Fox News Smear?

[02Ram54]

Fox News claimed that Barak Obama was educated in a Madrassa. Of course, that just means 'school' in arabic, but the insinuation was that this was a radical Islamic school.

 

Never mind the fact that the Indonesian school was ACTUALLY a public school (found out after CNN decided to try some actual JOURNALISM.) Never mind the fact that before attending the Indonesian school he was in a CATHOLIC school. Never mind the fact that I've seen NO PROOF that this is something 'leaked by the Clinton camp' like they claim.

 

I mean, c'mon. This is pathetic. Listen to Steve Doocy exclaim how HUGE this is (it's not) and the way he makes a big deal out of Obama's middle name (Hussein.) This was a smear piece.

 

Watch it for yourself.

 

If you don't think this was a smear, that this wasn't a conservative show rushing out to get some licks in on a liberal candidate, then I'd love to revisit some of the reaction after the 60 Minutes piece on Bush's military service. I seem to remember some chest beating over that one.

[HHSDad]

Foxnews screwed up. They relied on the story out of Insight Magazine without checking their facts. At least they didn't pull a Dan Rather and continue to defend the story once it fell apart.

[Fastbreak]

Note to self... add the combination "CNN journalism" to personal list of oxymorons...

[02Ram54]

Note to self... add the combination "CNN journalism" to personal list of oxymorons...

Witty, but they certainly look to have Fox beat in that category on this one.

[GulfCoastTyrant]

Out of curiousity.......

 

I wonder if the school had the same appearance, student population, curricullum, etc. 30 + years ago?????

 

I haven't heard anyone checking into that.

Sure, NOW..it looks like this..but a quarter of a century ago, in another country...hmmmmmm.

 

I've looked and haven't found anything yet...but just curious if:

#1. Girls attended.

#2. Less religous mixing.

#3. More radical/centralized religious theme.

 

Just wondering outloud......

[02Ram54]

A classmate of Obama's from the school says it's pretty much the same.

 

He visited the Basuki school, which Obama attended from 1969 to 1971.

 

 

"This is a public school. We don't focus on religion," Hardi Priyono, deputy headmaster of the Basuki school, told Vause. "In our daily lives, we try to respect religion, but we don't give preferential treatment."

 

 

Vause reported he saw boys and girls dressed in neat school uniforms playing outside the school, while teachers were dressed in Western-style clothes.

 

 

"I came here to Barack Obama's elementary school in Jakarta looking for what some are calling an Islamic madrassa ... like the ones that teach hate and violence in Pakistan and Afghanistan," Vause said on the "Situation Room" Monday. "I've been to those madrassas in Pakistan ... this school is nothing like that."

 

 

Vause also interviewed one of Obama's Basuki classmates, Bandug Winadijanto, who claims that not a lot has changed at the school since the two men were pupils. Insight reported that Obama's political opponents believed the school promoted Wahhabism, a fundamentalist form of Islam, "and are seeking to prove it."

 

 

"It's not (an) Islamic school. It's general," Winadijanto said. "There is a lot of Christians, Buddhists, also Confucian. ... So that's a mixed school."

[5wide]

"...political opponentes aligned with Hillary Clinton..."

 

Does she get a free pass on this "smear"?

[02Ram54]

"...political opponentes aligned with Hillary Clinton..."

 

Does she get a free pass on this "smear"?

Is there any proof that people 'aligned' with her were involved, besides the word of the people that ran with this piece to begin with? Forgive me if I don't take their word as Gospel...

[GulfCoastTyrant]

I read one article that the school was 90% Muslim when Obama attended....which I think is expected because the country was mostly of that religion.

 

But that it wasn't the cookie cut religous mixture that it is today.

How could it be back then??

 

Being Muslim doesn't mean violence ideals, though several believe it does and actions from some support that theory.

 

Nice quote from the classmate, though, if it can be backed up instead of just one person's thoughts.

 

I personally don't believe the story too much..but its nice to have all the facts.

[HHSDad]

I really don't see this "smear" helping anybody but other Democrat candidates. It's too early in the campaign to have any effect on a general election.

 

On the "...political opponentes aligned with Hillary Clinton..." comment, its my understanding that she had nothing to do with this.

[Trinity alum]

I really don't see this "smear" helping anybody but other Democrat candidates. It's too early in the campaign to have any effect on a general election.

 

On the "...political opponentes aligned with Hillary Clinton..." comment, its my understanding that she had nothing to do with this.

The Insight report sought to smear both Obama and Clinton by listing the Clinton campaign as the source. I expect a book any time now, paid for by Swift Boat Christians for truth. I think the right wing may try to push the technique one too many times. They went after McCain, Chamblis, Gore, Kerry and it worked. The result was to end up with Bush. I don't think they will get away with it this time.

[HHSDad]

The Insight report sought to smear both Obama and Clinton by listing the Clinton campaign as the source. I expect a book any time now, paid for by Swift Boat Christians for truth. I think the right wing may try to push the technique one too many times. They went after McCain, Chamblis, Gore, Kerry and it worked. The result was to end up with Bush. I don't think they will get away with it this time.

Good point on the bold, although I'm unsure what the rest of your post has to do with it. Especially since the Dems are the Kings of the October Surprise.

[5wide]

Is there any proof that people 'aligned' with her were involved, besides the word of the people that ran with this piece to begin with? Forgive me if I don't take their word as Gospel...

 

If you'll forgive me for being more than a little skeptical of anything I hear on any national news report (CNN, Fox, NBC, etc.). They all have an agenda. What I seem to observe is that people usually cite the news that spins it to fit their personal opinions. For some its Fox...for some CNN...and so on and so forth. On the flipside, they don't miss a chance to point out mistakes when a channel that opposes their view flubs up.

 

It's tiresome if you get sucked into it. And I've found it doesn't affect my life in any positive way...

[5wide]

I really don't see this "smear" helping anybody but other Democrat candidates. It's too early in the campaign to have any effect on a general election.

 

On the "...political opponentes aligned with Hillary Clinton..." comment, its my understanding that she had nothing to do with this.

 

If I were a candidate trying to smear another, I would try to do so without actually being held accountable. Kinda like the aforementioned Swift Boat Veterans...to my knowledge Bush had nothing to do with it...I understand no one said he did. My point is that I'm a little skeptical on both accounts...

 

...again forgive me for my cynical outlook on the "American Political Process."

[shooter]

Here's Insight's point of view:

 

http://www.drudge.com/news/89403/insight-magazine-defends-obama-story

 

As near as I can tell, everybody involved (CNN, Fox, Insight, Obama, Clinton) is doing more name-calling than anything else.

 

As far as the Swift Boat comparison, while not all their claims had merit, most liberals would have you believe that everything that the Swift Boat verterans said was a smear and they conveniently ignore the gross lies told by Kerry that were exposed by the Swift Boaters. For example, despite numerous previous claims by John Kerry, nobody still believes that he was in Cambodia on Christmas in 1968 and we have the Swift Boat Veterans to thank for that knowledge.