GOP Operative Releases Obama Muslim Ad

Less than a week into the formal general election campaign and Republican operatives have already pulled the Is-Barack-Obama-A-Muslim? card.

Famed dirty trickster Floyd Brown - of Willie Horton fame - has released a new web advertisement through his National Campaign Fund PAC, suggesting that Barack Obama is covering up a Muslim heritage.

Of course, countless ink has been devoted to debunking the myth that Obama was attended a Muslim school when he lived in Indonesia. And Brown, whose group is not exactly rolling in finances, has operated under the premise that the more outrageous the material one puts together, the more likely it is to be aired and the more money one is likely to raise. Earlier this cycle, for instance, he put together an inflammatory ad blaming Obama for gang murders in Chicago.

But the current installment is, perhaps, the sleaziest (and most tired theme) yet. It begins:

Question: Was Barack Obama ever a Muslim. He says no, but the Associated Press found records that showed Obama was in school as a Muslim living in Indonesia and the Obama campaign can't explain why.

There is much context left to fill. For starters, the school Obama attended at the time was Catholic -- a spokesman for Indonesia's Ministry of Religious Affairs said as much. And while someone did list Obama as a Muslim (the religion of his step father) on a document that required students to list religious affiliations, the campaign has insisted that it was a mistake.

"Senator Obama has never been a Muslim," Robert Gibbs, Obama's communications director, said. "As a six-year-old in Catholic school, he studied the catechism."

Moreover, Brown's own ad concludes that the issue is inconsequential. "Maybe it doesn't matter if Obama were a Muslim back then," the spot goes, before questioning why he won't tell the truth now.

What may be more telling than the smear ad is the reaction that it engenders. Brown has a history of using barely discreet racist messaging to drive political discussion. So it is hardly a surprise to see him meddling in the Obama-is-a-Muslim affairs.

But Sen. John McCain has pledged to run a smear-free campaign. His candidacy has no direct connections to Brown's National Campaign Fund. And yet, his reaction to the group's latest work could go a long way in determining the tone and tenor of the general election.

Comments

[zeesean]

I don't get it! After weeks and months of the Reverend Wright storm, they now want to proclaim him a
muslim? They can not have it both ways...

[aubrey8]

want to bet?

[Chubbster]

Whatever works. And really, the average citizen is not paying too much attention.

[Krikkit]

And so it begins.

With the GOP brand so thoroughly discredited, these tactics aren't going to work except with the uneducated that are already convinced. That's my prediction and I'm sticking with it.

[ProgressiveThought]

Not this time.

[SilviaMaria]

It is obvious: the Republicans have to resort to this kind of attack because they have nothing on Obama. McCain flip-flops every day, one does even know if he is coming or going, but the republicans are stuck with him they like it or not. Obama's campaign needs to respond to this kind of attack or any attack on his wife and family right away. Michelle Obama is a smart woman (and as a woman I like it). Republicans just do not like smart women (for all those Hillary supporters, please think about twice before voting for McCain in the fall).

On the other hand, there is freedom of religion in this country, so why does it matter what religion you practice? What the republicans are saying here (not directly) is that being a Muslim equates to being a terrorist, etc. and this is discrimination at its worse. This country is a comprise of many people who came from different parts of the world, they have different religions, cultures, ideas but at the of the day we all are human beings. Or maybe there are human beings more equal than others and we missed that memo?

[PoliJunkie]

I guess "Freedom of Religion" is discounted here? My bad, oh I get it in order to be POTUS you have to be a Christian? Silly me!

[girard1991]

Those Republicans wil lose so bad in November. They are the worst.

[Manni]

I don't trust him.

[nastyvirus]

Yeah, I agree. That Floyd Brown is definitely not one to be trusted.

[noneIn2008]

This is just the tip of the attack machine. Never underestimate to what depths McCain will stoop to win. He will disclaim the attacks, but his surrogates will continue. They will continue to dive. They are only 5% in attack mode. You will see attack pieces on Obama's half sisters and brothers and anything they did anywhere in their lives. They will bring out grade school classmates. Wait until October.
Never, never, never let down your guard against McCain.
But, Obama needs to stay positive and above the McCain trash. Stay on vision and message.

[banats]

HuffPost's Pick

We should be outraged that being Muslim implies that you are a bad person or unpatriotic. We should be outraged that a presidential candidate has to prove his credentials as a Christian. We should be able to say, so what if he's Muslim? We should be able to say, so what if he's Jewish, so what if she's Mormon, so what if she's Southern Baptist, so what if she's Hindu, so what if he's an atheist, so what if he's Budhist......the list goes on.

What counts in this life is what you do.

[hip dibler]

that's the gospel right there.

[insouciantlad]

This election will test how grown up Americans really are...if these attacks work, it will only reflect our own puerile ignorance and, alas, confirm our nation's collective stupidity to the rest of the world

[foreffectivegovernment]

insouciantlad: "This election will test how grown up Americans really are..."

