Perry: Obama Birther Issue is “Fun” and “A Good Issue to Keep Alive”
If there was any doubt that Texas Gov. Rick Perry is NOT a candidate for thoughtful Americans who are Republicans, Democrats and independents he has now erased it in an interview with CNBC. He has pretty much summed up the sorry state of American politics: he says the birther issue is “fun” and a “good issue to keep alive.”
Yes, demonization is SO much fun. Suggesting that a sitting American President is not an American or might be violating the constitution by being in the Oval Office by not being born in the United States is fun. In effect calling a President a liar for the fun of it and to keep an issue alive is SUCH a rush:
Texas Gov. Rick Perry said the birther issue was worth “keeping alive” in a CNBC interview Tuesday morning. “It’s a good issue to keep alive. It’s fun to poke at him,” said Perry, according to host John Harwood. Harwood interviewed Perry about his flat tax proposal that he is unveiling Tuesday, which sets an across-the-board twenty percent rate on individuals and corporations with some deductions.
Perry also spoke evasively about President Barack Obama’s birth certificate in an interview with Parade magazine published over the weekend. When asked if he believed the president was born in the United States, he said, “I have no reason to think otherwise.” Asked why he didn’t give a definitive answer, Perry replied, “Well, I don’t have a definitive answer, because he’s never seen my birth certificate.”
Perry said in the CNBC interview, “I’m really not worried about the president’s birth certificate. It’s fun to poke at him a little bit and say, how ’bout let’s see your grades and your birth certificate.”
There’s a word I have never used in a post about a candidate before. But those of us who decry the talk radio political culture nature of our politics where the bulk of time seems to be spent trying to whip up resentment and fear about candidates on the “other side” (Democrats or Republicans) will have a word that pops into mind that seems appropriate:
Contemptible.
FOOTNOTE: Texas has many serious, fine, issue oriented public servants and politicians. Mr. Perry — this quote indicates — is not one of them. Texas often gets a bum rap. And Rick Perry does not help the stereotype.
14 Responses to “Perry: Obama Birther Issue is “Fun” and “A Good Issue to Keep Alive””
Well, it’s an old American tradition. 1980: Reagan was “elected by only 26% of the eligible electorate, he’s not a legitimate president” (compared to Carter’s 21%). “Bush won the electoral college, but he lost the popular vote, and Florida was so so close, so he’s actually not a legitimate president, and an indepedent S. Ct ruled against Gore so the Court’s not legitimate either.” You can go back to 1787 I suspect and find demonization. Or to a majority of the 180 or so countries in the world as well. The better question might be: does it matter (I think yes) and how should reasonable, honest people respond?
Hi, Mark Nuckols,
You say and ask (or ask and say..)
“The better question might be: does it matter (I think yes) and how should reasonable, honest people respond?”
and answer you own question in a very fair way.
Yes, it matters, when candidates for the highest office in the land engage in ridicule, ad hominem, divisiveness, etc., and yes, reasonable, honest people should respond by consistently, reasonably and civilly pointing such out.
There is another view. Is it fun to frustrate and annoy the pompous, the humourless, the excessively-sensitive?
Durn right. Whether it’s mocking self-important repbulicans, or self-important Democrats, it’s fun to do it.
The Birther thing ORIGINATED in the Democrat Camp, during the 2008 primaries, when (Now Secretary of State) Clinton’s campaign was first starting to lose votes to Barack Obama.
Perry’s quote is dead-on, he doesn’t believe in it, but it IS fun to watch the Krazy Konspiracy nuts swirl around it, and it’s fun to get the Democrats all twisty in a whirl ABOUT it.
It’s one of those things that his (Perry’s) people don’t have to work on, that their projected National opponents DO, ’cause the Krazy Konspiracy people will work on this sh-stuff for FREE.
Yeah it is fun to poke fun at stuffed shirts, but for a presidential candidate like Perry it just made him look more of a dumb ass good ol’ boy than he already did. This should be a dead issue. It will not appeal to anybody not already among the faithful. Even if you think there is something to it just drop it, you’re only hurting your party.
This is what another Texan (yes, a Democrat) had to say about the issue:
“In an interview, Perry flirted with birtherism with all the grace of a lumbering elephant and then – I wish we were joking – invoked Donald Trump as the inspiration of his insane assertion. Evidently the two had a meeting of the minds over dinner recently.”
What was the full conversion? I want to hear the full question, and his full answer, not bits and pieces takes out of context.
Every rational American knows the whole birth certificate thing was stupid and fake from the beginning. Trump was a colossal idiot for stirring up that bowl of crap, and flinging it around. Americans were equally stupid for eating that crap up like it was Sunday dinner.
But an article based on snippets and cutoff dialog doesn’t actually tell a story. I hate incomplete reporting like this.
[...] Perry: Obama Birther Issue is “Fun” and “A Good Issue to Keep Alive” (themoderatevoice.com) [...]
Oh good grief, the birther argument?!
Why on earth are Republicans perpetuating this absolute stupidity?
In Hawaii, on Aug 21, 1959, a future President was born. His name is Barack Hussein Obama. End of story.
Call it honest. I have trouble thinking of who has clean hands in DC so the idea that Perry being honest about poking Obama a bit is a big deal seems silly, or partisan.
It sounds like an emotionally immature 12 year old school bully. You know, the kind that has to think of some way to attack the kid who’s smarter than he is. That’s often what the “stuffed shirt” argument breaks down to. How dare that person be “too serious” or some similar serious character flaw.
@eellis
“Call it honest. I have trouble thinking of who has clean hands in DC…”
you said it better than most
I don’t think Rick Perry thinks he can win the nomination, so he’s going with the next best thing-going down in style by being as troublesome as possible to the Party Establishment and drawing fire off whoever actually DOES get the nod.
[...] and misrepresented his words. That was correct. In interviews since that post was composed, Perry has suggested that it is fun to tease the President about the dispute over his place of birth and citizenship, and “keep [...]
President Barack Hussein Obama has “clean hands” in D.C..
No trouble at all.