Obama Catches Heat Over Farrakhan Support
  • Farrakhan, who has drawn attention for calling Judaism a “gutter religion,” dubbed the Illinois senator the “hope of the entire world” on Sunday.

    Obama was asked during a debate with Hillary Clinton Tuesday night if he would reject that support — but the Illinois senator at first hedged.

    “I can’t say to somebody that he can’t say that he thinks I’m a good guy,” Obama said. “You know, I have been very clear in my denunciations of him and his past statements.”

    Clinton then chimed in to say she rejected support from an anti-Israel group during her 2000 Senate run, and that Obama’s denunciation of Farrakhan is not as strong as a rejection.

    Obama relented: “I have to say I don’t see a difference between denouncing and rejecting. There’s no formal offer of help from Minister Farrakhan that would involve me rejecting it. But if the word ‘reject’ Senator Clinton feels is stronger than the word ‘denounce,’ then I’m happy to concede the point, and I would reject and denounce.”

    He earned the crowd’s applause, but his handling of the question could spell trouble.

    An article in the latest edition of Newsweek reported that Clinton’s surrogates are already floating the word that Obama has a shaky commitment to Israel