Huckster Hillary and her campaign forces dug up a two-year-old photo of Barack Obama dressed as a Somali elder during a 2006 visit he made to northeastern Kenya, and circulated it to the media this past weekend.

It appeared this morning on the top of the Drudge Report and was allegedly provided by Clinton staffers.

What the photo is to imply was provided by Obama’s campaign, suggesting the purpose of the photo release was to invoke reminders of persistent rumors that Obama is secretly Muslim, and by extension, anti-American.

The Clinton staff said, “Wouldn’t we be seeing this on the cover of every magazine if it were HRC,” shorthand for the candidate, Hillary Rodham Clinton, the unnamed Clinton campaign staffer asked.

“On the very day that Senator Clinton is giving a speech about restoring respect for America in the world, her campaign has engaged in the most shameful, offensive fear-mongering we’ve seen from either party in this election,” Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said.

“This is part of a disturbing pattern that led her county chairs to resign in Iowa, her campaign chairman to resign in New Hampshire, and it’s exactly the kind of divisive politics that turns away Americans of all parties and diminishes respect for America in the world,” Plouffe asserted.

Clinton campaign Manager Maggie Williams seeing an opportunity to refute Obama’s camp, said, “If Barack Obama’s campaign wants to suggest that a photo of him wearing traditional Somali clothing is divisive, they should be ashamed.  Hillary Clinton has worn the traditional clothing of countries she has visited and had those photos published widely.”

It is not the first time the Clinton campaign has attempted to spread the Muslim rumor; a campaign volunteer was asked to step down after forwarding an e-mail attaching Obama to Muslims.

Obama is a longtime member of Chicago’s Trinity United Church of Christ and as a child lived for four years in Indonesia and has repeatedly denied that he is Muslim.

Many of our leaders including President Bush have been photographed in traditional costume while visiting nations abroad.

However,the circulation of this picture at this time, just one week before the Texas and Ohio primaries, and with Clinton trailing Obama in all polls and having lost the last 10 primaries to him, makes the tactic very suspect.

It’s a “slick Willy” move, and as we know, the acorn doesn’t fall far from the tree in the Clinton family.