You talk of "grown up" when the presumed Democratic nominee was chosen by African-Americans and the electorate under 30 years old. A candidate who "out organized", "out campaigned", "out spent", "out speechified", and "out bought more superdelegates" than his opponent and still was losing the popular vote when the superdelegates put him over the "Magic Number". These attacks worked against Hillary Clinton and they will work on Obama because the "grownups" have allowed themselves to be bullied by their kids. Unlike the Al Gore and John Kerry losses, you can't blame this one on the remaining adults in the Democratic Party.

[heal57]

This kind of attack works on the uninformed and uneducated; and on older voters who were brought up in a more biased environment. We are ALL God's children and a good Christian [or Muslim] would know that and ignore the 'attack' ad.

Independent for Obama '08

[Krikkit]

Should and should and should. When are people going to start dealing with the way things "are" instead of the way things "should" be?

Fact is the slime balls use this stuff because it works, whether it "should" or not. We can all sit back and say, "Yeah! They should be ashamed of themselves! They should not be doing that! The world should be a better, more enlightened place!" Or we can get out there and put the facts before the public.

Oh me oh my, what should we do!?!

[focher]

How you counteract it says a lot about who you are. It is not blind idealism that brought about the end of Jim Crow. Obama stands partially where he is because people made it publicly unacceptable to be racist. That behavior has been increasingly relegated to backrooms or forced into a subtle tone in messages. We should strive to do the same with the Muslim-as-a-negative-label attitude that pervades the country.

Absolutely it should also be addressed that the underlying "fact" is a lie. He is actually not a Muslim, but you need to attack it on both its face and the underlying bigotry.

[aubrey8]

you got my vote.

[aubrey8]

what should be and what is are two different things.

[e2008usa]

SHAMEFUL McCAIN'S STRATEGY... IN ORDER TO WEAKEN OBAMA'S FOREIGN POLICY.
McCain will also attack MICHELLE in ORDER TO ALLOW PEOPLES TO BLAME SOMEONE

Peoples know that the TRUTH is that Obama IS A CHRISTEN but those who are/could be RACISTS will associate Obama like a rival (Muslim). McCain portraits himself as the Whiter Candidate (See he plays the RACE Card USING the WHITER peoples in the Globe -the Scandinavia ABBA ADS... but that's the New McCain's GAFFE... because... THE SWEDISH PREFER... OBAMA .... Swedish Men and Swedish Women SAYS THEY WOULD VOTE FOR OBAMA... not McCAIN) and... This has to be DENOUNCED.... Yes, it has to be denounced.... REJECT The McCain Race Attacks....

THE ABBA SWEDISH PEOPLES REJECTS ... McCAIN... and wants OBAMA As President of the United States

[DShawn233]

This kind of thing is the very reason that the "ReBushLican" Party is going to be soundly defeated this Fall. Let me be very honest here. I do not believe that Senator Obama is a Muslim and at this point, when I have to spend $75.00 to fill my tank up from the quarter full level, he can be Jewish, Hindu, Christian, Scientologist, or Worship a Head of Lettuce in his closet if he can help our country to understand that those that have been running our country obviously don't give a crap if our standard of living goes to 3rd World status or not.
Our Country is in way too much trouble right now for us to spend time listening to a load of B.S. produced by a Big Shot Republican and one of the few people that will be able to afford to drive something larger than a Moped this time next year.

[Hopeforward]

What the hell is wrong with these GOP scumbags? don't they know that the Constitution does NOT say that one must be a "Christian" to be president. Even though most intelligent people know that Senator Obama is not Muslim, who cares if he was? it sure would beat what we have in office now, or McSame.

[AlligatorShuz]

They are stuck in the past of racial fear mongering! Do he realize that people are a lot more intelligent than they were back in the 1980's.

[aubrey8]

who are you trying to kid....

[focher]

Give them credit for consistency. They wouldn't even accept a Mormon as their candidate.

[bwither]

Well, it wasn't too long ago that one of our better presidents almost didn't get elected because he was a Catholic.

Fortunately for Obama, THIS is the best that the Republicans have to throw at him. They don't want to attack him on policy because they're realizing more and more that people agree with Obama over McCain.

[Andman0121]

haha not going to work this time you conservative slime.

[SiberianRat]

I'd like to see Obama get on TV and simply say, "enough is enough--here's my story, quit calling me Osama or emphasizing Hussein (a name which millions of men have), and grow up." Also, the conservative "press" was all over the Rev. Wright thing which indicated he's not a Muslim. Finally, the Muslim bashing must stop--there are over a billion Muslims in the world, and most a peaceful, upstanding people. I've spent a lot of time in the Muslim world and I can tell you that all of this is a disgusting misrepresentation of a huge segment of the world population.

[banats]

I agree. The Muslim bashing must stop and we must respect all the Muslims in the world who share the same dreams of all people who want to live in a world of peace and prosperity and to worship and love their god.

[2351]

Obama now needs to come out and give a talk about this video. He needs to ridicule it and show that it is that same old politics of the past. I believe that he can make them look stupid over this ad. The republicans remind me of the boys in my 7th grade class. And to think that these people are our leaders.

[Sixtwo]

The Bible says: "What man meant for evil, God meant it for good". He's got it all in control! The Republicans and others who share their "values" will not know what hit them this election year.

[Bigeasy]

I heard Obama has hired a team especially to handle smears, he knows what happen to Kerry in 2004 and he's on top of it.