WASHINGTON, Nov. 2, 2008
Feds Probe Leak About Obama's Aunt
Government Looking Into Whether Laws Were Broken In Disclosure That Democratic Nominee's Aunt Lives In U.S. Illegally
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Obama On His Aunt
Katie Couric speaks with Barack Obama about reports that his Aunt from Kenya is living in the U.S. illegally.
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The door to the public housing complex in South Boston where Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama's aunt Zeituni Onyango reportedly lives is seen Thursday, Oct. 30, 2008. (AP)
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Obama's half-aunt, who is from Kenya, was ordered to leave the United States years ago after an immigration judge denied her request for asylum, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press late Friday. This person spoke on condition of anonymity because no one was authorized to discuss the case.
The woman, Zeituni Onyango, is living in public housing in Boston and is the half-sister of Obama's late father.
The Immigration and Customs Enforcement asked its inspector general and the Office of Professional Responsibility on Saturday to investigate whether any policies were violated when information about Onyango's case was publicly disclosed, ICE spokeswoman Kelly Nantel said.
The Homeland Security Department, which oversees ICE, cannot disclose details about an individual's immigration status.
Information about Onyango's case was disclosed and confirmed by two separate sources, one a federal law enforcement official. The information they made available is known to officials in the federal government, but the AP could not establish whether anyone at a political level in the Bush administration or in the McCain campaign had been involved in its release, just five days before the presidential election.
Obama's campaign strategist David Axelrod said people are suspicious about stories that surface so close to an election.
Obama said Saturday he did not know his aunt was living in the United States illegally and believes that laws covering the situation should be followed.
The campaign said it was returning $260 that Onyango had contributed in small increments to Obama's presidential bid over several months. Federal election law prohibits foreigners from making political donations. Onyango listed her employer as the Boston Housing Authority and last gave $5 on Sept. 19.
Onyango, 56, is part of Obama's large paternal family, with many related to him by blood whom he never knew growing up. Obama's father, Barack Obama Sr., left the future presidential nominee when the boy was 2, and they reunited only once - for a monthlong visit when Obama was 10. The elder Obama lived most of his life in Kenya, where he fathered seven other children with three other wives. He died in a car crash in 1982.
Obama was raised for the most part by his mother and her parents in Hawaii. He first met his father's side of the family when he traveled to Africa 20 years ago. He referred to Onyango as "Auntie Zeituni" when describing the trip in his memoir, saying she was "a proud woman."
Onyango's refusal to leave the country would represent an administrative, noncriminal violation of immigration law, meaning such cases are handled outside the criminal court system. Estimates vary, but many experts believe there are more than 10 million such immigrants in the U.S.
The AP has not been able to reach Onyango for comment.
© MMVIII The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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See all 190 CommentsAnd, the most important question on all. Have our government agents started wearing brown shirts?
THis is pure insanity but that''s the way our country is going.
The fact is, Obama''''s Kenyan Auntiee is in the USA ILLEGALLY!
If we find out tomorrow that Obama was actually BORN IN KENYA, does it make any f#cking difference who "leaked" the information?
Posted by sukitobamy
Are you okay? You seem troubled..desperate..frustrated?
Posted by Hacker11001 at 04:24 PM : Nov 02, 2008
We all are...
The feds should be investigating .........
How auntie was able to circumvent a deportation order and then ''qualify'' for taxpayer assisted housing in Boston?? W T F???
Yes the feds have some serious issues to deal with .. and hopefully they will also investigate Ohio and who leaked the information of ''Joe the plumber''.
We have some serious problems in this country .. it seems we are mired with incompetence and partisan fools who will continue to drag down this once great country ...
We are doomed !!!
But it IS a crime that someone publicly revealed the her immigration status 5 days before the election, in yet another attempt to scare people away from Obama. That is a crime.
Obama says the laws should be followed. And his campaign is returning the tiny little donation his aunt made. This is a non-story as far as any political implications are concerned, other than highlighting the desperations of the repukes.
Obama says the laws should be followed. And his campaign is returning the tiny little donation his aunt made. This is a non-story as far as any political implications are concerned, other than highlighting the desperations of the repukes.
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Posted by IDNNSG at 05:21 PM : Nov 02, 2008
For that to be a crime at ANY point in time is exactly why this government is a joke and this country is what it is. Dirty politics...yes, a crime...no way; just another example of how this government has installed "tools" to persecute the people whenever it feels the urge.
