Obama has told his Auschwitz story before

The Virginian ^ | 5/28/2008 | Moneyrunner

[moneyrunner]

Via Transterrestrial Musings...

Thanks to a link from one of my Obama-admiring commenters (thank you, Robert), we learn that Obama's tales of Americans liberating Auschwitz didn't start this weekend. He was telling similar stories about his grandfather back in 2002, in his now-famous Iraq speech, which I'd never previously read:

My grandfather signed up for a war the day after Pearl Harbor was bombed, fought in Patton's army. He saw the dead and dying across the fields of Europe; he heard the stories of fellow troops who first entered Auschwitz and Treblinka.

The first troops to enter those two camps (in Poland) were Soviet troops, so unless Patton was leading them, this can't be true.

[moneyrunner]

In the speech reveals his priorities: not he worldwide battle against Islamofascism. A battle that is not contained in a single man, Osama, but is contained in a creed that is poisoning a billion people. Instead he claims to believe that the Bush adminsitration is willing to see thousands of servicemen die to distract attention from (in his words)

"What I am opposed to is the attempt by political hacks like Karl Rove to distract us from a rise in the uninsured, a rise in the poverty rate, a drop in the median income – to distract us from corporate scandals and a stock market that has just gone through the worst month since the Great Depression."

If this is cynical manipulation of a gullible crowd, it is simply evil. If he honestly believes this he is mentally unbalanced.

[Bringbackthedraft]

The camp his uncle went into was Dachau. I can see where Obama and his generation may be a little confused as Auschwitz and Treblinka get the majority of the press coverage over the years. I’m sure the kids of today and the young voters have no knowledge of Babi Yar, Bergen Belsen Mauthausen et.al. or the massacre at Katyn.

[InABunkerUnderSF]

Auschwitz, Dachau, Bergen Belsen, who checks. Or maybe he would have preferred that his grandfather had served in the Red Army.

And please, let us not mention Katyn! It only confuses the issue. <\end sarc>

[rantblogger]

Overdue:

Jews Against Obama

Not sure I'll ever see it in Manhattan or San Francisco. Sadly.

[HawaiianGecko]

This is Obama's maternal grandfather's service information.  Stanley Armour Dunham enlisted in the Army on June 18th, 1942 not December 8, 1941.  The two entries are explained by his enlisting at a recruiting station in his home town of Augusta (about 15 miles east of Wichita), and then being examined and departing from an AFEES station in Wichita for active duty.

http://www.kshs.org/genealogists/military/wwiiveteransresults.php?surname=DUNHAM&givenname=Stanley&county=&branch=A&servicenumber=&year=&submit=SEARCH

Name	Service	Service #	Registration	Place	Comments
Dunham, Stanley A.	Enlisted , Army	17056069	Unregistered	Wichita, Sedgwick Co. (Board # 3)
Dunham, Stanley A.	Enlisted 18 June 1942, Army	17056069	Unregistered	Augusta, Butler Co. (Board # 2)

[boycott]

The camp his uncle went into was Dachau.

You might want to check that again. His uncle was in the NAVY. I seriously doubt he went into Dachau.

[Bringbackthedraft]

The camp his uncle went into was Dachau. ........... I blame Fox News for that info.

[Yo-Yo]

Not to be defending Obama in any way, but half of America joined the armed forces on December 8th, 1941, or very soon thereafter. There is no way that the US military was ready to accept such a flood of recruits at their basic training facilities as they existed in 1941.

Barack’s grandfather very well could have enlisted on December 8th, 1941, and subsequently called to report for basic military training on June 18th.

I myself enlisted in the United States Air Force on December 19, 1976, but didn’t report for basic training until September 26, 1977. Therefore, my four year enlistment for active service began on 26 Sept, and that was the basis of my time in service and since my promotions were all at the minimum time possible, it also was the date for my time in grade. The December 19 date did count towards my inactive reserve obligation, however.

I wouldn’t beat this enlisted on December 8th thing too much.