[dead]

This is some pretty weak tea.

For instance, he said his father was a goat herder, this guy says his father was a farmer.

Maybe he was a farmer who also herded his goats.

I really don't get the breathless tone of this tepid expose.

[dirtboy]

I really don't get the breathless tone of this tepid expose.

I don't either, and we really don't need these kinds of accusations here:

Fact: Obama was part of one of the most corrupt and violent organizations in Africa: the Kenyatta regime. Obama's father ran back to Kenya soon after the British left. It is likely Obama's father had Mau Mau sympathies or connections, or he would not have been welcomed into the murderous inner circle of rapists, murderers, and arsonists. I believe Obama's secret shame at his family history of rape, murder and arson is what actualizes him. Our research is not yet complete

Their research is not complete - but they're going to sling the charge anyway at his father in hopes that it sticks to the son.

[Bigh4u2]

You mis-read.

"Obama's grandfather, Hussein Onyango Obama was a prominent and wealthy farmer. His son, Obama's father, was a child of privilege, not privation."

[Jim_Curtis]

This is some pretty weak tea. For instance, he said his father was a goat herder, this guy says his father was a farmer. Maybe he was a farmer who also herded his goats.

Maybe Ray Kroc was a humble hamburger salesman who flipped a burger now and then.

I would be surprised if this story were true and Democrats never bothered to check any of it out...but we'll see.

[expatpat]

For instance, he said his father was a goat herder, this guy says his father was a farmer.

Not exactly, this guy says his grandfather was a farmer, his father was a student.

[RobbyS]

Well, his campaign biography is about as true as the one put out by supporters of William Henry Harrison in 1840. A man who was born in a mansion in Virginia was said to have been born in a log cabin.

[SQUID]

What his father was is all you are focusing on. Step back a little.

[John Robertson]

My opinion: You are either being disingenuous or naive if you think my father was a goat herder is pretty much the same as his family owned a prosperous farm. In the former, one pictures a poor man herding a handful of scrawny goats through dusty village streets. In the latter...well, there are some damned fine farms in Africa.

At any rate: This is not about the veracity of this reporter's claims, in the least.

[Yardstick]

Obama's claim that his father was a goatherder reminds me of John Edwards' claim that his father was a "mill worker" (when he was really the mill's manager). Obama's claim isn't a lie per se, but it omits information in a way that creates a more favorable -- or more politically useful -- impression of his background.

I agree that this is relatively weak stuff now. Time will tell if it's an early indicator of a more serious phony streak.