Now Can We Drop The Birther Issue? Not Likely

Donald Trump's head swelled a bit more this morning, if that was even possible.

The White House finally released President Obama's long-form birth certificate. It looks official. At least more official than that one they released during the campaign. So what I want to know is simply what took so damn long? The President said "We do not have time for this kind of silliness. We've got better stuff to do. I've got better stuff to do. We've got big problems to solve."

He is correct. But, what remains to be seen is if this release will sate the so-called "birthers" and get them to finally shut the hell up. And if that happens, will it cause the birther-obsessed liberal media to drop this issue and shut the hell up. I think that if the latter happens, the former is irrelevant.

So why now? Why two-plus years later? What political gain is there to be made from doing this now? Is it really because Donald Trump has been talking practically non-stop about this? In this instance at least it is proven that when The Donald talks people listen. You know who believes this? Donald Trump. Did his incessant chatter really drive the national conversation so far off course that the White House decided to do what was in the best interest of the People and put this controversy to bed? That would be nice, but the skeptic in me doesn't believe that politicians are that noble.

So again I ask, why now? I think this is purely for political gain. And yes, Donald Trump did play a large roll. As Mr. Trump's argument became more and more prevalent and more media outlets picked it up, the so-called birthers began to feel justified in their arguments. The liberal media, being obsessed with this issue, naturally used Trump's popularity as a way to make him, birthers and Republicans in general look stupid. So by releasing the long-form certificate now, while the issue is red hot, it gives the appearance that Obama is taking the high road, and now those skeptical groups have to be put on the defensive, or at least made to retract what they've been screaming from the rooftops for the past two years. Winner: Obama and the Democrats.

Shrewd, perhaps, but premature. I think if this was done to score political points, Obama should have waited until next year during a Presidential Debate. How awesome would that have been to break that puppy out right on national television in front of the Republican opponent and in front of millions of people. By playing this card nine months out from the beginning of the primary season (nine months? Really?) that leaves plenty of time for this issue to fade away. Any political gain will have been lost by that time allowing people to focus on issues that are only slightly less pressing. I speak of the economy, sky high gas prices, Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan, ridiculous debt, etc.

Maybe Obama was sincere when he said there were more important things to focus on. Maybe? That would be nice, but again, I'm skeptical.

So then the birth certificate issue is settled? By and large here, yes, but there will always be people who are never convinced. (9/11 truthers, anyone?) But if the media just ignores them they'll fade away into the woodwork. They should have tried that with Sarah Palin instead of focusing on her every word, making her a martyr in the process. But that's for another blog.

KFI's Bill Handel has said that releasing the certificate actually proves that President Obama is not a legitimate president because his official name is "Barack Hussein Obama II", and he was inaugurated without the "II" being stated, therefore we inaugurated his dead Kenyan father.

Before anyone goes A-HA!!! and before I'm accused of being some incurable birther, I should mention that Bill Handel, being a brilliant and hilarious radio host, is joking. If you've never listened to him, check him out mornings on KFI-AM 640 in Los Angeles, or find it using the iheartradio app.

UPDATE: Here it comes - From thesmokinggun.com