NEWSWEEK: "Obama's Pesky 'Muslim' Problem"

[Maddy McCall]

snip/

Over the past few months, it's become clear that there are some shady people out there bent on spreading the claim----completely, inarguably, demonstrably false--that Obama is a "crypto-Muslim Manchurian candidate." It started with a set of untraceable viral emails, which say that “Barack Hussein Obama has joined the United Church of Christ in an attempt to downplay his Muslim background" and ask “Can a good Muslim become a good American?" (the answer, they add, is no). And it has continued with trolls like "HolyRoller," a monomaniacal individual now infecting the "He's One of Us Now" comment board, where he's busy posing questions like "To all you Obama supporters: Is he Shiite or Sunni?" and lamenting "how foolish we have become" now that "a large segment of our population wants one of the devils to be their President"--despite the fact that my article had nothing whatsoever to do with Obama's religious background. The Obama campaign has been waging a determined, low-intensity war against the smear since January 2007, and the candidate himself has repeatedly weighed in. His typical response? "The American people are, I think, smarter than folks give them credit for."

He's mostly right. If Obama wins the Democratic nomination, he'll have plenty of time before Election Day to tell voters that he's been "a member of the same church, the same Christian church, for almost 20 years"--enough, I'm sure, to reach all but the most willful bigots (who probably wouldn't vote for him anyway). But what if correcting the record isn't the problem? After a few months on the trail, I'm starting to suspect that swing voters worried about terrorism won't be willing to "take a risk" on someone who has ANY links to the Muslim world--as irrelevant as those links may be. Over the past two months, I've had at least a dozen people respond to my rote question--What do you think of Barack Obama?--by worrying aloud about his "Muslim background." I'm always quick to tell them that he's not a Muslim, but it rarely makes a difference. Take Vicki Hercsky, 47, a teacher from Boca Raton, Florida. "Obama, I don't even know how he got where he is," she told me after a Rudy Giuliani event late last month. "Why do you say that?" I asked. "He's Muslim," she replied, matter-of-factly. I stammered. "Well, um, his father was raised Muslim but was an agnostic by the time Barack was born," I said. "Obama is a Christian." Hercsky wasn't swayed. "Yeah, but he has it in his blood," she said. "You can't take away what's given to you. It's given to you for a reason, and that's who you are. That's who he is." I'm not sure what she meant by "it," or "who he is"--and I'm not sure I want to know.

In a general election battle, the macho, militaristic McCain would make a mighty effort to focus voters' attention on national security. He'd contrast his experience--"I've been involved in every major national security issue for the last 20 years, and in some ways the last 40," he's fond of saying--with Obama's rather light foreign policy resume. And he'd deploy the phrase "radical Islamic extremism" whenever possible. In that kind of contest, Obama doesn't want moderate Republicans--voters he hopes to add to his "coalition for change"--wondering whether he's "an Islamic sympathizer," in HolyRoller's ignorant formulation, or even listening to Rush Limbaugh repeat "Hussein" (the senator's middle name) over and over again. It's not like national-security voters need to believe that Obama is a practicing Muslim; they just need to suspect that he's not as strongly "anti-Muslim" as McCain. I've seen how easy it is to sow those seeds of doubt--and how tenaciously they blossom. To decide solely on such irrelevant innuendo would be stupid. But people do stupid things when they're scared, and after hearing what I've heard on the trail, I'm not so sure that some of them wouldn't decide that way regardless.

http://www.blog.newsweek.com/blogs/stumper/archive/2008/02/11/obama-s-pesky-muslim-problem.aspx

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

1. Another good thing about the Obama candidacy...

we're going to be able to expose and denounce an awful lot of bigots that would have otherwise flown under the radar.

[Maddy McCall]

2. Never overestimate the intellect of the American voter.

The woman in this article...just awestruck that people are so stupid and closed to all of the information that's available about Obama showing this smear to be false.

[K Gardner]

27. Never overestimate the IQ of the average DU poster. I'd look at your tripe and guess around 80.

[Maddy McCall]

28. A PhD with an IQ of 80...

I must be an American success story, then.

:rofl:

[Cha]

79. Having a PhD doesn't make you

all that..and like the poster said, "tripe".

[Maddy McCall]

87. Of course it doesn't.

But it certainly demonstrates that I have an IQ above 80.

As for the "tripe" comment, I'm sure I'll cry myself to sleep tonight.

:cry:

[girl gone mad]

56. Maddy's been here for years,

through thick and thin, fighting for answers and accountability on some of the darkest days of our democracy.

I don't know who you are, I've never noticed you before, but I can vouch for this tough, smart woman.

