Topic: WorldNetDaily
What is with right-wing celebrities smearing President Obama by quoting him out of context?
Following in the footsteps of Pat Boone, Chuck Norris uses his Dec. 20 WorldNetDaily column to attack Obama by heavily editing what he said to present it in a false light:
First, even during his campaign for the presidency, Obama sarcastically belittled America's Judeo-Christian heritage and degraded its adherents with trite remarks typical of any atheistic antagonist: "Whatever we were, we are no longer a Christian nation"; "The dangers of sectarianism are greater than ever"; "Religion doesn't allow for compromise": "The Sermon on the Mount [is] a passage that is so radical that our own defense department wouldn't survive its application"; and "To base our policy making upon such commitments [as moral absolutes] would be a dangerous thing." (See the YouTube video: "Barack Obama on the importance of a secular government.")
Second, President Obama has already denied America's rich Judeo-Christian heritage before the eyes and ears of other countries, as he publicly declared in Turkey on April 6, 2009, for the whole world to hear: "We do not consider ourselves a Christian nation." (Who are the "we" to whom he refers? Would our former presidents agree with his "we"?)
Norris has ripped the first statement and the similar Turkey statement out of context. Here's the full version of what Obama said in Turkey, according to the video Norris links to:
I've said before that one of the great strengths of the United States is, although as I mentioned we have a very large Christian population, we do not consider ourselves a Christian nation or a Jewish nation or a Muslim nation; we consider ourselves a nation of citizens who are bound by ideals and a set of values. I think Turkey -- modern Turkey was founded with a similar set of principles. And yet what we're seeing in both countries is that promise of a secular country that is respectful of religious freedom, respectful of the rule of law, respctful of freedom, upholding these values and being willing to stand up for them on the international stage.
The other statements Norris cites come from a November 2008 speech that, as he notes, focuses on the importance on a secular government. Norris doesn't explain why he apparently opposes secular government.
Of course, lying about Obama and taking him out of context is old hat for WND writers. Indeed, WND reinforced Norris' distortions by quoting them in a Dec. 22 article by Bob Unruh attacking Obama over a single ornament on a large White House Christmas tree that has, among the many images on it, a tiny image of Chairman Mao.
