The other day I received an email with a picture in it of Barack Obama. The email claimed that the picture was of Mr. Obama refusing to put his hand over his heart and say the Pledge of Allegiance. Of course, the email went on to state how we shouldn’t vote for anyone who refuses to say the Pledge of Allegiance. Mr. Obama agrees. I wrote a letter to Mr. Obama asking him his side of the story. At first I thought he wouldn’t reply when I received a standard letter thanking me for joining his campaign. I responded letting his campaign staff know that was not my intention. A few days later, much to my surprise, he replied to my original letter.
Dear Friend,
Thank you for inquiring about the false accusation that I have refused to sing the National Anthem or say the Pledge of Allegiance. I knew when I decided to run for President that I would not be immune from the “anything goes” form of attack politics that has been so prominent in our elections in recent years. And this outrageous charge is just another example of the kind of mean spirited, “shock” politics I will move beyond as President.
I am honored to lead a life of public service, and it is inconceivable that I would ever refuse to say the Pledge or sing the National Anthem. In fact, as a U.S. senator, I am sometimes called upon to preside over the opening of the Senate in the morning, at which time I am proud to lead my colleagues in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, with my right hand over my heart. Anybody who doesn’t believe in the Pledge shouldn’t be running for President.
Every time I have been elected or reelected to the Illinois Senate and the United States Senate, I have proudly raised my right hand, placed my left hand on the Bible and sworn to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” And I will be proud to take the Presidential Oath of office on January 20, 2009.
Thank you again for contacting me. Please share this message with anyone you know who has been misled by this baseless and particularly hurtful political attack.
Sincerely,
Barack Obama
People are quick to jump to conclusions and assume the worst, especially with political candidates. I don’t know what was going through his mind when he was standing there. Basically, someone caught him with his guard down for a split second and snapped a picture to somehow gain credibility towards changing how others perceive him. The email wants us to believe that they were in the middle of saying the Pledge of Allegiance when the picture was taken. However, that cannot be proven with this picture. You cannot tell from a picture if they had even started saying the Pledge of Allegiance. We have to make up our own minds how we feel about this man and not let someone else’s influence of words and a picture make up our minds for us.
