crew have no respect for the self-evident truths in which those values originate. It’s not that they have no use for them. On the contrary, they refer to them only when they are useful for ideological warfare. Obama’s reference yesterday to religious tolerance, and America’s respect for religious freedom, is a case in point. According to an AP report, he “is weighing in forcefully on the mosque near ground zero, saying...

PANAMA CITY, Florida (Reuters) – President Barack Obama on Saturday backed off remarks that appeared to endorse a proposed Muslim cultural center near the site of the September 11, 2001, attacks in New York City, saying he only supported the organizers' right to build it. At a White House event on Friday, Obama seemed to offer his support for the construction of Cordoba House near the site known as "Ground Zero" in lower Manhattan. U.S. conservatives and many New Yorkers object to the project. The 13-story building will include meeting rooms, a prayer space, an auditorium and a swimming pool....

Too late, Jack. Speaking to reporters today, President Obama drew a sharp line under his comments last night, insisting that his defense of the right to build a mosque does not mean he supports the project. “I was not commenting and I will not comment on the wisdom of making the decision to put a mosque there. I was commenting very specifically on the right people have that dates back to our founding,” he said. Obama’s new stance is logically consistent with his words last night, if a bit less “clarion,” as Mike Bloomberg called the first remarks. And...

Good Saturday morning. It’s going to be one of the most memorable – and debated statements – of President Obama’s first two years in office. Remember how much attention was lavished on his remarks about the Cambridge cop-prof confrontation? Well, this is bigger -- whether you think it constitutes Obama delivering on his status as a breakthrough figure on American history, or whether you see it as a breathtaking act of elitist arrogance. PLAYBOOK FACTS OF LIFE: It’s either what you always hoped about Obama, or what you always suspected about Obama. In remarks the White House embargoed for 8:30...

President Barack Obama on Saturday sought to defuse the controversy over his remarks on plans to build a mosque near Ground Zero, insisting that he wasn’t endorsing the specific project but making a general plea for religious tolerance toward all. "In this country we treat everybody equally and in accordance with the law, regardless of race, regardless of religion,” Obama told reporters Saturday when asked about his remarks at a White House dinner marking the start of Ramadan. “I was not commenting and I will not comment on the wisdom of making the decision to put a mosque there,” Obama...

Slightly more absurd than any other political argument today is the concerted defense of a proposed mosque at Ground Zero. An Islamic entity known as the Cordoba Initiative, funded by shadowy interests, is looking to erect an ornate mosque and community center at the site of the 9/11 attack in Manhattan, and its proponents in America have deemed it an innocent act of freedom of religion and Islamic outreach while proclaiming that detractors are guilty of religious intolerance. Most notably guilty of this fallacy is New York Mayor Bloomberg, whose sight is so dulled by political correctness that he cannot...

One of the leading groups representing families who lost loved ones in the 9/11 attacks blasted President Barack Obama Saturday for supporting the construction of a mosque near the site of the attack. The group 9/11 Families for a Safe & Strong America said it was "stunned" by the president's remarks. Obama "has abandoned America at the place where America's heart was broken nine years ago, and where her true values were on display for all to see," the group said. "Now this president declares that the victims of 9/11 and their families must bear another burden. We must stand...

President Barack Obama on Friday endorsed a controversial plan to build a mosque and Islamic center just blocks from Ground Zero in Manhattan, despite the strong objections of conservatives, the ADL and those who lost loved ones in the September 11 attacks.“Ground Zero is, indeed, hallowed ground,” Obama said at a White House dinner celebrating the Muslim holiday of Ramadan. “But let me be clear: as a citizen, and as President, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country. That includes the right to build a place of worship and...

After skirting the controversy for weeks, President Barack Obama is weighing in forcefully on the mosque near ground zero, saying a nation built on religious freedom must allow it. "As a citizen, and as president, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as everyone else in this country," Obama told an intently listening crowd gathered at the White House Friday evening to observe the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. "That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and...

Here’s the statement issued by Debra Burlingame, the co-founder of 9/11 Families for a Safe & Strong America: Barack Obama has abandoned America at the place where America’s heart was broken nine years ago, and where her true values were on display for all to see. Since that dark day, Americans have been asked to bear the burden of defending those values, again and again and again. Now this president declares that the victims of 9/11 and their families must bear another burden. We must stand silent at the last place in America where 9/11 is still remembered with reverence...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 9/11 Families for a Safe & Strong America Statement of Debra Burlingame, Co-founder of 9/11 Families for a Safe & Strong America, in Response to President Obama's Remarks about the Ground Zero Mosque 911 Families Stunned Presidents Support of Mosque at Ground Zero New York, NY, Aug. 14 -- Barack Obama has abandoned America at the place where America's heart was broken nine years ago, and where her true values were on display for all to see. Since that dark day, Americans have been asked to bear the burden of defending those values, again and again and...

At a White House celebration of Ramadan tonight in the company of representatives of several of the Nation’s most prominent Muslim Brotherhood front organizations, President Obama announced his strong support for one of their most immediate objectives: the construction of a mega-mosque and “cultural center” at Ground Zero. In so doing, he publicly embraced the greatest tar-baby of his presidency. In the process, Mr. Obama also inadvertently served up what he likes to call a “teachable moment” concerning the nature of the enemy we are confronting, and the extent to which it is succeeding in the Brotherhood’s stated mission: “…Eliminating...

I must be losing my mind. Did the President of the United States really just support a Mosque at the WTC site? I grew up in NYC. I visited the WTC on business while it was up; I still have my pass to one of the floors, one of the floors that got hit. Some of the people I visited that day are dead now. After the attack, I took the family to see the site. That day the Guggenheim was showing Norman Rockwell’s “The Four Freedoms”. Took the kids from the WTC site to the museum. Perhaps one of...

President defends right to build Islamic center in Manhattan WASHINGTON, Aug. 13 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) tonight welcomed President Obama's strong support for Muslim religious rights, including the right to build an Islamic community center in Manhattan. At an iftar, or Ramadan fast-breaking dinner at the White House this evening, the president said: "As a citizen, and as president, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country. That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower...

This is the front page graphic and caption of today's New York Post about Obama's announcement last night that he supports the construction of the mosque at Ground Zero:Obama gives blessing to Ground Zero mosque

Two words. Unforced error: President Barack Obama on Friday endorsed plans for a Muslim mosque two blocks from ground zero in New York City, declaring that “Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country.”In remarks prepared for delivery at a White House dinner celebrating the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, Obama said all Americans have the right to worship as they choose.“That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances, Obama said. “This is America,...