Posted by
Rocky Mountain Foundation on Tuesday, April 20, 2010 9:26:14 AM
Tancredo responds to White House attack
Bob Gibbs should question Michelle: What did she mean by calling Kenya Obama’s ‘home country’?
Denver, Colorado – Former Congressman Tom Tancredo responded today to criticism from White House spokesman Robert Gibbs, who referred to Tancredo’s weekend remarks to a South Carolina Tea Party audience as "lunacy."
In a speech on the weekend to a Tea Party rally in Greenville, South Carolina, Tancredo said, "If his wife says Kenya is his ‘home country ’ why don’t we just send him back?" The remark earned Tancredo a standing ovation.
Gibbs did not mention the fact that Tancredo was quoting Michelle Obama, who gave a speech in August 2008 [now on YouTube] to a Gay and Lesbian conference in which she said, "He [the president] visited his home country in Kenya."
"I was saying we need to send him packing in 2012," said Tancredo. "We sent Carter back to Georgia and Al Gore back to…where? — Georgetown, I guess. "If Michelle Obama thinks Kenya is her husband’s ‘home country,’ I assume he will want to return there after leaving the White House in 2012. I did not say Obama was born in Kenya, I merely quoted his wife calling Kenya his homeland.
"I could have said, let’s send him back to Chicago, but neither Michelle Obama nor her husband has never called Illinois his ‘home country.’ We can all appreciate why that might not be their first choice as a place to retire considering the skeletons buried there."
Tancredo noted that much of the news coverage of his remark about "sending him back" -- such as the CBS News story -- omitted any reference to the Michelle Obama quote about his Kenya homeland.
"I guess Gibbs does not dare embarrass Michelle and attacking Tancredo is more fun. But if there is any ‘lunacy’ afoot, it is Gibbs’ wild insult to the First Lady. He really should show more respect for Michelle Obama’s words."
Michelle Obama’s 2008 speech is at --- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJutTlONc3Q