In what the GOP Wingnuttery are calling a colossal 'Mistake', Barack Obama made a comment yesterday that his uncle had helped liberate concentration camps, and was among the "first American troops" at Auschwitz.
According to this CBS report it went down as such:
Obama also spoke about his uncle, who was part of the American brigade that helped to liberate Auschwitz. He said the family legend is that, upon returning from war, his uncle spent six months in an attic. "Now obviously, something had really affected him deeply, but at that time there just weren’t the kinds of facilities to help somebody work through that kind of pain," Obama said. "That’s why this idea of making sure that every single veteran, when they are discharged, are screened for post-traumatic stress disorder and given the mental health services that they need – that’s why it’s so important."
The 'mistake' was that it was the Soviet Army that entered Aushwitz and libertated the remaining prisoners. Obama's uncle actually helped liberate Ohrdruf, not Auschhwitz.
But the sad fact is all Nazi Death Camps were equally horrific and getting the camp wrong, doesn't change the basic facts behind Obama's story - that his uncle was deeply disturbed by what he saw and that the veterans returning from WWII had no where to turn for help:
"I had a uncle who was one of the, who was part of the first American troops to go into Auschwitz and liberate the concentration camps, and the story in our family was is that when he came home, he just went up into the attic and he didn’t leave the house for six months, right. Now obviously something had really affected him deeply but at that time there just weren’t the kinds of facilities to help somebody work through that kind of pain. That’s why you know the, this idea of making sure that every single veteran when they are discharged are screened for post traumatic stress disorder and given the mental health services that they need, that’s why its so important."
So true to form, the GOP noise machine is fired up and working up a nice froth over this 'gaffe'. Leave it to the Wingnuts to tell Obama's Family history for him. One comment from Obama in a single speech would not reverbate across the country, but for getting a minor detail incorrect and having the GOP tell his story for him - over and over, again and again - and the RNC is demanding an explaination:
"Barack Obama’s dubious claim is inconsistent with world history and demands an explanation. It was Soviet troops that liberated Auschwitz, so unless his uncle was serving in the Red Army, there’s no way Obama’s statement yesterday can be true. Obama’s frequent exaggerations and outright distortions raise questions about his judgment and his readiness to lead as commander in chief."
In a statement today, the Obama campaign said the candidate’s great uncle, who the campaign says was his grandmother’s brother, was a member of the 89th Infantry Division, which liberated Ohrdruf, a subcamp of Buchenwald. The campaign also provides a link to the U.S. Holocaust Museum, but this a description of the 89th Infantry’s part. It also provided a separate link to the 89th’s role here. The Obama camp admits the mistake, saying Obama meant Buchenwald, not Auschwitz:
"Senator Obama’s family is proud of the service of his grandfather and uncles in World War II -- especially the fact that his great uncle was a part of liberating one of the concentration camps at Buchenwald," Obama spokesman Bill Burton said. "Yesterday he mistakenly referred to Auschwitz instead of Buchenwald in telling of his personal experience of a soldier in his family who served heroically."
At the end of the day, everyone will know Obama's Uncle was a patriotic American who helped Liberate a Nazi Death Camp. They won't care or remember what Death Camp it was and they shouldn't. All Nazi Death Camps were a tragic stain on history - ALL of THEM - even Ohrdruf.