‘A PERSON WHO CAN ACTUALLY BE TRUSTED’
by Ben Smith

POLITICO
mith/0409/A_person_who_can_actually_be_trusted.htm l
April 24 2009

OK, I promise to get off the Armenian genocide story soon, as it’s
obviously not the most important issue of the moment.

But the reason it’s a worth noting is captured in this campaign video
from Samantha Power, which made a big impression on Armenian-Americans,
and in which she made the case that would bring "hard truth-telling"
to the White House.

"What is amazing about Barack," she says, is, among other things,
"his willingness as president to commemorate [the genocide] and
certainly to call a spade a spade and to speak truth about it."

"He’s a person who can actually be trusted, which distinguishes him
from some in the Washington culture," she said.

It’s an extremely painful issue to Obama’s Armenian supporters. One
Armenian-American correspondent who often complains furiously of
anti-Obama media bias, David Muradyan, emailed me this afternoon:

Perhaps what stings more is his clever, yet deceitful way to say that
his views have "not changed." And his use of "Mets Yegern." It’s almost
like he wants to appease both sides but can’t because of political
pressures. I understand that. But I think his statement is really
deplorable. You can’t in one breath say "my views haven’t changed"
(e.g., I still consider it Genocide PERSONALLY), but then use the
word "atrocity" and not genocide. It really is a dishonest way to
talk about the genocide. Either have the balls to call it genocide,
or have the balls to not. But weaseling isn’t respected, period.

And this is all coming from one of his most fervent supporters who
not only donated, but registered voters and volunteered.