Planting Seeds of Doubt - Berg/Cult of the COLB update

29 September - Berg's website has an appeal for donations to "If necessary, we will appeal to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals and to the U.S. Supreme Court"

One of the comments caught me in an interesting fashion.

"Update on requests for money:
written by Linda Starr, September 30, 2008
Some of the reasons there have been solicitations for help with the expenses are because official government agencies are refusing to honor federal subpeonas. They want individual signed court orders by the judge commanding them to obey. In the case of Hawaii, their AG wrote Phil refusing to obey and demanding an Hawaiian Federal Court subpeona. That means they are trying to cost Phil so much with big fees for serving them, them t get them issued again.

Now ask yourself, why would the Hawaiian AG (or any governmental agency) refuse to honor a federal subpeona? What is it they are hoping to hide by delaying obeying long enough thinking the judge will dismiss the suit? Are these people conspiring with Obama to subvert the Federal Court system and deny the Aemrican people justice and truth? And Obama has a "Truth Squad"???

Who do these Obaminator trolls think they are fooling? They aren't fooling me. How about you? And more importantly, WHY would they jeopardize our Constitution and our country just to get Obama in the WH? There is something very sick about this whole situation. I am beginning to think there is way more to this question about Obama being a Muslim and possibly a Manchurian Candidate sent to destory America and our entire way of life.

Anyway, we can't let them force us to stop pursuing this suit for lack of money. I am asking everyone who reads this to send what you can and help make sure Phil has the financial resources to fight this out. Are you willing to help make that possible? Because I truly believe this is about the future of our country. I don't know aobu tyou, but I own't support an illegal alien for president when WE as Americans have to submit documents for identification in every area of our lives. Hell, you can't even get a bank savings account without all sorts of id now. And they have allowed this non-citizen to run for president? No, I don't think so."

I think they know the suit doesn't have much or any merit. The game now is to plant the seed of doubt and conspiracy, so that if/when the suit gets dismissed, they can explain it away as more "dark dealings from the evil Oblahblah and his corrupt minions." than "there is absolutely no substance to these allegations."

30 September - Berg posts on his website a press release entitled "Berg Confident Obama & DNC Motion To Dismiss Will Be Defeated"

"Philip J. Berg, Esquire, the Attorney who filed suit against Barack H. Obama challenging Senator Obama’s lack of “qualifications” to serve as President of the United States, announced today that he filed his Opposition and Brief to Obama and Democratic National Committee [DNC] Joint Motion to Dismiss in the case of Berg v. Obama, No. 08-cv-04083.

Berg feels confident that he has “Standing” and the Court will allow the case to go forward. Our response was due in 14 days, but the Court requested our answer by Monday, September 29, 2008 and we complied.

In our response we set forth sufficient reasons that I have “Standing” to bring this lawsuit. Furthermore, I set forth additional reasons that indicate Obama does not meet the qualifications for President of the United States and Obama should be removed from the ballot and held accountable.

Our website obamacrimes.com has received 17.1 + million hits. We are urging all to spread the word of our website – and forward to your local newspapers and radio and TV stations.
Berg again stressed his position regarding the urgency of this case as, “we” the people, are heading to a “Constitutional Crisis” if this case is not resolved forthwith."

This is odd for a press release. Normally the tone is to lower expectations, not "rally the troops". Philip Berg is reminding me a lot of another infamous lawyer with a vendetta, namely Jack Thompson.

20 September - One of the interesting things about Berg's opposition filing is that it focused a lot on the supposed Indonesian issues. Purely by change, (yeah right), "TexasDarlin" has a post claiming that US Rep. Eni Faleomavaega, the non-voting delegate from American Samoa to the US House of Representatives, went to Indonesia in July of 2007 to bribe the Indonesian government into scrubbing their records of "...any and all documentation or photographs of a young Barry Soetoro.”

It refers back to a 18 September blog entry by Larry Martin, a US expat living in SE Asia. Quote:

"The Papuan issue though wasn't the only thing on Faleomavaega's mind, being one of Barack Obama's most devoted disciples, Faleomavaega would be seeking the Indonesian government's assistance in supporting Barack Obama's presidential campaign as well as making the requisite pilgrimage to Barack Obama's childhood school.