[Maddy McCall]

57. Awww....

Thank you. :hug:

[girl gone mad]

95. Welcome.

10-percenters stick together. :)

[Shine]

85. Maddy's been here a long time. Your attack is not cool.

:thumbdown:

[Maddy McCall]

89. Thank you.

I'm getting immune to it.

:hug:

[Danger Mouse]

94. Not cool. I respect Maddy.

...though I may not agree with her.

[pampango]

31. Never underestimate their intellect either. It's probably somewhere in between.

Like most of us. ;)

[NCarolinawoman]

48. I had a surprising, and a bit disheartening discussion with my banker concerning this.

I had always considered her to be "somewhat" intelligent.

We were talking politics in her office and she was trying to decide whether to vote for Hillary or McCain. She is a Republican fiscal conservative type. She had voted for Bush but no longer can stand him for the devaluing of the dollar, national debt, corruption,etc. We were both having a good time trashing Bush.

She told me that she liked Hillary because Hillary is "smart and tough". I said, "What about Obama?"
She said, "No, I can't get past his Muslim background". I said that "He is a practicing Christian". She said, "No, no, I can't get past it. It's his background." She made a gesture like, "Don't even argue this with me".

[ginnyinWI]

71. this "Muslim bad, Christian good" mentality is so wrong!

People just don't know the history of how bad Christians can be. Muslims too--don't misunderstand. Some of the worst things have been done to others in the name of religion.


That said and agreed to--we will never convince the 25-percenters.

[Labors of Hercules]

88. The problem is "faith" in politics, period...

"Faith: Belief without evidence in what is told by one who speaks without knowledge, of things without parallel."
~Ambrose Bierce

[Starbucks Anarchist]

90. The fact that she's a teacher is scary.

[Deep13]

5. Yeah, but we'll be exposing them to folks who think the same way.

Even if he were a Muslim, I would not care as long as he were a secular one. I feel the same way about Christians.

This is a completely unfair scare tactic, but it will work. As the OP said, the public will not take a chance on someone with a weird name who is "half Muslim" when there is a perfectly good white-bread war hero as an alternative.

[EmperorHasNoClothes]

3. Are they going to bring out the Carbomb Veterans for Truth?

:eyes:

[Deep13]

6. *snicker**smirk*

Now that's just awful!
:rofl:

[Deep13]

9. *snicker**smirk*

Now that's just awful!
:rofl:

[Name removed]

12. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[LostinVA]

21. Are you referring to teh OP, because if so, you're out of line

I've known her on here for several years, and although we've butted heads more than a few times, she is not a "shitboater." She is a good progressive.

And guess what? She's an EDWARDS supporter.

[Kaylee]

4. "Yeah, but he has it in his blood"

Ugh! Americans are so stupid....If McCain wins, we deserve the government we get. Wake me when we bomb Iran.

[Maddy McCall]

10. That's the line that made me gasp.

I was in a quick stop the other day. The two rubes behind the counter were saying exactly the same thing. They were making jokes about Hillary, too.

Not everyone has an internet connection at home, I guess, to look up these rumors and find out if they're true.

[Nickster]

7. I don't understand how these "journalists" get to repeat this "completely, inarguably, demonstrably

false" claim over and over and over again.

[cottonseed]

36. So much discussion, they ran out of space for the word "lies".

Tom Toles:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/opinions/cartoonsandvideos/toles_main.html?name=Toles&date=11302007

[bullwinkle428]

8. "he has it in his blood" - clearly code for "you know we can't trust

them brown folk...they'll stick it to us fine white Christians the first chance they get!" :puke:

The really sick thing about this quote is that it comes from a TEACHER - I'd be pulling my kids out of that class/school if they had the unfortunate experience of being students of hers...

[Nickster]

11. Exactly, they always use the code speak for what they really mean. You nailed it.

[Maddy McCall]

16. I agree.

Wonder how she handles the children who come through her classroom who ARE Muslim.

[Danger Mouse]

53. Disgust, shame, and guilt, most likely.

:puke:

[Whisp]

13. fucking disgraceful post.

you should be fucking ashamed.

[FrenchieCat]

18. She's not. And this smear on Obama and her wondering whether I bathe

appears to be what is most important for this poster......

Just remember this.

Cause that's what I'm doing.

[panader0]

14. What a crock of shit!

First of all, shame on Newsweek for even giving it any play. Second, if you check the primary votes, you'll see that Obama has won in states with widely different demographics. BS I say.

[panader0]

15. What a crock of shit!

First of all, shame on Newsweek for even giving it any play. Second, if you check the primary votes, you'll see that Obama has won in states with widely different demographics. BS I say.

