Is Barack Obama a Muslim?

The rumors began to circulate in 2006, maybe earlier: "Barack Obama is a Muslim," "Barack Obama is a secret Muslim," "Barack Obama is a Muslim Manchurian Candidate who will impose sharia law on the United States." The claims are sensational, certainly. They appeal to Americans anxious about the threat of jihadism in a post-9/11 world. Voters are likely to hear the rumors over and over in the run up to the election. But like many sensational claims, they are undone by the facts. Here's what is known:

  • According to CNN, when Obama lived in Indonesia from 1967 to 1971 with his mother and stepfather, he acknowledged attending a Muslim school, "but an aide said it was not a madrassa." In any event, Obama received a Muslim education for a brief time. Obama also attended a Catholic school in Indonesia.
  • Obama's father and stepfather were both Muslims.
  • Obama has said, again and again, that he is a Christian, not a Muslim.

Several astute conservative sources, who are sharply critical of Obama's political positions, take the senator at his word that he is not now a Muslim, even if he might have been when he was a child (a claim Obama and his campaign deny). See Robert Spencer, Daniel Pipes, and Daniel Larison. Given the facts at hand, the claim that Obama is a Muslim -- secret or otherwise -- simply does not hold up. So... Obama is a secret Muslim. Truth or not?

Truth
48% (8084 votes)
Not
52% (8810 votes)
What do you think?

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