Ellington

The New York Times has a story about the guy who started the false rumors that Barack Obama is a Muslim:

An examination of legal documents and election filings, along with interviews with his acquaintances, revealed Mr. Martin, 62, to be a man with a history of scintillating if not always factual claims. He has left a trail of animosity — some of it provoked by anti-Jewish comments — among political leaders, lawyers and judges in three states over more than 30 years.

He is a law school graduate, but his admission to the Illinois bar was blocked in the 1970s after a psychiatric finding of "moderately severe character defect manifested by well-documented ideation with a paranoid flavor and a grandiose character." Though he is not a lawyer, Mr. Martin went on to become a prodigious filer of lawsuits, and he made unsuccessful attempts to win public office for both parties in three states, as well as for president at least twice, in 1988 and 2000. Based in Chicago, he now identifies himself as a writer who focuses on his anti-Obama Web site and press releases.

Mr. Martin, in a series of interviews, did not dispute his influence in Obama rumors. "Everybody uses my research as a takeoff point," Mr. Martin said, adding, however, that some take his writings "and exaggerate them to suit their own fantasies."

As for his background, he said: "I'm a colorful person. There's always somebody who has a legitimate cause in their mind to be angry with me." When questions were raised last week about Mr. Martin's appearance and claims on "Hannity's America" on Fox News, the program's producer said Mr. Martin was clearly expressing his opinion and not necessarily fact.

Previous Comments

ID

138991

Comment

I heard about this guy on The View today. He definitely needs professional help. Look at this: Mr. Martin’s depictions of Mr. Obama as a secret Muslim have found resonance among some Jewish voters who have received e-mail messages containing various versions of his initial theory, often by new authors and with new twists. In his original press release, Mr. Martin wrote that he was personally “a strong supporter of the Muslim community.” But, he wrote of Mr. Obama, “it may well be that his concealment is meant to endanger Israel.” He added, “His Muslim religion would obviously raise serious questions in many Jewish circles.” Yet in various court papers, Mr. Martin had impugned Jews. A motion he filed in a 1983 bankruptcy case called the judge “a crooked, slimy Jew who has a history of lying and thieving common to members of his race.” In another motion, filed in 1983, Mr. Martin wrote, “I am able to understand how the Holocaust took place, and with every passing day feel less and less sorry that it did.” In an interview, Mr. Martin denied some statements against Jews attributed to him in court papers, blaming malicious judges for inserting them. But in his “48 Hours” interview in 1993, he affirmed a different anti-Semitic part of the affidavit that included the line about the Holocaust, saying, “The record speaks for itself.” When asked Friday about an assertion in his court papers that “Jews, historically and in daily living, act through clans and in wolf pack syndrome,” he said, “That one sort of rings a bell.” He said he was not anti-Semitic. “I was trying to show that everybody in the bankruptcy court was Jewish and I was not Jewish,” he said, “and I was being victimized by religious bias.” Professional instigator, perhaps?

Author

LatashaWillis

Date

2008-10-13T13:28:25-06:00

ID

139078

Comment

Is this the same guy that got run out of Kenya? Too bad he weren't carrying a sore butt, limbs and head with him as he ran from Kenya. What a nut and fool to boot? This is akin to him accusing me of stealing some chicken from Chrch's then coming to my house to ask me about it. Sure, I'll likely answer his question rudely or violently and give him a a-whipping for good measure so he'll understand how strongly I feel about stealing chicken the next time.

Author

Walt

Date

2008-10-14T14:00:43-06:00

ID

139079

Comment

Walt, that's Jerome Corsi you're thinking about.

Author

LatashaWillis

Date

2008-10-14T14:35:25-06:00

ID

139080

Comment

I don't know where to put this, but representive Mahoney who replaced Congressman Foley in Congress from Florida has been accused of paying a woman he had an affair with $121,000.00. He is a Democrat like Spitzer, ex-governor of New York. With these kinds of payment to girlfriends or whatever these ladies call themselves a poor man looking for love will soon be priced out of business. Add this to the economy and America is about to go haywire. I knew it wouldn't be long before Democrats started emulating republicans. Somebody need to tell Democrats to start negotiating better prices.

Author

Walt

Date

2008-10-14T14:39:23-06:00

ID

139081

Comment

Walt, that’s Jerome Corsi you’re thinking about. In terms of motives, there's not much difference between them, IMO. Corsi's probably hanging out with Martin and having a strategy session to see what other baseless bullshit that they can sling at Obama.

Author

Jeff Lucas

Date

2008-10-14T14:39:25-06:00

ID

139082

Comment

I read this in another forum and thought you guys would like it: We have a saying in Surinamese : mi na banabong a moro yu e trowe doti gi me a moro mi e fatu. Which translates to: I'm a banana tree, the more dirt you throw at me, the fatter I become. I think Obama is a banana tree.

Author

LatashaWillis

Date

2008-10-14T15:00:04-06:00