"I had a uncle who was one of the, who was part of the first American troops to go into Auschwitz and liberate the concentration camps," Obama said.
Much has been written and said about this comment. The Obama camp quickly corrected the statement. It was a great uncle and the camp liberated was Buchenwald, not Auschwitz.
At first blush, the mistakes seem innocent enough, and there was no intention to deceive. I have no quarrel with referring to a great uncle as an uncle. But for anyone with a reasonable grounding in history, it is surprising, even stunning, that Obama could think American troops liberated Auschwitz.
Two very basic facts. First, the Auschwitz camp was in Poland. Second, it was the Soviet army that liberated this part of Europe, leading to years of Soviet domination throughout much of the continent. Neither fact is an insignificant matter. For a man seeking the presidency to be unaware of either or both is mind boggling.
Obama has a history of being sloppy with facts, which can be understandable in a long, grinding campaign. But the real story here is the glimpse we were given into Obama's jaw dropping ignorance of history, which is also no small matter.
|
|
|
Permalink :: 74 Comments :: Post a Comment
|
In order to post a comment, you must be logged in. If you have a member account, please log in to comment.
If not, you can make an account right here. It's quick and free.
