Birtherism: The monster that ate the GOP
Top Republican leaders have begun a belated effort to squash the birther theory that threatens to define their party as a bunch of lunatics, at least among those many Americans who don’t share the obsessions of the GOP base.
But I have no sympathy, because they brought this on themselves.
As far back as the 2008 campaign, the core of the Republican marketing strategy has been to discredit Barack Obama by depicting him as the much-feared “other” — an unAmerican, even anti-American, Muslim, anti-colonial socialist Kenyan, etc. The notion never really penetrated the general population, but among much of the GOP base it has grown into an article of faith, as much a sign of Republican fealty as a no-tax pledge and the adoration of Ronald Reagan. From its humble beginnings in the fertile imaginations of Orly Taitz and others, it has become the GOP’s Frankenstein, a monstrous creation that they no longer control and in fact now fear.
It has, for example, given them a nightmare called Donald Trump, who has used the birther issue to rise to near-frontrunner status among potential GOP presidential candidates. But remember, Trump did not create that sentiment; opportunist that he is, he merely tapped into what was already there. In fact, by saying outright what other GOP candidates had been coyly suggesting or hinting at, he kind of gave the game away. He made explicit what the party establishment had tried to keep implicit, and by doing so forced them to finally confront it.
But it may be too late. Just this week, a New York Times poll found that 45 percent of Republican voters profess to believe that Obama was born elsewhere; only 33 percent would admit the truth, that he was born in Hawaii. (A Fox News poll earlier this month showed similar numbers).
In Arizona, the arch-conservative governor, Jan Brewer, was forced to veto a bill this week that would have required Obama to produce his “long-form” birth certificate to get on that state’s ballot in 2012. The bill had passed the Arizona House 40-18 and the Senate 20-9.
In Louisiana, Gov. Bobby Jindal has announced he will sign such a bill if it reaches his desk. Oklahoma is about to pass such a law as well.
And here in Georgia, of course, state Rep. Mark Hatfield initially enlisted a majority of his House colleagues to sign on as cosponsors of a birther bill until saner heads prevailed. But Hatfield hasn’t given up:
“If one state passes, and the Obama administration basically ignores the requirement and does not qualify for the ballot in that state, that would send a very strong signal that we have a situation in the United States where someone who is not eligible is occupying the White House,” the Waycross Republican said this week, noting that “other states, including Georgia, have a duty to step up.” Such legislation is guaranteed to keep the issue in the political spotlight.
The point man for the GOP establishment’s effort to repudiate its illegitimate offspring has been Karl Rove, which itself is telling. Rove doesn’t have to run for anything, and he risks nothing with his unequivocal repudiation of birtherism. But party figures, including presidential hopefuls, who are dependent on the GOP base for votes don’t dare to be so blunt about the ridiculous nature of the charge.
Rove, in fact, has even tried to suggest that the whole thing is some plot against the GOP concocted by the White House, which would be very cool if true. Alas, it is not. Others on the right have demanded that the president save them from themselves by doing something, anything, that would end the debate. But why? If your opposition is self-destructing, why on earth would you come to their rescue?
Besides, nothing Obama could say or do would end this thing, as political scientist David Redlawsk of Rutgers University explains:
“The reality is that “facts” are unlikely to mean much to those who believe in their gut that Obama is not American. Political psychologists call this “motivated reasoning.” It goes something like this: I dislike someone; I learn something positive that should make me feel better about him; instead, I dislike him as much or even more. This is clearly irrational, but our feelings about people are complicated, and we tend to hold on to them even in the face of contradictory information. This is not unique to those who dislike Obama.
We are all somewhat impervious to new information, preferring the beliefs in which we are already invested. We often ignore new contradictory information, actively argue against it or discount its source, all in an effort to maintain existing evaluations. Reasoning away contradictions this way is psychologically easier than revising our feelings. In this sense, our emotions color how we perceive “facts.”….
In the case of President Obama, people who already dislike him at a gut level have little motivation to revise their beliefs, whether about his place of birth or, as we have found in other research, the persisting belief that he is Muslim. It’s not the evidence that matters. Feelings come first, and evidence is used mostly in service of those feelings. Evidence that supports what is already believed is accepted, that which contradicts it is not.
So the smart bet is that the birthplace issue, the Muslim issue, and any other ways in which Obama can be portrayed as outside the mainstream are not going away. And no amount of data to the contrary will change that for some people. The simple reality is people feel before they think. And when those feelings are strong enough, facts take a back seat.”
