Think Of It As A Little Game
Republican National Committee Chairman Mike Duncan formally denounced on Thursday the Tennessee Republican Party’s use of Barack Obama’s full name in a recent news release questioning the Illinois senator’s commitment to Israel. …
“The RNC rejects these kinds of campaign tactics,” Duncan said in a statement. “We believe this election needs to be about the critical issues confronting our nation.”
Wow! What a relief! So, I guess that means tha—
The news release now includes a clarification that reads, “This release originally referenced a photo of Sen. Obama and incorrectly termed it to be ‘Muslim’ garb. It is, in fact, Somali tribal garb, hence, we have deleted the photo. Also, in order to diffuse attempts by Democrats and the Left to divert attention from the main point of this release — that Sen. Obama has surrounded himself with advisers and received endorsements from people who are anti-Semitic and anti-Israel — we have deleted the use of Barack Obama’s middle name.”
Uh, so you’re not—
Some in the GOP say the use of Sen. Barack Obama’s middle name in a release is a distraction.
Right. Got it. We reject these kinds of campaign tactics…. because why distract them with the Manchurian Muslim bit when you have perfectly good Anti-Semite campaign all ready to go?
“We’re not going to be using the middle name now, because apparently, it’s become a distraction,” he said. “But I would note, not too long ago, I saw a wire story out of the Middle East that talked about how a lot of people there are hungry for Obama to win and, in part, because his middle name gives him a connection, and that story used his middle name, so we’re not the first people to notice and use his middle name.”
No, we’re not middle name going to mention his middle name any middle name more middle… Because that name would middle middle be name wrong name name name name….
Besides…
Hobbs denied that the use of Obama’s full name carried any racial overtones but said he wasn’t surprised the statement has caused such an uproar.
“The left always finds something to pick at other than to describe the issues; we’re not surprised at all.”
Just like those scheming, dirty Leftists, always bringing up Barack’s middle name. When really the problem is he hates Jews.
I count roughly twelve references to Obama’s middle name in the article… but only because you can’t write an article about what shame it is to bring up Obama’s middle name without bringing up Obama’s middle name, middle name, middle name….
But McCain’s going to be “respectful.”
Sorry, Josh Marshall, eh, what was that you were saying?
February 29, 2008 at 11:50 am
We’ll see how things play out, but “he hates Jews” so far has had no impact on Jewish voters (according to a report I read somewhere), and, well, lotsa evangelicals hate Jews, so what?
But yeah, the whole Manchurian candidate thing is what they’ll press. I do really love the twist about how it’s actually liberals who are making a big deal about this. If you saw that footage of Don Abrams taking on the Florida Congressman who didn’t in fact wear a lapel pin (ha!), the latter talks about how it’s “fun” to bring it up because it “clearly aggravates the left so much” the point being that they aren’t the ones causing the fuss, the left is.
A fairly simple reply, which I have yet to see, would be, “The reaction you’re seeing is not anger, really. It’s us slapping our heads at how really bizarrely stupid that sort of name association is. And you are EMPHASIZING it because you think the association has pull. And you think it has pull because people are xenophobic, and that they are stupid enough to believe that having a Muslim middle name means he is Muslim, which he isn’t. So: you think xenophobia, mixed with racism, is hilarious, and that Americans are stupid, isn’t that what you’re saying? Oh no, I’m not saying YOU are racist. It’s just that you think racism is hilarious, and Americans are stupid. Why, Congressman, do you think racism is hilarious, and why do you believe that Americans are stupid?”
But of course the so-called liberals they get on TV never have the cajones to try that. Sigh…