Obama: "Small towns cling to guns or religion"

Caren Bohan
Reuters
Saturday, April 12, 2008


Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama came under fire on Friday for saying small-town Pennsylvania residents were "bitter" and "cling to guns or religion," in comments his rivals said showed an elitist view of the middle class.

Obama's Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, and presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain both pounced on the comments Obama made last weekend at a fundraiser in San Francisco.

Video of the fundraiser, which was closed to the press, surfaced as Obama was campaigning in Indiana, trying to highlight issues of concern to working-class voters, such as job losses and rising mortgage foreclosures.


"You go into some of these small towns in Pennsylvania, and like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and nothing's replaced them," Obama, an Illinois senator, said.

"And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations," he said.

Clinton, a New York senator who is battling Obama for the Democratic nomination and the right to face McCain in the November presidential election, said in Philadelphia the comments showed Obama "looks down" on voters in Pennsylvania, which holds a closely watched nominating contest on April 22.

"Pennsylvania doesn't need a president who looks down on them," she said told a rally. "They need a president who stands up for them, who fights for them, who works hard for your futures, your jobs, your families."

Full article here:

http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSN1116676020080412

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[Shawnster65]

I'd like to hear the fallout if a WHITE presidential candidate went up there and stereotyped Muslims, or assumed that ALL Black or Hispanics are drug dealers:

You'd never hear the end of it.

Funny that gun owners get villified, when the people doing the attacks (Hollywood, the Media, and Capitol Hill Lawmakers) all have their OWN guns.

You gonna' tell me that Obama, or Hillary and Bill don't own them? Yeah, and I have beachfront property in Arizona, I'll sell it to you ;-)

[HapaLife]

Bitter about losing America? Yes indeed we are bitter.

[DwightSimpson]

And now Americans are upset with Barack's broken promises. Election 2012 here we come...

[rpovlik]

@spiderpig85  exactly right!!

[jxsilicon9]

@MultiTalentedMe13

I'm not talking about soldiers. But hillbillies in their backyard.

[MultiTalentedMe13]

@jxsilicon9

well our guns are saving your ass from terrorists arnt they????? and who fricken cares about sweden or japan. we r talking about america.

[jxsilicon9]

@ryanvanhazel

Your guns and religion aren't saving anything. The least violent countries are places like Sweden and Japan that don't cling to guns and religion.

[spiderpig85]

@ryanvanhazel Wrong. Religion is what is going to destroy not only America, but the world. I'm all for guns for everyone, I own and am proud of it. But religion is why the middle east is so violent, and Christianity versus Islam has been going on for thousands of years, killing millions upon millions. Belief in fairy tales does nothing beneficial.

[ryanvanhazel]

At the end of the day, our guns and religion are going to be the only thing that saves this country.

[critter505]

@ThoriumRex Very well put. I know this comment is 6 months old, but I just read it and had to say how awesome it was to see someone put it in a grim, but very spot on perspectives.

[jluvs2jackoff]

who needs a gun if we have Obama?

[narukofan2]

@scraftonthebadger is it scaremongering when it is the truth. I think not.