WASHINGTON, Feb 14: The (false) claim that President Obama is a Muslim looks like it will be a permanent part of the political landscape.
On Sunday, Speaker of the House John Boehner, R-Ohio, rejected the challenge of NBC's David Gregory to "stand up to that kind of ignorance," saying on Meet The Press that "it's not my job to tell the American people what to think."
"Our job in Washington is to listen to the American people," Boehner told NBC, adding that he personally doesn't believe claims about Obama's religion or his U.S. citizenship.
"The state of Hawaii has said that he was born there; that's good enough for me," Boehner said. "The president says he's a Christian. I accept him at his word."
A Pew poll last year showed that nearly one in five Americans believe Obama is a Muslim.
In his Feb. 3 appearance at the National Prayer Breakfast, Obama said his faith is rooted in his years as a community organizer in Chicago.
"It was through that experience working with pastors and laypeople trying to heal the wounds of hurting neighborhoods that I came to know Jesus Christ for myself and embrace Him as my lord and savior," Obama said.
Christianity has been "a sustaining force" of his presidency, Obama added.
"All the more so, when (wife) Michelle and I hear our faith questioned from time to time," Obama said. "We are reminded that ultimately what matters is not what other people say about us but whether we're being true to our conscience and true to our God."
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