SC senator criticized for blog posting about Obama

COLUMBIA, S.C.—A Republican state senator is being criticized for a post on his blog that shows photos of Barack Obama and Osama bin Laden wearing similar clothing, along with a line that says the difference between them is "a little B.S."

The image was posted on Sen. Kevin Bryant's blog on Friday. It appears to be a photo of a T-shirt with images of bin Laden and Obama wearing turbans and the words "OBAMA" AND "OSAMA," with the "B" and "S" highlighted in red.

"It's just one of those pictures that I received by e-mail," Bryant told The Associated Press on Monday. "I hope people will understand the sarcasm in it."

He said he had been unaware of the uproar last week over a caricature of a turban-wearing Obama and his militant wife on the cover of The New Yorker.

"As a matter of fact, I was on vacation last week and I wasn't aware of that New Yorker picture," said Bryant, a 41-year-old pharmacist and first-term senator. "So I guess that's coincidence." He said reactions have been mixed.

Bryant said he is concerned about Obama's foreign policy stances and his commitment to fighting terrorism. He also asserted that a double standard applies to political criticism.

"I see a lot of hypocrisy of all the things that are said about our president, yet Sen. Obama is untouchable. Nobody seems to have a problem when they bash Bush. It seems like a double-standard to me."

The state Democratic Party chairwoman called the posting a "desperate and juvenile attempt" by Bryant to get attention for his re-election bid.

"That kind of ignorance and hatred, I'm surprised to find it exists," Carol Fowler said. "South Carolinians are not ignorant, hate-filled people."

By Monday evening, the posting had generated 22 comments on Bryant's Web site, most chastising the senator. One called the image "very funny."

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On the Net:

Kevin Bryant: http://kevinbryant.com