[EL] Mitt's returns & Obama's records: did the Vice-Chair of the Us Civil Rights Commission really write that message?

Sun Aug 19 21:26:50 PDT 2012

At a moment when voting rights are being threatened in numerous states, hate group activity is on the rise, and murderous hate violence is traumatizing many communities in the nation, I find it astonishing and deeply revealing that the Vice-Chair of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission has the time and inclination to post a message to a Listserv designed for academics and lawyers who study the intricacies of election law hypothesizing wildly that the President of the United States wrote his college thesis "celebrating the Black Panthers."  If Ms. Thernstrom's email account has been hacked by Glenn Beck or Rush Limbaugh and put to this embarrassing and pathetic partisan task, then I offer in advance a humble apology for having suggested that she misapprehends the whole purpose of this group, to say nothing of the public office she holds. 
     --JBR
Sent from my iPhone

On Aug 19, 2012, at 11:44 PM, "Abigail Thernstrom" <thernstr at fas.harvard.edu> wrote:

> 
> 	I want to see the record.  What did he write his senior thesis on? Supposed it was devoted to celebrating the Black Panthers; might be telling -- or at least of interest.  He writes in Dreams that he sought out Marxist professors; what was their influence on him in those formative years? He's hiding something! Perhaps trivial, but there has to be a reason of some sort for the secrecy.
> 
> 	Abby
> 
> Abigail Thernstrom
> Vice-chair, U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
> Adjunct Scholar, American Enterprise Institute
> www.thernstrom.com
> 
> 
> On Aug 19, 2012, at 11:00 PM, Joe La Rue wrote:
> 
>> In answer to Estelle Rogers, these records have been sought -- repeatedly -- as far back as during the leadup to the 2008 presidential election. Mr. Obama, however, has refused to allow them to be released. The question, of course, is, why? One supposes that it is not because his grades were bad. He was, after all, granted admission first to Columbia and then Harvard Law, which doesn't normally happen to those with subpar grades. So, if it's not grades, what is it in the records that Mr. Obama does not want the public to see?
>>  
>> I don't know; I haven't seen the records. But one suggestion that I think plausible is that the president enrolled at Columbia as a foreign student from Indonesia and accepted aid designated for foreign students. If that is so, that would amount to fraud, wouldn't it (assuming, of course, that he was a United States citizen)? And, Brian Landsberg, if the future president claimed to be a foreign national, that might have implications for election law, wouldn't it? For an interesting explanation of this theory, see http://www.theblaze.com/contributions/obama%e2%80%99s-college-classmate-the-obama-scandal-is-at-columbia/.
>>  
>> Of course, that whole theory might be rubbish. President Obama might have listed himself as a U.S. citizen when he attended Columbia, and he may have completely innocent reasons for not wanting anyone to see his records. Or perhaps he just thinks it's nobody's business. Regardless, Mr. Obama won't release the records. And, that is his right: there is no law requiring him to release these records. My original email was to highlight the hypocrisy of the president, who refuses to release his own records while demanding that Mr. Romney release records he, likewise, is not required to release. I also wanted to highlight the hypocrisy of the media, which is engaged in a full-court-press vetting of Mr. Romney, but has left many questions about Mr. Obama unvetted and unanswered. 
>>  
>> Finally, Ms. Rogers, the "U. of Columbia" was obviously meant to be Columbia University. I was typing quickly, on an iPhone, and simply got the name wrong.
>> 
>> Joe
>> ___________________
>> Joseph E. La Rue
>> cell: 480.272.2715 
>> email: joseph.e.larue at gmail.com
>> 
>> 
>> CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE:  This e-mail message, including any attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information or otherwise be protected by law. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> On Sun, Aug 19, 2012 at 3:47 PM, Brian Landsberg <blandsberg at pacific.edu> wrote:
>> Finally, one might hope, what does this have to do with election law?  Nothing, I would venture.  
>> 
>> Sent from my iPhone
>> 
>> On Aug 19, 2012, at 3:41 PM, "Estelle Rogers" <erogers at projectvote.org> wrote:
>> 
>>> Not to mention, what is the U. of Columbia?  And if the records from said institution, whatever and wherever it is, are so interesting to Mr. La Rue, why weren't they sought the first time Obama ran for elective office, or the second, or the third?  And why, pray tell, haven't you asked for the President's kindergarten transcript?  Who knows what evil is lurking there?
>>> 
>>> Estelle Rogers 
>>> Sent from my iPad
>>> 
>>> On Aug 19, 2012, at 6:06 PM, "henry weinstein" <henryelliotweinstein at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> 
>>>> Pardon my curiosity but just what sort of fraud do you have in mind regarding Obama's Columbia records? His grades from his time at Occidental College (the college he attended before transferring to Columbia)? His grades at Columbia? 
>>>> 
>>>> On Sat, Aug 18, 2012 at 5:31 AM, Joe La Rue <joseph.e.larue at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>> Interesting theory the Guardian has about Mitt. Of course, they fail to say that Mitt has no legal obligation to release the tax returns Obama wants. Regardless, I have a proposition: how about Mitt agree to release the returns, right after Obama releases his records from the U of Columbia, including his admissions records. He's been hiding those with nary a word from the media. Some of us think there must be a reason he's hiding them. There are several non-Birther theories to explain why Obama doesn't want us to see those records, each of which, if true, might derail the President's re-election (and at least one of which would implicate the president in fraud). So, let's see media calls for Obama to release his records, too. Then Mitt can release his returns. Sound fair?
>>>> 
>>>> “Mitt Romney’s tax returns: the ‘voter fraud’ theory”
>>>> 
>>>> Posted on August 17, 2012 9:01 pm by Rick Hasen
>>>> The Guardian reports with the subhead: “There has been much speculation about why Romney refuses to disclose earlier tax returns. Could it be as simple as an address?”
>>>> 
>>>> 
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>>>> 
>>>> -- 
>>>> Henry Weinstein
>>>> Writer, Teacher
>>>> cell phone 323-445-7006
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