Obama Says Questions About Birth a Distraction From Issues
April 27 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama released his long-form birth certificate, saying he wanted to end the "silliness" of false claims he was born outside U.S. that were distracting from urgent debates over the nation's future.
Renewed questions about his place of birth have dominated the news in recent weeks even as the country is in the middle of a debate about the federal budget and how to cut the nation's debt, Obama, 49, said at the White House. He said the issue should have been settled during the 2008 campaign and he has been "puzzled at the degree to which this thing just kept on going."
"We're not going to be able to solve our problems if we get distracted by sideshows and carnival barkers," Obama said, without naming anyone. "We do not have time for this kind of silliness."
A recent revival of questions about whether Obama is a natural-born U.S. citizen eligible for the presidency has been driven, in part, by developer Donald Trump, who is considering a 2012 presidential bid as a Republican and has raised the issue in speeches and interviews. In addition, several states are considering legislation that would require political candidates to present birth certificates to qualify for office.
Trump's Reaction
By raising the issue, Trump has been able to draw attention at the expense of other potential Republican presidential candidates. In a televised news conference today in New Hampshire, which traditionally holds the nation's first presidential primary, Trump said he is "really happy that this has finally taken place."
He said his questions "accomplished something that nobody else has been able to accomplish" in forcing Obama to release the document. "I'm really honored, frankly, to have played such a big role in hopefully, hopefully, getting rid of this issue," he said.
Still, he said, the document released by the White House will have to be examined. "But I hope it's true," he said.
Other Republicans have been distancing themselves from the questions about Obama's birthplace.
Representative Michele Bachmann of Minnesota, who is considering running for the party's nomination, said in an April 20 television interview that the question had been settled and it was time to move on.
"I take the president at his word," she said in an appearance on ABC's "Good Morning America."
'A Distraction'
"This issue is a distraction," Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, said in an e-mailed statement today. Obama "ought to spend his time getting serious about repairing our economy, working with Republicans and focusing on the long-term sustainability of Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security."
White House communications director Dan Pfeiffer wouldn't say whether Trump's revival of the issue prompted the administration to act. During the 2008 campaign, the issue of Obama's birthplace was a "fringe discussion" that should have been settled with the release of the birth certificate that Hawaiian officials give to all those who request records, he said.
"The president believed that it was becoming a distraction from the major issues we're having in this country," Pfeiffer said at a briefing before the president spoke. While the country should be debating how to address issues such as education and entitlement spending, "what was really dominating a lot of the discussion was this fake controversy."
Continuing Questions
Ed Goeas, head of Republican polling firm the Tarrance Group, said release of the document would do little to convince skeptical Republican voters, who will question why it took Obama 2 1/2 years to release the document.
"For the president to get on and say what he did today was the height of hypocrisy," Goeas said. "He's the one that has let this fester out there."
A USA Today/Gallup poll published yesterday showed that 43 percent of those who identified themselves as Republicans said they thought the president was born abroad. Among all Americans, 38 percent said they believe Obama was born in the U.S., and 18 percent said he probably was, while 15 percent said he probably was born in another country and 9 percent said he definitely was born outside the U.S.
Judson Phillips, founder of Tea Party Nation, questioned the timing of the release of the birth certificate and moved on to his next target: Obama's college records.
Education Records
"Obama has never released his college records, including those at Occidental College," he wrote in a blog post. "Many believe Obama went to college there on a scholarship reserved for foreign students."
Goeas said it may have worked to Obama's advantage to allow Trump to keep the spotlight on the issue, which created a contrast that made the president appear to be focused on serious issues.
Pfeiffer said that, while letting the issue continue to percolate in the Republican campaign "might have been good politics," the president "thought it was bad for the country."
Obama said he expected the questions won't be put fully to rest.
"Now, I know that there's going to be a segment of people for which, no matter what we put out, this issue will not be put to rest," Obama said. "We got better stuff to do. I've got better stuff to do. We got big problems to solve, and I'm confident we can solve them, but we're going to have to focus on them, not on this."
Seeking Waiver
White House Counsel Robert Bauer said the administration decided last week to research seeking a waiver of Hawaii's state's prohibition on releasing the long-form birth certificate, which includes the name of the hospital and the signature of the attending physician.
Bauer said at a White House briefing that Judith L. Corley, Obama's personal counsel, contacted the Hawaii Department of Health about the requirements and ultimately made arrangements to pick up the birth certificate copy in Honolulu.
Obama was born Aug. 4, 1961, in Honolulu at Kapiolani Maternity and Gynecological Hospital, according to the document. His mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, was born in Kansas and his father, Barack Hussein Obama, was Kenyan.
The president has sometimes joked about the controversy during an April 21 fundraiser in Brentwood, California, telling such guests as movie producer Steven Spielberg and actor George Clooney that he was thankful for their support in 2008.
"A lot of you got involved when the prospect of electing Barack Hussein Obama to the Oval Office was slim," he said at the Tavern restaurant. "None of you asked for my birth certificate," he said to laughter. "It was a complete leap of faith."
To contact the reporter on this story: Roger Runningen in Washington at rrunningen@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mark Silva at msilva34@bloomberg.net
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