Once the Muslim Smear Against Obama was Discredited, the Attacks on his Christian Church Began.

[David Zephyr]

What timing these right-wingers, and sadly, a minority of Hillary's supporters have! I give them a lot of credit at their ability to turn on a dime a smear when it's run its course to a new smear regardless of the merit of that smear.

For six months, we witnessed Fox News blatantly informing its viewers that Barack Obama was a Muslim. Americans were told on a 24 hour news loop at Fox that Barack had even attended a madrassa overseas as a boy. Barack wasn't just a Muslim, he was raised as a militant muslim at that! And so went the lie. A militant, madrassa-raised, Muslim! Oh, and just for spice, right wingers were reminded that he was also black. Can't leave that part out, no sir!

And from the Free Republic and GOP friendly websites to the radio audiences of Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity, conservatives were spoon-fed not only this false caricature, but it was important to point out that his middle name was Hussein and that his first name sounded like Osama. Osama and Hussein and a militant, madrassa-raised black muslim!

And even though a lie, Mark Twain said, can get half way around the world before truth can even put its boots on, the truth did finally get its boots on. Americans learned that not only was Barack not a Muslim, but that he was a Christian and had been a member of the same Christian church for over 20 years! Senator Obama talked about praying to Jesus in one of his debates. And pop! The great lie about Obama being a Muslim was discredited. Barack Obama was a Christian. Ooops!

However, in no time at all, the jackals could be heard. "Well, well, well. If we can't falsely smear Obama anymore as a militant, black Muslim, then we'll go after his Christian church." You know, the same way that Mike Huckabee and James Dobson and the evangelical right smeared the Mormon faith of Mitt Romney. And anyway, Christians attacking Christians is a much more familiar territory, isn't it? Hell, America was practically founded on Christians attacking other Christians and even waging war with other Christian nations.

But because Obama's membership is with the greater United Church of Christ, whose brand of Christianity is very mainstream and tame compared to that of Pentecostals and that of the Mormons, there was little to no theological curiosities that could be used against Obama as had been the case with Romney's Mormonism. The result: the target had to be Obama's Christian preacher.

And so we now have Fox's very own Greta Van Susteren, a full-blown Scientologist herself, speaking out with professed disdain about Obama's church and pastor. Fox was back with game against Obama once again. They get you as a Muslim or they'll get you as a Christian.

Sadly, of all the Democratic candidates running against Senator Obama, only one campaign ever played the Muslim card against Barack and that would be the campaign of Hillary Rodham Clinton. Starting in Iowa, the Barack-is-a-Muslim e-mails went out from her campaign workers, later her spokespersons and high-profile supporters never missed an opportunity to slip in the "Hussein" middle name when speaking about Obama. So much so that Sixty Minutes grilled Senator Clinton about whether she actually believed that Obama was a Muslim. We've all seen the video and we all know her calculated, Clintonian response, don't we? Amazingly, it was John McCain, of all people, who pissed off a valuable rightwing talk radio host by condemning him for repeating the name Hussein when referring to Obama.

Those here at the DU who have played the Muslim card and now the anti-Jeremiah Wright card against Obama to further Clinton have done so with varying degrees of skill.

But I am impressed how some Democrats who oppose Obama turned on that same very same right-wing dime, and in such perfect timing with Fox and the rest of the right-wingers from calling Obama a militant Muslim to calling him an anti-American Christian.

Talk about synchronized dancing!

In any event, they don't hate him as a Muslim and they don't hate him as a Christian. They just hate him.

[slackmaster]

1. I doubt very much that the "Muslim" smear is dead

It will not go away.

[PatGund]

11. Oh don't worry -

There are people willing to believe that he's a Muslim that goes to a white-hating radical black church.

The thing I don't understand though is Sen. Obama's mother and maternal grandparents are white. How on earth could he be a "white-hating radical black Christian-Muslim" without hating his family and 50% of his DNA???

Yet people are stupid enough to believe that too.

[madaboutharry]

2. I think that today is the day that everything changed

This man spoke to the American people as they have never been spoken to before, especially by an individual seeking the presidency. The bar has been set in a new place and he has demonstrated himself to be a statesman. All the distractions and personal attacks will be seen for what they are from here on out.

[LSparkle]

3. Greta's a Scientologist -- I should have known that

She has that glazed look about her ...

[David Zephyr]

7. And Greta was going off about Obama's preacher. Imagine that.

Unbelievable.

[ColbertWatcher]

4. Good point! So, what's next? n/t

[H2O Man]

5. True.

The ignorance and fear is being distilled into a pure hatred.

[Window]

6. Hi H20 Man.

:hi:

You've been missed. Welcome back!

Someone posted a very nice 'missing H20 Man' thread the other day.




Peace:thumbsup:

[K Gardner]

8. Welcome back, H2O Man.. you picked a good day to resurface !

[Tatiana]

10. Hey!

:pals:

[Tatiana]

9. Fantastic post. I just tell myself that they are part of the 33%ers and are beyond redemption. n/t

[rosesaylavee]

12. I don't think it's his religion that is causing the hate.

I think it's the color of his skin. As simple as that.

[Whisp]

13. I think it's Obama's message of unity and people power that is

causing fear among the ruling elite and transferring it's message to their not-so-bright self wounding water carriers to jump on the hate wagon against their own best interests.

it has always been in their favour (the ruling classes) to divide the masses and to make us fight amongst ourselves. it's a formula proven throughout the ages to work well.

Obama is certainly getting the kitchen sink thrown at hm for this reason, and the sinks have all sorts of surprising logos and labels on them - not just the Clinton brand. but every sink there is in production.

[rosesaylavee]

14. Yes. He's dangerous.

He is a non-white person who is speaking of helping people of all income levels. He says he wants to unite us, all of us, in order to bring about justice. The powers that be are going to do whatever they need to to handicap his candidacy as this will greatly cut into their revenue streams.

Fortunately, he has some pretty heavy duty backup in the populace at large and among the opposing camp of powers that would like to be.

[Whisp]

16. the heavy duty populace - I like to call The Other Superpower

once they are awakened, there will be hell to pay for the elite and They know it. They only thing that keeps them in power and in the flush with cash is our ignorance and acceptance of being defeated.

It's easy to squash down hopes and rig elections when there isn't much of an interest from the beaten down populace to get involved.

Fudging a 10% or so difference in the voting numbers via Diebold or any of the other means they have to rig elections, is not that difficult.

But when you get a massive response like what Obama is doing... it does get a bit difficult to explain away.
there are many powerful nervous twitches out there, I can hear them.

[death to the DLC]

15. it's pretty clear

that Barak has seen this before and was fully expecting it at some point.