Organizing for America | D. Ames's Blog: 50 lies

50 lies - debunked

By Oregon Artists 4 Obama '08 - Jul 30th, 2008 at 3:36 pm EDT

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Snopes posted 50 lies circulated in email -- Last updated: 6 June 2008
URL: http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/50lies.asp
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Rumor/Smear: Selma Got Me Born - LIAR, your parents felt safe enough to have you in 1961 - Selma had no effect on your birth, as Selma was in 1965.

Truth:
This criticism is based on an overly-literal interpretation of Barack Obama's 2007 speech in Selma, Alabama, which we covered in a separate article.

Rumor/Smear: Father Was A Goat Herder - LIAR, he was a privileged, well educated youth, who went on to work with the Kenyan Government.

Truth:
These attributes are not mutually exclusive: Barack Obama's (biological) father was all of these things at different times in his life, as Obama described in his book, Dreams from My Father: [My father] was as African, I would learn, a Kenyan of the Luo tribe, born on the shores of Lake Victoria in a place called Alego. The village was poor, but his father — my other grandfather, Hussein Onyango Obama — had been a prominent farmer, an elder of the tribe, a medicine man with healing powers. My father grew up herding his father's goats and attending the local school, set up by the British colonial administration, where he had shown great promise. He eventually won a scholarship to study in Nairobi; and then, on the eve of Kenyan independence, he had been selected by Kenyan leaders and American sponsors to attend a university in the United States.

Rumor/Smear: Father Was A Proud Freedom Fighter - LIAR, he was part of one of the most corrupt and violent governments Kenya has ever had.

Truth:
We are unaware of Barack Obama's ever having claimed his father was a "proud freedom fighter." Obama has written (and spoken) at length about his father's returning to Africa from America to work for the Kenyan government, with that country's political turmoil eventually leaving him a "bitter drunk" and "a defeated, lonely bureaucrat."

Rumor/Smear: My Family Has Strong Ties To African Freedom - LIAR, your cousin Raila Odinga has created mass violence in attempting to overturn a legitimate election in 2007, in Kenya. It is the first widespread violence in decades.

Truth:
As we discussed in a separate article, Kenyan politician Raila Odinga has recently claimed to be Barack Obama's cousin, but there is no substantive evidence documenting his claim, and the two men share no meaningful familial connection.

Rumor/Smear: My Grandmother Has Always Been A Christian - LIAR, she does her daily Salat prayers at 5am according to her own interviews. According to the New York Times: "I am a strong believer of the Islamic faith," Ms. Obama, 85, said in a recent interview in Kenya.' Not to mention, Christianity wouldn't allow her to have been one of 14 wives to 1 man.

Truth:
The author seems to be unaware that Barack Obama, like most people, has two sets of grandparents. Obama was speaking of his maternal grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, not his paternal grandmother.

Rumor/Smear: My Name is African Swahili - LIAR, your name is Arabic and 'Baraka' (from which Barack came) means 'blessed' in that language. Hussein is also Arabic and so is Obama.

Truth:
The author seems to be unaware that many Swahili words and names are of Arabic origin (just as many English words originated with other languages). "Barack" is a Swahili name that entered the language via historical trade and cultural ties with Arabia.

Rumor/Smear: I Never Practiced Islam - LIAR, you practiced it daily at school, where you were registered as a Muslim and kept that faith for 31 years, until your wife made you change, so you could run for office.

Truth:
The topic is already covered in our separate article about the (false) claims that Barack Obama is a Muslim.

Rumor/Smear: My School In Indonesia Was Christian - LIAR, you were registered as Muslim there and got in trouble in Koranic Studies for making faces (check your own book).
Truth:

Rumor/Smear: I Was Fluent In Indonesian - LIAR, not one teacher says you could speak the language.
Truth:

Time

Rumor/Smear: Because I Lived In Indonesia, I Have More Foreign Experience - LIAR, you were there from the ages of 6 to 10, and couldn't even speak the language.
Truth:
Rumor/Smear: I Am Stronger On Foreign Affairs - LIAR, except for Africa (surprise) and the Middle East (bigger surprise), you have never been anywhere else on the planet and thus have NO experience with our closest allies.
Truth:
Rumor/Smear: A Life Magazine Article Changed My Outlook On Life - LIAR, Life has yet to find the article you mention in your book. It doesn't, and never did, exist.
Truth:

Dreams from My Father

LIFE

Rumor/Smear: I Won't Run On A National Ticket In '08 - LIAR, here you are, despite saying, live on TV, that you would not have enough experience by then, and you are all about having experience first.
Truth:

Rumor/Smear: I Was A Professor Of Law - LIAR, you were a senior lecturer ON LEAVE.
Truth:

verified

Rumor/Smear: I Was A Constitutional Lawyer - LIAR, you were a senior lecturer ON LEAVE.
Truth:

civil rights

Miner, Barnhill & Galland

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