At least they didn''t cut a B into their face this time. ;)
Thankfully, the news organizations haven''t gone overboard on this so far. For the final news weekend, all the major news outlets seem focused on the GOTV efforts, the layout of the election map, how much each campaign is spending, which states candidates are focusing on etc...
Correction. That is all the major national news outlets *except* one. One website features front and center, an image of Jeremiah Wright. "Most trusted name in news" my a$$.
Maybe one of you can answer this for me... Why is CNN featuring McCain''s negative campaign ad about Jeremiah Wright as its headline story 2 days before the election? Not even Fox is stooping low enough to use their news site as a platform for the only line of attack that even McCain shied away from.
Unless CNN plans to put up an article on McCain%u2019s $400,000 payment to Rasheed Khalidi or McCain and Pastor John Hagee, I would hardly call their reporting fair and balanced.
But if this is the best that they can do, then you really have to conclude that they are truly incompetent at absolutely everything.
With over 20 million illegal aliens living in this country and a government unwilling to do anything about it because big business needs the cheap labor, this is a total non story.
Posted by Hitoyou1 at 06:03 PM : Nov 02, 2008
Try to make sense, please.
Vote Obama!
She has committed no criminal offense. Can''t read?
It is called privacy. It is called due process. It is called rights. If you hate the rights Americans have you should leave! The rest of us will ensure that if the leak was illegal someone will be held accountable.
President Obama to restore honor, rights and dignity to the USA!
Who cares how the "leak" happened. There has been enough dirt on McCain and Palin.
Maybe a little bit of justice has been served.
I hope all you Nobama fans are going to be happy a year or two down the road if this man gets elected. Hold on to your hats and your tax dollars.
This is the tip of the iceberg, on the public housing and welfare rolls.
1. She did nothing criminal. It is just an administrative thing--read!
2. Obviously no one knew.
sheesh he maybe had a donor with a parking ticket too
Why would Obama need to explain Republican fabrications? That burden is on the anti-Obama folks--go negative= get unelected.
Another rediculous rule. Obama''''s aunt was ordered to leave America. Her request for asylum was refused yet she ends up in a public housing project in Boston. Everything she did is illegal yet our government is prevented from disclosing immigration information. Something just isn''''t right with our system. If I break the law, chances are it will be in the newspaper for all of my neighbors, friends, and relatives to see. An illegal immigrant breaks the law and it is kept confidential. Is this justice? This is an example of an illegal immigrant receiving better treatment than an American citizen.
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/us_elections/article5068613.ece
The trail that led to ''Aunt Zeituni'', the relative of Barack Obama who was traced by The Times last week, started with Mr Obama''s memoir, one of the most widely read political autobiographies of all time. The Democrat campaign has implied that the story might have come from Republican sources -''the American people are, pretty suspicious of things that are dumped in the marketplace 72 hours before a campaign,'' said Mr Obama''s chief strategist Axelrod yesterday.
Two thirds of the way through the book Mr Obama''s half-sister talked about Africans who had emigrated to the West and were never heard of again, ''like our Uncle Omar, in Boston . . . They''ve been lost, you see''. A few pages later Mr Obama meets his step-grandmother, Sarah, for the first time in the village of Kogelo. On the walls of her hut are photographs of Omar, ''the uncle who had left for America 25 years ago and never came back''. Touchingly, she asks the future presidential candidate if he has any news of Omar, her son and Mr Obama''s half-uncle.''
So... where''s the uncle?
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Posted by NailinPalin at 07:54 PM : Nov 02, 2008
I agree with you 100% but Obama is running on the platform of taking it away from the wealthy to give to the poor. That is his platform! He says it''''s only fair. How can he stand on that platform when he has a brother in Kenya living on $1 a month and an aunt he wrote about in his book living in public housing with a "deportation order". He is a huge hypocrit!! He has fooled all of you. Wake up. Open your eyes.
Posted by iknowacommi at 07:58 PM : Nov 02, 2008
Reading your "name" tells me that you are probably still living in the 1950''s when everyone was going "commi hunting." Your fabrications and stre-e-tching of the "truth" have become commonplace with Republican rantings during this past decade. Sounds like you need to do a little catch-up on current events! Your statements only prove that you have certainly missed a lot of facts.....remember "facts"? Or is that alien to you also?
Posted by kevinkkloste at 07:30 PM : Nov 02, 2008
As I read the Bible, ''WE'' are all related. I am doing my best to help everyody, "WHAT" you haven''t received any help from me??????? OH!!! impetous youth, get back in line, I might get to you before Obama does...
ssshhheeeeesssshhhhh, everybody thinks they are more important than anybody else.
