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Speaking in Independence, Mo., and donning the flag pin that has become a subtext for questions about his patriotism, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) said Monday that those questions have sometimes been his own fault and vowed to fight them head-on. Shifting into general-election mode, the Democratic presidential candidate also leveled criticism at MoveOn.org, one of his biggest supporters in the primary. After mentioning how opponents of the Iraq war have been labeled as unpatriotic, he equated that with the liberal group’s full-page newspaper ad that accused Gen. David Petraeus of betrayal — though without mentioning either MoveOn or Petraeus by name. “Surely we can agree that no party or political philosophy has a monopoly on patriotism,” he said. Obama did not vote last year when the Senate approved a measure condemning the controversial Petraeus ad.
Mostly, though, the speech served to make inroads with voters who still question his patriotism or might be led down that path by his political opponents as the November election nears. “At certain times over the last 16 months, I have found, for the first time, my patriotism challenged — at times as a result of my own carelessness, more often as a result of the desire by some to score political points and raise fears about who I am and what I stand for,” he said. “I will never question the patriotism of others in this campaign, and I will not stand idly by when I hear others question mine.” Obama, kicking off a week of Independence Day campaigning and festivities, mentioned the Founding Fathers who at times had their patriotism questioned, saying the politicization of the issue is “as old as the Republic.” Attacks on Sen. John Kerry’s (D-Mass.) patriotism in 2004 by groups like Swift Boat Veterans for Truth proved part of the Democratic nominee’s undoing, and Obama has endured a series of accusations that he is unpatriotic. Those attacks have centered on the belief among some voters that Obama is a Muslim, as well as his decision for much of the campaign not to wear the flag pin that so many lawmakers have worn since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. He was recently featured on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine in a photo that emphasized the flag pin on his lapel, and he was wearing the pin again Monday. Obama also assured that he believes in the supremacy of the United States. “As I got older, that gut instinct — that America is the greatest country on earth — would survive my growing awareness of our nation’s imperfection,” he said. |
