Michigan GOP Candidate Wants Obama's Birth Certificate
Politico reports on yet another Republican congressional candidate who has expressed a sense of doubt over Obama's birth certificate:
The GOP nominee challenging freshman Rep. Gary Peters in Michigan would like to see President Obama’s birth certificate.
National Democrats are circulating a video of Andrew “Rocky” Raczkowski, a former state representative and entertainment executive, telling a gathering in Novi, Mich., “You have a president that seems to be, um ... well ... I don’t know if he even has been born in the United States, but ... until I see a birth certificate.”
Raczkowski stood by his comments in an interview with POLITICO Thursday. “I stand by the comment. ... I believe this: He is our president of the United States, he is the president of the United States, and I guess my question is ... I would love to see his birth certificate,” he said.
And he had words for the Democrats circulating the video: “They don’t need an HD recorder — they can call me. I’m very open, they can call me; we can have an open discussion, perhaps even a debate.”
Raczkowski won Tuesday’s Republican primary in Michigan’s 9th District and will face Peters in the November general election. Raczkowski beat businessman Paul Welday, the preferred candidate of the state’s GOP establishment.
Obama’s Hawaii birth certificate proves that he is a natural-born citizen, but the myth that he was born in another country, such as his father’s native Kenya, has persisted since his 2008 campaign.
Peters campaign manager Dan Farough called Raczkowski’s remarks “out of the mainstream” and “off the wall.”
“I think the more Oakland County voters find out about Rocky Raczkowski, the more concerned they become,” Farough said.
Democrats have been quick to seize on examples of GOP-ers who have made publicly sympathized with the so-called birther movement — just as they have tried to force Republicans to identify with various tea party groups.
But the issue can cut both ways for Republicans. Colorado Senate candidate Ken Buck found himself in trouble after he got caught on tape criticizing tea partiers: “Will you tell those dumbasses at the tea party to stop asking questions about birth certificates while I'm on camera?” he said. “God, what am I supposed to do?” He ultimately apologized for his comments.
