July 22, 2009: Conservative Columnist Slams Limbaugh, Others for Promoting ‘Birther’ Conspiracy Theory

Reporter and columnist Philip Klein, writing for the conservative American Spectator, lambasts conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh for giving the “birther” conspiracy theory his support. Klein says he has refrained from writing about it up until now, “because I don’t want to give those who claim [President Obama] is not a US citizen the attention they so desperately seek. I don’t even want to describe the matter as a ‘controversy,’ because to do so suggests that there is a serious dispute over Obama’s place of birth. To any sane human being, there is no controversy. Obama has produced an authentic certificate of live birth from the state of Hawaii that clearly shows he was born on August 4, 1961, in Honolulu, Hawaii, at 7:24 p.m. (see June 13, 2008). State officials have confirmed the document as legitimate (see October 30, 2008) and have stated that such facts would have to be verified by the state before they appear on the document. And if that isn’t enough, the fact is corroborated by a contemporaneous newspaper birth announcement” (see July 2008). Klein writes that instead of questioning Obama’s citizenship and demanding that he produce a “real” birth certificate, “Limbaugh should be using his perch to explain why this story is complete nonsense. Doing so would help to keep these citizenship conspiracy theorists in the fringe, where they belong. Instead, he’s just encouraging them. I’ve lost a ton of respect for Limbaugh this week.” Klein goes on to denounce Representative Bill Posey (R-FL), who with nine other Republican House members has sponsored a bill requiring presidential candidates to produce “official” birth certificates. All 10 “should be embarrassed,” he writes. It would be pointless for Obama to try to settle the issue by releasing a different version of the certificate, Klein writes, because “it would obviously not put the issue to rest… the conspiracy theorists have demonstrated that they do not care about facts.” Secondly, “there’s absolutely no reason for Obama to cave into these people. Doing so would set a standard in the future so that people can start whatever insane rumors they want about an elected official, and then the burden is on the official to dispute them. It’s no different than those calling for an investigation of whether 9/11 was an inside job.” [American Spectator, 7/22/2009]