Obama for America

Obama Is a Patriot Who Loves His Flag and His Country

OBAMA'S GRANDFATHER TAUGHT HIM THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE...

Open Letter from Generals Supporting Obama

Obama Said His Grandfather Taught Him The Pledge And To Put His Hand Over His Heart, "During The National Anthem You Sing." Obama said, "My grandfather taught me how to say the Pledge of Allegiance when I was 2...During the Pledge of Allegiance you put your hand over your heart. During the national anthem you sing." [AP, 11/7/07]

Obama Spokesman Bill Burton Said Obama Was Not "Making Any Sort Of Statement, And Any Suggestion To The Contrary Is Ridiculous. "Asked whether Obama normally puts his hand over his heart while listening to the national anthem, Obama spokesman Bill Burton replied by e-mail: "Sometimes he does, sometimes he doesn't. In no way was he making any sort of statement, and any suggestion to the contrary is ridiculous." [Washington Post, 11/2/07]

HE SAYS THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE...

5/28/07:

AND OBAMA VOTED TO REQUIRE THE PLEDGE TO BE RECITED IN SCHOOLS

Obama Voted To Require Pledge Of Allegiance Recital Requirement. Obama voted to require the Pledge of Allegiance to be recited each school day by students in secondary education institutions receiving public funds. [92nd GA, SB 1634, 3/7/02, 3R P; 54-0-0; P.A. 92-0612, 7/3/02; 92nd GA, HB 2077, 11/28/01, 3R P; 56-0-0]

THE ANONYMOUS EMAIL ON OBAMA AND THE PLEDGE WAS AWARDED "WHOPPER" STATUS BY THE WASHINGTON POST

Washington Post Awarded "The Scoundrel" Who Put The Obama/Pledge Of Allegiance Email Into Circulation "Four Pinocchios" On Its Fact Checking Scale, Which Classifies The Attack As A "Whopper." "Anonymous attacks by e-mail are, or at least should be, un-American. This particular one was also wrong on the facts: the ceremony in question had nothing to do with the pledge of the allegiance. We award the scoundrel who put the e-mail into circulation four Pinocchios." [Washington Post, 11/2/07]

Email Made False Claims About The Content Of A Time Article. "Oddly, the accurate caption from Time is included in the chain e-mail. But someone has added that "the article said" Obama refused to say the pledge and would not put his hand on his heart. There is no such article on the Time Web site and searches of the Web and newspaper-magazine databases could only find blog postings that repeat the claim from the e-mail. It's unclear where the allegation originated." [St. Petersburg Times, 11/9/07]

AND WAS CALLED SCURRILOUS AND FALSE BY OTHER NEWS SOURCES

"Scurrilous." "A scurrilous new e-mail is circulating about Barack Obama." [Slate, 11/8/07]

"Addressed And Debunked." "Today, the Obama campaign explained that the photo was taken not during the pledge of allegiance but during the star spangled banner. Said Obama, "I was taught by my grandfather that you put your hand over your heart during the pledge, but during the Star Spangled Banner, you sing!" Of course, it doesn't really matter that Obama has addressed and debunked the e-mail because it's going to keep circulating." [The Nation, 11/8/07]

"False." "(Again, the above email is false. It is printed here for information purposes and should not be construed as fact.)" [Iowa Independent, 11/8/07]

OBAMA SAID ONE SHOWS PATRIOTISM BY HOW ONE TREATS FELLOW AMERICANS AND VETERANS...

Obama Had Not Worn A Flag Pin For Years, Said Patriotism Resided In The Heart And Not The Lapel. The Chicago Tribune reported, "His campaign, sensing the issue was dominating campaign news, had earlier made clear he had not worn such a pin for years. 'I'm less concerned about what you are wearing on your lapel than what's in your heart,' he said under a county fairgrounds pavilion here, a giant American flag draped behind him. 'You show your patriotism by how you treat your fellow Americans, especially those ones who served.' He suggested that some politicians who wear such pins act in disingenuous ways. 'After a while, you know, you start noticing people wearing a lapel pin, but not acting very patriotic, not voting to provide veterans with the resources that they need,' he said." [Chicago Tribune, 10/5/07]

...A SENTIMENT ECHOED BY MILITARY BRASS AND THE DES MOINES REGISTER

Danzig, McPeak, Gration: "Barack Obama Is A Patriot." "'Senator Obama's attackers are peddling lies and smears because they disagree with his strong opposition to the war in Iraq and the rush to war in Iran,' wrote Richard Danzig, secretary of the Navy under President Bill Clinton, and retired Gens. Merrill "Tony" McPeak and J. Scott Gration. 'We have served this nation for decades, and we know a true patriot when we see one. Barack Obama is a patriot.'" [St. Petersburg Times, 11/9/07]

McPeak: Patriotism Is Hard Work; Pin Flap Is Business As Usual, Obama Wants To Turn The Page. When asked on a conference call about Obama no longer wearing an American flag pin, General Tony McPeak said, "'This business about the lapel pin, I think the senator understands that patriotism is hard work...If you could just do it by placing a flag on your lapel, that would be pretty easy.' McPeak then dismissed the flag flap as 'petty symbolism.' 'This pin flap is kind of business as usual. Isn't that the old politics, the gotcha politics,' he said. 'Barack stands for turning the page. Let's do something substantial here.'" [Talking Points Memo, 10/5/07]

Des Moines Register: Obama Was Right About Wearing The Flag Pin And True Patriotism. The Des Moines Register wrote in an editorial, "When we searched eBay for "flag lapel pins," the Web site returned more than 400 hits. With shipping as low as 60 cents, buyers can have a little nugget of patriotism delivered right to their doors. Following 9/11, these small pins could be found on nearly every politician. Over time, the novelty wore off, and people tucked the pins in drawers (or sold them online). Still, when a reporter in Iowa asked presidential candidate Barack Obama why he wasn't wearing a pin, it turned into a national news story. The pin, Obama said, "became a substitute for I think true patriotism, which is speaking out on issues that are of importance to our national security. I decided I won't wear that pin on my chest." He rightly noted that some people wearing lapel pins don't act very patriotic. Staff from other campaigns criticized him. One political analyst said the absence of the pin might hurt him politically. Reporters started asking other candidates about the whereabouts of their pins. Perhaps in an image-fixated world, a flag secured to one's lapel speaks louder than words or actions. But Obama is right. It shouldn't." [Des Moines Register, 10/10/07]