Palin: Obama Is Pals With Terrorists

GOP Vice Presidential Candidate Cites Dem's Association With '60s Radical Bill Ayers

(AP)  Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin on Saturday accused Democrat Barack Obama of "palling around with terrorists" because of an association with a former '60s radical, stepping up an effort to portray Obama as unacceptable to American voters.

Palin's reference was to Bill Ayers, one of the founders of the group the Weather Underground. Its members took credit for bombings, including nonfatal explosions at the Pentagon and U.S. Capitol, during the Vietnam War era.

While Obama and Ayers live in the same Chicago neighborhood, served on two boards and had at least one political connection, it is a stretch of any reading of the public record to say the pair ever palled around. And it's simply wrong to suggest that they were associated while Ayers was committing terrorist acts.

The Republican campaign, falling behind Obama in polls, plans to make attacks on Obama's character a centerpiece of candidate John McCain's message in the final weeks of the presidential race. Coming late in the campaign, Palin's remark could be particularly incendiary, however, and could knock Obama off his focus on the troubled economy.

Palin told a group of donors at a private airport, "Our opponent ... is someone who sees America, it seems, as being so imperfect, imperfect enough, that he's palling around with terrorists who would target their own country." She also said, "This is not a man who sees America as you see America and as I see America."

The Obama campaign called Palin's remarks offensive but not surprising in light of news stories detailing the campaign's come-from-behind offensive.

"What's clear is that John McCain and Sarah Palin would rather spend their time tearing down Barack Obama than laying out a plan to build up our economy," Obama campaign spokesman Hari Sevugan said in a statement.

Palin's remark about Obama "palling around with terrorists" comes as e-mails circulate on the Internet with suggestions that the Democratic candidate is secretly a radical, foreign-born Muslim with designs against the U.S. - even though Obama is a native of Hawaii, a Christian and has no connections to Muslim extremists.

Palin, Alaska's governor, said that donors on a greeting line had encouraged her and McCain to get tougher on Obama. She said an aide then advised her, "Sarah, the gloves are off, the heels are on, go get to them."

The escalated effort to attack Obama's character dovetails with TV ads by outside groups questioning Obama's ties to Ayers, convicted former Obama fundraiser Antoin "Tony" Rezko and Obama's former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.

Ayers is a professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He and Obama live in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood and served together on the board of the Woods Fund, a Chicago-based charity that develops community groups to help the poor. Obama left the board in December 2002.

Obama was the first chairman of the Chicago Annenberg Challenge, a school-reform group of which Ayers was a founder. Ayers also held a meet-the-candidate event at his home for Obama when Obama first ran for office in the mid-1990s.

In an interview with CBS News earlier in the week, Palin didn't name any newspapers or magazines that shaped her view of the world. On Saturday, she cited a New York Times story that detailed Obama's relationship with Ayers.

Summing up its findings, the Times wrote: "A review of records of the schools project and interviews with a dozen people who know both men, suggest that Mr. Obama, 47, has played down his contacts with Mr. Ayers, 63. But the two men do not appear to have been close. Nor has Mr. Obama ever expressed sympathy for the radical views and actions of Mr. Ayers, whom he has called 'somebody who engaged in detestable acts 40 years ago, when I was 8."'

Earlier Saturday, Palin spent 35 minutes at a diner in Greenwood Village where she met with Blue Star Moms, a support group of families whose sons or daughters are serving in the armed forces. Reporters were allowed in the diner for less than five minutes before being ushered out by the campaign.

Palin, whose 19-year-old son, Track, deployed last month as a private with an Army combat team, was overheard at one point commiserating with one of the mothers: "Any time I ask my son how he's doing, he says, 'Mom, I'm in the Army now."'

[heyyou1234]

Illegal donations from palestinians, africans and arabs. Connections to domestic terrorists (Ayers) and criminals (Rezko). Illegal voter registration and voting for money. Tax plans that would break the back of every small business in the country, therefore every employee of one as well.... There''s so much more too... I can''t in good faith vote for this man.

