What goes around, comes around

Things don’t typically spring out of nothing. Sexual predators are often persons who were abused as children; international conflicts often have deep historical roots. Parents teach their children that actions have consequences.

The example today is the early Hillary Clinton supporters who were birthers in 2008. Do you remember Linda Sue Belcher? Perhaps you recall her screen name, Linda Starr. We encounter her on this blog as part of my shout out to John Avlon’s book, Wingnuts: How the Lunatic Fringe is Hijacking America. That book a source for Politifact’s misfire in its own article: “Reince Priebus says Clinton campaign and supporters started the birther movement?

Here’s what Avlon wrote:

But there’s an inconvenient truth liberals are going to have to confront: The Birthers began not on the right, but on the left.

Investigations for my new book, Wingnuts, revealed that the Birther conspiracy theory was first concocted by renegade members of the original Obama haters, Party Unity My Ass, known more commonly by their acronym, the PUMAs. They were a splinter group of hard-core Hillary Clinton supporters who did not want to give up the ghost after the bitter 50-state Bataan Death March to the 2008 Democratic nomination.

Because of that, Politifact gave Priebus’ lie a “half true” rating.

We know that whatever claims might be made about support from the PUMAs for birtherism, it was concocted and first appeared on a right-wing forum, the Free Republic a month before any alleged buzz among Clinton supporters (see Loren Collins’ report, “The Secret Origin of the Birthers”).

So here we have some Hillary Clinton supporters who failed to exercise critical thinking, or perhaps even dishonestly spread birtherism. John Avlon, writing his book in 2010, didn’t do a complete job of research.  Now, 8 and 6 years later, their actions are giving aid and comfort to Donald Trump and his surrogates, allowing them to excuse Trump’s birtherism by saying Hillary did it first. What they did was wrong, and what goes around, comes around.

About Dr. Conspiracy

I'm not a real doctor, but I have a master's degree.
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47 Responses to What goes around, comes around

  1. Thrifty says:

    I think I am going to start breaking into peoples’ homes and stealing things. After all, a bunch of people have been committing burglary for centuries, so I think that means it’s okay, according to this.

  2. Loren says:

    Tiny nitpick: his last name is Avlon, not Avalon.

    And thanks for the cite. 🙂

  3. justlw says:

    I’ve got an open compose window to Alison Graves, sketching out the actual birtherism timeline (with a major cite to Loren’s seminal post, of course). I assume Doc and others have already sent similar messages, so I’ve held off clicking “Send”, wondering if it’s worth it at all.

  4. Steve says:

    Thrifty:
    I think I am going to start breaking into peoples’ homes and stealing things.After all, a bunch of people have been committing burglary for centuries, so I think that means it’s okay, according to this.

    Sounds good to me.

  5. Steve says:

    Loren:
    Tiny nitpick: his last name is Avlon, not Avalon.

    And thanks for the cite.

    Every time someone says “Hillary started it” online, I do two things.
    First, I ask them what’s their point.
    Then I share the link to your article.

  6. dunstvangeet says:

    Even then, “Half-true” because some people who were not at all connected to the Clinton Campaign, but claimed that they supported Clinton (I’ll bet you that not one of the so-called “PUMA” is an actual Clinton Supporter this time around. I’ll bet you that every single PUMA is a Donald Trump Supporter in 2016) is a stretch. That should have been given the rating of “Mostly False” because it wasn’t the Clinton Campaign, or any organization that Clinton had any modicum of control over, as what Ryan Priebus implied. It was a couple of people who supposedly supported Clinton in the 2008 Primaries.

  7. The original birther was a Hendry County (Florida) deputy by the name of Joe Lee. He is also the one who, along with myself, signed the long form birth certificate with “Ukelele.” He risked his life by doing so.

  8. Dr. Kenneth Noisewater says:

    dunstvangeet:
    Even then, “Half-true” because some people who were not at all connected to the Clinton Campaign, but claimed that they supported Clinton (I’ll bet you that not one of the so-called “PUMA” is an actual Clinton Supporter this time around.I’ll bet you that every single PUMA is a Donald Trump Supporter in 2016) is a stretch.That should have been given the rating of “Mostly False” because it wasn’t the Clinton Campaign, or any organization that Clinton had any modicum of control over, as what Ryan Priebus implied.It was a couple of people who supposedly supported Clinton in the 2008 Primaries.

