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GOP Blasting Obama Over Gates Arrest Comments -- Limbaugh Warns Of Whites Under Assault
The right is now mobilizing heavily against President Obama's comments last night about the Henry Louis Gates case.
The NRCC has sent out a press release, challenging individual House Dems about whether they agree with Obama that the police "acted stupidly":
The president was slow to point out any wrongdoing in the wake of the Iranian election and his administration was quick to force through a failed stimulus plan even though they 'misread' the economy. This is certainly a questionable rush to judgment coming from a president who hasn't exactly been quick to call out unconscionable behavior by a merciless foreign dictator or gotten his facts straight before advocating a trillion-dollar mistake to address our ailing economy. Is it really presidential for him to cast harsh judgment of a law enforcement official without all the facts?
Meanwhile, Rush Limbaugh is being much more blunt in a racial appeal:
"Last week, we saw white firefighters under assault by agents of Barack Obama and Sonia Sotomayor," said Limbaugh (emphasis his). He added: "Now, white policemen are under assault from the East Room of the White House, by the President of the United States, after admitting he had no -- he didn't know all the facts, what went on in there."
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Josh
Matt
Eric
Brian
Talk about anything but health care.
July 23, 2009 2:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
Come and see the violence against white people inherent in the system! Help, help, I'm being repressed!
July 23, 2009 2:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
It's hard being a white man in America. Especially a white Christian man when there's a black muslim as president.
July 23, 2009 3:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
And don't forget all those flamboyant gay men who've practically driven us out of the style and fashion industries, simply because we generally have no sense of style and fashion. How come I can't make an ADA claim for that? It's just not fair!
And if you consider all those lesbian truck drivers who are taking away our jobs in interstate commerce, just because we won't admit that we're lost and refuse to ask for directions - I tell ya, what's a white male heterosexual to do nowadays?
July 23, 2009 6:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
The right wing will overplay their hand, trying to fire up the base. It will then bleed over into mainstream Republican discussion and then be associated with all Republicans, further enforcing the Republicans are racist moniker.
It's like a reverse Sister Souljah moment for the Republicans boiling up here.
July 23, 2009 3:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
You could be right about that. But as far as I'm concerned this is still the president's fault. No chief exec should be commenting on a situation like this without more facts and more planning. It is just plain bad communications.
He could have made the comment about profiling and made his joke as well without calling the cop stupid.
The fact that in all probability the prez was right on about this is really beside the point.
Just like calling out Hanity and Limbaugh by name, it diminishes him--he's the president of the F-ing United States of America for crissakes!
July 23, 2009 3:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
What is the downside to his comments, really do you think?
Are you afraid of Rush and his dittoheads?
July 23, 2009 3:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
Long-term, you're right. But right now Obama needs the focus to be on health care and convincing the needed people to get serious about reforming it. Sideshows like this only serve to distract people from the real objective.
July 23, 2009 4:35 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think the president can walk and smoke a cigarette at the same time. No reason why he can't comment on multiple topics at the same presser, particularly when one of the subjects is abuse of police authority, in which he has long taken an interest as a community activist and as a state legislator.
If you have a beef about someone's inability to multi-task, I'd suggest that you take it up with the same U.S. media that just recently inflicted upon us wall-to-wall coverage of Michael Jackson's death and the ensuing public relations campai- -- excuse me, I mean, "his memorial service" -- to the practical exclusion of most everything else that was going on in the world.
July 23, 2009 6:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think a Harvard educated attorney who taught Constitutional Law for several years at another of the nation's most prestigious and prominent law schools is qualified and justified in saying that arresting an old man in his own home for doing nothing that's illegal is "behaving stupidly."
July 23, 2009 4:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
Actually, from what I understand, once you are in your own house, and it's been estblished that it's your house, the police need a Warrant to come in an arrest...right?
That is why after getting Gates ID, the officer asked Mr Gates to step outside. If Gates had not stepped outside, then the officer would have had to get a judge to sign a warrant to arrest Gates for "disorderly conuct" IN HIS OWN HOUSE.
Now are we truly to believe that a reputable judge would have done that?
I tell you as an African American, the racial-bias in this country just makes me sad.
July 23, 2009 3:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
Double Cosign. In the statute for Disorderly Conduct it refers directly to "Public Acts." The Cop knew exactly what he was doing. Having dealt with Boston area cops I can predict exactly how this thing went down. The only thing the cop did not know was who he was messing with. The state of race relations in this country is disturbing. As a white man I can say that between this and the disturbing Sotomyor hearings I have never been more ashamed of my race.
July 23, 2009 3:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
The only thing the cop did not know was who he was messing with
...which makes me think about this in a way I hadn't really before-- how many times a week does this exact scenario happen to someone who isn't a world-famous Harvard professor, and we just don't hear about it? And how does it turn out in those cases where there's no national public outrage?