[George_Bonanza]

17. How can Islam be in your blood?!

Picture this:

A Bosnian Muslim immigrates to NY, and changes his name from Petr Simic to Peter Smith. His son, Barack Smith, grows up and runs for president. Would that moron from Boca Raton still view the white Barack Smith as having "Muslim blood"? Or do only dark-skinned people have that?

[Danger Mouse]

51. The woman doesn't hide her bigotry very well, does she?

We'll be seeing a lot more of it if Obama is our nominee...but I'm not afraid of it, either.

[moosen]

19. K & R

[RL3AO]

20. In his blood?

Didn't know a religion could be in your blood.

[frazzled]

22. His main anecdote is from some woman at a Giuliani event in Boca Raton?

Um, pretty thin. Case closed. Make that: case never started.

Not everyone is as dumb and bigoted as some woman at a Giuliani event in Boca Raton. I can only imagine what she had to say about "the lesibian murderer of Vince Foster" Hillary Clinton.

Why do we read blogs?

[moosen]

23. K & R

[Straight Shooter]

24. Example of the stupidity of a young American voter, from BBC web site, Baltimore voter interviews:

Melissa Hart, 24, waitress
I'm voting McCain. I'm conservative and always have been.

I voted for Bush four years ago, but I don't agree with him on stem cell, abortion or gay marriage. He mixes religion and government too much.

The Clintons are still hiding things from their first administration. Obama, I don't really like his Muslim roots.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/default.stm

All of twenty-four years old and so proud that she's always been a conservative. Then she continues to speak and proves it, because only a conservative could be so stupid. She voted against what she believes in, and now will vote on the basis of misinformation.

edit typo/formatting

[Maddy McCall]

25. Ouch.

She prides in her ignorance, doesn't she? Doesn't ming laying it out there for all to read.

[UALRBSofL]

26. The thing about this article

Is it solidifies what the right wing people are saying on blogs, message boards, and chat rooms. I went to those sites to see if there was any talk about Hillary and it seems she is an afterthought and they are concentrating on Obama.

[robbedvoter]

29. I'm sure it's one of the reasons MSM picked him as "designated loser" -

you'll have McCain, the decorated war veteran (this time, it will matter - as fas as MSM is concerned!) vs this "they're out to git us". They hope to bring enough nuts to the poll. For the record, I still think more dems will show up, but that's the plane - and Newsweek printing this - foreshadows it.

[IsItJustMe]

30. Fear mongering and ignorance.

[FrenchieCat]

32. Welcome to your "concern" and promotion of the politics of Hate.

You are exactly like them, just veiled.

American service men and women in Iraq prefer Obama for their commander in chief. Get used to it.

[Straight Shooter]

35. You really don't know what you're talking about if you think Maddy is "concerned."

She's showing you the handwriting on the wall. You want to look, or you don't. Your choice.

[FrenchieCat]

42. What handwriting on the wall? I'm sure that Gennifer Flowers showed

The writing on the wall for Bill Clinton back in 1992. How did that work out?

[lastliberalintexas]

59. Pretty crappy overall

But then, I was a Tsongas supporter.

Some people are so in love with their candidate that they can't see his or her faults, whether real or perceived. Obama can and will be castigated by the press if he wins the nomination, but far too many Obama supporters seem to believe that he is beyond their reach. That is incredibly frightening to me.

I understand that Obama supporters might be tired of dealing with these insults, again whether real or fabricated. But you ain't seen nothing yet. Just wait until the other side goes after him. If you've lost patience with these rumors now...

[Straight Shooter]

80. Just like your candidate, you resort to right wing talking points when you have nothing else.

This isn't about Bill Clinton, FC. It's about Obama. Keep your eye on the little bouncy ball.

[McCamy Taylor]

96. The McGovern campaign was sunk within days of the nomination.

Obama supporters who think that it can not happen to them had better go back and review history. It was not anything that McGovern himself did--except that they had no idea that in 1972 Nixon and Co. changed the rules of politics forever and through all decency and honesty out the window. Part of it was corporate media lies that altered the way that Americans perceived him---overnight he went from being a straight talker who was going to bring transparency to the government to just the same kind of crooked politician as Nixon.

Terry Eagleton, a fellow Democrat and his first pick for VP choice helped to bring him down. He did it in order to advance his career and then to save himself embarrassment, even though it cost his party the election. It is not a pretty story.

The RNC will take Obama's strengths and they will tear them down. If he is perceived of as fresh, new, not a part of the traditional political machinery, then they will paint him as part of the Democratic establishment----endorsement by the party "old farts" like Kennedy and his ties to the Daley machine will make that easy.

