Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan said Thursday that presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama�s comments during the presidential campaign where he denounced the muslim leader should not dissuade voters to reject their support.
Farrakhan issued the statement after the Ohio televised debate with Democratic presidential rival Hillary Clinton. Farrakhan sent a statement to the Associated Press that he said was a response to �outrage expressed by many� over Obama�s comments.
�Those who have been supporting Sen. Barak Obama should not allow what was said during the Feb. 26 presidential debate to lessen their support for his campaign. This is simply mischief making intended to hurt Mr. Obama politically,� said Farrakhan in the statement.
Farrakhan praised Obama during a Saviours Day gathering in Chicago last weekend, where he declared, �A black man with a white mother could turn out to be the one who can lift America from her fall.�
During the Ohio debate, Tim Russert, host of NBC�s �Meet the Press,� asked Obama whether he accepts Farrakhan�s support. The senator responded that while both he and Farrakhan live in Chicago, that�s where their ties end.
�I have been very clear in my denunciation of Minister Farrakhan�s anti-Semitic comments. I think they are unacceptable and reprehensible,� Obama said. �I did not solicit this support.�
Following an exchange with Clinton, he added, �There�s no formal offer of help from Minister Farrakhan that would involve me rejecting it. But if the word �reject� Senator Clinton feels is stronger than the word �denounce,� then I�m happy to concede the point, and I would reject and denounce.