Having created a political movement around such “motivated reasoning” in which emotion substitutes for fact, the masterminds of the GOP now have to deal with its consequences.
It’s downright entertaining, don’t you think?
-- Jay Bookman
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
675 comments Add your comment
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
1:45 pm
HDB….how do you know that presidents didnt have to prove their citizenship. Shame on everyone if they didnt.
I am sure if Arnold ran the first thing the left would do is bring up his citizenship.
Has nothing to do with race or the society in which we live.
Logical Dude
April 22nd, 2011
1:45 pm
GOP Monster says : “The Truth Will Prevail!”
. . . . aaaaaaand you already missed the boat.! The President was born in Hawaii. He is eligible to be President of the United States of America, and was elected as such.
That’s the truth, and it prevails!
Lawrence
April 22nd, 2011
1:45 pm
Jay..
When they speak of great minds, yours should be omitted. Is there a Republican that you don’t hate?
Or a Democrat that you don’t absolutely love?
According to your blogs, the answer is no in both cases.
RB from Gwinnett
April 22nd, 2011
1:46 pm
“He was born in Hawaii cons but you can’t let it go.”
You’ll have to excuse us if we don’t take your word for that, getaclue. We’d like to see some proof.
How many of you liberals believed Clinton when he said “I did not have sex with that woman, Ms Lewenski” too? You probably still believe all the other Clinton victims were lying too because they never produced a stained blue dress with his DNA on it.
Perhaps you believe only becasue you want to believe and not because of any evidenc you have to support your belief???
buck@gon
April 22nd, 2011
1:46 pm
POSTED TO AUGMENT AN EARLIER ARGUMENT:
Cynthia,
So, the Democrat mantra is, as your “wise” colleague, Jay Bookman said, is to (to borrow his phrase) “hold a gun” to the head of the economy and demand your preferred hope and change.
“Perhaps we’ll get serious when gas reaches ten dollars a gallon.”
You’re making me laugh, Tucker. Maybe….. Maybe…… just maybe the ajc will get serious and hire an editorial editor with insight, intelligence and the notion that truth is a value universal in application and that sophistry is just worthless.
Many of the articles you write are worthy of correction, but this one…it is difficult to know where to begin. I humbly suggest that correction commence with your immediate firing / resignation.
GOP Monster
April 22nd, 2011
1:47 pm
LD. Don’t be so logical. We’re dealing with emotions here.
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
1:47 pm
Having run on the issues back in November 2010, and taken a beat-down the likes of which this country has rarely seen, the left is desperate to make the upcoming 2012 elections all about ANYTHING but issues. And, like a good liberal media lapdog, Bookman has clearly received his marching orders from the DNC.
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
1:48 pm
RB….nice!
larry
April 22nd, 2011
1:48 pm
This is just the latest in a series of lies and distortions that come up every time a Democrat becomes president. Remember what they said about Clinton, whitewater and he shot Vincent Foster or Vincent Foster was having an affair with Hillary. All of that was proven false , just like this nonsense. I , for one, cant understand the so-called newschannels infactuation with this.
He was born in the U.S. in the state of Hawaii on Aug. 4, 1961. Case closed . Time to move on.
Misty Fyed
April 22nd, 2011
1:48 pm
Weren’t we hearing this nonsense about the death of the GOP leading into the last election? Keep dreaming Jay.
buck@gon
April 22nd, 2011
1:48 pm
Given all the uproarious defense of Obama-as-US-citizen, and given the dreck published in this ajc in defense of HIM, one wonders if indeed, the left-wing conspiracy is not some washed up group of demons, intent upon obfuscating for the one born of a jackal.
GOP Monster
April 22nd, 2011
1:48 pm
Look, on the upside, at least the guy’s from Kenya. It could’ve been Zimbabwe, and that would’ve been a real disaster. Though, then he might’ve learned the benefits of capitalism.
Oh well.
mm
April 22nd, 2011
1:49 pm
UGA,
You are full of it. You shouldn’t trash the good name of UGA with your posted garbage. The economy was losing 700,000 jobs a month before Bush left office. And he pushed his debt total to $5 trillion when he signed TARP.
You are a blind partisan hack. And don’t call me one. I’m an independant. You know, one of the voters both parties try so hard to get. But the GOP has lost their mind, and the indie vote.
