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'Barack Osama' Printed on Hundreds of NY Absentee Ballots
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ShareOctober 10, 2008 5:16 PM
ABC News' Julia Hoppock reports: Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama's last name was spelled "Osama" on three hundred absentee ballots mailed out this week in Rensselaer County, New York.
First reported in the TimesUnion.com, election officials in Rensselaer County say the misspelling is merely a typo.
The Democratic and Republican County Board of Election chairs, Edward McDonough and Larry Bugbee, said that "the error was not deliberate" in a joint statement issued Friday.
"In preparation of absentee ballots for the November 4th General Election, a typographical error was made in the name of one of the candidates. The error was included on only 300 out of more than 4000 absentee ballots that will be mailed out this month. The Board of Elections acted quickly to correct the typographical error and regrets the error."
Bugbee told the TimesUnion.com that despite having three different staff members look over the ballot, "somehow the typo got by us."
McDonough reiterated that the misspelling was nothing more than a mistake. "No question this is an honest mistake innocently done,'' McDonough told the TimesUnion.com ''We catch almost everything.''
The sensitive misspelling comes at a time when the McCain-Palin campaign has intensified attacks on Obama's character, emphasizing his ties to 1960s radical William Ayres.
"I don't care about two washed-up old terrorists that are unrepentant about trying to destroy America. But I do care, and Americans should care, about his relationship with him and whether he's being truthful and candid about," Sen. John McCain said of Obama and Ayers in an interview with ABC News' Charles Gibson on Thursday.
Vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin also has questioned Obama's trustworthiness. In several recent campaign rallies the governor accused Obama of "palling around with terrorists."
And as the Republican ticket has ramped up the rhetoric, some of McCain and Palin's supporters have become increasingly hostile towards Obama. At a rally on Monday in Clearwater, one man shouted "Kill him," according to the Washington Post, after Palin mentioned Obama's association to Ayres.
When McCain asked a crowd in Albuquerque, New Mexico this week, "Who is the real Barack Obama?" someone in the crowd yelled "A terrorist."
Election Officials in Rensselaer County—which is split almost evenly among Democrats and Republicans—said in a statement they have acted quickly to correct the error.
The Obama campaign said they were glad county officials were fixing the misspelling. "We're glad officials are working to correct this error and we assume it won't happen again," said Obama spokeswoman Jen Psaki.
ABC News' Lindsey Ellerson and Sunlen Miller contributed to this report.
October 10, 2008 | Permalink | User Comments (547)
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What's the difference between Osama and 0bama?
Cannot tell. They both buy supporters by promising a certain number of dollars to do things for them or if you vote for him.
Posted by: d0 | Oct 10, 2008 5:41:26 PM
Repugnicants are squeeling like a pig with lipstick.. your time is up and you will be the biggest ham-hock served.
Posted by: Vince | Oct 10, 2008 5:41:59 PM
Check out Angry McCain T-shirts
http://www.zazzle.com/angry_mccain_t_shirt-235939996761745106
Everyone should buy one.
Anybody know where that picture of McCain came from of him with the ANGRY FACE. It should make a commercial sometime soon.
Posted by: Greg | Oct 10, 2008 5:42:28 PM
Nice boo boo hope the person at fault foots the bill to repair the mistake maybe if those in charge of all screw ups were forced to make restitution there would be fewer mistakes made, the main one is the election of George Bush, now thats a mistake beyond correcting and who pays for that all of us, We are the USA not Iraq. Maybe if he had paid a little attention to his own country we would not be in the position we are in.
Posted by: Rose Szymanskir | Oct 10, 2008 5:42:57 PM
Ha Ha His past WILL catch up with him eventually
Posted by: Whoopdedoo12 | Oct 10, 2008 5:43:47 PM
There is no way this was an "honest mistake". The hate speech that McCain and Palin are spewing is awful and is clearly backfiring. It just continues to show the bad judgement by McCain that he thinks this kind of stuff will work. He's going to lose, and lose big.
Posted by: Wendy | Oct 10, 2008 5:43:59 PM
Stupid Americans is what the rest of the world is saying and thinking... Osama Husseien was actually NOMINATED !!! What a joke
Posted by: Whoopdedoo12 | Oct 10, 2008 5:46:37 PM
No way this was an honest mistake...the "b" on the keyboard is no where NEAR the "s".
Wow...any attempt to instill fear, even subliminally, is a desperate attempt.
Posted by: Anonymous | Oct 10, 2008 5:47:32 PM
Mark: Looked in the mirror and liked what I saw and how I felt about my decision to vote for Obama. Absolutely happy about that decision! Obama is a good, honest man who will help us "all" turn the nation around from the devastating years during the Republican administrations and Republican dominated Congress and Senates. I am very proud and recommend that you do the same for your candidate of choice by looking in your own mirror. I'm fairly sure that McCain will give you the opposite feelings. Bush is gone, McCain will be another Bush and Obama will bring us back together to re-empower the middle-class. Big Business --- "The party is over". No more big parties at the expense of the middle class.
Posted by: dlboggan | Oct 10, 2008 5:48:14 PM
How un-American can the republicans be? When are we going outlaw this party just as Germany did with the Nazi party.
True Americans have had just about enough!
President Obama! Get used to it!
Posted by: Independent realist | Oct 10, 2008 5:48:18 PM
President Osama will reveal he is a muslim after he gets elected
Posted by: Whoopdedoo12 | Oct 10, 2008 5:49:55 PM
I spell checked an email the other day that had Obama's name it and the spellchecker marked "Obama" as a misspelled word and offered "Osama" as the correction. Perhaps the same thing happened here?
Posted by: Rebecca | Oct 10, 2008 5:50:08 PM
Republican Nazi!
Posted by: Independent realist | Oct 10, 2008 5:50:29 PM
Posted by: no_more_mad_cows | Oct 10, 2008 5:50:46 PM
It's a Republican error - they are trying to fix the election like they did the last two elections. They'll come along and say the ballots don't count cause Obama's name isn't on them.
Posted by: allyana | Oct 10, 2008 5:51:48 PM
Makes you wonder who the typist was - Cindy or Sarah?
Posted by: Sharon | Oct 10, 2008 5:51:50 PM
i hope palin becomes president after the old man keels over, she is soo smart!!! not!
Posted by: republican | Oct 10, 2008 5:52:29 PM
I think Palin should watch what she says. She sounds like she is trying to insight a riot and being used by the republicans. A civil war and increased racial tensions could break out. Obama has as much right to run for president "and win" as well as any other citizen in this country. I feel 100% that the republicans have gone too far. Nothing has changed in this country. When someone nonwhite runs for president, then all the folks who "say" they believe in justice, equality, etc. all of a sudden start having feelings of hatred. Yeah, some of these people are showing their true feelings now. You don't scream in a crowd of people "kill him" in reference to a presidential nominee. Too much free speech. Yeah, this country is definitely getting worse. We're going to destroy ourselves, and it seems we're doing a good job of that right now. When I hear things like this in the news, I turn to another channel, or just log off the internet. I am not republican and I don't want anybody saying "kill him" in reference to John McCain. We have some people who are utterly crazy. I don't want Obama or McCain shot. But there are people who have "real hate" in their hearts. They need to know Jesus.
Posted by: liz | Oct 10, 2008 5:53:33 PM
If Hussein Obama gets elected,it will
be a "black day" for America.......
Posted by: Nicholas | Oct 10, 2008 5:54:35 PM
Another scare tactic from "my friends" at the GOP
Posted by: kimberlygwade | Oct 10, 2008 5:56:14 PM
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