Much Ado About Nothing.
“Barack Obama’s dubious claim is inconsistent with world history and demands an explanation. It was Soviet troops that liberated Auschwitz, so unless his uncle was serving in the Red Army, there’s no way Obama’s statement yesterday can be true. Obama’s frequent exaggerations and outright distortions raise questions about his judgment and his readiness to lead as commander in chief.”Obama’s False Claim:Obama: “I had an uncle who was one of the — who was part of the first American troops to go into Auschwitz and liberate the concentration camps. And the story in our family was is that when he came home, he just went up into the attic and he didn’t leave the house for six months. Right, now, obviously, something had really affected him deeply. But at that time, there just weren’t the kinds of facilities to help somebody work through that kind of pain.” (Sen. Barack Obama, Remarks On Memorial Day, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SV1sxq8mqvA, Las Cruces, N.M., 5/26/08)
Historical Fact:
According To The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Auschwitz Was Liberated By The Red Army On January 27, 1945. “On January 27, 1945, Soviet troops liberated the Auschwitz concentration camp complex, where they discovered some 7,000 prisoners, including young children, who had not been evacuated by the SS.” (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Web Site, http://www.ushmm.org/museum/exhibit/focus/liberation/, Accessed 5/27/08)
Paid for by the Republican National Committee.
Jesus, they were quick on this one. These days the RNC is so used to grasping at straws that they get over-excited and jump the gun when they think they have something–anything–they can work with. Note the “gotcha” tone and pointed finger. Too bad they were wrong:
“Senator Obama’s family is proud of the service of his grandfather and uncles in World War II — especially the fact that his great-uncle was a part of liberating one of the concentration camps at Buchenwald,” campaign spokesman Bill Burton said in a statement. “Yesterday he mistakenly referred to Auschwitz instead of Buchenwald in telling of his personal experience of a soldier in his family who served heroically.” (Source: Associated Press)
Naturally, Fox News showed up first on the Google News list, and we know how neutral they are when it comes to things like this. Normally I wouldn’t bother with this kind of crap, but it seems viewers of Fux News never seem to hear when what they’ve been told on that particular network has been proven to be categorically false. So here ya go, morans.
May 28th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
So he mistakenly refers to Auschwitz instead of Buchenwald. Big fucking deal. He’s only human, and it’s not like he doesn’t have enough on his plate to be dealing with–the RNC pulling this kind of shit being the cherry on top.
If he makes it all the way to the presidency with this crap being thrown at him, I think it says a lot about “his judgment and his readiness to be commander-in-chief.” Kudos to Obama if he is able to turn the other cheek at these kind of cheap shots.
May 28th, 2008 at 3:29 pm
Here’s what they seem to be forgetting: if historical and geographical prowess were the standard criteria for presidential readiness, Bush wouldn’t have gotten within 1000 miles of the GOP nomination.
But then again, since when did the GOP have standards?