USMC
April 22nd, 2011
1:49 pm
“Harry 1:43, I’ve tried a bite or two. Not always tasty. Depends on which parts of the GOP you’re dining on.”GOP Monster
GMonster, please keep your alternative lifestyle to yourself:-)
Atlanta 1
April 22nd, 2011
1:50 pm
Wasted time and energy on all’s part.
At the end of the day – if’s a Birth Cerficate of Certificate of Birth (and there is a BIG difference) – it doesn’t matter. He’s the guy who will be in office and running for re-election.
When election time comes around, the Republicans will have settled on a candidate.
The economy will decide this. If gas is $5.00 and gallon and we are struggling along with 8 percent or higher unemployment – he’ll lose.
If gas is floating around $3.50 a gallon and unemployment is in the 7′S – he’ll win.
Unless he does something ‘really stupid’ – and he will not. Already moving toward the center.
Unless the Republican does/says something ‘really stupid’ – which those odds depend on the ‘republican’
To Christians… Happy Good Friday and have a blessed Easter Weekend. “He has risen”
mm
April 22nd, 2011
1:50 pm
“How many of you liberals believed Clinton when he said “I did not have sex with that woman, Ms Lewenski” too?”
Nobody cared but the wingnuts.
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
1:51 pm
MM….again you need to read…
startthinkingright.wordpress.com/…/why-is-american-unemployment-under- obama-rising-faster-than-in-other-countries/
“blind partisan hack”….here comes the name calling! I WIN!!
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
1:51 pm
“The problem is that PRIOR to president Obama, NO President/Presidential candidate had to authenticate his American citizenship”
No, the problem is that PRIOR to president Obama, we never hada president who claims to be an American and a Christian, but changed his name from Barry Soetoro to Barack Hussein Obama. Prior to president Obama, we never had a president who doesn’t seem to have any childhood friends or teachers or yearbook photos or anything.
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
1:51 pm
mm……ever hear of purjury?
BMDPD
April 22nd, 2011
1:51 pm
Liberalism: The Monster that Destroyed the United States!
Libertarian
April 22nd, 2011
1:52 pm
“He’s already created more jobs”
And how did he do that? Wave his magic wand?
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
1:52 pm
mm….when obama took office unemployment was around 7.5% now it is at 9.6%.
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
1:53 pm
Libertarian…..hahahaah good one.
Logical Dude
April 22nd, 2011
1:53 pm
RB says: “You’ll have to excuse us if we don’t take your word for that”
You mean you won’t accept the legal copy of the document that the STATE OF HAWAII issues to confirm the birth place of the President?
Well, if you won’t accept THAT then, really, you must fall into the camp of “i don’t like him SO much, I’ll believe what I want to believe and no evidence will dissuade me from it!”
Another Question: “How many of you liberals believed Clinton when he said “I did not have sex with that woman, Ms Lewenski” too?”
Well, you have to get the quote correct first: “I did not have sexual relations with that woman.”
Oh, I knew IMMEDIATELY when I heard that, and the use of the phrase “sexual relations” that SOMETHING SEXUAL happened. Anyone who knew the president would also know of Clinton’s particular use of vocabulary and his own definitions of phrases to know that something happened.
Now, can you show me ANY EVIDENCE that the President was NOT born in Hawaii?
BMDPD
April 22nd, 2011
1:53 pm
Gm, I will gladly dispute your trash statement.
AmVet - A conservative is a man with two perfectly good legs who, however, has never learned how to walk forward. ~Franklin D. Roosevelt
April 22nd, 2011
1:53 pm
“…and taken a beat-down the likes of which this country has rarely seen…”
Alas, such conveniently short memories.
Would it be similar to those back to back humiliations of 2006 and 2008?
Whereby the GOP lost a jaw-dropping 93% of all the contested races for the United States Congress, state houses and of course, the White House.
Including a never-to-be repeated ZERO for 36 in 2006. A clean sweep against the neo-cons.
Surely you reactionaries remember all of that, right?
Jay
April 22nd, 2011
1:53 pm
Hilarious.
You guys really are hilarious.
Keep Up the Good Fight!
April 22nd, 2011
1:54 pm
Wow the cons are showing their inability to have rational thought today. Presented with actual facts they cannot contradict they blame others, claim something is fishy, demand proof (while not addressing the evidence existing) and claim their victimhood.
What was the quote from Jay’s blog the other day: You can fix ignorance but stupid is forever.
