Obama and Domestic Terrorist:  Ad Campaign Examines the Relationship

While GOP Presidential hopeful John McCain introduced his new running-mate, Gov. Sarah Palin, American Issues Project wrapped up its first phase of a television advertising and issue campaign, which called into question the long-standing relationship between Barack Obama and unrepentant 1960's domestic terrorist, William Ayers.

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"American Issues Project clearly has struck a nerve inside the Obama campaign, but even more important is the reaction of the American people, who are starting to question why Sen. Obama would have such a close relationship with an unrepentant domestic terrorist," said Ed Martin, American Issues Project president. "The heavy-handed response of the Obama campaign definitely misfired. The more the Obama campaign has tried to bully the ad off the air with its spurious legal threats and intimidation, the more voters have wondered what he has to hide," he said. The made-for-television ad examines the connection between Sen. Obama and domestic terrorist William Ayers, cofounder of the violent, radical Weather Underground movement that "declared war on America" and successfully bombed the US Capitol, Pentagon, a police station in New York and other targets across the nation. Ayers has not only trumpeted his role in the bombings, he is unrepentant. On September 11th, 2001, the New York Times reported him saying, "I don't regret setting bombs... I feel we didn't do enough." The ad drew a massive and disproportionate response from the Obama campaign, which demanded the Department of Justice prosecute the organization and its donors, threatened stations running the ad in an attempt to compel them to pull the spot and other efforts to "kill the messenger." Notably, the effort was unsuccessful in getting a single station to pull the ad. The Obama campaign sponsored its own paid ad in response, which fails to dispute a single fact the American Issues Project has put forth. Sen. Obama defends his friend Ayers as "respectable" and "mainstream." The two worked closely together on several boards including for an organization that Ayers founded and Obama chaired. Sen. Obama's political career was even launched at an event hosted by Ayers in his own home. American Issues Project has as one of its primary purposes protecting America's role in the world and assuring a strong national defense. The Ayers-Obama connection raises an important issue that is directly related to AIP's purposes and which AIP will continue in coming months, and years, to promote.