Oh No! Obama's Aunt: "I Loved George Bush!"

Well, the headline had to be written, but that doesn't mean Obama's Aunt Onyango has turned on him. She hasn't. What's interesting is how her deportation case is proceeding. I have a hard time believing that she will be deported, despite Obama having cut her off completely since taking office.

"I loved President Bush," Onyango said while moving toward a framed photo of Bush and his wife standing with Barack and Michelle Obama at the White House on inauguration day. "He is my No. 1 man in my life because he helped me when I really needed that help."

I suspect the deal is this. They re-opened her asylum case in December, which entitles her to a new hearing. There it will be pointed out that her relationship to Obama only puts her in greater danger were she to be deported. I'd be very surprised if a judge orders the deportation of Obama's aunt.

A judge agreed to suspend Onyango's deportation order in December and reopened her asylum case. A hearing will be held in February, when Onyango can present her reasons for seeking asylum. The judge will then decide if she will be deported.

Her attorney, Margaret Wong, said Onyango first applied for asylum because of violence in Kenya, an East African nation fractured by cycles of electoral violence every five years. People who seek asylum must show that they face persecution in their homeland on the basis of religion, race, nationality, political opinion or membership in a social group.

Immigration experts say Onyango's relationship to the president could strengthen her claim that she would be subjected to danger at home.

Onyango declined to discuss the details of her case, citing the pending appeal.

Onyango, the half sister of Obama's late father, said she has exiled herself from the family after attending Obama's inauguration because she didn't want to become fodder for his foes. Obama and his family have not reached out to her either, she said.

 "Before, we were family. But right now, there is a lot of politics, and me, I am not interested in any politics at all," said Onyango, whose appeal for asylum from her native Kenya is before an immigration judge in Boston.

The Obamas are her only family in the United States, she said.

"It is very sad when such a thing happens. There are people, outsiders, you know, they come in between, they divide a family," she said last week. "It's not easy."

Onyango, 57, is protective of Obama and said she never asked him to intervene in her case and didn't tell him about her immigration difficulties.

Comments

[x11b1p]

i am curious to know why obama has distanced hismelf from his family yet always reminds us and the world of his kenyan roots and family?

[stuiec]

Umm... greater danger at home? Isn't the domicile of the President's half-brother in Kenya well-known? Has anyone threatened him in any way? And isn't Obama held in great esteem in Kenya? One would think his aunt would actually be accorded deference and respect by her fellow Kenyans.

[Xerocky]

"i am curious to know why obama has distanced hismelf from his family yet always reminds us and the world of his kenyan roots and family? "

Umm, you really don't know? It has something to do with the fact that at the time they were needed to score him political points, they were there in a way that his "typical" white family could never be, and now that they may be seen as more of a liability, he's got no more need from them.

It's been a pattern for a while with this guy.

You know what burns my ass a little? This guy's got half brothers in Kenya, half brothers in China, homeless illegal immigrant aunt(s?) in the United States, and because of his murky background some people say "hey, can we see your long form birth certificate?" and for that they get called racist and get treated like they're completely out of their minds.
Or called "haters", as if it's a foregone conclusion that unless otherwise insane, all will unquestioningly love the chosen one.

I just don't know what the big deal is? Why couldn't he just show it? Call me an old fashioned snob, but i like it when my presidents come from families where all of the members are known and accounted for. I like it when the president has had one and just one name for his entire life, when nobody would even think to ask for his B.C. because it would be ridicules to do so because he or she has a story, a real story that doesn't need to be fact checked because for the most part it's known. Perhaps people don't know about his first date or whatever, but place of birth, schools attended, and how school was paid for, it's all known.

If she's not here legally, the President should, for the simple sake of the rule of law, either make her legal somehow (he's a lawyer after all) or have her sent to her country of origin. It's pretty straight forward.

[Jamie]

Here's a big WHO CARES??? Obama is just like everyone else. He has some relatives he'd rather not have to know.

[mark l.]

i'd be shocked to see aunt zootie deported.

in the grand scheme of things, to the victor(obama) goes the spoils.

my only beef about aunt zootie is that she was living in public housing, while americans are waiting for space.

[murgatroyd]

HEY! Where are all the Birthers? This is their opportunity!

Under the law of the State of Hawai'i, only a close relative can request a copy of the Original Birth Certificate of someone who was born there. Guess what! Aunt Onyango is a close-enough relative to do this! So some rich Birther needs to bankroll Aunt Onyango's legal fight, or some attorney needs to do some pro bono work in her behalf, and in return ...

(For the record: I believe Obama was born in Hawai'i. But people might not find his Original Birth Certificate if they look for it under the name "Barack Hussein Obama.")