CrazyDrumGuy

Most Republicans Don’t Believe Obama is American

Here’s why so many Republican members of Congress dodge, duck, dip, dive, and dodge when asked if they believe Barack Obama is a United States citizen: their constituents are brithers. A new Research 2000 poll found that more than three-quarters of Americans believe that Barack Obama was born in the U.S. When you break it down by party, though, only 42% of Republicans think Obama is an American citizen, with 28% saying he’s not and 30% unsure.

That means that in the face of all the evidence that has been presented, 58% of Republicans still have some (or a lot of) doubts as to whether the President of the United States is American. For the more visual among us, here’s that in a picture:

This is what happens when so-called journalists like Lou Dobbs go on television and legitimize the birthers. The same people who just a few years ago said that questioning the President on anything–war funding or Guantanamo detention or wiretapping or even tax cuts–was “unAmerican” are now able to get away with the patently false claim that Barack Obama is not legally qualified to be president.

Update: Glenn Thrush asks the inevitable question:

Surprise, surprise: Birther sentiment was strongest in the South and among the 60-plus crowd – presumably because seniors can’t log on to the Internet and rely on rumor, word of mouth and right-wing talk radio.

When do we start a serious dialog about the Birther movement being a proxy for racism that is unacceptable to articulate in more direct terms?

7/31/09 11:04 am | Comment (1) | Permalink | Tags: Barack Obama, birthers, Lou Dobbs