    I doubt most of the pumas were even Clinton supporters to begin with. So many of the PUMAs claimed they would vote for McCain who supported none of Clinton’s positions. I suspect these are some of the same types who claimed they were Bernie supporters but then claimed they would be voting trump.

  9. Rickey says:

    Dr. Kenneth Noisewater: I doubt most of the pumas were even Clinton supporters to begin with.So many of the PUMAs claimed they would vote for McCain who supported none of Clinton’s positions.I suspect these are some of the same types who claimed they were Bernie supporters but then claimed they would be voting trump.

    I share your doubts. The media love conflict and gave the PUMAs a lot of coverage, but in the end they made no difference. It never made any sense to me that someone who supported Clinton would vote for McCain.

    Incidentally, there is a Linda Sue Belcher on Facebook who claims to be a Bernie supporter who “won’t go back.” Coincidence?

  10. justlw says:

    The PUMAs were of course beloved/inflated beyond recognition by Rush Limbaugh, who touted them as a key part of his “Operation Chaos” strategy in 2008, which as you all recall was what put John McCain in the White House that year.

  11. Joey says:

    In 2008 I used to post on the “TexasDarlin'” blog. Those folks were PUMAs who despised Barack Obama, went full-tilt birther and were Hillary Clinton fanatics. Eventually I was banned for asking too many “pro-Obama” questions.

  12. Thank You! I hope so. Reaping what you Sew… what goes around comes around.

    Wow! It’s interesting to see PUMA’s debunking here WHEN many PUMA’s state they are all in for Clinton… * again and referred to as her most loyal. It’s kind of hard to imagine Hillary Clinton really not liking those who support her, like the ** Communist Party USA?

    Ref 1 * https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/they-were-hillary-clintons-die-hard-loyalists-heres-where-they-are-now/2015/05/02/82025cf2-e92a-11e4-aae1-d642717d8afa_story.html

    Ref 2 **: http://www.cpusa.org/article/taking-a-sober-look-at-the-2016-election/

    That’s not really the part that is the burr under the blanket. That part has to do with people wanting Trump to take responsibility as a ‘racist’ for his not disavowing the KKK support fast enough, and the Media’s understanding when the KKK reversed his support for Donald and endorsed Hillary Clinton because they liked her ‘underhandedness’ and creative dictatorial prowess as an embodiment of Hitler.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/hillary-clinton-kkk_us_56e7373ae4b0b25c918304f2

    You know when Trump gets endorsed by the KKK it’s accepted, but when Hillary gets endorsed it’s conspiracy with many, and the same applies to Hillary being endorsed by PUMA.

    Just on the oft chance anyone here ‘thinks’ that qualification for the Office of President as sited in the U.S. Constitution is a ‘bad thing’ and all those who understand the parameters established for the Office of the President as Law, why is it Birthers is a pejorative around here?

    It’s actually the very FIRST LINE of a sound attack on a political opponent and should be expected rather than disparaged.

    The TIME frame of being an American qualified for the Office of Representative, Senator, or President is also elaborated as ‘discriminating’ to those ‘younger’ Americans many of you obviously do not have any ire against, so what’s the difference between the TIME it takes to be Born in the U.S. to Citizen Parents ie. to meet the [natural born Citizen] requirement.

    The point being the outrage against Birthers is a false negative in the first place. Obviously, if someone is 25 and runs for President we all agree they are not qualified by a decade, and someone running whose 34 years old isn’t either.

    The point is also illustrated somewhat in the pompous outrage of what ever the narrative outline or ‘agenda’ is as Trump as a racist, the same one who employs thousands of Americans of mixed ethical backgrounds. Would a true racist really do that?

    Well, in the ‘agenda’ driven maddness, of course Hillary wasn’t referring to black Americans when she was talking about bringing to Heel those who broke the law, nor did it have anything to do with those who were illegal aliens she would never speak to undocumented workers in the context of obeying the law to that same agenda driven maddness.

    But Trump, now the reins are completely thrown away and you can run away with any balance you might have had. He’s undercover racist by hiring brown Mexican Americans or black African Americans? He’s definitely racist by being endorsed by the KKK?

