By Bill O'Reilly
As we reported years ago, President Obama was born in Hawaii on August 4, 1961. After quickly completing our research, there was never a moment when we doubted that, as we told you.
On Wednesday, the president finally released his long-form birth certificate for political reasons. You must understand that the entire birth certificate controversy actually helped the president because it marginalized folks who promoted it, people who would never support Barack Obama under any circumstances. From the sidelines, independent voters saw the insanity and some even felt sorry for the president.
But when Donald Trump elevated the situation so that some people were actually starting to believe the president had something to hide, critical mass was reached and out came the certificate:
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Normally, I would not comment on something like this because obviously there is a lot of stuff swirling in the press on any given day, and, you know, I've got other things to do.
But we're not going to be able to do it if we are distracted. We're not going to be able to do it if we spend time vilifying each other. We're not going to be able to do it if we just make stuff up and pretend that facts are not facts. We're not going to be able to solve our problems if we get distracted by sideshows and carnival barkers.
We do not have time for this kind of silliness. We've got better stuff to do.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
The president sounds like the voice of reason, but obviously he could have stopped the madness years ago. For political reasons, he chose not to.
As for Donald Trump, he is portraying himself as the man who forced the president to do the correct thing:
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP: I am really honored, frankly, to have played such a big role in hopefully, hopefully getting rid of this issue. Now, we have to look at it, we have to see is it real? Is it proper? What's on it? But I hope it checks out beautifully. I am really proud. I am really honored. Now we can talk about oil. We can talk about gasoline prices. We can talk about China ripping off this country. We can talk about OPEC doing numbers on us like nobody has ever done before. We can get on to issues and hopefully when I sit down with interviews, people don't start talking about birth certificate, birth certificate like they have been doing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
Come on, Donald. The media asks you about the birth certificate because you made the issue the centerpiece of your dance with presidential politics.
So you can clearly see how both men are playing political games here, and "Talking Points" hopes they cease and desist for the good of the country.
It is becoming very apparent that the election of 2012 will be mostly about President Obama. Yes, there are issues and records to be examined, but it is Mr. Obama the person that has become most important. Let me back that up.
A new Rasmussen poll of likely voters says 67 percent of them believe American society is generally fair and decent. Just 24 percent think the USA is an unfair country. The rest aren't sure. But when asked if President Obama thinks America is a fair place, just 43 percent say yes. Thirty-six percent believe the president finds society unfair and discriminatory.
That is a huge number for a sitting president. That's what we were saying Tuesday night when we reported on the First Family attending Easter services at the Shiloh Baptist Church in Washington where Pastor Wallace Charles Smith holds court. Dr. Smith is a race activist and indeed delivered an Easter sermon criticizing the original U.S. Constitution as the First Family sat in a pew in front of him.
In light of the Rev. Wright controversy, it is fair to ask exactly why Mr. Obama would seek out a preacher like Smith. It doesn't seem to make much sense.
"Talking Points" is still having trouble getting a handle on the real Barack Obama, even though I did extensive research on the man for my latest book. He is an enigma to me. Why would he seek out Pastor Smith when he knows how much Rev. Wright damaged him? Why would he do that when there were hundreds of other churches available to him?
Again, it makes no political sense at all.
The dopey birth certificate and Muslim stuff distracts from the real issue: How does President Obama see his country?
After almost two-and-a-half years in office, Americans remain confused over that question. I am confused and I do this for a living.
But let me say this: If Mr. Obama continues to do things that are inexplicable, he will lose the upcoming election.
Hopefully, with the nutty stuff put to bed, Americans can focus on what's really important. Does our president have what it takes to solve the country's vexing problems and does he see America the way the majority of its citizens do, as a noble and fair country?
That's what we should be discussing as we prepare for campaign 2012. That is what is vitally important. So let's do it.
And that's "The Memo."
Pinheads & Patriots
It is now easy to attack Donald Trump, so the pile-on has begun.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBIN WILLIAMS, COMEDIAN: If he's elected president, he's going to turn the White House into a casino.
JOY BEHAR, CO-HOST, ABC'S "THE VIEW": I think so. That's true.
WILLIAMS: I also believe that the hair is actually "The Donald." That's actually the creature.
BEHAR: It has a life of its own.
WILLIAMS: The moment -- the moment he goes home, Donald gets home at night and sits down, all of a sudden the hair goes, "How are we doing today?"
(END VIDEO CLIP)
Was that Santa Claus? All right. Is Mr. Williams a pinhead or a patriot for that bit? You can vote on BillOReilly.com.
And you did vote in great numbers about whether I, your humble correspondent, am a pinhead or a patriot for mocking the British monarchy. Here is the tally: 54 percent say I'm a pinhead; 46 believe I'm a patriot.
I'm not taking it personally, even though I am one of your best friends. A lot of people turned on me. They did. And we know who you are; we know where you live. Jesse Watters is going to be a busy guy tracking all of this down. All right. I'll try to be more respectful to the British monarchy if that's what you want.
— You can catch Bill O'Reilly's "Talking Points Memo" and "Pinheads & Patriots" weeknights at 8 and 11 p.m. ET on the Fox News Channel and any time on foxnews.com/oreilly. Send your comments to: oreilly@foxnews.com.
