And Obama trolls.
Posted on 12/07/2008 6:36:30 PM PST by Red Steel
Five weeks after the state of Hawaii vouched for the authenticity of President-elect Barack Obama's birth certificate, the controversy over allegations that Obama is not eligible to take office next month has reached the Supreme Court, which is expected to announce Monday whether it will consider the matter.
The fight is unusual because it thrives outside the so-called mainstream media, far beyond the oak-paneled offices of $700-an-hour lawyers and a world away from the 535 individuals whose surnames are preceded by Representative or Senator.
This is a different army at work, in an environment increasingly influenced by the Internet.
"It's only being mentioned by a relative few, by the real die-hard, anti-Obama crowd," said Michael Harrison, editor and publisher of Talkers magazine, the trade bible of the talk radio industry. "On mainstream talk radio, it's not a big deal right now. I think it's run its course."
"But," Harrison added, "we live in a time that, because of the Internet, all points of view can live forever."
Just as there is a split on the legitimacy of the legal claims, there is also a split within the media on the merits of the story. Is it the last gasp of opposition from fervent opponents of Obama who have a found community of like-minded believers on the Internet, or is there a legal question to be resolved? The court will answer the latter question thisweek.
The campaign challenging the legitimacy of Obama's 1961 birth certificate or the legality of his taking office is chronicled by WorldNetDaily, a popular, politically right-leaning site that was the 26th most-visited news and media Web site during November, according to Hitwise, which monitors Net traffic.
"If this [Obama taking office] happens, the question of eligibility for the highest office in the land will no longer even be a matter for concern," wrote Joseph Farah, founder and editor of WorldNetDaily.
"Precedent will have been established. Arnold Schwarzenegger will suddenly be eligible to run for the office in 2012," Farah wrote, referring to the Austrian-born California governor and film star.
An Obama spokesman declined to comment for this story.
The lawyers who, in at least six states, have argued Obama is not a natural-born citizen and cannot be president include one who supported Hillary Clinton's presidential bid, one who has thundered for decades against the legality of the federal government collecting income tax, and one who argues that Sen. John McCain, by virtue of his birth 72 years ago in the Panama Canal Zone, would be banned from moving into the Oval Office, had he won last month's election.
Leo Donofrio is a New Jersey lawyer who tried to get Obama and McCain stricken from the New Jersey ballot in November. Donofrio's case was presented Friday to justices of the Supreme Court. Another case challenging Obama's eligibility, this one from Pennsylvania, has not yet been presented to the full court for its consideration.
"My question is on a pure constitutional ground," said Donofrio. "He [Obama] is a citizen of the United States. I just don't believe he's a natural born citizen."
This is the thrust of the attack, picked up by people like Bob Schulz, an upstate New York lawyer who purchased two full-page ads in the Tribune this month that called Obama "a usurper" who "would be entitled to no allegiance, obedience or support from the People."
Schulz has challenged the federal government on issues including the Iraq War, the Patriot Act and the income tax. "I have a long history of petitioning the government for redress of grievances for violations of the constitution and the law," said Schulz, who said he and his wife live on Social Security checks. Schulz said the ads cost "tens of thousands of dollars" and were paid for with more than 500 private donations from individuals who support the effort. He said there were "no financial angels" behind it.
If the Supreme Court decides not to consider the case, Donofrio said there "won't be any beating on the drums saying there wasn't any justice."
But that will not be the end of the matter, Farah vowed.
"It'll plague Obama throughout his presidency. It'll be a nagging issue and a sore on his administration, much like Monica Lewinsky was on [President Bill] Clinton," Farah said. "It's not going to go away and it will drive a wedge in an already divided public."
That may underscore a landscape change in the media, where the Internet is playing a bigger role in setting the agenda. In 2004, the so-called swift boat campaign against John Kerry, the Democratic presidential nominee, began on the Internet. In fact, the co-author of "Unfit for Command: Swift Boat Veterans Speak Out Against John Kerry," Jerome Corsi, also wrote "Obama Nation," a book critical of Obama, published earlier this year.
Brendan Nyhan, a political scientist at Duke University, said the Internet's role in forming public opinion is gaining strength. WorldNetDaily, for instance, has one of the faster-growing audiences on the Internet, up 62 percent in the past year, according to Hitwise.
Nyhan co-authored a study this year that said journalists' attempts to correct misinformation is unlikely to sway public perceptions because many people want to believe the misperception.
