JedFonner.com

While personally I don’t think it makes much sense to holding someone accountable for actions their associate did 40 years ago, I could see how some people would think that significant. So regarding Obama’s association with Weather Underground cofounder Bill Ayers, I assumed the Republicans had jumped on a real issue and were legitimately hammering Obama on it. And that’s what a strong democracy is all about.

Except what the Republicans are saying about Obama and Ayers isn’t true.

My new favorite website, FactCheck.org, has put out a fantastic article on the attacks that McCain and Palin have been lobbing at Obama. Read their story: “He Lied” About Bill Ayers?.

FactCheck says of the ads, “We find McCain’s accusation that Obama “lied” to be groundless” and “Other claims are seriously misleading.” Overall, they say,

McCain-Palin campaign attempts to sway voters – in ads and on the stump – with false and misleading statements about the relationship, which was never very close. Obama never “lied” about this, just as he never bragged about it. The foundation they both worked with was hardly “radical.” And Ayers is more than a former “terrorist,” he’s also a well-known figure in the field of education.

Normally I don’t feel the need to parrot every new story on FactCheck.org, but I thought this one was important since most people probably assume, as I did, that there’s really some meat behind this whole Obama-Ayers thing. But after reading the FactCheck piece, it seems to be much ado about nothing.