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(FOX News)A two-year-old picture of Barack Obama dressed in traditional Somali
garb has sparked a new war of words between the Democratic presidential
front-runner and rival Hillary Clinton, whose aides say they can’t
confirm or deny whether her camp is the source of the photo.
The photograph shows the Illinois senator outfitted as a Somali
elder during his 2006 visit to northeastern Kenya, part of a
five-country tour of Africa. It appeared at the top of Monday’s Drudge
Report, and was said to have been provided by Clinton staffers over the
weekend.
Now both campaigns are suggesting that the other should feel some
sort of shame over the flap. According to Obama aides, the Clinton
campaign is sinking to “shameful fear-mongering.” Clinton’s campaign
chief retorted that she can’t figure out why Obama would be “ashamed”
of having the photo out in the public.
![obama_garb.jpg](/images/obama_garb.jpg)
|
The Drudge Report ran this photo of Barack Obama in Somali garb from a
2006 trip to Africa. The Web site claims Hillary Clinton's campaign
provided the photo to it. |
While the source of the photo is unverified, Drudge claims it was
sent to the site by a Clinton aide, who argued that had it been a
costumed Clinton, it would have made the front pages.
“Wouldn’t we be seeing this on the cover of every magazine if it
were HRC,” shorthand for the candidate, Hillary Rodham Clinton, wrote
the unnamed Clinton campaign staffer, according to the Drudge Report.
Expressing outrage, Obama’s campaign suggested the purpose of the
photo release was to invoke reminders of persistent rumors that Obama
is secretly Muslim, and by extension, anti-American.
“On the very day that Senator Clinton is giving a speech about
restoring respect for America in the world, her campaign has engaged in
the most shameful, offensive fear-mongering we’ve seen from either
party in this election,” Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said.
![bush_putin_costume_240.jpg](/images/bush_putin_costume_240.jpg)
|
President Bush and Russian President Vladimir
Putin wore traditional Vietnamese “ao dai” robes
during the 2006 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation
summit in Hanoi, Vietnam. (AP Photo) |
“This is part of a disturbing pattern that led her county chairs to
resign in Iowa, her campaign chairman to resign in New Hampshire, and
it’s exactly the kind of divisive politics that turns away Americans of
all parties and diminishes respect for America in the world,” Plouffe
continued.
A longtime member of Chicago’s Trinity United Church of Christ,
Obama, who as a child lived for four years in Indonesia, has repeatedly
denied that he is Muslim. Previous attacks have been decried by both
candidates, and one Clinton campaign volunteer was asked to step down
after forwarding an e-mail spreading the Muslim rumor.
But seeing an opportunity to refute the Obama camp’s outrage,
Clinton campaign Manager Maggie Williams turned the perceived prejudice
on its head.”If Barack Obama’s campaign wants to suggest that a photo
of him wearing traditional Somali clothing is divisive, they should be
ashamed. Hillary Clinton has worn the traditional clothing of countries
she has visited and had those photos published widely,” Clinton
campaign manager Maggie Williams said in a statement.
“This is nothing more than an obvious and transparent attempt to
distract from the serious issues confronting our country today and to
attempt to create the very divisions they claim to decry. We will not
be distracted,” she said.
Indeed, the New York senator, her husband, Bill Clinton, and other
past presidents have all been photographed in traditional costume while
visiting nations abroad.
Speaking on a conference call, Obama advisers rejected the
suggestion that the candidate is shamed by the photo, but likened the
incident to receipt of an unwanted Christmas present.
General Scott Gration, who was along on the trip to Africa, said
Obama was given the outfit and encouraged to try it on during a visit
with Somalis, Gabras and other ethnic groups.
“We all have pictures of us in hats and accepting other gifts. As
was pointed out to me earlier, we try on Christmas gifts, sometimes
that we may not want to keep, but we try them on as being a grateful
recipient. Senator Obama did what any leader should do: accepted the
gift, accepted the hospitality, accepted that token of friendship and
he did it in a way that showed respect and helped build the bridges
that he does so well,” Gration said.
“He’s a unifier in all atmospheres and certainly that day he was
somebody who accepted a gift of friendship in a way that we would
expect our president to do,” he continued.
Meanwhile, a senior Clinton staff member could not rule out the
source of the photo, but suggested that had it been Clinton dressed in
such gear, it would’ve been splashed across newspapers around the
country.”There are 700 people in our organization. We can’t be sure
that it didn’t come from us. It is not the intent of the campaign to
release this picture to tarnish Senator Obama in any way. But if
someone in the campaign thinks the Obama gets treated differently by
the media, well they’re right,” the senior staffer said.
GOPAC head and FOX News contributor Michael Steele said he’d be
surprised to find out the photo came from the Clinton campaign.”If
there is a staffer who sort of in their own roguish way had gone out
and put this out there, this will be their last day on the job,” Steele
said.
“I think this is something that just kind of popped up on the ‘Net
and they are attributing it to her. I’d be hard-pressed to find someone
on the staff who is wasting their time in the heat of this battle to do
something like that.”
SOURCE: FOX News, Monday, February 25, 2008