Bill Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn on the Weather Underground, the McCain Campaign Attacks, President-Elect Obama and the Anti-War

It’s been 10 days since Senator Barack Obama won the election, cementing his path to become the country’s 44th president and the first African American president in U.S. history. Over the course of his almost two year campaign, Obama came under attack on a number of fronts. But in the late stages of the presidential race, no other name was used more by the McCain-Palin campaign against Obama than Bill Ayers. Ayers is a respected Chicago professor who was a member of the 1960s militant antiwar group the Weather Underground. On Wednesday, more than a week after Obama beat John McCain in the election, Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin again brought up Obama’s alleged ties to Ayers in an interview on CNN.

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

In the closing weeks of the presidential race, Governor Palin repeatedly invoked Bill Ayers on the campaign trail as a line of attack against Obama.

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

The McCain campaign even put out automated robocalls to voters in swing states to highlight Obama’s alleged ties to Bill Ayers.

McCain Campaign Robocall.

On television, an attack ad by the conservative American Issues Project was played in key battleground states linking Obama to Bill Ayers.
bq. American Issues Project ad.

On Fox News, Bill O’Reilly made Bill Ayers his drumbeat.

Excerpt of Fox News’ “The O’Reilly Factor.”

Throughout the entire presidential race, Bill Ayers did not once talk to the media. Today, he and his wife, Bernardine Dohrn–a fellow member of the Weather Underground–are speaking out in their first joint television interview since the controversy began.
Bill Ayers is now a distinguished professor of education and a senior university scholar at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He is the author many books, including his 2001 memoir, “Fugitive Days: Memoirs of an Antiwar Activist” which is being reissued this week. Bernardine Dohrn is an Associate Professor of Law at Northwestern University School of Law and the Director of Northwestern’s Children and Family Justice Center. Democracy Now co-host Juan Gonzalez and I spoke with both of them from a studio in their hometown of Chicago. In a wide-ranging conversation we discussed the McCain campaign attacks, President-elect Obama, the Weather Underground, their plans for the future and much more.

Bill Ayers, distinguished professor of education and a senior university scholar at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He is the author many books, including his 2001 memoir, “Fugitive Days: Memoirs of an Antiwar Activist” which is being reissued this week.

Bernardine Dohrn, Associate Professor of Law at Northwestern University School of Law and the Director of Northwestern’s Children and Family Justice Center.

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