Hard-Line 鈥楤irthers鈥� Soldier On After Certificate鈥檚 Release
The White House this spring released the president鈥檚 鈥渓ong-form birth certificate鈥� after declining to do so for years. It confirms that Barack Hussein Obama II was born on Aug. 4, 1961, in Honolulu 鈥� precisely what the president has been saying for his entire life.
The White House this spring released the president鈥檚 鈥渓ong-form birth certificate鈥� after declining to do so for years. It confirms that Barack Hussein Obama II was born on Aug. 4, 1961, in Honolulu 鈥� precisely what the president has been saying for his entire life.
Presented with the very document they鈥檝e been demanding, denizens of the 鈥渂irther鈥� movement instantly shifted strategy, declaring that the long-form birth certificate was a fraud and developing ever more elaborate interpretations of the meaning of the term 鈥渘atural born citizen鈥� to insist that Obama is not one.
Orly Taitz, often described as 鈥淨ueen of the Birthers,鈥� found herself in a yelling match with host Lawrence O鈥橠onnell on MSNBC. Taitz demanded that the camera zoom in on what she claimed was a copy of Obama鈥檚 draft records 鈥� new proof, she insisted, of a fraudulent presidency 鈥� but was quickly silenced by O鈥橠onnell, who was clearly infuriated by her shifting attack.
Taitz was rapidly joined by others on the far right.
The Council of Conservative Citizens, a white nationalist group that has described black people as a 鈥渞etrograde species of humanity,鈥� accused the White House of doctoring Obama鈥檚 birth certificate, claiming to have uncovered computer coding that suggests it had been digitally altered. Similarly, over at the far-right WorldNetDaily website, Joseph Farah 鈥� who has sponsored billboards with the text 鈥淲here鈥檚 the birth certificate?鈥� 鈥� declared: 鈥淚t would be a big mistake for everyone to jump to a conclusion now based on the release of this document, which raises as many questions as it answers.鈥�
Right-wing attack dog Jerome Corsi 鈥� whose second book questioning Obama鈥檚 honesty, Where鈥檚 the Birth Certificate? The Case That Barack Obama is not Eligible to be President came out three weeks after the certificate was released 鈥� took only a day to regroup. 鈥淥bama鈥檚 presidency now depends upon the White House being able to support the veracity of all the information contained in the birth document released yesterday morning,鈥� he wrote in WorldNetDaily, publisher of his book.
鈥淚鈥檓 going to be telling the entire world about this scandal over the next few weeks, [and] this is going to make Watergate look like a political sideshow in comparison,鈥� Corsi added on May 17, the day his book was finally released, in an interview with right-wing radio host Steve Malzberg.
The same day, James Edwards, racist host of the 鈥減ro-white鈥� radio program 鈥淭he Political Cesspool,鈥� congratulated himself for helping Corsi research his screed 鈥� a fact that Corsi acknowledged on page 270 of his book. The radio show has hosted an array of Klan and neo-Nazi leaders.
Only New York City real estate mogul and reality TV star Donald Trump, a relative newcomer to the birther game, seemed to take pleasure in the birth certificate鈥檚 release. At a news conference held the day the document was released, Trump 鈥� then the nation鈥檚 most prominent birther 鈥� bizarrely claimed that the victory was his. 鈥淚鈥檓 very proud of myself, because I鈥檝e accomplished something that no one else has been able to accomplish,鈥� he said.
Related Profile:
