Political Hotsheet
By

Stephanie Condon /

CBS News/ October 13, 2010, 9:51 AM

Obama Related to Palin, Limbaugh, Ancestry.com Finds

Obama Palin

President Obama may not have much in common with Sarah Palin or Rush Limbaugh, but they do share some distant relatives, according to Ancestry.com.

The online family history resource found that the president and the former Alaska governor are 10th cousins through common ancestor John Smith. Mr. Obama and Limbaugh, the conservative radio host, are also apparently 10th cousins once removed via common ancestor Richmond Terrell.

The website reports it found a number of other distant family ties between politicians. Mr. Obama and former President George W. Bush are apparently 11th cousins, as are Mr. Bush and Palin. The former gop vice presidential candidate can also claim Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and conservative commentator Ann Coulter as distant cousins.

The president has been genetically linked to other prominent figures in the past. In 2008, for instance, researchers said Mr. Obama shares ties to actor Brad Pitt, and in 2007, former Vice President Dick Cheney was linked to the president.



Stephanie Condon is a political reporter for CBSNews.com. You can read more of her posts here. Follow Hotsheet on Facebook and Twitter.

© 2010 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.
39 Comments Add a Comment
linkicon reporticon emailicon
from_the_north says:
You Betcha! Its all in the family.
reply
linkicon reporticon emailicon
JV1970 says:
This means nothing! There's a family tree that was uploaded to Familysearch.org a few years ago that says I might be related to the royal family of England, too! I haven't received any invitations to any family dinners and I'm not going to hold my breath until I hear from them!
reply
linkicon reporticon emailicon
Skruffy1 says:
If you go back far enough, aren't we pretty much all related? And if you believe the Bible, we're all descendants of some incestuous goings-on in the Garden of Eden.
reply
linkicon reporticon emailicon
skepticalJM says:
Yeah, the whole human race is related, so what? The big thing is to get them to learn how to get along with each other. Good Luck!
reply
linkicon reporticon emailicon
kenhamlett says:
Everyone is related to everyone. While it may be slander to tell of our relationships with Palin, it still shows we are all a part of one big dysfunctional family. While we like to think of ourselves as related to distant royalty, we are just as likely to be related to the poor and in-firmed.
I suggest Obama (a nice guy) and Limbaugh (a nice guy) get together and find a way to prove Palin is not of this planet and no relation to either of them.
How is that for a holiday project, Barry?
reply
linkicon reporticon emailicon
generey says:
THIS oughtta make Dumbaugh's day! ROFLMAO!!!
reply
linkicon reporticon emailicon
dolmance-2009 says:
I always suspected Sarah Palin was a Kenyan Muslim with a fake birth certificate.
reply
Skruffy1 replies:
linkicon reporticon emailicon
Yes!!!!!
JV1970 replies:
linkicon reporticon emailicon
I'm going to tell you the same thing that I told Ralph88!
I hate to burst your bubble but the relationship isn't on his Islamic father's side. It's on his mother's side of his family! Also Palin was born in Idaho and Limbaugh was born in Missouri and they have legally notarized birth certificates to prove it!

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8601-503544_162-20019451.html?assetTypeId=41&blogId=&tag=contentBody;commentWrapper#ixzz12JkMcgwp
linkicon reporticon emailicon
sirmons says:
It's all in the family ????
reply
linkicon reporticon emailicon
rodwally says:
Rush is black??? Oh say it ain't so, lordy...
reply
JV1970 replies:
linkicon reporticon emailicon
No, I'm going to repeat that the relationship is on Obama's mother's side of his family, not his father's! You are forgetting that Obama's mother was a white woman!
linkicon reporticon emailicon
FoolKiller says:
"through common ancestor John Smith" THE John Smith?
reply
See all 39 Comments