This thread is not another opportunity to discuss the reality or non-reality of the birther movement and Obama's legitimacy...It is a
discussion that supposes Obama is legitimate and questions the motive for this movement in this context. Thank you all for playing along
The Birther movement, which I am sure all of us here at ATS have become increasingly familiar with is intriguing to me. It intrigues me not because I
think they are onto a true conspiracy where Obama is secretly not a USA citizen but because of what I perceive as a more covert and insidious attack
on President Obama by groups allied in their opposition to him personally and his party.
The Birther movements inception is credited, by some, to a series of article printed by WorldNetDaily beginning in late 2008 in the run up to Obama's
election.
During the closing days of the 2008 presidential campaign, and in the weeks following Barack Obama's election as president of the United
States, WorldNetDaily posted numerous articles that advanced conspiracy theories about his citizenship status, alleging he is not constitutionally
eligible to be president because he is not a natural-born citizen and that his Hawaiian birth certificate is a forgery.
link
This is interesting point to me as WorldNetDaily is a well known right-wing news source and known source of 'conspiracies'.
link
So these claims against Obama begin and he does what no president I can name has done, he posts his birth certificate online for all to see. This
however appears to be a mistake. Giving credit to the rumors in anyway seems to do little more than fan the flames of fanaticism. Instantly a dozen
new allegations concerning his legitimacy sprout up in the wake of this release.
It is a forgery, it is a fake, the State of Hawaii is in on the conspiracy, it is not the long form and somehow incomplete, etc...
Interestingly the State of Hawaii has made several public statements supporting the legitimacy of this document.
HONOLULU (AP) State officials say there's no doubt Barack Obama was born in Hawaii.
Health Department Director Dr. Chiyome Fukino said Friday she and the registrar of vital statistics, Alvin Onaka, have personally verified that the
health department holds Obama's original birth certificate.
link
My question is this: why is this movement so important to the Right-Wing that 10 Congressmen are supporting a bill that will require Obama to release
what he has already released?
My opinion: this is an attempt to paint Obama as an outsider. It is to make him appear as an 'other' and clearly not one of us, US citizens. It is
about trying to weaken the opposing parties ability to achieve its goals by making those goals seem to be the desire of an 'outside' or 'foreign'
force that does not hold the USA's best interests at heart. And sadly I think it is a play on the racism left in this country.
The birther movement is a farce created to make Obama seem to be an illegitimate leader and manipulates those willing to buy into the lie in order to
mobilize the gullible masses. It is a display of how the republican party is interested in party-over-country politics and its desperation for power
and control.
[edit on 23-7-2009 by Animal]