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
1:55 pm
AmVet….NOPE….2010 was MUCH greater!! AMEN!
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
1:55 pm
Anybody else notice that during the Bush administration, Bookman wrote daily about budget deficits, tax policy, and foreign wars, but now with his hero Barack Obama failing miserably at every facet of his job, Bookman is curiously fixated on a few extremists and long-shot GOP presidential candidates, and seems not to know or care about any of the serious current political issues in this country?
Dave R.
April 22nd, 2011
1:55 pm
“hmm. so you don’t find yourself more in agreement with Trump’s views on topics of “substance” than you would’ve, say, eight years ago?”
No, stands, since I don’t agree with his pro-life stance. However, if the Donald says that Hope & Punt ™ is the worst President ever, I’m glad he finally came around to my way of thinking.
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
1:55 pm
Keep…..yep he got that from my pal Ron White (Comedian).
itpdude
April 22nd, 2011
1:56 pm
I despise the Tea Party and the GOP, but just one question: How difficult is it to produce a birth certificate to put this issue to bed once and for all?
GOP Monster
April 22nd, 2011
1:57 pm
USMC 1:49 sorry. But I don’t get to eat very often, low metabolism you know.
On this month’s menu is Mitt. May is roasted Tim Pawlenty. June is Huntsman with Hollandaise. July is marinated Mitch Daniels.
I haven’t quite arranged the order for Huckabee, Palin, Bachmann. They’ll be the last to go. Trump will be dessert sometime after the primaries are over.
Eating once a month is such a bummer. But the current occupant of the White House is busy eating businesses daily for breakfast lunch and dinner. Such a pig. I’ll be much less gluttonous in my eating habits if we can just get the turkey in chief out of office.
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
1:57 pm
“What was the quote from Jay’s blog the other day: You can fix ignorance but stupid is forever.”
Yeah Keep Up, and YOU are the poster child for that statement. Want me to post a link to your ignorant bleatings that just because the Duke Lacrosse players were exonerated doesn’t mean they aren’t guilty?
LMAO
Thulsa Doom
April 22nd, 2011
1:57 pm
Jay,
If it really bothers liberals and Obama that much why doesn’t he just release the complete birth certificate and shut the birthers up? Seems to me he could make them look really foolish by doing so. Or is he not releasing his certificate in a cynical attempt to keep the controversy going? I’ll go with the cynical attempt to keep the controversy going.
Logical Dude
April 22nd, 2011
1:58 pm
In regard to the phrase “I did no have sexual relations with that woman”, and all of the other apologetic politicians when found with a woman. . .
I am waiting for the day when a politician comes out and says “Hoooo boy! I sure did! It was great! And I’ll do it again!”
Dave R.
April 22nd, 2011
1:58 pm
I’ll repeat to you birthers on Jay’s blog.
Hope & Punt ™ was downloaded from the womb of an American citizen, thereby automatically making him an American citizen.
Got it?
Case closed.
Move on.
kevin
April 22nd, 2011
1:58 pm
RB from Gwinnett,
There is nothing but evidence to support the fact that Obama was born in Hawaii and NO evidence to the contrary. See my post at 1:41.
Atlanta 1,
In the state of Hawaii, no citizen can get a copy of a birth certificate–only a certificate of live birth. There is no difference.
Del
April 22nd, 2011
1:58 pm
I would be more concerned with his Muslim upbringing and he’s known associations with far-left radicals than I would be his actual birth place. I’m not so much concerned with those areas as I am now about his dismal incompetency that’s holding this country back. While I believe it’s likely he will be a one term president, he can still do a lot more damage in the balance of time he has remaining in this first term.
Logical Dude
April 22nd, 2011
1:58 pm
Thulsa,
He issued what the State of Hawaii issues. Why does ANYONE have a problem with that?
Keep Up the Good Fight!
April 22nd, 2011
1:59 pm
Harry, do you know about the president that is thought to have been born in Canada (you can look it up yourself). But let’s just get it out there. He was not “hated” by one party for absurdities like his religion, race or some other factor to make him illegitimate.
Paul
April 22nd, 2011
1:59 pm
A real test of whether or not Republicans will field a candidate capable of winning the Nov election will be the Party’s treatment of Romney. His opponents may lay off the religion issue. They may even grudgingly accept the notion that they’re supposed to believe states should run their own affairs (the health care thing) and that governors should be responsive to their constituents. But if they all turn on him over his denunciation of birther conspiracies, then Obama’s on his way to another four years.
