Letter writer’s slam at Barack Obama on North Korean hostages was unwarranted
In a recent letter about the release of three U.S. hostages in North Korea, Daniel Maxime stated, “On the other hand, as the old saying goes, President Barack Obama could not get a dog out of a dog pound.” I’ve never heard of such an “old saying.” Perhaps it makes the rounds only on right-wing websites. But it is simply false.
During Mr. Obama’s eight years in office, the following Americans were released from North Korea: Laura Ling, Euna Lee, Aijalon Gomes, Eddie Yong Su Jun, Jeffrey Fowley, Kenneth Bae, Matthew Miller, Sandra Suh, Merrill Newman and Robert Park. It is now the case that, following the example of Donald Trump, some right-wingers will routinely repeat falsehoods or just plain lie about the history of the Obama administration. It seems they think they can rewrite history.
Such information is not hard to find if you bother to look for it. But you’re not likely to learn it from watching Fox News or relying on any other right-wing media.