I agree with you 100% but Obama is running on the platform of taking it away from the wealthy to give to the poor. That is his platform! He says it''''''''s only fair. How can he stand on that platform when he has a brother in Kenya living on $1 a month
Posted by iknowacommi at 07:58 PM : Nov 02, 2008
If your going to backstab someone, make sure that no one else can find out the real truth... and the story behind it.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/uselection2008/barackobama/2595688/Barack-Obama-is-my-inspiration-says-lost-brother.html
Government Looking Into Whether Laws Were Broken In Disclosure That Democratic Nominee''s Aunt Lives In U.S. Illegally''
Hey FEDs, why don''t you READ the Times Online Article and STOP wasting our Taxpayer money?
How The Times followed a trail to find Barack Obama''s aunt
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/us_elections/article5068613.ece
Better yet, answer the Times question at the bottom of the article;
''It was not until Wednesday evening that The Times obtained a formal identification of Ms Onyango by George Hussein, Mr Obama''s half-brother who had known her throughout his childhood. Whatever the Democrat campaign may imply, there is nothing suspicious about the story or its timing. The only mystery, perhaps, is how so many people read Mr Obama''s book in the US without wondering what might have happened to the mysterious relative, lost in America.''
In fact, the more you think about it, the MORE questions about Obama arise. The lingering question about the Birth Certificate, STILL NOT ANSWERED, is ludicrous.
Posted by t_barr at 07:58 PM : Nov 02, 2008
Ask the shrub, he probably has him hidden away at GITMO so that Mcshame can "Come to his rescue" at the last minute (before the election.)
So Jack, tell me why he still hasn''t presented the vault copy. You know, the copy that I had to submit to join the Navy and obtain a Secret clearance. What about the College records? Why are they being withheld? Try answering instead of name calling. Oh, that''s right, morons always resort to name calling ''cause they''re BRAINDEAD.
Now having read this statement by Obama, I will take him at his word and I will see if he stands by iit ''when'' he becomes President. Its not up to him to deport her, it''s up to the shrub and the State dept,
"This is much ado about nothing" (Sorry Will)
As a Republican, I would rather be extinct than live in a country that holds only people like you. Talk about division in a party? Don''t remember the primaries and the battle between Hillary and Barack? You really think the Democrat party is healed. We shall see.
and this means ''what????
For those who doubt about Obama''''s knowledge of his half auntie''''s status, why didn''''t he hide her long time ago??????? You really think he is that foolish?????? HE DOES NOT KNOW!!!
The economy in the toilet you all are torqued out about one Black woman????? get real.....
A Republican running for the Presidency... again...you all are torqued out about one Black woman????? get real....
Go on and elect Obama and watch what he does, ''THEN'' you will have the right to call him names and be angry at him. but not until he has failed you like the shrub has. OH!!!! I forgot!!!! shrubby is a ''WHITE'' guy like me (kinda)
ARE YOU HAPPY NOW...***!!!!
From Dreams of My Father: "I found a solace in nursing a pervasive sense of grievance and animosity against my mother''s race."
From Dreams of My Father: "There was something about him that made me wary, a little too sure of himself, maybe. And white."
From Dreams of My Father: ; "It remained necessary to prove which side you were on, to show your loyalty to the black masses, to strike out and name names."
From Dreams of My Father: "I never emulate white men and brown men whose fates didn''t speak to my own. It was into my father''s image, the black man, son of Africa, that I''d packed all the attributes I sought in myself, the attributes of Martin and Malcolm, Dubois and Mandela."
From Audacity of Hope: "I will stand with the Muslims should the political winds shift in an ugly direction."
Posted by NEEDERBAUR at 09:29 PM : Nov 02, 2008
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Look this up on snopes.com, and find out that EVERY ONE of these quotes are taken totally out of context.
When viewed in the context for which they were written, they make perfect sense.
On the one about "standing with the Muslims," it talks about how after September 11th Muslim US citizens feared that they would be put in camps like the Japanese in WWII (in the US). He said if this happened, that he would "stand with them".
"In the wake of 9/11, my meetings with Arab and Pakistani Americans, for example, have a more urgent quality, for the stories of detentions and FBI questioning and hard stares from neighbors have shaken their sense of security and belonging. They have been reminded that the history of immigration in this country has a dark underbelly; they need specific reassurances that their citizenship really means something, that America has learned the right lessons from the Japanese internments during World War II, and that I will stand with them should the political winds shift in an ugly direction."
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