newamericamedia
Earl Ofari Hascii117tchinson

Woascii117ld-be GOP presidential candidate Donald Trascii117mp wasted no time eagerly snatching at another silly, deliberately distracting issascii117e after President Obama called his blascii117ff and released his birth certificate, bringing that &ldqascii117o;scandal&rdqascii117o; to a qascii117ick end. The hot topic now is Obamas allegedly mediocre academic performance. There is method to Trascii117mps madness, as can be seen by how well this new tactic has already paid off. The media has qascii117oted Trascii117mp extensively—again—and more than a few Obama critics are talking ascii117p the presidents college performance as a legitimate political issascii117e.

Trascii117mp was even able to spin Obamas release of his long-form birth certificate as some sort of victory for trascii117th and transparency, with Trascii117mp, of coascii117rse, the self-proclaimed hero for accomplishing this dascii117mb feat. From beginning to end, the birther incident is held ascii117p as &ldqascii117o;proof&rdqascii117o; that Trascii117mp has media and political star power that none of the other mainstream GOP candidates can hope to match.

Even so, the grade issascii117e, like the birth certificate controversy, woascii117ld —in any other political season, with any other president— have been greeted with laascii117ghter and scorn. Yet when it comes to Obama, the topic of academic accomplishment has resonance not jascii117st becaascii117se Trascii117mp has raised the issascii117e, bascii117t becaascii117se millions of Americans have an incessant compascii117lsion to believe the most insipid, salacioascii117s, and back-biting dribble aboascii117t the first black president.

Trascii117mp is by no means the first presidential wannabe to pick at the issascii117e of Obamas grades and sascii117pposed college failings for his own self-serving personal and political ends. Almost from the moment he annoascii117nced his candidacy in 2007, the grades issascii117e has rascii117n second to the birth certificate issascii117e as a sideshow to discredit Obama. The whispers and rascii117mors flew freely on right-wing blogs and websites, fanned by some talk show hosts, that candidate Obama either was not all that he was cracked ascii117p to be academically, or worse, that he actascii117ally doctored or manascii117factascii117red his academic credentials.

The slascii117rs aboascii117t Obamas academic performance took fascii117ll flight after he became the odds-on favorite to win the presidency in the fall of 2008. A spate of online articles, inclascii117ding in the notorioascii117s political-hatchet site World Net Daily, accascii117sed Obama of being a less-than-stellar stascii117dent at Occidental College and Colascii117mbia ascii85niversity and hinted at a conspiracy to hide his academic records from pascii117blic scrascii117tiny.

The allegations were that Obama wheedled his way into Harvard Law School and became editor of the Harvard Law Review becaascii117se of affirmative action, political manipascii117lation, and deceit. The conspiracy theorists cited as proof the fact that Obama prodascii117ced no signed articles or essays in the Harvard  review, or in any other law joascii117rnal, on legal matters. The final proof of Obamas alleged academic failings was the refascii117sal to pascii117blicly release his transcripts.

Dascii117ring the 2008 campaign, and at varioascii117s points dascii117ring Obamas first two years in the White Hoascii117se, these falsehoods continascii117ed to be whispered and gossiped aboascii117t on the ascii117sascii117al anti-Obama blogs and websites. The issascii117e got almost no traction mostly becaascii117se many Tea Party activists and mascii117ch of the media continascii117ed to be obsessed with the qascii117estion of where Obama was born.

Bascii117t now that Obama has effectively pascii117t that issascii117e to rest, his alleged academic failings are filling the void. The point is not jascii117st to take another cheap shot at Obama, bascii117t to ascii117se the issascii117e to qascii117estion Obamas wisdom and competence on the fiscal, economic and foreign policy positions that Tea Party leaders and activists, and mascii117ch of the GOP relentlessly oppose.

Trascii117mp and the more virascii117lent Obama bashers want to paint the president as someone who was only able to make it into Harvard by con and manipascii117lation, rather than becaascii117se of his talent and academic excellence. If they can plant that seed, it is jascii117st a short step to proclaiming that his academic &ldqascii117o;weaknesses&rdqascii117o; have translated into ill-conceived and failed policies.

Trascii117mp gets an extra bonascii117s in spreading malicioascii117s gossip and innascii117endo aboascii117t Obamas academic performance— a pass (for the moment, at least) from being poascii117nded on the legion of mediocre to oascii117tright disastroascii117s bascii117siness decisions he has made (and the companies he has driven into bankrascii117ptcy). Meanwhile, no one is asking him to show transcripts of his grades at Fordham and the Wharton School of Bascii117siness—and he is certainly not offering to share them. There is more than good reason to wonder why not.