If Obama has been selling himself as a candidate in it for the good of the nation and not personal advancement (a selfless candidate) then they will show how he has benefited from politics. Fitzgerald, whom the public, Democrats as well as Republicans respect, will be taking Rezko to trial soon. That story has not yet begun to be spun. Whitewater was nothing until Melon-scaife and Starr got hold of it.

If Obama has been running as a uniter, Rove will paint him as scary the Republicans favorite way to slime Black men. They will do this by talking about the Black separatist history of his U.S. Church. The plans for the attack have already been laid down in the American Conservative Pat Buchanan's magazine. They will also attempt to frighten American's with talk of US involvement in jungle wars in Africa to aid Obama's family. So, the U.S will be told that they are trading Iraq for Kenya.

If Obama is running as a man of the people, they will paint him as a son of privilege---and as a liar.

Karl Rove would do this to any Democratic nominee, not just Obama . There is nothing wrong with Obama and nothing special about him. He is neither exempt from the coming attacks nor is he in for special attack.

Anyone who thinks that the politics of hope includes sticking their head in the sand and hoping that Karl Rove will not notice the Obama '08 Campaign is delusional.

[hill08]

33. if this idea of Obama being half muslim

crawls in to the subconsciousness of just a portion of the population, it will be enough to sink Obama. He may lose 40 states easily

[texastoast]

34. JFK had a Catholic problem

And Obama can get Bill Richardson to help out on foreign policy.

[jackson_dem]

43. Big difference

Catholic extremists weren't flying planes into American buildings.

[texastoast]

45. We must continue to fight bigotry

And that is all that Obama's "Muslim connection" is.

JFK's Catholicism was a big dang deal because he was "different" from the majority.

[jackson_dem]

49. Well Obama better start doing a better job

If this continues he is unelectable.

JFK's religion is analogous to Obama's race. They can be overcome. There is no analogue for the Muslim thing.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

61. Excuse me, but...

it almost sounds like you're excusing islamophobic bigotry with this post...

[Maddy McCall]

74. No, I don't read it that way.

I think she's saying that islamophobic bigotry is very real in this country because of the events of 9/11, and that it'll have to be confronted.

I do believe that Democrats, regardless of who we support, step up to the bat and defend Obama against this smear everytime we hear it. I certainly do--and I've heard it ten or more times.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

75. Right...

but anti-catholic bigotry was very real too, and it's the same sort of bastards.

[moosen]

44. We weren't at war with Catholics

[texastoast]

47. Umm,

some people still are.

And they are bigots.

[jackson_dem]

46. Big difference

Catholic extremists weren't flying planes into American buildings in 1960. If Obama doesn't put an end to this rumor he will be unelectable.

[hill08]

37. if this idea of Obama being half muslim

crawls in to the subconsciousness of just a portion of the population, it will be enough to sink Obama. He may lose 40 states easily

[backscatter712]

38. My little anecdote.

After I and a friend of mine finished doing our thing at the caucuses in Colorado last Tuesday, we decided to toss a couple back at a local bar. We asked the bartender to change the channel on one of the TVs to MSNBC, so we could watch Obama blow the doors off of Clinton in Colorado...

A waitress came up to us, and told us she though Obama was OK, but her boyfriend told her that he wouldn't put his hand over his heart for the Pledge of Allegiance. Of course here on DU, we know that claims like that are a total crock (the alleged photo of him doing this was actually during the national anthem, where etiquette does not require you to put your hand over your heart.) I told her as firmly and as emphatically as I could while remaining friendly and casual that rumors like that were total baloney, that Obama is a good and decent man. She was relieved, then told me that she was ready for a candidate like that, because she has to struggle, working three jobs just to make ends meet.

I probably got another Obama voter that evening. At least I hope so. I'm hoping that some sunlight will keep all the nasty right-wing smears from hurting Obama or any other of our candidates.

[cottonseed]

39. So much discussion, they ran out of space for the word "lies".

Tom Toles:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/opinions/cartoonsandvideos/toles_main.html?name=Toles&date=11302007

We'll see this from the media again, and again, and again as we go forward. It's like Edwards "discussion" of the meaning of Edwards (which was pathetic enough), but only a brazillion times worse.

[OmahaBlueDog]

40. From "Media Matters"

http://mediamatters.org/items/200801160003

[mopinko]

41. i've always respected you, maddy. why are you posting this

crap? the trolls around here are bad enough. but i am really saddened by some of the things i have seen posted by some long time, respected posters. sad, just sad.

[jackson_dem]

52. Are we to ignore Obama's potential liabilities under we wake up and see President McCain?

This needs to be discussed. It is a real problem and Obama's campaign better snuff it out somehow if he is the nominee.