According to our Indonesian sources, "officials" who accompanied Faleomavaega were interested in acquiring any and all documentation or photographs of a young Barry Soetoro for America's "national archives" and they were offering cash, lots of it. In a show of faith, Barack Obama's childhood school would be one of the very first beneficiaries of this outpouring receiving thousands of dollars to upgrade the school and for the purchase of computer equipment, thanks in part to the benevolence of this visiting junket.

The challenge of course was securing Indonesian goverment records potentially damaging to Barack Obama's candidacy for the US presidency as well as other records pertaining to a young Barry Soetoro and his family wouldn't be so easy to acquire and secure, and for this, the visitors would need the assistance and cooperation of the Indonesian government."

Larry Martin, called by Time magazine a "less-than-authoritative source", was also one of Jerome Corsi's sources when Corsi wrote his attack book on Obama, following in the footsteps of Corsi's infamous "Swift Boat" piece on John Kerry in 2004. From the "Time" article:

"Corsi repeatedly relies on Martin's accounts of Indonesian news reports to bolster his case for Obama's connections to Islam. For example, in a translated article about a secular school that Obama later attended, Martin writes: "Each Friday, all the school childen [sic] must wear Muslim clothes and that also includes children who are non-muslim [sic]." But that line does not appear in the original news report. What was Martin's source for his repeated insistence that Obama's former school requires students to dress in traditional Muslim attire on Fridays? "I've lived [in Southeast Asia] for 20 years; I go to schools all the time," he says. However, he admits that he never visited Obama's former school on a Friday."

Hmmm.... once again "TexasDarlin" is hanging around with right-wing cranks. Funny that......

1 October - "Hillbuzz", in a since deleted post, claims that the judge in the Berg lawsuit has denied Sen. Obama's motion to dismiss. This happens when they see the proposed denial form on Berg's opposition form. Needless to say, some people take this as gospel writ, since Philip Berg has to post an article denying the rumour himself.

"I received a phone call from Phil J. Berg a few minutes ago. He informed me that a rumor is circulating on the Internet that the Court has ruled on the Motion to Dismiss filed by Senator Obama and the Democratic National Committee in the Berg v. Obama case. Some of the visitors to this website have posted comments claiming the Court has ruled. The comments on this site were written by visitors to the site.

On Mr. Berg's behalf, I am posting this to state clearly the Court has not yet ruled on the Motion to Dismiss in Berg v. Obama."

The funny/pathetic thing? People are actually disagreeing with Berg!

"Motion to dismiss denied!!!......
written by Josh, October 02, 2008
It says so in the language of the filing order to dismiss is denied!!

http://docs.justia.com/cases/f...281573/13/"

"written by KP, October 02, 2008
Hi Folks:
Today is a great day for our nation. Phil Berg, The peoples attroney, has won his court case. Obama has 3 days to produce a vault copy of his birth certificate. I know for a fact that this DOES NOT exist. That is the judge order. Click here to view the Judge order. I am thrill that Phil Berg has done something that no one else had the guts to do. Please go to his web site, ObamaCrimes and donate some money to him. He has worked to help all of us and now he has proved he can win, we must help him with some money.
Is this true?
_______________________

Do I hear a rush to New York for a replacement.
Phil Berg is this nation greatest attroney and thank god he works for all of us little people. More to come. Join us tonight at 7 pm central for a update with Phil on the No Obama Talk show. Click here to listen live Ed Hale "

"Court Order
written by Gary, October 02, 2008
At the link I have provided there is an unsigned court order by the judge for Obama to furnish the following:

Obama's motion to dismiss was DENIED. He now has to comply with Berg's order, and provide him with:
(1) A copy of his vault birth certificate, (2) a certified copy of Obama’s citizenship, and (3) a copy of Obama’s oath of allegiance.

Plus, on Obama’s own website, he now admits to being a US/Kenya dual national until his 18th birthday."

