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Periscope by Niall O'Dowd

A great day to be Irish for Barack Obama

Posted on Tuesday, May 24, 2011 at 08:28 AM

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PHOTOS - President Obama's trip to Ireland - photo gallery

President Obama came saw and triumphed in Ireland on Monday. In the process he forged a new identity that connects him even closer to the great American dream.

He has been accused of being a Muslim, of having no birth certificate, of being somehow non American.
On Monday he produced the long form birth certificate of Fulmouth Kearney his predecessor, and in the process. Fulmouth’s story became part of the American story too.

By finding his Irish family, no matter how remote, Obama tapped into a classic American narrative of an American returning back and finding his roots.

Americans know one thing, that their presence in America started , in most cases a generation or more ago when a young man or woman, packed a small suitcase, said farewell to his or her family and headed off into the great unknown.

All the great dynasties, from the Mayflower emigrants on down started with such a voyage into the unknown. So did every sweat blood and tears American small success story.

That diorama is part of the American psyche, embedded deep in the DNA of all of us who share this blessed country.

There has been a concerted effort to deny Obama that heritage, to proclaim him as alien and outside the American dream.

In Moneygall he shattered that smear forever.

His ancestor Fulmouth Kearney, was one such man, who departed his little native village of Moneygall in 1850 and created his own American dream by taking up land in Ohio . His descendants lived quiet lives until one of them, Barack Obama, shattered the glass ceiling that said no man of African American heritage could become president of the United States.

Obama’s autobiography ‘Dreams of my Father’ and his early writings had all concentrated on the Kenyan side of his heritage, an understandable track given that his father had deserted the young man and left a deep void in his life, one he wanted to fill and understand.

Now as president far more focus is being given to his mother Ann Dunham’s family, where the Fulmouth Kearney connection kicks in.

Obama embraced those Irish roots on Monday. Gone was the cerebral, professor-like mien that has marked his years in office, a cool distant figure.

In its place was a smiling ,beaming, hugging, handshaking president who had , for a day at least, had absorbed some of the Bill Clinton ability to connect on a visceral level with people.

Ireland tends to provide an emotional transplant for politician. The JFK visit in 1963 kicked off the notion of a Ireland as a place where policy issues are not the main agenda, but the creation of a powerful emotional back story is.

Obama succeeded in creating that back story in Ireland, of embracing a heritage and history he shares with 40 million others who have Irish ancestry. It was a great day to be Irish.

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READ MORE:

PHOTOS - President Obama's trip to Ireland - photo gallery

Guinness cash in on Obama's Moneygall vist

Follow all the stories on Obama and his trip to Ireland

FULL TEXT - President Obama's speech to crowd in Dublin's College Green
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40 Comments

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cathy/marty | Jun 05, 2011, 12:18 PM EDT

IF B.S. WAS CONCREAT OBAMA WOULD BE THE LONG ISLAND EXPRESSWAY.BARRY SAYS READ MY LIPS

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simplesandy | May 26, 2011, 11:51 AM EDT

tell you what Ireland ..You can have him . won't take any time at all to make a birth certificate . oops wait maybe about 3 years or so . But he'll have one for being born in Ireland. America don't have a pot to pi$$ in or a window to throw it out of.

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irishmathair | May 25, 2011, 03:09 PM EDT

Are we finally FINISHED with all the "obama hero worship"???? PLEASSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSE - ENOUGH ALREADY!!!!! GAG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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eiriamach | May 25, 2011, 01:55 PM EDT

deburca, that's very important information you gave us at May 24, 2011, 05:54 PM. Well stated, thanks!

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Listener | May 25, 2011, 06:56 AM EDT

Pilib04 - you miss my point. I'm a big fan of Obama too. And,there will be more of us, if he could only show a little more of his human side. Michelle did impress - in general,seemed more relaxed than Barack. And, a nice compliment to her reported in today's Irish Indo: she noticed that the rival publican, the 80 year old Julia, looking out her window on proceedings from across the street in Moneygall had been forgotten: "Michelle Obama ... noticed the absence of the second publican in the village -- 80-year-old Julia Hayes. Michelle asked if they could visit Julia's small pub, but it was explained to her that the crowd were in the way. "She said 'that's a pity'." Nice touch.