[mopinko]

60. how about we try

to end this kind of stupid bigotry, instead of spreading it around? do you really hold obama personally responsible to the continued existence of this kind of crap? do you really think that we should let these bigots choose our candidates for us?
i am running out of patience with this place.

[immoderate]

66. Your argument is with Newsweek, not Maddy McCall...

I think Maddy is warning us what to expect in the media. If we ignore it, will it go away?

I don't think so.

--IMM

[Maddy McCall]

73. Thanks...

I'm one of the Edwards undecideds who is supporting Hillary, but will gladly mark my ballot for Obama if he wins the nomination.

[immoderate]

77. And I'm an Edwards undecided who will...

not very gladly vote for our nominee. I'll even do some canvassing, because McCain or Huckabee, and their followers, scare the shit out of me.

I'm not optimistic about what we'll get from either Hillary or Barack. But I'll get some pleasure out of kicking the shit out of racists and misogynists as they arise. I also have the advantage of low expectations. :)

--IMM

[jackson_dem]

69. I think we should win and not pretend our candidate's liabilies exist

Only Obama can stop this BS. He must if he doesn't want to lead us to President McCain.

[Danger Mouse]

50. So ignorant bigots won't vote for him?

Not surprising at all. Somehow I doubt mouth-breaters and knuckle draggers would offer Hillary much support either.
People that stupid believe anything they're told.

[Orsino]

54. Mention Obama and Muslim in the same sentence as often as possible...

...until he drops out of the race or converts.

[Lerkfish]

63. that certainly seems the strategy

[girl gone mad]

55. My uncle probably won't vote for him for this reason.

I consider this uncle a liberal Christian. He's anything but a bigot, with two children in interracial marriages and having worked in the civil rights movement.

[Indenturedebtor]

58. Truth be told I have heard this from a few morons

It is an issue. And no I am an Obama supporter. But no matter who the candidate is there will be issues with this sort of thing. But much like we'll never vote for a puke, the far right morons who believe this crap would never vote for a Dem in any case.

We cannot live in fear of this sort of crap. Call them out on their BS I say!!!!

[Lerkfish]

62. geez, even Bill is apologizing for "racially tinged" remarks

haven't you guys figured out yet that making these slurs, either directly or backhandedly, work against you instead of for you?

[NMMNG]

64. If they'd enforce the "No religious test" rule

And keep all discussion of religion or religious questions out of campaigns this sort of crap wouldn't even be an issue. Instead we have accusations of candidates being Muslims which have to be combated with the candidate trying to prove his Christian credentials. In the meantime all the candidates are trying to out-Christian one another because the RRRW has made it apparent that only a Christian president will do--and the Dems have taken their lead like a bunch of fools. This is so much bullshit served up on a giant platter.

[Name removed]

65. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Maddy McCall]

67. Read through the thread...my perspective is all over it.

Goodbye.

[tandot]

68. There are some people who really believe that bs

and I am ashamed that some in my family have expressed concern about it.

However, there is at least one friend who has always voted Republican and would consider voting for Obama. But, he also said that he would never vote for Hillary.

Both Hillary and Barrack have issues that Republicans will exploit. You'll have rapid right-wingers who'd never ever vote for Hillary and racists/bigots who'd never vote for Barrack.

I thought that Richardson would have been the most qualified for the job. I am leaning toward Hillary now but will gladly vote for Obama if he gets the nomination.

[Olney Blue]

70. It bothers me that our president is "supposed" to be a Christian.

[Danger Mouse]

72. Bothers me too.

When will we have our first NON-CHRISTIAN president?
hmmm

[Kahuna]

76. From an anonymous blogger???? Yours??? nt

[Maddy McCall]

84. From Andrew Romano

...which you'd know if you'd have visited the link.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/32212

[mrreowwr_kittty]

78. This blog quotes a woman at a Rudy Guiliani rally. Enough said. nt

[angie_love]

81. Thanks for posting this Obama hit piece, Says alot about you.

[AX10]

82. You Obama sheeple post nasty hit pieces about HRC all the time.

[angie_love]

91. Really, care to provide a link of mine?

[robbedvoter]

86. Do you think your candidate, if nominated, will have to put up with stuff like this

of somehow the media will keep up the love they are giving him now?

[Straight Shooter]

92. We know that you don't know Maddy. Says a lot about you. n/t

[angie_love]

93. Yes I don't know her, thank god.

[Shine]

83. Interesting. Undoubtedly, McCain, et.al, will do and say whatever they can to win

It's gonna be a tough battle.