"Court order?
written by Donna, October 02, 2008
According to justia.com the judge did deny the motion to dismiss and ordered Obama/DNC to furnish the documents...??? Still no update here?

http://docs.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/pennsylvania/paedce/2:2008cv04083/281573/13/"

2 October - Jeff Schireiber also posts a disclaimer about the rumour.

"The document in question is a PROPOSED ORDER. It is not a decision by the court, but rather a procedural mechanism included with motions to essentially "assume the sale," to provide the judge with a place to theoretically sign off and decide in favor of the filing party."

Mr. Schireiber also says the State Department has denied Berg's request for documents pertaining to Sen. Obama.

"Dear Mr. Berg:

This is in response to your attempted service of subpoenae on the U.S. Dept. of State, Passport Services, Vital Records Section; the US Embassy Nairobi; and the U.S. Embassy Jakarta in connection with the above-referenced proceeding. Through the subpoenae, you are seeking passport application and citizenship-related information regarding Barrack [sic] Hussein Obama. For the reasons explained below, the Dept of State currently cannot respond to your request because it does not comply with applicable Dept. regulations, referenced below and attached.

The procedure by which a party seeking official information from a non-party federal agency is to request the information under the agency’s “Touhy” regulations. See United States ex rel. Touhy v. Ragen 340 U.S. 462 (1951) … Your requests do not comply with those requirements.

In addition to serving the Executive Office of the Office of the Legal Adviser, as required under 22 C.F.R. 172.2, the requests also must be set forth in writing, and with as much specificity as possible, the nature and relevance of the official information sought. 22 C.F.R. 172.5(a). This information is needed by the dept in order to make a determination as to whether it is appropriate to authorize the production of the requested information and documents. The only information you have included is a description of the records that you seek. There is no information as to how all the information requested is relevant to the proceedings. Because your request does not comply with the requirements in the Department’s regulations, we cannot comply and and no Department employee has been authorized to provide documents or any official information in connection with the proceeding.

Moreover, based on the description of the information that you seek, the records may be protected by the Privacy Act, 5 USC 552a. Under the Privacy Act, the Department may only be able to release such records with the written consent of the person to whom the record pertains. 5 USC 552a(b). Since you have not provided written consent on behalf of the individual to whom the records relate, we would be precluded by law from disclosing any Privacy Act protected information you requested.

For the foregoing reasons, please consider this letter as our written objection to the subpoena you have delivered and please be advised that no State Department records, to the extent any exist, can be produced to you pursuant to the above-reference subpoena.

David Newman
Office of the Legal Adviser
U.S. Department of State"

3 October - In the latest attempt for a "smoking gun", the far-right blog "Atlas Shrugs" (who takes credit for starting what became the Cult of the COLB), posts from another blog out that one of the law firms representing Sen. Obama and the DNC in this case is the Washington law firm Sandler, Reiff, and Young, has also represented CAIR, the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Despite the fact that this group has met and worked with George W. Bush, the far-right considers them "Terrorist Sympathizers"

4 October - As reported on World Net Daily, Berg expresses his intent to take his case to the "Third Circuit Court of Appeals, and if we don't get a fair ruling there, immediately to the U.S. Supreme Court.". He's also demanding DNC Chairman Howard Dean resign.

"Despite assertions by the Washington Post, FactChecker.org and other organizations that Obama has produced a certified Hawaiian birth certificate, Berg told WND he remains "99.99 percent sure" that the certificate is a fake and he wants a court, not a website, to determine its validity.

Earlier last week, lawyers for Obama and the DNC filed a joint motion to dismiss Berg's lawsuit. The fact that the DNC joined in the dismissal request has Berg fuming, believing his party's leaders have ignored his pleas for proof in order to favor their chosen candidate over a rank-and-file constituent.

"I think it's outrageous," Berg said. "The Democratic National Committee should be ensuring the Democratic Party and the public that they have a qualified candidate up there. To file a joint motion is like they're in cahoots.

"Since then, I have asked by way of press release that Howard Dean resign, because (the DNC members) are not fulfilling their duties," Berg said.

"The DNC has a responsibility to all Democrats in this country to make sure that all of their candidates are properly vetted and properly qualified," Berg added. "I think it's really an outrage to the 18-plus million people who voted for Obama and the people who donated more than $425 million to him under false pretenses."

