Presidential Revision of the Declaration of Independence
Date: Friday, October 22 @ 23:18:47 MDT
Topic: National News



As President Obama stumps on behalf of Democrats seeking office, some have come to notice that as the President speaks about the Declaration of Independence, certain key words, such as references to the “Creator,” are missing. On 22 Oct 10, Catholic Online posted an American Thinker article which expressed the belief that the omissions are “deliberate and calculated.”


The article pointed out patterns of speech analyzed back to President Obama's inauguration. The article questioned, “Is it a deliberate attempt to take the opportunity of a presidential inauguration to make major headway at deconstructing the Declaration in the minds of people, or was he just waxing eloquent, but inexactly?”

The article also referenced a CNSNews.com article, published 19 Oct 10, that pointed out that “For the second time in little over a month, President Barack Obama stripped the word 'Creator' from the Declaration of Independence when giving a speech.” The article continued to cite the quote from the President's speech, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that each of us are endowed with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

The article also noted that when White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs was asked about the omission, he responded, "I haven't seen the comments, Lester. But I can assure you the president believes in the Declaration of Independence.” Of course, the question was not about belief in the Declaration but about revising the reference to exclude God from it.

The article noted the same omission in a 15 Sep 10 speech. The article quoted the President as saying, “It was faith and fidelity to the shared values that we all hold so dear. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, endowed with certain inalienable rights: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

The article further noted that in a 22 Sep 10 Speech, the reference to the “Creator” which endowed us with inalienable rights was again omitted. Paraphrasing the Declaration, the President said, “...if we believe that all people are created equal and everybody is endowed with certain inalienable rights...”

A NewsMax.com commentary, posted 20 Oct 10, observed, “Either President Barack Obama isn't familiar with the words 'endowed by their Creator' when quoting the Declaration of Independence, or he doesn't subscribe to that part of the wording that describes people’s intrinsic rights.”

In another CNSNews.com article, published 27 Sep 10, it was noted that President Obama has not always made the controversial omission. It noted a 4 Jul 10 speech where President Obama stated, “Two hundred and thirty-four years later, the words are just as bold, just as revolutionary, as they were when they were first pronounced: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.'"

The article noted, however, that in addition to the 22 Sep 10 omission, President Obama issued a “Constitution Day and Citizenship Day” proclamation, on 17 Sep 10, which mentioned “inalienable rights” but not the Creator who endows them. It further noted the omission in both the English and Spanish versions of the proclamation. The article further noted another omission in a 2 Feb 09 presidential proclamation for “National African American History Month.”

A commentary, posted by The Weekly Standard, 20 Oct 10, noted that the omission was found in an 18 Oct 10 speech. The omission was also noted in the text of the speech posted on the White House Web site. The commentary pointed out that the first time such an omission is made, it could easily have been a mistake, but the second time drives the assumption that it’s probably deliberate.

The commentary concludes, “The president’s omission (or revision) of language that’s not only central to our country’s history, identity, and philosophy, but also to most of his fellow countrymen’s hearts, stands in stark contrast to other presidents' repeated offerings of thanks to God and their clear conviction that our rights do in fact come from Him.”

Cited Articles and Posts

Catholic Online (22 Oct 10)

CNSNews.com (19 Oct 10)

NewsMax (20 Oct 10)
http://www.newsmax.com/InsideCover/Obama-Declaration-of-Independence/2010/10/20/id/374316

CNSNews.com (27 Sep 10)
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/75843

The Weekly Standard (20 Oct 10)

The White House (19 Oct 10)
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2010/10/19/remarks-president-a-dscc-dinner-rockville-maryland

Examiner.com (20 Sep 10)






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