Republicans should be careful. One can shoot oneself in the foot only so many times before one can no longer walk.
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
1:59 pm
“How difficult is it to produce a birth certificate to put this issue to bed once and for all?”
Pretty difficult if you don’t have one.
Or, stated another way, about as difficult as producing photo ID at a polling place, another concept that causes liberal to soil their undies at the mere thought….
GOP Monster
April 22nd, 2011
2:00 pm
Our OBC team is also very concerned that Karl Marx himself was Obama’s great grandfather. Oyyyyy.
williebkind
April 22nd, 2011
2:01 pm
It is a conspiracy! The liberals put those documents in just prior to his nomination by the DNC as the presidential candidate. Lets check the age of the documents. The age of the paper should tell us something. I do not trust liberals! They are violate when they dont get their way so this not beyond their radical approach to win at any cost.
Keep Up the Good Fight!
April 22nd, 2011
2:01 pm
Harry…buffoonery and lies get you no where… we know you can not be fixed.
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
2:01 pm
“Harry, do you know about the president that is thought to have been born in Canada ”
No, but I know what “exonerated” means.
Logical Dude
April 22nd, 2011
2:01 pm
itpdude says:’How difficult is it to produce a birth certificate to put this issue to bed once and for all?”
Well, evidently, some people don’t believe that the State Produced document showing the information is valid. I’m still trying to figure out why that is.
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
2:02 pm
“Harry…buffoonery and lies get you no where”
You ought to know!
Gm
April 22nd, 2011
2:03 pm
BMDPD Ok, How conservatives with money beside trump and other minorities in this country trashing the President of the United States?
Blacks disagreed with Bush most did not like him but did you see any of thing trying to degrade the President?
This tell people around the world who love America and who does not.
GOP Monster
April 22nd, 2011
2:03 pm
Logical Dude 2:01 – I’ve already eaten the newspapers showing his birth announcement, as well as the whole Hawaii State Department of Records. Both tasted pretty chalky to be honest. Lots of fiber though.
Paul
April 22nd, 2011
2:03 pm
itpdude
“just one question: How difficult is it to produce a birth certificate to put this issue to bed once and for all?”
I’m afraid even that wouldn’t settle things for them. See, they’ve spent all this time writing about “your GOD Obama” that unless the “Father” line says “Elohim” or “God” or some such, then they won’t be happy. They’ll just start asking God to prove He really is God and it’ll just never end…..
kevin
April 22nd, 2011
2:03 pm
Harry Callahan,
According to the Director of Health in Hawaii, he does have a birth certificate. But, birth certificates are not released to the public in Hawaii–only certificates of live birth. Read my post at 1:41. Also, two independent Hawaiian newspapers have birth announcements of Barack Obama when he was born. So, I suppose this conspiracy dates back to 1961 and we can add 2 local newspapers to the list of conspirators.
For all of you still suggesting Obama was not born in this country, despite overwhelming evidence, you are just embarassing yourselves.
Keep Up the Good Fight!
April 22nd, 2011
2:03 pm
How many times do you have to say: Hawaii says he was born there and all that can be obtained by state law by the President has been posted.
Where’s the evidence from the GOP birther circus clowns?
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
2:03 pm
THULSA….>YOU ARE A LIAR!!! HERE IS THE VIDEO…
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=ec0_1303444048
You my dear should be banned from breathing….
GOP Monster
April 22nd, 2011
2:04 pm
I love America! Americans taste good. Doc says they’re fatty though, so I’m trying to cut back. Europeans are healthier.
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
2:04 pm
Maybe somebody should have Dan Rather look for Obama’s birth certificate. He had no trouble locating George W. Bush’s Texas Air Guard personnel documents.
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
2:05 pm
Gm…..didnt see the left degrade the president(W)? Really you guys are still doing it today. Wow you guys are such liars.
It is no wonder none of you can be taken seriously.
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
2:05 pm
“For all of you still suggesting Obama was not born in this country, despite overwhelming evidence, you are just embarassing yourselves.”
Maybe you should tell Chris Matthews over at MSNBC, because he said he’d like Obama to produce it too.
GOP Monster
April 22nd, 2011
2:05 pm
“For all of you still suggesting Obama was not born in this country, despite overwhelming evidence, you are just embarassing yourselves.”
