Vetting Barack Obama

During the last US Presidential election the US and other media failed to subject Barack Obama to the levels of scrutiny that Republican candidates and other Democrats have and were subjected to. This year Andrew Breitbart promised to release videos that would show the real Barack Obama. Sadly Andrew Breitbart died earlier this year but the videos have started to emerge. Here's the first, that is not that earth-shattering but I predict more interesting ones will follow in due course.

Of course the video that I desperately want to to emerge is the one that the Los Angeles Times is allegedly "intentionally suppressing" of a 2003 banquet where the then state Senator Barack Obama spoke of his friendship with Rashid Khalidi, a leading Palestinian scholar and activist. The National Review reported that:

'The party featured encomiums by many of Khalidi’s allies, colleagues, and friends, including Barack Obama, then an Illinois state senator, and Bill Ayers, the terrorist turned education professor. It was sponsored by the Arab American Action Network (AAAN), which had been founded by Khalidi and his wife, Mona, formerly a top English translator for Arafat’s press agency.'

As the National Review asked in 2008:

'Let’s try a thought experiment. Say John McCain attended a party at which known racists and terror mongers were in attendance. Say testimonials were given, including a glowing one by McCain for the benefit of the guest of honor ... who happened to be a top apologist for terrorists. Say McCain not only gave a speech but stood by, in tacit approval and solidarity, while other racists and terror mongers gave speeches that reeked of hatred for an American ally and rationalizations of terror attacks.

Now let’s say the Los Angeles Times obtained a videotape of the party.

Question: Is there any chance — any chance — the Times would not release the tape and publish front-page story after story about the gory details, with the usual accompanying chorus of sanctimony from the oped commentariat? Is there any chance, if the Times was the least bit reluctant about publishing (remember, we’re pretending here), that the rest of the mainstream media (y’know, the guys who drove Trent Lott out of his leadership position over a birthday-party toast) would not be screaming for the release of the tape?

Do we really have to ask?'

The same question could be asked in 2012 replacing the name John McCain with Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney or Rick Santorum.

The way that the liberal US and other western media (especially the BBC) have acted as campaign managers for Barack Obama is little short of disgusting but the way that they have hidden the truth about Barack Obama from the electorate is little short of criminal.

The BBC not reporting inconvenient facts

The BBC have a very positively angled report headlined 'Obama promises 'very specific' plan for US economy' that includes this line 'As President Obama spoke, his would-be 2012 Republican challengers blamed him for the flagging American economy.'. So which 'Republican challengers' do the BBC namecheck in the report?

'Presumptive Republican frontrunner Mitt Romney labelled Mr Obama's trip the "Magical Misery bus tour".

The former Massachusetts governor said in a statement the president was "more interested in campaigning in swing states than working to solve the economic crisis crushing the middle class".'

'Texas Governor Rick Perry meanwhile completed his first full day of campaigning, telling the Associated Press news agency: "I respect all the other candidates in the field but there is no one that can stand toe-to-toe with us."'

'Republican congresswoman Michele Bachmann will begin a bus tour on Tuesday in South Carolina, buoyed by her win in Saturday's non-binding "straw poll" in Iowa.'

'Former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty dropped out of the race after finishing a distant third in that poll. Mr Romney did not compete.'

'Mr Romney, Ms Bachmann and Mr Perry are each vying to become the Republican nominee and challenge Mr Obama for the White House in 2012's elections.

With the first real voting not scheduled to take place until February, correspondents say plenty of time remains for more upheaval in the Republican race.

This could include a late entrance from Sarah Palin, the former Alaska governor, 2008 vice-presidential nominee and conservative Tea Party hero.'

Ballot Access have the full result:

'(1) Michelle Bachmann 4,823; (2) Ron Paul 4,671; (3) Tim Pawlenty 2,293; (4) Rick Santorum 1,657; (5) Herman Cain 1,456; (6) Rick Perry 718 (write-in); (7) Mitt Romney 567; (8) Newt Gingrich 385; (9) Jon Huntsman 69; (10) Thad McCotter 35. There were another 162 scattering votes.'

So why would the BBC mention Michelle Bachman (the winner), the third place man (Tim Pawlenty) who dropped out, the sixth and seventh placed Perry & Romney and Sarah Palin who has not declared yet BUT not Ron Paul who came second in the poll, Herman Cain (whose being black presumably upsets the BBC's narrative that Republicans are racists, also as I have reported before he is well aware of the threat from radical Islam), Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich (a serious national figure) or the former Democrat Jon Huntsman; even I know nothing about Thad McCotter but then I am not a well resourced news organisation.

The BBC's main interest in reporting these early stages of next year's US Presidential election is to build up Barack Obama as much as possible and attack the record, the beliefs and/or the personality of the republicans who would dare to challenge Barack Obama. Thus Barack Obama's initiatives are/will be reported as promising 'very specific' plans whilst the Republicans plans will be reported more critically.

There is another line in the BBC report that stands out for me:

'Mr Obama's approval rating dipped below 40% for the first time in a Gallup daily tracking poll on Sunday, although recent polls have shown far lower voter satisfaction with Congress.'

Even when the BBC manage to report that their hero is unpopular it is only because they can explain that the Congress is less popular.

The BBC are not yet in full campaigning mode but they are well down the path of constructing a narrative showing that Barack Obama is on-track despite the trouble he has been receiving from the Tea Party and other Republicans and that those who oppose Barack Obama are racists, mad or both. The BBC further want to pick off the Republican candidates one by one as mad, dangerous, fundamentalist Christian, Mormon, anti-abortion or a combination of these negative factors. Watch out for the BBC's attacks spreading form Sarah Palin and Michelle Bachmann to the other candidates if they look like gathering any momentum.

The BBC is meant to be an impartial news reporting organisation, in its reporting of the US political scene it is anything but that.

US Politics news re 2012 Presidential Election

Fox News report that:

'Fox News has learned former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich will make a major announcement about his presidential aspirations in Atlanta on Thursday.

Washington sources close to the looming Gingrich campaign tell Fox News they have been told to be ready to travel to Atlanta Thursday when Gingrich will make an announcement about forming a presidential exploratory committee.

All signs point to Gingrich officially entering the 2012 race and these sources believe that Newt will throw his hat into the ring on Thursday by announcing that he has completed the proper paperwork to form an exploratory committee.'

The big guns are positioning themselves, so when will Sarah Palin make her move?

Who's inexperienced?

Newt Gingrich on the relative experience of Barack Obama and Sarah Palin.




Thanks to Theo Spark for the spot.