New infomercial revives 'birther' controversy

Rumors of the "birther" movement's death appear to have been greatly exaggerated. The group has been demanding for months that President Obama produce a "valid" birth certificate to prove he's a natural-born citizen of the United States - and it's not giving up just yet. A Christian website called LivePrayer.com produced an infomercial that the United States Justice Foundation organization is set to air in seven Southern states. Highlights can be seen here:

Led by Bill Keller, a born-again Christian once convicted of insider trading on Wall Street, LivePrayer.com is working with an attorney, Gary Kreep, from the Ramona, California-based United States Justice Foundation, to air the production, titled "Where Was Obama Born?" in Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Missouri and Florida. The half-hour program implores President Obama to reveal the details of his birth, which they say is something that the president has "vigorously fought," and asks viewers to send in a $30 donation. In doing so, donors are told that they'll receive a "Got a birth certificate" bumper sticker, in addition to having a fax bearing their name and demanding President Obama to produce a birth certificate sent to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and the 50 state attorneys general. Kreep told Talking Points Memo that the recent airings of the spot have produced "something like 1,500 to 2,000 faxes" so far.

Predictably, the efforts of Keller and Kreep have provoked colorful reactions from some critics. Last night on her show, MSNBC host Rachel Maddow derided the infomercial as something one would expect to be produced if the "birthers" and the creators of Wayne's World had "collaborated on an art project," while Crooks and Liars labeled the spot as being positively P.T. Barnum-esque, noting that the minimal production costs involved in creating the infomercial combined with the low cost of airtime in rural markets ($100 for each airing in Lubbock, Texas), make for a potentially lucrative venture. Not to be outdone, New York Magazine's Daily Intel weighed in with its own harsh review.

While some continue to express bewilderment over the fact that anyone could doubt the legitimacy of the documentation already provided by President Obama, particularly after the State of Hawaii confirmed its authenticity, a recent Public Policy Polling poll reports that 42 percent of Republicans believe Obama was born outside of the United States, indicating a not-negligible potential audience for the efforts of LivePrayer.com and the United States Justice Foundation.

-- Brett Michael Dykes is a contributor to the Yahoo! News Blog.