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''Bill Burton, a spokesman for the Obama campaign, issued the following statement..."Senator Obama has no knowledge of her status but obviously believes that any and all appropriate laws be followed."''
The Associated Press alleges that Onyango applied for political asylum in 2004, and that her request was denied. Obama, Onyango, and their family are members of the Luo tribe, as is Kenyan prime minister and former opposition leader, Raila Odinga. Odinga has claimed to be Obama's cousin. Given the political instability in Kenya, it is possible that Onyango used the tie to Odinga as a basis for her claim for asylum.
I find it difficult to believe that if someone was applying for political asylum and had a Harvard Law school graduate in the family, who was also a government official, that she wouldn't have asked him for advice, if not support, when she was preparing the application. The Chicago Tribune reports that she attended the senator's swearing in ceremony in January 2005, after her asylum petition had been declined.
Most discussion of this issue has been focusing on the fact that Onyango is living in a housing project in Southie, while Obama is wealthy. Well, that happens. What is more concerning to me is his statement, through a spokesman, that he has "no knowledge" of her status--that's about as believable to me as his statement earlier in the campaign that Bill Ayers was just "a guy who lived in his neighborhood"
Yes. Quite likely a tawdry lie by Obama. But the cowardly press will not pursue it. Too bad this revelation came so late in the campaign, although it is not clear McCain, in his boundless stupidity, could or would have exploited it.
ReplyDeleteNote also Obama's absurd hypocrisy: issuing a statement through of his handlers to the effect that 'all appropriate laws ought to be observed' -- exactly what that means is anyone's guess, but deportation is a possibility it seems -- even though he himself has repeatedly voted for and still supports amnesty for millions of anonymous illegals. I guess he and his handlers figured the couldn't afford to be seen defying the law so brazenly at this stage of the campaign.
Obama rambles on about 'Change', yet he seems to have as many handlers and spin people as any candidate I can remember.