[heyyou1234]

Illegal donations from palestinians, africans and arabs. Connections to domestic terrorists (Ayers) and criminals (Rezko). Illegal voter registration and voting for money. Tax plans that would break the back of every small business in the country, therefore every employee of one as well.... There''s so much more too... I can''t in good faith vote for this man.

[jab1atm]

McCain''s dear friend was G Gordon Liddy as McCain stated on his radio show Gordon Liddy is an old friend and he honored Liddy''s adherence to the principles and philosophies that keep our nation great. Watergate, plotting to kill Jack Andrson,plotting to fire bomb the Brookings Institute. Great man

[litzon]

how can OBAMA aim to recover economic crisis when in fact he himself is not cleared personality? dear fellow american open your eyes wide and see the american vision. and if u see, then will arrive at the point that NO TO OBAMA...

[litzon]

to the obama supporters, open your eyes! what is your assessment about this? can u just tolerate a man who''s connected to a terrorist? NOBAMA we want to soar high like an eagle. stop stop stop TERRORIST, we want a president who can protect our beloved AMERICA.

[spaan2]

Palin should focus on possible repubican solutions to the current unemployment issues facing US families instead of wasting time in merely attacking the character of the democratic candidates. This would increase voter confidence for increasing the sagging polls of the repubican party.

[kopana]

Conservatives for the senseless war killing innocent women and children in Iraq...Are they for pro-life?? ?? Get for real....These same pro-lifer''s who dicate to usually young, unpreparedd out of wedlock woman to bear unwanted children and then these same pro-lifers turn around and do not want to support these same children through welfare...Stop being so moralistic and hypocrite.

[kentulsa1]

Liberals always get around to their abortion God. It''s real simple. Conservatives = protect INNOCENT life & liberals = protect your own interests.

[ioweign]

McCain Camp On His Domestic Terrorism Problem

Referencing an NYT article about Obama, McCain spokesman Nancy Pfotenhauer today proclaimed:

If Senator McCain had hung out with somebody who had bombed abortion clinics, no one would consider [raising the issue] illegitimate.

Well, there''s no evidence that McCain hung out with any clinic bombers.

But he did vote to protect them from the law, siding with radical "pro-life" terrorists and putting women and their doctors at risk.

[kentulsa1]

I''ll say again here. Forget Ayers. Forget Charles Keating. Forget George Bush. Remember Lyndon Johnson''''s "War on Poverty" (Obama''''s "health care for all") and how''''d that go for him? Drug infested ghettos. Remember Carter''''s Soviet Peace Philosophy "Unilateral dis-armament to show them we''''re not a threat" (Obama''''s "talk to all leaders w/out pre-conditions) and how''''d that go. Countries around the world falling under Soviet communism. Johnson''''s escalation of tax rates, Nixon''''s wage & price controls & Carter''''s "days of prosperity in America are over" (Obama''''s patriotic tax increases, federal regulations and sacrifice). How''''d that work out? Dbl. digit inflation, 21% mortgage rates, then stagflation. If your over 50, you should remember the downward spiral of the 60''''s & 70''''s, the turn around of the 80''''s and then the destruction of that foundation by the Bushes'''' and the Clintons'''' whoopee party over the last 20 years. If your under 50, or don''''t remember, go back and read some Jimmy Carter (aka Barack Obama) speaches. No doubt the republicans have blown a great opportunity to continue down the path of American pride and prosperity of Reagan conservatism You may be mad at Bush, but be careful America, we''''ll get what we vote for. AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!

[actornaught]

I hear Palin''s smears, combined with her weird refusal to answer debate questions is even causing her to lose support in Alaska.

Sarah Palin will be the answer to a trivia question in 4 years.

[pjc27]

Way to go Sarah, you''ve just turned off a whole lot more folks with that stunt. More for Obaama baby :-) Palls around with terrorists? Go suck ice, freaky fargo lady.

