Why the Muslim Smear is Bigger than Islam
by Ari Berman
The right wing smear campaign against Barack Obama is intensifying, with
false claims that the Christian, patriotic Senator actually harbors a
secret
Muslim history and hates America so much he won't even say the pledge of
allegiance. The effort has morphed from Internet rumblings and chain
emails,
as The Nation re****ted in October, to high profile attacks from the G.O.P.
this month - before Obama has even locked up the nomination.
In the past week, a state Republican Party used the smear in a press
release
titled "Anti-Semites for Obama" - which it later revised; a radio host
raised the innuendo while speaking at a John McCain rally - McCain swiftly
apologized for the remark; and Republican Congressman Jack Kingston went
on
national television to falsely claim that Obama "would not say the pledge
of
allegiance." Kingston also whined that Obama does not wear an American
flag
pin, drawing an MSNBC anchor to note Kingston was also pin-less. "I will
wear one and I have worn one!" Kingston retorted.
So far, the Obama Campaign has effectively battled the multi-pronged smear
with several tacks. Obama often prebuts the charges in campaign speeches;
his aides circulate fact sheets and ply voters with letters from clergy
and
generals; and his Internet team bought Google ads targeting smear
searches,
in order to draw the curious to a fact page with videos of Obama reciting
the pledge on the Senate floor. The campaign's anti-propaganda ranges from
the comically blunt, like a November announcement that "Obama Is a Patriot
Who Loves His Flag and His Country," to fairly thoughtful offerings, like
a
video message from a minister at Obama's church, sharing her experience
with
confusion about his faith. The minister, Jane Fisler Hoffman, explains how
she truth-squaded a woman who told a Muslim man that Obama was also
Muslim:
"We overheard it and jumped in and said two things: First of all, there's
absolutely nothing wrong with being Muslim. But second of all, Senator
Obama
does not happen to be Muslim. He's a Christian and he's a member of our
church."
The "Fact Check" video drew over 55,000 views on YouTube, since the
campaign
promoted it last month. Hoffman closes by noting one predicament of
rebutting the lies about Obama's religion: "We don't want to go around
saying, 'heck no he's not a Muslim!' - as if that was a bad thing. It's
not
a bad thing. There are great Muslim people, but he doesn't happen to be -
he's
a Christian." And apart from the smear, Obama also speaks out on bigotry
against a range of groups, including Muslims and immigrants. In a major
speech this month, for example, Obama criticized the exploitation of fear
to
"turn" people against each other. "Fear can cloud our judgment. And
suddenly
we start scapegoating gay people, or immigrants, or people who don't look
like us, or Muslims - because our own lives aren't going well," he said,
urging the audience to change that climate by standing up for higher
principles.
Thus it was surprising to read Naomi Klein's argument in the new Nation:
So far, Obama's campaign has responded with aggressive corrections that
tout
his Christian faith, attack the attackers and channel a cooperative
witness
before the House Un-American Activities Committee. "Barack has never been
a
Muslim or practiced any other faith besides Christianity," states one fact
sheet. "I'm not and never have been of the Muslim faith," Obama told a
Christian News re****ter. Of course Obama must correct the record, but he
doesn't have to stop there. What is disturbing about the campaign's
response
is that it leaves unchallenged the disgraceful and racist premise behind
the
entire "Muslim smear": that being Muslim is de facto a source of shame.
Obama's sup****ters often say they are being "Swiftboated," casually
accepting the idea that being accused of Muslimhood is tantamount to being
accused of treason.
True, they have aggressively corrected the record. But as the above links
demonstrate, from the candidate on down, this campaign has also emphasized
that there is nothing wrong with being a Muslim.
Yet Klein believes Obama must go further. "What he has never done," she
writes, is "denounce the attacks themselves as racist propaganda, in this
case against Muslims." The smears are clearly bigoted and offensive, to
Muslims and others, and I think the campaign has denounced them as racist
propaganda. But even if people expect more, in good faith outrage, let's
remember that this is also bigger than Islam.
Like other right wing character assassination, the smear campaign is not
simply aimed at the ****tion of the public exercised about Islam or the
pledge of allegiance, anymore than swiftboating was only for the Vietnam
generation. (About half of Americans do say they would be "less likely" to
back a Muslim for president - a summer poll showed 7% think Obama is
Muslim - while half say the same about a candidate over 70.) But the
larger
imperative is to undermine the character, credibility and honesty of the
candidate, developing a resilient narrative to poison media coverage and
stoke fundamental doubts about anything the candidate says. Just as Gore
was
attacked as a "serial exaggerator" and Kerry was presented as a man who
"misrepresents" his record, this smear suggests that Obama has something
to
hide. Just listen to the smear operatives. Long after CNN debunked a false
story about Obama attending a Muslim school from Insightmag.com, a right
wing website, its editor told The Wa****ngton Post that "Muslim heritage"
was
"not so much" the issue. The real issue, he claimed, was Obama's supposed
"concealment and deception" about his youth. Obviously the editor, Jeffrey
Kuhner, has no credibility, but the response previews the playbook here.
In
this context, it is understandable that the Obama Campaign is focused on
responding as bluntly and unambiguously as possible.
Ari Berman is a contributing writer for The Nation, covering national
politics and the 2008 election, and an Investigative Journalism Fellow at
The Nation Institute.
Copyright © 2008 The Nation
The Reich wing's vicious and low blows against Obama is why we need to let
go of doctinaire leftist "purity" and get behind the best chance we have
to
advance our hopes.
By defending Obama and sup****ting his quest to set a more civilized and
"We
The People" tone in Wa****ngton.
Once he is in,we can hold his feet to the fire. The best hope for
democratizing our elections is to work to elect Greens and such to lower
political posts and work up. Fight for "instant run-offs and simular
reforms.
Another four years of a Repugnant/Neokook/ retard Bush greedy
Administration, will doom democracy on Earth or lead to a civil war.
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