Catching the Press Corps totally by surprise, many of whom had skipped Wednesday morning's briefing, Obama suddenly released his long form birth certificate, something the tea party "birthers" swore did not exist.
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Stating that it was time to put the "silliness" to rest once and for all, Obama stated:
"I know that there is going to be a segment of people for which no matter what we put out, this issue will not be put to rest. But I am speaking for the vast majority of the American people as well as for the press. We do not have time for this kind of silliness. We have better stuff to do. I have got better stuff to do. We have got big problems to solve."
"We are not going to be able to do it if we are distracted, we are not going to be able to do it if we spend time vilifying each other ... if we just make stuff up and pretend that facts are not facts, we are not going to be able to solve our problems if we get distracted by side shows and carnival barkers".
The President also scolded the press for covering this issue, allowing it to become a distraction in the first place.
Ironically, the press played a large role in forcing the administration's hand. CNN's Ed Henry had pressed White House Press Secretary Jay Carney on the issue just one day earlier, despite the fact that his own network had done a thorough investigation debunking the claims of the conspiracy theorists.
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This copy differs from the short form released in 2008 in that it specifically names the hospital where Obama was born and states that it is in Honolulu, Hawaii. It is also signed.
For years, Obama's circle of aides had resisted calls to make the latter form public, noting that a certification is legally sound and what any citizen of Hawaii receives upon requesting documents of birth. And indeed, for some time, that explanation -- supported by a a wide swath of other contemporaneous evidence - seemed to suffice.
But some who challenged the president's citizenship remained unsatisfied, and in recent weeks they found a high-profile megaphone for their cause: business tycoon and presidential flirt Donald Trump.
Last Friday, the president himself wrote Loretta J. Fuddy, the director of health at the State of Hawaii, requesting "two certified copies of my original certificate of live birth." Fuddy complied.
Shortly thereafter, the president's counsel, Judith Corley of the firm Perkins Coie, flew to Hawaii to pick up two copies of the form. The trip was not taxpayer funded but, rather, paid out of the president's personal account.
Corley returned on Tuesday at roughly 4 p.m. with the copies. The White House announced a "morning gaggle" for reporters shortly thereafter. One aide explained that they did not want to "hold" on to the documents for release on a later date.
Many members of the press confessed to being "stunned" as it became clear what was about to be discussed. White House press assistants handed out a six-page stapled packet of photocopies showing the new and old birth certificates as well as the White House's legal correspondence with Hawaii's Department of Health.
Source:Â https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/27/obama-birth-certificate-r_n_854248.html?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl1%7Csec1_lnk2%7C58781