I condemned those wanting to make an issue of Barack Obama’s name and Muslim upbringing. I found their rhetoric disturbing at best, and un-American at worst.

However, there is one issue related to that upbringing that should be raised with the Senator/Presidential wannabe. It relates to the fact that he was raised a Muslim -- and the consequences of his having renounced that faith and become a Christian. Does he feel threatened due to his status as an apostate Muslim? As an apostate Muslim, is he willing to condemn the sharia law provisions that require death for an apostate.

The odds are high that he will answer no to the first and yes to the second. As an oily politician, he will try to squirm out of a clear definitive yes with no wiggle room. But it should not be difficult for a smart journalist to get him to agree without reservation that Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states... Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion. This right includes freedom to change his religion or belief. ...applies to Muslims

Once Obama condemns the Moslem tradition of death for apostasy, then he can be asked:

The Koran famously quotes Allah as saying in chapter (sura) 2, verse 256 that there should be ‘no compulsion in religion.' Yet numerous sayings of Mohammed known as hadith which form the basis of Islamic Sharia law quote Mohammed as saying ‘If a Moslem discards his religion, kill him.' So are you telling Moslems that Allah was right but Mohammed was misquoted, and their Sharia law tradition on apostasy is wrong?

You can see how much fun there is to be had with this.

Now I don’t particularly like the “gotcha” tone of the above excerpt, but I do think it is a valuable question to raise in the context of a Presidential campaign.

I also think there is one more to raise. If elected, would his status as a Muslim apostate interfere with his ability to conduct foreign relations with the Muslim world – not because of any wrongdoing on his part, but based upon the rigid chauvinism and intolerance of Islamic culture in matters of religion.