[orsand]

ARE WE OUT OF OUR MINDS? HOW CAN WE THINK OF ELECTING A PERSON WE KNOW NOTHING ABOUT WHEN OUR NATION IS CRISIS??
Pailin and McCain are just a new version of Charlie McCarthy & Edgar Bergen. She''''s a brainless dummy spouting memorized Karl Rove catch phrases like one of those dolls w/a pull string. We have not heard a SINGLE original thought from her. I am absolutely awestruck that middle America is willing to be hoodwinked again. Karl Rove used the Religious Right to get Bush elected & now Republicans have another empty headed politician pandering to the "good ole boys" & middle America pretending to be "just like them". How sad is this? Republicans who reward the rich & screw the middle class put up a "folksy" woman who ''''speaks like them'''' and middle America take the bait hook line & sinker. She regurgitates ugly lies carefully crafted by Rove protege''''s. She may not be a Washington insider-but she sure has caught on quick! Allowed off her leash w/Katie Couric-her true colors showed. Wake up middle America-you''''re being duped by some very evil people who are laughing their as--es off about how easy it is to pull the wool over your eyes and get you to do what it NOT in your own, or your family''''s best interests. They''''ve almost destroyed our country and you still follow them like sheep?

[jsjcvg]

Terry Nichols and Timothy McVeigh held the same kind of Ant-American views that the Alaska Independence Party holds. That''s why Palin can pronouce the term "domestic terrorist" without falling over her words...her husband is the one PALIN around with such terrorists.

[aboz3]

"Sooner or later, people are going to figure out if all you run is negative attack ads you don''t have much of a vision for the future or you''re not ready to articulate it." John McCain on The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, 2/21/2000

[misha128-2009]

Perhaps Gov Palin would like to explain where geographically Afghanistan is a neighbor of the US. Is that anywhere near the Iraq-Pakistan Border?

[misha128-2009]

In yet another inept performance Gov Palin fails to correctly memorize a quote from her elitist Starbuck''s coffee cup.

[ekucrew]

If Obama Graduated top of his class at Harvard why is he so secretive with his school records from Columbia and Harvard. If Obama has nothing to hide release your transcripts, It is amazing the only one who says he graduated top of his class is himself there is no documentation to bcak it up.


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Posted by Mccain08NC at 08:52 AM : Oct 06, 2008
+ report abuse

Good point. His spinmasters probably will never allow the records to be released. I''ve known many graduates that WANT people to know WHERE they ranked in their graduating classes.

Posted by liberalme---- When Ayres was at his worse in 1969--Obama was 8 and living in Indonesia--I don''''t think he was involved with Ayres then-- Now Ayres is a Professor and occasionally happens to be in same meetings as Obama.

Excuses, excuses, excuses get your head out of the sand and face the facts. If Obama didn''t know who Ayers was when he served on the board with him, he is too stupid to be President.

[liberalme]

Obama%u2019s campaign said that Obama did not know who Ayers was. They both lived in the same neighborhood in Chicago and he didn%u2019t know? How can anyone believe that he wasn%u2019t told by someone who Ayers was. I also find it hard to believe that someone who is supposed to be so educated never heard of Ayers. That%u2019s like saying someone who lives in California doesn%u2019t know anything about OJ Simpson. It amazes me how Obama%u2019s supporters can call McCain and Palin liars and not see the lies in Obama.

Posted by Lola939

When Ayres was at his worse in 1969--Obama was 8 and living in Indonesia--I don''t think he was involved with Ayres then-- Now Ayres is a Professor and occasionally happens to be in same meetings as Obama.

One would think Palin would be concerned with her "trooper gate" project.

This campaign should be focused on the serious issues this country has--not swiftboating.

It''s obvious these two clowns have no idea what to do with the condition of the US and the only resource they have to "look good" is to make Obama look bad.
Remember, when ever you point the finger at someone else, you have 3 pointing back at yourself.

Most Americans are hearing what the McCain people are NOT saying!