    Hillary is excused and her disavowing the KKK”s 20K is solid, while Trump’s is tepid? It doesn’t make any sense and is in the very least expositive.

    What did McCain have to do with Hillary? or Democrats?

    1 McCain/Feingold
    2 McCain / Libermann
    3 McCain / Kennedy
    4 Co sponsor Obama H.Clinton of U.S. Sen. Res 511 for McCain

    Re:

    Rickey: I doubt most of the pumas were even Clinton supporters to begin with.So many of the PUMAs claimed they would vote for McCain who supported none of Clinton’s positions.I suspect these are some of the same types who claimed they were Bernie supporters but then claimed they would be voting trump.

    It’s a well known fact that Democrats really cannot win without Republican cross overs and visa versa, so it’s pretty dog-gone American to rally together and to do your best as a Politician to find common ground.

    Look at the Republican support for Obama in the House Passed Budgets? And in the grand cover-up of his not being a [natural born Citizen]?

    In truth, Democrats in support of Obama owe quite an allegiance to Republicans for this cover-up.

  13. Scientist says:

    Cody Robert Judy: Reaping what you Sew

    Now that is really sic

  14. Steve says:

    Thrifty:
    I think I am going to start breaking into peoples’ homes and stealing things.After all, a bunch of people have been committing burglary for centuries, so I think that means it’s okay, according to this.

    Politics, at least the way it is now, doesn’t seem to be a part of the real world or function by its rules for some reason.

  15. Scientist says:

    Cody Robert Judy: Trump as a racist, the same one who employs thousands of Americans of mixed ethical backgrounds. Would a true racist really do that?

    Slave owners employed millions of African Americans. Guess they weren’t racist….

  16. Joey says:

    Pence breaks with Trump, says Obama born in Hawaii

    Mike Pence on Wednesday declined to say whether Donald Trump should apologize for suggesting Barack Obama was born outside the U.S., but he did say Trump’s stance wouldn’t hurt him with minority voters.

    For Pence’s part, the Indiana governor said he does believe Obama was born in Hawaii, as his birth certificate states and has been exhaustively documented.

    “Well I believe Barack Obama was born in Hawaii, I accept his birthplace,” Pence told reporters during a brief gaggle aboard his campaign plane before a fundraising event here. “I just don’t know where he’s coming from on foreign policy and on economics and on Obamacare.”
    http://www.politico.com/story/2016/09/pence-trump-obama-birther-comments-227840

  17. Thanks for the correction. I respect very much the research you did on the origins of birthers; it’s just a shame the alternate version of history is ascendant right now.

    Loren:
    Tiny nitpick: his last name is Avlon, not Avalon.

    And thanks for the cite. 🙂

  18. Because birthers work from bias rather than facts. They denigrate expertise. Many of them are racists and xenophobes.

    Cody Robert Judy: why is it Birthers is a pejorative around here?

  19. I am the Obama forger. That’s a fact.

    Dr. Conspiracy:
    Because birthers work from bias rather than facts. They denigrate expertise. Many of them are racists and xenophobes.

  20. Rickey says:

    Cody Robert Judy:

    That part has to do with people wanting Trump to take responsibility as a ‘racist’ for his not disavowing the KKK support fast enough, and the Media’s understanding when the KKK reversed his support for Donald and endorsed Hillary Clinton because they liked her ‘underhandedness’ and creative dictatorial prowess as an embodiment of Hitler.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/hillary-clinton-kkk_us_56e7373ae4b0b25c918304f2

    You know when Trump gets endorsed by the KKK it’s accepted, but when Hillary gets endorsed it’s conspiracy with many, and the same applies to Hillary being endorsed by PUMA.

    I see that your reading comprehension deficits have kicked in again.

    The KKK has never reversed its support for Trump. That article refers to one KKK member, Will Quigg, who claimed that he supported Clinton and donated $20,000 to her campaign because she supposedly has “a secret agenda” which he agrees with.

