09-23-2015, 08:37 PM
(09-23-2015, 04:09 PM)Jimbone Wrote: Hillary was pummeled in 2008 for fueling the speculation that Obama was a Muslim with her famous "as far as I know" quote, and her campaign staffers were tied directly to spreading a picture of Obama in traditional Somali Muslim garb.
She said "as far as I know he's NOT a Muslim", when asked.
Which is what I imagine most people would say when asked about someone's belief system being different from what the person claims, especially if the person asked is not very close to the person whose religion is being questioned.
Walker was recently pummeled by some for saying he doesn't know for sure if Obama is a follower of Christ. I thought that pummeling was silly too; I wouldn't expect him to personally confirm or deny anybody's beliefs when asked.
(09-23-2015, 04:09 PM)Jimbone Wrote: Apart from the campaign, the birther questions started around that same time in Democratic circles as the primary season went on. I'm sure it was just a coincidence.
We know that a fervent Clinton supporter and an attorney loudly voiced suspicion that Obama was not born in the U.S., could be a Muslim, could be a dual citizen..around that time. Those individuals were not part of Clinton's campaign.
Despite all kinds of birther investigations, nothing has been found to link Clinton or her campaign to starting it, only speculation and people drawing their own conclusions when it comes to links and coincidence.
Donald Trump, who tried to keep the birther conspiracy theory alive long after Obama was in office and even after the long-form birth certificate was released, is now pointing the finger at Clinton when he and Carson are criticized for perceived anti-Muslim philosophies. To me, Trump looks foolish trying to deflect like that when hit up about it; evidence of his direct accusations and birther campaign can be found in all kinds of print and video, straight from the horse's mouth.
(09-23-2015, 04:09 PM)Jimbone Wrote: She can try to run from it all she wants, but the history is there. Her campaign was imploding in 2008, so she pulled out all the stops. Just fucking own it for crying out loud.
I haven't seen her running from it. It's possible that she is denying it and not fucking owning it, when asked, because it's simply false. If anything had ever been discovered (or is ever discovered) directly linking Clinton to starting or driving the birther conspiracy, history might look to everyone like it looks to you.
Personally, I wouldn't be surprised if Clinton and other 2008 presidential hopefuls had hoped those early birther rumors bore some meat so that a formidable opponent could have been disqualified. But, that doesn't make them guilty of orchestrating the birther conspiracy theory, of course.
Refs:
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/...act-check/
http://dailycaller.com/2015/02/21/flashb...as-i-know/
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/a...story.html