WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker John Boehner says Americans have a right to think what they want to think, even when they are wrong about President Barack Obama's citizenship and his religion.
Boehner tells NBC's "Meet the Press" that he believes Obama was born in Hawaii and that the president is a Christian, and that those are facts.
Some people believe that Obama was born outside the U.S. or in some other way is not a natural-born citizen eligible to be president. There is also a persistent belief among some that Obama is a Muslim.
Boehner denies that he is willing to let those misperceptions remain because they weaken and delegitimize Obama.
Asked why he doesn't speak against such perceptions, Boehner says it's not his job to tell Americans what to think.
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