BOSTON – President Barack Obama's aunt buried her face in her hands and sobbed as she described her anguish over no longer having contact with him and his family after the revelation she had been living illegally for years in the United States in public housing.

Zeituni Onyango (zay-TUH'-nee awn-YAHN'-goh) told The Associated Press in an exclusive interview that she is troubled that her immigration woes have made her a political liability to her nephew.

Onyango, the half sister of Obama's late father, said she has exiled herself from the family after attending Obama's inauguration because she didn't want to become fodder for his foes. Obama and his family have not reached out to her either, she said.

"Before, we were family. But right now, there is a lot of politics, and me, I am not interested in any politics at all," said Onyango, whose appeal for asylum from her native Kenya is before an immigration judge in Boston.

The Obamas are her only family in the United States, she said.

"It is very sad when such a thing happens. There are people, outsiders, you know, they come in between, they divide a family," she said last week. "It's not easy."

Onyango, 57, is protective of Obama and said she never asked him to intervene in her case and didn't tell him about her immigration difficulties.

"I carry my own cross," she said. "He has nothing to do with my problem."

The White House said Obama has had no involvement in his aunt's case and believes it should run its ordinary course.

Onyango helped care for the president's half brothers and sister while living with Barack Obama Sr. in Kenya. She moved to the United States in 2000 and applied for asylum in 2002, but her request was rejected and she was ordered deported in 2004.

However, she did not leave the country and continued to live in public housing in Boston. She had been a health care volunteer but not since her status became public. She refused to discuss how she affords to live now or who is paying for her attorney.

Onyango said she previously had no trouble visiting Obama when he was a state senator in Illinois or after he became a U.S. senator, though she declined to discuss details of how often she had contact with Obama and his family. Her tiny apartment in a modest subsidized public housing complex for seniors and the disabled is adorned with photographs of her with Obama at the Illinois Statehouse, the president's official portrait, his family, the inauguration, her children and African wildlife.

She is disabled and learning to walk again after being paralyzed for more than three months because of an autoimmune disorder called Guillain-Barre syndrome.

Her status as an illegal alien was revealed in October 2008, days before Obama was elected. Obama said he did not know his aunt was living in the U.S. illegally and said he believes the law should be followed.

A judge agreed to suspend Onyango's deportation order in December and reopened her asylum case. A hearing will be held in February, when Onyango can present her reasons for seeking asylum. The judge will then decide if she will be deported.

Her attorney, Margaret Wong, said Onyango first applied for asylum because of violence in Kenya, an East African nation fractured by cycles of electoral violence every five years. People who seek asylum must show that they face persecution in their homeland on the basis of religion, race, nationality, political opinion or membership in a social group.

Immigration experts say Onyango's relationship to the president could strengthen her claim that she would be subjected to danger at home.

Onyango declined to discuss the details of her case, citing the pending appeal.

She became angry when discussing Obama's half brother who wrote a semi-autobiographical novel about the abusive Kenyan father he shares with the president. She called Mark Ndesandjo, who lives in China, an opportunist eager to capitalize on his famous brother.

Ndesandjo, who wrote "Nairobi to Shenzhen," did not grow up with Obama. He has said he wrote the book in part to raise awareness of domestic violence. But Onyango said she was Ndesandjo's baby sitter while living with his father and never witnessed any abuse.

"He was only strict and argumentative, motivating one to do the best," she said, acknowledging that in those days in Kenya, "It was politically correct to slap children to discipline them just as it was done elsewhere in the world."

She said Ndesandjo's claims against a man who died 27 years ago are unfair. The senior Obama had problems with alcohol and was difficult to live with sometimes because of his frustration over years of political persecution, but he wasn't a child abuser or wife beater, Onyango said.

She also denounced persistent allegations that Obama is not a natural-born American citizen, saying that she is angered by the "outrageous, absurd, calculated conspiratory claim" that he was born outside the United States and is ineligible to be president. She recalled receiving a letter and photos from Obama's father announcing his son's birth in Hawaii.

Onyango reserved special words of kindness for former President George W. Bush for a directive he put in place days before the election requiring federal agents get high-level approval to arrest fugitive immigrants, which directly affected Onyango. The directive made clear that U.S. officials worried about possible election implications of arresting Onyango.

She said she wants to thank Bush in person for the order, which gave her a measure of peace but was lifted weeks later.

"I loved President Bush," Onyango said while moving toward a framed photo of Bush and his wife standing with Barack and Michelle Obama at the White House on inauguration day. "He is my No. 1 man in my life because he helped me when I really needed that help."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091201/ap_on_re_us/us_obama_aunt; _ylt=AkxAFOoj1O4oEGc0GdirZ8NnhVID;_ylu=X3oDMTMyZnFidXNsBGFzc2V0A2 FwLzIwMDkxMjAxL3VzX29iYW1hX2F1bnQEY2NvZGUDbW9zdHBvcHVsYXIEY3BvcwM0 BHBvcwM0BHNlYwN5bl90b3Bfc3RvcmllcwRzbGsDYXBleGNsdXNpdmVv

Interesting. I have been through the immigration process, although all involved are grown, and my case involved children,,and although no marriage is involved,, I wish her the best in her attempts.

Me Too.
I read that and it doesn't appear to me that Obama is being biased. (pro-illegal)
It appears to me that he is recommending the law run its course.