"People often have a strong bias for believing the evidence they want to believe and disbelieving what they don't believe," Nyhan said. "There is less of a sense that we all have a common set of facts we can agree on. There's a polarization and we can't even agree on the basic factual assumptions to have a debate."
An honest, but MEANINGLESS statement since you can have an "authentic" Hawaiian birth certificate that states that you are absolutely NOT a "natural born citizen"
Barack Obama admits he was born with dual citizenship since his claimed father was a British subject who registered him in Kenay on the same issue. Dual citizenship at birth because of his father means Obama was not a natural born citizen, though he is a citizen. His naturalization is by default when his British citizenry expired. BUT his adopting father made him an Indoensian citizen. AND we need to see his entry documents and funding request documents from colleges along with his passport registration used in 1981, to determine if he gamed his dual citizenship presenting himself as other than a strictly natural born citizen. His Kenayn father did so when was born, wherever he was born, but did Barack use that ambiquity and thus disqualify himself by Constitutional stipulation for eligibility?
Did anyone see the program on FOX this morning with Liz Trotta and Eric Shawn? They were talking about the appointments of 0bama and that the conservatives are all getting on board with 0bama so they could stay in the game or keep jobs or whatever..this was more or less Liz Trotta’s view...to which Eric Shawn replied that if you read some of the blogs like Freerepublic ( and one other I didnt catch) these folks are still furious over the birth certificate issue and other matters so they are not all on board...
And don’t for get the attacks that can come from his base in Chicago.
In any case, “President-Alleged” has a nice ring to it and people need to start using it.
Yes, but it's misleading.
Either they are liars or they don’t know what they are talking about. Hawaii didn’t verify the birth certificate.
::::::::::
They are liars. And there is no Birth Certificate, per se. There would have been ONLY a COLB (Certificate of Live Birth). The one(s) presented so far have been proven to be frauds by experts.
Follow at: http://www.obamacrimes.com
This time, America wants to see it.
” On mainstream talk radio, it’s not a big deal right now. I think it’s run its course.”
Limbaugh , Hannity, Ingraham and Levin et al have refused to touch this ,
so apparently “ it’s not a big deal now.”
Even to neutrally state x,y and z lawsuits have been filed alleging thus and so.
The crowd that looooves to talk about the Constitution could have interesting
and enlightening discussions on the Constitution-
without actually taking a stand
and offending Barry.
Instead they prefer to focus on global warming ,Ruth Chris steaks and pajamagrams.
Yeah, like his belly button ain't normal at all.
What's going on there? The man's a freak...
Among the natural rights of the colonists are these: First a right to life, secondly to liberty, and thirdly to property; together with the right to defend them in the best manner they can.
Samuel Adams
He who is void of virtuous attachments in private life is, or very soon will be, void of all regard for his country. There is seldom an instance of a man guilty of betraying his country, who had not before lost the feeling of moral obligations in his private connections.
Samuel Adams
How strangely will the Tools of a Tyrant pervert the plain Meaning of Words!
Samuel Adams
It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people’s minds.
Samuel Adams
It does not take a majority to prevail... but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brushfires of freedom in the minds of men.
Samuel Adams
Mankind are governed more by their feelings than by reason.
Samuel Adams
Our contest is not only whether we ourselves shall be free, but whether there shall be left to mankind an asylum on earth for civil and religious liberty.
Samuel Adams
The Constitution shall never be construed... to prevent the people of the United States who are peaceable citizens from keeping their own arms.
Samuel Adams
The liberties of our country, the freedom of our civil constitution, are worth defending against all hazards: And it is our duty to defend them against all attacks.
Samuel Adams
The natural liberty of man is to be free from any superior power on Earth, and not to be under the will or legislative authority of man, but only to have the law of nature for his rule.
Samuel Adams
We cannot make events. Our business is wisely to improve them.
Samuel Adams
If only the natural citizen clause was barely illuminated in a distant penumbra of the Constitution, then the Supremes would obviously hold forth on the issue. Unfortunately, the clause is directly in the Consitution. /s
To clear this up a little...the Tribune claims that they have received information via telephone conversations and emails from someone at that Dept who states that the Director meant that Obama was born in Hawaii. I have posted the link once...it came from that Obamatron “curiousity”
It will be used by his cousin Odinga who is calling for a coup in Africa.
At least the tellers have demonstrated they have a grasp on reality and accountability.
HF
Hearsay! Are we to assume this Director is incapable of making his point in clear English?
Then the Tribune should write an article quoting the Hawaiian official who said it. It looks more like they are just trying to cover their Messiah with bunk story.
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