Refusing to Research

A few years ago, a Facebook acquaintance posted an article stating that President Obama had failed to give a Memorial Day speech at Arlington National Cemetery three years running, and that he was the first president in modern history to do so. The acquaintance stated he didn't need to "research" it (quotes his) because he knew it was true.

One thing struck as wrong, immediately. After observing politicians for a lifetime, including six as a super-volunteer where I could get to know a few and observe them at close range, it struck me as unlikely that any politician, no matter what his character, would risk alienating every veteran in America by skipping a memorial day appearance at Arlington. Whatever one's character, one does not get within spitting distance of the White House by being politically stupid.

But how to confirm or refute? I quickly found that Snopes.com had an article on this claim from 2010. That told me the claim's been floating around a while, but Snopes is not a primary source. An even better place to look would be whitehouse.gov, where they publish not only the President's public schedule, but the text of every public statement. Under May 28, 2012 I found the text of one speech given by President Barack Hussein Obama at Arlington National Cemetery. I guess you could claim he posted a speech he didn't actually make. Now, you're just being silly. Republicans would certainly have made hay of such a thing. As I said, one does not get within spitting distance of the White House by being politically stupid.