This also appears in America's Right and "TexasDarlin" as well.

6 October - As expected, Berg files a motion for leave to file an amended complaint, according to "America's Right". (PDF here)

There's nothing particularly new in it, save that "TechDude's" claim about Maya Soetoro's name being on the supposedly forged COLB is still there. Much of it is focusing on the claim that Sen. Obama lost US citizenship when he was supposedly adopted by Lolo Soetoro. Berg DOES add the claims that he's "suffered damage to his reputation and discrimination as a result of attempting to protect his rights and verify the eligibility of Obama to serve as President of the United States", and used that to bring in a lot of race-related issues that have no bearing on the original demand of citizenship.

Also, in very much the same fashion that "Judah Benjamin" kept adding to his demands, (indeed, almost word-for-word identical to "Judah Benjamin"), Berg has added to his demand of "just wanting the 'vault copy' birth certificate and the supposed "certified copy of his Oath of Allegiance".

Now I've said before this is a "when did you stop beating your wife" demand. Native born citizens never have to do a "oath of allegiance" like Berg is demanding. So Berg can always claim he didn't present all the evidence demanded EVEN if the "vault copy" was presented.

But in addition to that, he's now demanding:

"72. Plaintiff is requesting through this lawsuit an Order for Obama, the DNC, the FEC, the U.S. Senate, Commission on Rules and Administration and the Pennsylvania Department of State, Bureau of Commissions, Elections and Legislation to immediately turn over to Plaintiff the following documents:
(a) A certified copy of Obama’s “vault” (original long version) birth certificate;
(b) All reissued and sealed birth certificates of Obama;
(c) A certified copy of Obama’s Certification of Citizenship;
(d) A certified copy of Obama’s Oath of Allegiance taken upon age of majority; and
(e) Certified copies of Obama’s Admission forms for Occidental College, Columbia University and Harvard Law School."

Earlier he only demands (a) and (d). (c) again doesn't apply to native born citizens. (b) & (c) are both gotcha questions like (d). And what on earth does (e) have to do with anything unless they're trying to claim that he only got into those schools on some "affirmative action" thing??

Honestly, I can't see where this does anything except undermine Berg even further.

Comments

[Tracy]

I've said it before - Philip Berg seems to have learned the law from Lionel Hutz.

[Lao]

"Corsi repeatedly relies on Martin's accounts of Indonesian news reports to bolster his case for Obama's connections to Islam. For example, in a translated article about a secular school that Obama later attended, Martin writes: "Each Friday, all the school childen [sic] must wear Muslim clothes and that also includes children who are non-muslim [sic]." But that line does not appear in the original news report. What was Martin's source for his repeated insistence that Obama's former school requires students to dress in traditional Muslim attire on Fridays? "I've lived [in Southeast Asia] for 20 years; I go to schools all the time," he says. However, he admits that he never visited Obama's former school on a Friday."......"Hmmm.... once again "TexasDarlin" is hanging around with right-wing cranks. Funny that......

Right-Wing cranks?

I'm confused. You do know how to read don't you? Either you and your comrades have an aversion to the truth or simply a xenophobic disdain for the Indonesian media? Which is it?

If you are going to dispute what I have reported then do please do so and if you can't then I'd suggest you do us all a favour by putting down the bottle of Boone's Farm and the bag of Doritos and slowly backing away from the keyboard.

ok thanks. have a nice day.

[Patrick McKinnion]

Corsi is a very well known - and some would say rabid - right winger. In Corsi's own words:

http://mediamatters.org/items/200408060010

And certainly "TexasDarlin" has been getting a lot of crossover traffic from places like "Atlas Shrugs" and "Free Republic"

Oh, and I very rarely drink, thank you.

[A. J.]

JUST REMEMBER: "THE OCTOBER SUPRISE IS COMING".
A.J.

[Patrick McKinnion]

AJ - You mean the theory that the GOP has his "real" BC and will break it out at the right time??

I suspect if that was the case, they would have done that by now. They've tried every other trick in the book.