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Towngate | May 25, 2011, 04:51 AM EDT

Niall, a Chara: Cerebral? Are you serious?! A Professorial Mien?! ~ Now I know you're joking! . . . As outlined by Kaydog1 @07.09, this Obama is a 'novelty' President,a reluctant Puppet - but a Puppet nonetheless, who obeys his instructions from the real power brokers. He accepted the Nobel Peace Prize whilst conducting two (now three) unjust and pointless 'peace wars' and torture policies. ~ ~ ~ No doubt he has given the performance of his life in Ireland with the thought of 40 million Irish-American voters uppermost in his mind. But no mention of Immigration Policy or a Financial Proposal to help Ireland; just a glitzy well-read Auto-cue speech to dupe his vulnerable audience. He had his diddle-e-i fun with the manipulated and unsuspecting Irish locals, for the benefit of the Media, but couldn't wait to escape early from the vicious Dublin gate-stops and sinister ash-clouds of dear old Erin! ~ ~ ~ He is now mixing with the serious grown-ups in the UK and mainland Europe. ~ ~ ~ Last night he slept in luxury in Buckingham Palace - even as his Peace Bombs and Rockets rain down the most intensive and shameful night-time bombardment yet on the innocent civilians of Tripoli.

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deburca | May 24, 2011, 10:59 PM EDT

Rebelforce, although I would normally side with you about Irish stereotypes I don't think it's the case in this instant. I think, more than anything, it was an attempt to promote an Irish export. The same goes for the Queens visit to the Guinness Brewery. In both cases a large part of these visits was to help promote Ireland in general.

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Rebelforce | May 24, 2011, 10:42 PM EDT

Not surprisingly, most of the US newspapers I've seen chose to publish the picture of the President "gulping guiness" in Ireland rather than of the President speaking to the over flowing crowds of cheering Irish on the College Green in Dublin. How utterly predictable. Gotta keep those old Irish stereotypes front and center at every opportunity.

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deburca | May 24, 2011, 10:01 PM EDT

maloney, your comment has been reported as hate speech.

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maloney | May 24, 2011, 09:21 PM EDT

A flag draped obama, now there's a wonderful thought.

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deburca | May 24, 2011, 07:41 PM EDT

kaydog1 it is quite obvious that American tbaggers hate America's President more than Al Qaeda does... yet they're always wrapping themselves in the flag. It would be funny if it wasn't so boring at this point. Move on.

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kaydog1 | May 24, 2011, 07:09 PM EDT

Niall, Obama's a POLITICIAN. When he's in Africa, he's a son of Africa come home. When he's in the Mideast, he's "Barack Hussein", the roaring son of the Desert come home. When he's talking to Hispanics on the Mexican border, he's a first-generation disadvantaged son of a Kenyan-born man of color who shares their dreams, and when he's in Washington DC he's an Ivy League-educated attorney, whose mother's father ran the biggest bank in Hawaii. Obama is everyone, to hear him present it. Now he's in Ireland, and you're swept away that he's suddenly IRISH? God help us all. And Begorrah!

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andrewfromdubli | May 24, 2011, 06:04 PM EDT

It was great to welcome Obama yesterday - as much as we love him though, we are also able to poke fun at him and out attitude to him - see this animated video short doing the orunds on u-tube over here - an alternative take on his Irish visit - Oh My Bama: http://youtu.be/lhxYAclzm_g Enjoy!

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pilib04 | May 24, 2011, 06:02 PM EDT

Listener, we Irish love Obama. Sorry about you.

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pilib04 | May 24, 2011, 06:00 PM EDT

Is feidir linn. You just have to love it!

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