    The problem is that the FEC has no record of such a donation, Quigg has refused requests to provide documentation of the supposed donation, and he has refused to answer questions about how he gained knowledge of the “secret agenda” or what that agenda is. As the article concludes (and apparently the part which you did not read or at least did not understand), “To treat that as serious or significant is silly. Whatever you think of Clinton, she would not be an ally to the Ku Klux Klan as president.”

  21. Rickey says:

    Nancy Ruth Owens:
    I am the Obama forger. That’s a fact.

    Nobody cares about your delusions.

  22. Dr. Kenneth Noisewater says:

    Dr. Conspiracy:
    Because birthers work from bias rather than facts. They denigrate expertise. Many of them are racists and xenophobes.

    Take for instance Nancy here if you watch some of her early videos and comments on youtube you see nothing but racism and bigotry.

  23. Sam the Centipede says:

    Nancy Ruth Owens:
    I am the Obama forger. That’s a fact.

    No, Nancy, a fact is something that it is true. It is wholly untrue that you are or were a forger or any other form of master criminal. You are a delusional fuckwit who needs to seek help.

  24. dunstvangeet says:

    Don’t expect anything from Politifact. They come up with an analysis, and stick by it, despite things coming up.

    For instance, about a year ago, Politifact ran an article on Rand Paul saying that the Supreme Court has never addressed the citizenship of illegal aliens. They rated it as “Mostly true”: http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/sep/18/rand-paul/rand-paul-says-legality-birthright-citizenship-not/

    I wrote to them, pointing out two cases (Plyler v. Doe, and Pineda-Rios v. INS) that specifically addressed illegal immigrants, one of which directly stated that illegal immigrants were under the jurisdiction of the United States, and the other one directly stating that the child of 2 illegal immigrants was indeed a citizen (within the facts of the case). They basically said because those didn’t specifically address the legal arguments of the citizenship status of illegal immigrants, they weren’t going to change their analysis.

    I personally would have rated it as “mostly false”.

  25. bob says:

    Dr. Conspiracy:
    Because birthers work from bias rather than facts. They denigrate expertise. Many of them are racists and xenophobes.

    Your favorite obsessive reader, Rambo Ike, is not impressed:

    How adorable coming from a person who admits to being a recovering racist.

    Runs a website where there’s a long tradition of using the N-word and words/terms synonymous with the N-word to refer to black people.

    “Long tradition”?

  26. Northland10 says:

    Has Rambo been reading this site in some mirror universe?

  27. Dr. Kenneth Noisewater says:

    bob: How adorable coming from a person who admits to being a recovering racist.

    Runs a website where there’s a long tradition of using the N-word and words/terms synonymous with the N-word to refer to black people.

    Yeah I don’t think I’ll see a response to my question about it. He’s still spinning on his lie about the 1981 Pakistan “prohibition”

  28. bob says:

    Northland10:
    Has Rambo been reading this site in some mirror universe?

    Rambo Ike thinks history will label “Obots” as racists. Such a mirror universe that Spock has a beard.

  29. Dr. Kenneth Noisewater says:

    bob: Rambo Ike thinks history will label “Obots” as racists.Such a mirror universe that Spock has a beard.

    Between him and Mario on the washington times article. It’s becoming funny. Now Ike is trying to claim the EO Obama signed would keep records hidden for 5 years and doesn’t understand what the order even is. Mario still trying to explain away that he lied in court about the 1981 Pakistan travel advisory.

  30. bob says:

    Dr. Kenneth Noisewater: Mario still trying to explain away that he lied in court about the 1981 Pakistan travel advisory.

    I haven’t followed those comments, but Apuzzo’s insistence that his use of “was prohibited” actually meant “prohibitive” is legendary. Like Trader Jack, Apuzzo refuses to acknowledge that similar sounding words can have very different meanings.

  31. Scientist says:

    bob: Like Trader Jack, Apuzzo refuses to acknowledge that similar sounding words can have very different meanings.

    Like viscous and viscious

  32. Rickey says:

    bob: I haven’t followed those comments, but Apuzzo’s insistence that his use of “was prohibited” actually meant “prohibitive” is legendary.Like Trader Jack, Apuzzo refuses to acknowledge that similar sounding words can have very different meanings.

    Mario once admitted to me that there was no actual ban, but he claimed that it was a de facto ban. Of course, he couldn’t explain why Air Pakistan was running daily flights from JFK to Pakistan in 1981 if no Americans were making the trip.