Suggesting? Hardly. We are fast on the track to hunt down his Kenyan Birth Certificate. Give us a few more quarters…, at most a year or two.
larry
April 22nd, 2011
2:05 pm
Ask Michelle Bachmann if he has a real certificate. I loved the look on her face when George held up the Presidents birth certificate.
USMC
April 22nd, 2011
2:06 pm
“On this month’s menu is Mitt. May is roasted Tim Pawlenty. June is Huntsman with Hollandaise. July is marinated Mitch Daniels.”-GOP Monster
Yeah, I think GOP Senator Larry Graig is trying to break in line:-)
Paul
April 22nd, 2011
2:06 pm
Afternoon, Dave R.
“Case closed. Move on.”
You’re actually trying to invoke the Constitution in your arguments with hard right Republicans?!!?
Let me know how that works out for ya -
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
2:06 pm
“According to the Director of Health in Hawaii, he does have a birth certificate. But, birth certificates are not released to the public in Hawaii”
How convenient.
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
2:06 pm
Gm….also learn proper english!
Gm
April 22nd, 2011
2:06 pm
Gm
April 22nd, 2011
2:03 pm
BMDPD
How many conservatives with money besides trump and other minorties in this country do you see trashing the President of the United States ?
Blacks disagreed with Bush most did not like him but did you see any of thiem trying to degrade the President?
This tell people around the world who love America and who does not.
Keep Up the Good Fight!
April 22nd, 2011
2:07 pm
larry, that was funny. She squirmed and squirmed. But she’ll backtrack
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
2:07 pm
“You’re actually trying to invoke the Constitution in your arguments with hard right Republicans?!!?”
Yeah, it’s kind of like liberals and guns, or liberals and government-mandated health care, or liberals and private property right, or………………………………
larry
April 22nd, 2011
2:08 pm
He had no trouble locating George W. Bush’s Texas Air Guard personnel documents.
Speaking of which, has anyone located George’s Alabama Air National Guard documents ?
Or did he just skip out when he wanted to. To work on a political campign ?
Barack Obama
April 22nd, 2011
2:08 pm
In my dreams I was born in Kenya
Dave R.
April 22nd, 2011
2:09 pm
You know me, Paul. Just trying to bring a spark of sanity into the insane world of the Bookman blog.
Our host included!
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
2:09 pm
“Speaking of which, has anyone located George’s Alabama Air National Guard documents ? ”
I dunno. Anybody seen Obama’s college transcripts?
RB from Gwinnett
April 22nd, 2011
2:09 pm
I love how the simpletons in the crew want to pretend nobody knows about the difference in the long form and short form birth certificates issued in Hawaii at the time.
We know he showed his short form. Nobody is arguing that. Stop telling us he showed his short form birth certificate.
The long form birth certificate, the one that says what hospital he was born in and the name of the attending physician, etc. is being hidden for some completely unknown reason. I have no idea if it says he was born in China, had 2 mothers, is from Mars or what. Why is he hiding that and why is he hiding his college thesis. In fact, why is pretty much everything about the man’s past being hidden?
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
2:09 pm
Anybody seen the Rose Law Firm billing records?
TaxPayer
April 22nd, 2011
2:09 pm
I’d like to give this “motivated reasoning” a shot with Republicans but I’ve yet to hear anything positive about them so I can put it to the test.
Gm
April 22nd, 2011
2:10 pm
UGA1999
I’m sorry typing to fast: ” just as fast as the the Gators own you losers 19 out of 21 ””””
Jay
April 22nd, 2011
2:10 pm
I remember the days when only Scout would spout such nonsense. Now look at how the virus has spread. Somebody call the CDC, we need an outbreak investigation.
kevin
April 22nd, 2011
2:10 pm
Birthing Clowns,
What don’t you understand about Hawaiian law prohibits the public release of birth certificates accept when legislated by the courts with probable cause! NO person born in Hawaii can request a copy of his or her birth certificate and get anything but a certificate of live birth.
Pure and simple, those who think Barack Obama was not born in this country choose to do so despite absolutely NO evidence to the contrary–way to be objective. These same people probably think Bush administration did not lie about WMDs to get us to go to war in Iraq, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. Way to go!
larry
April 22nd, 2011
2:10 pm
I see where Nevada’s swinging Senator is resigning immediately .
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
2:10 pm
Harry….they cant even find any of his yearbook pictures or transcripts from high school. There is also no record of his financials for college.
Dave R.
