Local partisans butt heads over Obama speech to kids, feds’ suggested “help the president” exercise
by George Bennett | September 3rd, 2009
Obama speech to youth: inspiration or indoctrination?
Our Laura Green reports that Palm Beach County school district officials haven’t decided whether to air Obama’s remarks to students on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the Department of Education appears to be backing away from its “help the president” language, instead suggesting that students should write letters about “how they can achieve their short-term and long-term education goals.”
Palm Beach County GOP Chairman Sid Dinerstein said he’s worried that Obama will use the speech to “push school children to support an agenda.” Dinerstein also charged that Palm Beach County school officials wouldn’t air presidential remarks targeted to students if Republican George W. Bush were still in office.
Palm Beach County Democratic Chairman Mark Alan Siegel said he wasn’t troubled by the “help the president” language — and wouldn’t have been bothered by it even if the Bush administration had proposed it.
“We do that all the time,” said Siegel. “Abraham Lincoln, so the story goes, grew a beard because a school child suggested he’d look better. What’s wrong with helping the president? Why is helping the president bad? I know (South Carolina Republican Sen.) Jim DeMint wants to destroy the president and Rush Limbaugh wants the president to fail. I don’t see a problem with helping the president.”
Siegel called Republican Party of Florida Chairman Jim Greer’s remarks about Obama using the speech to indoctrinate youth with his “socialist ideology” an example of paranoia.
“It’s unfortunate that their fears led them to come to these bizarre conclusions. Maybe it’s projection on their part,” Siegel said.
Tags: Abraham Lincoln, Jim Greer, Mark Alan Siegel, Sid Dinerstein
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