  33. SFJEFF says:

    My favorite part about the meme that Hillary Clinton started Birtherism is that it is pretty much all Trump supporters making that claim.

    Why do they really want us all to have more of a reason to think that Donald Trump is a gullible idiot?

    Does it make them feel better to think that they and Trump are just puppets who have been played by Clinton?

    The only candidate in this race who has been an open Birther for years is Donald Trump.

    IF you are not a Birther- then why would you care what Hillary did- rather than care about Trump being a Birther?

    And if you are a Birther- well wouldn’t you be thrilled that you believe Clinton actually believes the same thing as you do?

  34. Dr. Kenneth Noisewater says:

    Rickey: Mario once admitted to me that there was no actual ban, but he claimed that it was a de facto ban. Of course, he couldn’t explain why Air Pakistan was running daily flights from JFK to Pakistan in 1981 if no Americans were making the trip.

    Oh yeah now he’s claiming he never actually said there was a ban at all just a prohibition.

  35. bob says:

    Dr. Kenneth Noisewater: Oh yeah now he’s claiming he never actually said there was a ban at all just a prohibition.

    Apuzzo’s exact words in his federal lawsuit were “was prohibited.” Not “prohibitive”; not a “prohibition.”

    Apuzzo knows he’s wrong, but he can’t even admit he was mistaken. (Or that he cribbed this nonsense from Berg.)

  36. I had the same experience with Politifact. The will not admit to mistakes once they publish an article.

    dunstvangeet: Don’t expect anything from Politifact. They come up with an analysis, and stick by it, despite things coming up.

  37. I must admit that my knowledge of the PUMAs is very limited. The Texas Darlin blog went private (or always was), and it’s not in the web archive. The time between the FARS post on the Free Republic and Jim Geraghty’s post at the National Review Online lacks detail.

    I’ve always heard about Texas Darlin’ and that supposedly one of that site’s participants found the newspaper announcement in the Honolulu newspaper.

    I found a research piece on “My Very Own Point of View” about this topic crediting the late Lori Starfelt (pseudonym?). The article casts doubt on the newspaper announcements, and has a frustrating lack of dates on the events it chronicles.

    https://myveryownpointofview.wordpress.com/2010/05/28/extra-extra-announcing-obamas-birth/

    Birther blogger Butterdezillion puts a date on the discovery: July 21, 2008.

    https://butterdezillion.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/announcement-stories-not-true.pdf

  38. Dr. Kenneth Noisewater says:

    Speaking of what goes around comes around. Trump in his big “october surprise” in 2012 put out a bet regarding paying $5mm to charity if Obama released his college records to Trump’s satisfaction. Now the founder of Linkedin has put up a $5mm bet to be donated to a veteran’s charity if Trump releases his tax returns. Remember how trump said Obama won’t release because there must be something in there he wants to hide. Well Trump obviously there’s something embarrassing in your tax returns that you want to hide.

    http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2016/09/13/veterans-trump-tax-returns-pledge-linkedin/90312566/

  39. Rickey says:

    Dr. Conspiracy:

    I found a research piece on “My Very Own Point of View” about this topic crediting the late Lori Starfelt (pseudonym?).

    Her full name was Lorenda Starfelt. It must have been a real name because she is listed that way in the Social Security Death Index. She died of cancer in 2011 at the age of 56.

  40. Andrew Vrba, PmG. says:

    bob: Rambo Ike thinks history will label “Obots” as racists.Such a mirror universe that Spock has a beard.

    I’d like to think in that universe, the Terran Empire wouldn’t suffer idiots like Ike. His sort would be permanently confined to the agony booth, with an agonizer clamped onto each temple for good measure.

  41. Dr. Kenneth Noisewater says:

    Andrew Vrba, PmG.: I’d like to think in that universe, the Terran Empire wouldn’t suffer idiots like Ike. His sort would be permanently confined to the agony booth, with an agonizer clamped onto each temple for good measure.

    When asked to back up his claim about this site having a long history of racism he referred me to his disqus profile which then provided absolutely nothing to back up his claim.

  42. “Racist” is an epithet. Calling this blog racist is simply a smear.