Yeah, appears that way to me too. I think it is an indication of his character, could also be an indication of his awareness of the scrutiny he would receive. You know family favoritism isnt popular in politics,,LOL(that was sarcasm)

Ya' beat me to it. I was working on putting mine together.
I decided to skip all the whining and just put up her criminal actions.

Seems to me if you were right and Obama was for granting amnesty to illegals, he would start with his family.

Appears your accusations and innuendos are incorrect.

He didn't win the election by being so obvious about his agenda.

What good is evidence and truth?

We don't even need reasoning, all we need is suspicion and presumption.
We can make that up.
Right?

Take your pick. He's always been Anti-American/Pro-Amnesty.



1.
Obama Wants Amnesty Passed By Fall | Sweetness & Light

From New York Times: Guatemalan illegal immigrants deported from the United States arrive back in Guatemala City in 2008. Obama to Push Immigration
sweetness-light.com/archive/obama-will-still-push-amnesty... - 55k - Cached
2.
Obama Wants Amnesty for Torturers | Democrats.com

Obama Wants Amnesty for Torturers. Submitted by Bob Fertik on January 10, 2009 - 4:26pm. ... But how can Obama reconcile amnesty for torturers with his promise to end ...
www.democrats.com/obama-wants-amnesty-for-torturers - 32k - Cached
3.
Amnesty International's 100 Days - About 100 Days

Sign the petition and support Amnesty International's challenge for president Barack Obama to Counter Terror with Justice in his first 100 days in office.
obama100days.amnesty.org/index.html - 9k - Cached
4.
Obama Embraces Amnesty - HUMAN EVENTS

... The Obama administration plans to push a mass amnesty. ... Obama embraced amnesty on the campaign trail (like being pro ... Want a better economic ...
www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=31599 - 54k - Cached
5.
Reid and Obama wants to pass amnesty legislation

Indications are that Senator Reid, Senator John McCain, and President-elect Barack Obama—all supporters of an amnesty for the millions of illegal aliens—want to ...
digg.com/politics/Reid_and_Obama_wants_to_pass_amnesty_le... - 48k - Cached
6.
Obama and the 'Amnesty' Trap

Daily news stories relating to immigration; such as legislation by Congress and states, border patrol, illegal workers, ... But if Mr. Obama wants to be more ...
idexer.com/2009/04/19/obama-and-the-amnesty-trap.html - 27k - Cached
7.
Newsmax.com - Obama Wants an Amnesty 'Pathway' for Illegals ...

President Barack Obama says that when it comes to overhauling immigration, one ... Obama Wants an Amnesty 'Pathway' for Illegals in U.S.. Thursday, April 16, ...
newsmax.com/headlines/.../2009/04/16/203925.html - 50k - Cached
8.
Chuck Baldwin -- Obama Seeks Amnesty For Illegal Aliens

Watch for Obama to make a full-court press for an amnesty proposal next month. ... Administration sources have said Obama wants amnesty legislation on his desk by ...
www.newswithviews.com/baldwin/baldwin506.htm - 24k - Cached
9.
Amnesty could ruin Obama's 'honeymoon' (OneNewsNow.com)

Amnesty could ruin Obama's 'honeymoon' Chad Groening - OneNewsNow - 1/23/2009 ... Obama was just like [his GOP opponent John] McCain and said he wanted amnesty ...
www.onenewsnow.com/Politics/Default.aspx?id=394646 - 53k - Cached
10.
Obama seeks amnesty for illegal aliens

Administration sources have said Obama wants amnesty legislation on his desk by ... One way Obama is preparing the path for amnesty is contained in the massive ...
www.renewamerica.com/columns/baldwin/090421 - 26k - Cached

So that's where you get all the Obama hate propaganda.

Talk about unbiased sources. LMAO

Obama supports the 2007 bill to give legal status to Illegal Immigrants who have been in America for years anyway.

It's not outright Amnesty, it won't be free, and it won't open the doors wider for more illegals.

It will fix a broken system that enables millions to remain undocumented both to the tax system and the law enforcement agencies.

It wont be like the one passed by Bush senior many years ago.
I supported the 2007 bill (I read it) and I'll support this one.
Even Bush was for the bill.

Let's don't twist the truth by using one liners designed to arouse anger.

The last bill that was passed to "fix the system" has worked so well that we need to do it again. How about enforcing the laws that are already in place.

amnesty is one of the few issues I disagree with President OBama on,, but noone is perfect and noone in the oval office has ever believed everything I believe. Overall, Im still loving this president and his family.

The 2007 immigration bill failed.
It required the illegal to pay a large fine (thousands of $s), wait a waiting period (5 years?), and at least one member of the family to leave the country for a year and apply for legal entry into the country.
Hardly what I'd call Amnesty.
That bill or one similar is what Obama supports.

Those links have all the same reprints of what he stated all during his campaign.
Like I said, good thing he has no intention of living up to any promise.

Man, those Anti-American/Pro-Illegals sure are persistent in supporting wannabe Kang Hussein. They sure are jokes. More irritating than funny.

Again, wannabe Kang Hussein wants to grant Amnesty to up to 20 million Illegals who have at he least, broken several Federal Felonies.

Send Hussein back to Kenya with his aunt. If his bulldog lookin' wife wants to join him, send her packin' with a one-way ticket.