April 22nd, 2011
2:10 pm
“He had no trouble locating George W. Bush’s Texas Air Guard personnel documents.”
You mean the one’s that were proven to be faked, larry?
‘Cause they WERE fakes.
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
2:11 pm
Anybody seen the contents of Vince Foster’s office?
Logical Dude
April 22nd, 2011
2:11 pm
Harry,
Some of your comments seem to indicate you have doubts about the document the State of Hawaii issued to Obama.
Really, I want to hear you say it out loud “I don’t think Obama was born in Hawaii, and the document is a fake”.
Or, I want you to say it out loud “I know it’s real document, Obama was born in Hawaii, but it’s gets better ratings to say that it could be a fake and deflect actual progress”.
Otherwise, I don’t see how anyone can believe it’s completely faked.
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
2:11 pm
Gm….i know you didnt go to school there. SO you are just someone who stares at the television and pulls for a school that you have no affiliation with? Great job!
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
2:12 pm
kevin…..that does not stop him from releasing it.
Brian
April 22nd, 2011
2:12 pm
The Birthers will shut when the 9/11 Truthers shut up
Joe
April 22nd, 2011
2:12 pm
It certainly is the narrative of far lefty’s like you Jay to keep bringing this up. The American people are much smarter than you give them credit for though. You people are the ones who bring it up in every single interview with a Republican. I don’t hear Hannity, Greta, or O’Reilly talking about this crap. The folks are obviously realizing who the real lunatics are based on last November elections. People want to hear about how we’re going to fix the economy and what to do about these outrageous gas prices that Obama helped create. It almost makes you left freaks seem childish and immature because you don’t want to talk about the issues facing the nation. I think most people would agree that Obama’s birth certificate is close to the bottom of the list for priorities right now.
Paul
April 22nd, 2011
2:12 pm
Dave R
“Our host included! ”
Just couldn’t resist, could ya?
I got a kick out of the way Jay said he wished Democrats were clever enough to have planned this. As it is, Republicans did it all by themselves. Frankly, I’m surprised at how long it took the party strategists to say “oh, nuts, what have we done?!!?”
kevin
April 22nd, 2011
2:12 pm
RB from Gwinnett,
It’s not being hidden. NO ONE IN HI can get a personal copy of his or her birth certificate except under legislative order. There has been no such order in the case of Obama, b/c only right wing yahoos are persuing this nonsense.
GOP Monster
April 22nd, 2011
2:12 pm
“Somebody call the CDC, we need an outbreak investigation.”
You can’t hope to contain me. Skynet is everywhere.
larry
April 22nd, 2011
2:12 pm
Did anyone actually see the informant named ” Curveball” ?
More lies
April 22nd, 2011
2:12 pm
Someone please enlighten me on “all the money” President Obama has spent to keep his birth certificate from being released. Money spent on what??
Keep Up the Good Fight!
April 22nd, 2011
2:12 pm
“According to the Director of Health in Hawaii, he does have a birth certificate. But, birth certificates are not released to the public in Hawaii”
How convenient
____
Yes Obama the baby had Hawaii put in their statutes that requirement years and in other states, Its all part of the conspiracy. Even the baby Obama can outsmart birthers.
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
2:12 pm
The truth is that yes, I believe he was born in Hawaii. I just want to know why he is so secretive and is so undocumented.
Dave R.
April 22nd, 2011
2:13 pm
“I see where Nevada’s swinging Senator is resigning immediately ”
Yeah, Republicans vacate their seats when caught.
Anybody know what Charlie Rangel is doing these days? Oh, that’s right! STIIL in office . . .
‘Nuff said!
AmVet - A conservative is a man with two perfectly good legs who, however, has never learned how to walk forward. ~Franklin D. Roosevelt
April 22nd, 2011
2:14 pm
Gm, LOL.
Which may explain why most of the dawgs here have such incredible difficulty with math, English critical thinking skills, history, science and on and on and on…
Harry Callahan
April 22nd, 2011
2:14 pm
“Pure and simple, those who think Barack Obama was not born in this country choose to do so despite absolutely NO evidence to the contrary”
No evidence to the contrary would mean no evidence that he WAS boirn in this country.
Read/write much?
Keep Up the Good Fight!
April 22nd, 2011
2:14 pm
ug…yes it does. Do learn the law. You’re incurable.
UGA1999
April 22nd, 2011
2:14 pm
AmVet….where did you go? honestly?