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Obama Explains His Remark About Punishing "Enemies"
CBS News ^ | November 1, 2010 | Dan Farber

Posted on 05/17/2013 10:16:18 AM PDT by grundle

After House Minority Leader John Boehner chided him for using the term "enemies" in a conversation last week with Univision Radio, President Obama offered an explication for his remark in an interview today with talk radio host Michael Baisden.

Following is Mr. Obama's "enemies" quote from the Univision interview:

"If Latinos sit out the election instead of saying, 'We're gonna punish our enemies, and we're gonna reward our friends who stand with us on issues that are important to us' -- if they don't see that kind of upsurge in voting in this election -- then I think it's going to be harder. And that's why I think it's so important that people focus on voting on November 2nd."

Here is what Boehner said about Mr. Obama's use of the word "enemies" in prepared remarks for a speech Monday night.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have a president in the White House who referred to Americans who disagree with him as 'our enemies.' Think about that. He actually used that word. When Ronald Reagan, George Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush used the word 'enemy,' they reserved it for global terrorists and foreign dictators -- enemies of the United States. Enemies of freedom. Enemies of our country. Today, sadly, we have president who uses the word 'enemy' for fellow Americans -- fellow citizens. He uses it for people who disagree with his agenda of bigger government -- people speaking out for a smaller, more accountable government that respects freedom and allows small businesses to create jobs. Mr. President, there's a word for people who have the audacity to speak up in defense of freedom, the Constitution, and the values of limited government that made our country great. We don't call them 'enemies.' We call them 'patriots.'"

Mr. Obama told Baisden that he should have used the word, "opponents," rather than "enemies" (see below). According to his language parsing, presumably some Republicans candidates are "opponents," not "enemies," of provisions, such as comprehensive immigration reform. Understood?

"And you know, it's interesting right now, there was a -- I had a conversation with a Hispanic radio outlet, Univision, and during the course of that conversation, one of the things that I had to say to the Latino community, which is frustrated that we haven't seen progress on immigration reform, was that they can't sit out of this election. There were arguments being made that because Democrats hadn't gotten this done, that Latinos should vote against Democrats or just sit out the election."

"And I said, well, you can't punish your friends when -- the folks who've been supporting it. Now, I did also say if you're going to punish somebody, punish your enemies, and I probably should have used the word, "opponents" instead of enemies. Now the Republicans are saying that I'm calling them enemies. What I'm saying is you're an opponent of this particular provision, comprehensive immigration reform, which is something very different."

"But the key issue here is that if you are supportive of comprehensive immigration reform, if you are supportive of health care reform, if you are supportive of making sure that credit card companies are treating us fairly, making sure that banks are properly regulated so they don't end up getting taxpayer bailouts -- if you support those things, then you've got to support those who helped to put those provisions into law. And you've got to make sure that those who are opposed to that legislation, that they get a clear message that they shouldn't be standing in the way of the progress, but rather we should be moving this country forward."


TOPICS: Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: punishgraphic; punishyourenemies
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1 posted on 05/17/2013 10:16:18 AM PDT by grundle
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To: grundle

I want him punished.


2 posted on 05/17/2013 10:20:33 AM PDT by Resolute Conservative
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To: grundle
From Obama's ROCK:


3 posted on 05/17/2013 10:20:45 AM PDT by Slyfox (The red face of shame is proof that the conscience is still operational.)
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To: grundle

But Obama, your “Brain” Valerie Jarrett doubled down on it.


4 posted on 05/17/2013 10:22:02 AM PDT by massgopguy (I owe everything to George Bailey)
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To: grundle

No need to explain, we know exactly what you meant.


5 posted on 05/17/2013 10:23:16 AM PDT by V_TWIN
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To: grundle
"We're gonna punish our enemies,"...Indeed, as others have.
6 posted on 05/17/2013 10:24:10 AM PDT by AngelesCrestHighway
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To: grundle

7 posted on 05/17/2013 10:25:58 AM PDT by AngelesCrestHighway
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To: AngelesCrestHighway

“Crazy with fury I will stain my rifle red while slaughtering any enemy that falls in my hands! My nostrils dilate while savoring the acrid odor of gunpowder and blood. With the deaths of my enemies I prepare my being for the sacred fight and join the triumphant proletariat with a bestial howl!” - Che Guevara


8 posted on 05/17/2013 10:26:54 AM PDT by dfwgator
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To: grundle

Obama used the IRS in the same manner Hitler used the Gestapo and Stalin used the NKVD.

IRS creep will result in deaths and destruction.

All Democrats must be put down. So long as they exist in or near power there can be no America


9 posted on 05/17/2013 10:27:20 AM PDT by bert ((K.E. N.P. N.C. +12 .....History is a process, not an event)
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To: Slyfox

There has to be a compilation of all these “enemy” statements made by Obama and/or his administration. It needs to be investigated and become a prominent issue in the hearings. At a minimum, did these statements encourage targeting?


10 posted on 05/17/2013 10:29:26 AM PDT by Toespi
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To: grundle

11 posted on 05/17/2013 10:31:08 AM PDT by AngelesCrestHighway
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To: grundle

0bama is sorry that he used those words. Next time he will say “Castigaramos nos enemigos.” That is how it is done on Univision. They don’t want us gabauchos to know what they are saying about us.


12 posted on 05/17/2013 10:32:03 AM PDT by forgotten man
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To: grundle

Damn sure Barry isn’t referring to MUSLLIM terrorists!


13 posted on 05/17/2013 10:32:13 AM PDT by golf lover (goingf)
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To: bert

14 posted on 05/17/2013 10:33:17 AM PDT by AngelesCrestHighway
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To: dfwgator
I asked, "Well what is going to happen to those people we can't reeducate, that are diehard capitalists?" And the reply was that they'd have to be eliminated.

And when I pursued this further, they estimated they would have to eliminate 25 million people in these reeducation centers.

And when I say "eliminate," I mean "kill."

Twenty-five million people.

I want you to imagine sitting in a room with 25 people, most of which have graduate degrees, from Columbia and other well-known educational centers, and hear them figuring out the logistics for the elimination of 25 million people and they were dead serious.


Larry Grathwohl speaking of Obama autobioghaphy ghostwriter Bill Ayers - the guy on the other end of Obama's Blackberry
15 posted on 05/17/2013 10:37:29 AM PDT by Paine in the Neck (Socialism consumes everything. Bolshies' gonna bolsh.)
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To: grundle

Is this the first time Obama has addressed his Univision statement?

How timely!


16 posted on 05/17/2013 10:40:19 AM PDT by thouworm (Steyn: They let [Stevens] die, and then told lies over his coffin.They did that to one of their own.)
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To: bert

” Obama used the IRS in the same manner Hitler used the Gestapo and Stalin used the NKVD.”

Exactly!


17 posted on 05/17/2013 10:41:35 AM PDT by stephenjohnbanker
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To: grundle
Mr. Obama told Baisden that he should have used the word, "opponents," rather than "enemies"

No, he said exactly what he means. He is simply lying about it now.

18 posted on 05/17/2013 10:42:18 AM PDT by Mark17
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To: AngelesCrestHighway

Jorel Stabamro - that is a combo of Josef Stalin, Barak Obama and Fidel Castro


19 posted on 05/17/2013 10:43:16 AM PDT by RatRipper (Self-centeredness, greed, envy, deceit and lawless corruption has killed this once great nation.)
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To: grundle

The Rat squirms.


20 posted on 05/17/2013 10:43:41 AM PDT by Ray76 (Do you reject Obama? And all his works? And all his empty promises?)
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