    I do not mean to say for a moment that I don’t have deep learned prejudices. I grew up where I grew up, and I can’t change that. I can however, try to overcome that handicap. And today, I can honestly say that some of my best friends are birthers.

    Dr. Kenneth Noisewater: When asked to back up his claim about this site having a long history of racism he referred me to his disqus profile which then provided absolutely nothing to back up his claim.

  43. Rickey says:

    Dr. Conspiracy:
    “Racist” is an epithet. Calling this blog racist is simply a smear.

    The only racist comments I recall seeing here were posted by birthers. Not that all birthers are racists, of course.

  44. JohnDoe30 says:

    Meanwhile, former McClatchy Washington Bureau Chief James Asher tweeted Friday that Blumenthal had “told me in person” that Obama was born in Kenya.

    “During the 2008 Democratic primary, Sid Blumenthal visited the Washington Bureau of McClatchy Co.,” Asher said in an email Friday to McClatchy, noting that he was at the time the investigative editor and in charge of Africa coverage.

    “During that meeting, Mr. Blumenthal and I met together in my office and he strongly urged me to investigate the exact place of President Obama’s birth, which he suggested was in Kenya. We assigned a reporter to go to Kenya, and that reporter determined that the allegation was false.

    “At the time of Mr. Blumenthal’s conversation with me, there had been a few news articles published in various outlets reporting on rumors about Obama’s birthplace. While Mr. Blumenthal offered no concrete proof of Obama’s Kenyan birth, I felt that, as journalists, we had a responsibility to determine whether or not those rumors were true. They were not.”

    Read more here: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/election/article102354777.html#storylink=cpy

  45. Rickey says:

    JohnDoe30:
    Meanwhile, former McClatchy Washington Bureau Chief James Asher tweeted Friday that Blumenthal had “told me in person” that Obama was born in Kenya.

    “During the 2008 Democratic primary, Sid Blumenthal visited the Washington Bureau of McClatchy Co.,” Asher said in an email Friday to McClatchy, noting that he was at the time the investigative editor and in charge of Africa coverage.

    “During that meeting, Mr. Blumenthal and I met together in my office and he strongly urged me to investigate the exact place of President Obama’s birth, which he suggested was in Kenya. We assigned a reporter to go to Kenya, and that reporter determined that the allegation was false.

    “At the time of Mr. Blumenthal’s conversation with me, there had been a few news articles published in various outlets reporting on rumors about Obama’s birthplace. While Mr. Blumenthal offered no concrete proof of Obama’s Kenyan birth, I felt that, as journalists, we had a responsibility to determine whether or not those rumors were true. They were not.”

    Read more here: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/election/article102354777.html#storylink=cpy

    You left out the key passage from the story:

    :…there is no evidence that Clinton herself or her campaign spread the story.”

    Is there any evidence that McClatchy sent a reporter to Kenya to investigate Blumenthal’s alleged “suggestion” that Obama was born there? I haven’t been able to find any evidence that McClatchy ever published a story about having a reporter in Kenya to investigate whether Obama was born there. Are we to believe, without evidence, that McClatchy went to the expense of dispatching a reporter to Kenya yet and never ran a story about it? Why hasn’t Asher identified the reporter? ]

    Blumenthal flatly denies Asher’s claims.

  46. Phoenix says:

    The reporter with the byline on that McClatchy article Asher tweeted was Shashank Bengali, who at that time was the McClatchy bureau chief in Nairobi, Kenya.

    I won’t rehash all that here, as I posted a research dump on Doc’s other thread: “Clinton campaign did not start birther moment, says Clinton’s 2008 campaign manager.”

    http://www.obamaconspiracy.org/2016/09/clinton-campaign-did-not-start-birther-moment-says-clintons-2008-campaign-manager/#comment-378308

    Rickey:

    Is there any evidence that McClatchy sent a reporter to Kenya to investigate Blumenthal’s alleged “suggestion” that Obama was born there? I haven’t been able to find any evidence that McClatchy ever published a story about having a reporter in Kenya to investigate whether Obama was born there. Are we to believe, without evidence, that McClatchy went to the expense of dispatching a reporter to Kenya yet and never ran a story about it? Why hasn’t Asher identified the reporter?

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