Obama, Phony Patriotism, and the American Flag

Big news!

Barack Obama doesn't wear a flag lapel pin anymore.

He thinks it's a sign of a fake, flag-waving, jingoistic sort of patriotism.

WATERLOO, Iowa -- Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama says he no longer wears an American flag lapel pin because it has become a substitute for "true patriotism" since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

He commented on the pin in a television interview Wednesday and then again on Thursday at a campaign appearance in Independence, Iowa.

Noting the TV interview, he told the campaign crowd, "I said, you know what, I probably haven't worn a flag pin in a very long time. After a while I noticed people wearing a lapel pin and not acting very patriotic."

"My attitude is that I'm less concerned about what you're wearing on your lapel than what's in your heart. You show your patriotism by how you treat your fellow Americans, especially those who serve. You show your patriotism by being true to our values and ideals. That's what we have to lead with is our values and our ideals."

He had been asked about the pin Wednesday in an interview with KCRG-TV in Cedar Rapids.

"The truth is that right after 9/11 I had a pin," Obama said. "Shortly after 9/11, particularly because as we're talking about the Iraq war, that became a substitute for I think true patriotism, which is speaking out on issues that are of importance to our national security."

Obama sounds like an idiot.

He seems to be saying that wearing a flag lapel pin is the sign of a hypocrite, that a true patriot wouldn't wear one.

Obama may feel he doesn't need to wear a little flag pin, but he obviously wants to appear on stages wrapped in American flags.

How is being surrounded by flags during his campaign stops a more sincere display than simply wearing a tiny lapel pin?

It's a crock for him to claim that he wouldn't wear one because it's a substitute for true patriotism.

Obama is smothered in flags during his campaign appearances.

Does Obama think that we're blind?

I think a small pin would be a much more discreet symbol of his patriotism than standing amid a forest of flags.

If Obama believes that a flag lapel pin is phony patriotism, then he must be quite uncomfortable constantly using the American flag as a backdrop.

Look at the Obama campaign logo.



It's definitely American flag-inspired.

Obama should cut the crap and quit acting as if doesn't exploit the American flag to advance his political goals.

If he doesn't want to wear a flag pin in his lapel, fine; but to accuse those who do of being phony patriots and insincere is mean-spirited.