July 23, 2009 3:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
The answers in order are: MANY times, and I bet you can guess.
July 23, 2009 3:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
And I'll tell you that, as a white male, I'm embarrassed by that same racism and sexism, and for what it's worth, I'm sorry.
If you're a white male, you have a running start, even with affirmative action programs in place. If you as a white male still can't make it with those inherent advantages, I think the proper descriptive phrasing for your situation would not be be one of "white oppression" or "reverse discrimination." Rather, I prefer to use the more formal term, which is "fuckin' whiner" ...
July 23, 2009 7:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
This is the best they've got?
July 23, 2009 3:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Lessee:
* Piss off the Hispanic Americans with Sotomayor -- check.
* Piss off the African Americans with Gates -- check.
Who are the Republicans going after next to complete their July trifecta of alienating minority voters?
July 23, 2009 3:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
Secretary of Energy
July 23, 2009 3:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
All the White people who see this for what it is! This inadvertently might be a reverse on the "Nixon Southern Strategy" for the other side of the isle, a moment which reinforces the long held American belief of equality and equal treatment under the law. Maybe the officer is regularly a very good cop, in these modern times, but he clearly was wrong to arrest a man for the crime of "disorderly" conduct because he was being yelled at. I mean for fuck's sake the officer could have realized that the 911 callers claims were mistaken, taking the verbal bashing from Mr Gates and recorded for all to see the great Dr of African American studies yell at an officer/911 caller who clearly made an mistake. But he did not a decided to arrest him because he was yelled at. At the end of the day the system if justice worked because the charges were dropped and both parties put out a statement saying that the incident was unfortunate. Maybe this is a normal procedure for many good officers in America but that does not make it a fair procedure, nor an equal procedure, nor a right procedure. Clearly there is room for improvement.
July 23, 2009 3:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
You forgot John McCain blasting* the passage of the LGBT hate crimes bill as "a complete abdication of the responsibilities of the Judiciary Committee... while we have young Americans fighting and dying in two wars" and an "abuse of power".
The Democrats are doing a lot to alienate the LGBT community right now by slow-walking the gay rights agenda. But I think that if the Republicans bring their A game-- and every indication is that they will-- they can outdo the Democrats on this front several times over.
* His ostensible objection wasn't necessarily to the hate crimes bill per se but to the fact that the hate crimes bill was not properly related to the defense authorization bill it wound up attached to and the process of adding the hate crimes bill may have delayed a vote on the defense authorization bill by several days. But this explanation for McCain's anger doesn't seem to make sense considering he politely and quietly voted in favor of Thune's equally unrelated, equally 11th hour, similarly delaying gun-rights amendment to the same bill...
July 23, 2009 3:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
Wow... We can't have an opinion if we are the president. He did preface the response that "I am biased", so take it with a grain of salt, but we are listening an overblown republican respond.
July 23, 2009 3:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
And if the president had responded to the question by saying, "I don't have all the facts, so I won't comment," the Rethugs would have been all over him for being weak, or they'd have found some other irrelevancy in the press conference to pounce and feed on. That's what they do. The choice of the non-extremist corners of the media to treat this as "news" is a poor one.
July 23, 2009 3:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
Obama would have gotten slammed by the Right, by the Left and by the Black community if he had brushed off the question like that. Less damned if he did, more damned if he didn't.
July 23, 2009 3:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh, I wasn't advocating a non-response like that--just pointing out that the Repugs would have found some other fault with him if it hadn't been that one. I thought his response was entirely appropriate.
July 23, 2009 4:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes, a man walking with a cane who just had hip surgery. The office should have simply apologized and got the hell out of the man's house. End of story. He only made himself look like an idiot or a racist by arresting Mr. Gates. Releasing him proves that. As for the asses that are the GOP, why haven't they commented on that reich wingnut who says that the soldier captured by the taliban is a liar and a traitor? They really are pathetic. Someone should tell them that Obama could eat a baby on live tv and we'd still vote for him over anyone in their racist, birther, teabagger, party of klansman!
July 23, 2009 3:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
Only an idiot would take any "statement" from the Republicans as anything but the most transparently self-serving agitprop, designed to do nothing but manipulate...
... well, an idiot, or the corporate "liberal media".
Remember the story of the Boy who Cried Wolf? Imagine if, in the story, the villagers never, EVER stopped running when the boy cried "Wolf!"? What would the boy do but exploit that situation to his benefit until the day he died? Now realize: the boy is the GOP and the villagers who never fall for the gag are the media... and they never stop falling for it because THEY NEVER HAVE TO. TV is a moneymaking biz, and selling cheap, easy, lazy "journamisislsim" is better for profits than actual journalism -- which, let's nort forget, might jeopardize your "access".
This country is f'in doomed.
July 23, 2009 3:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
What is white, fat and lives off of garbage?
Rush Limbaugh and a maggot.
July 23, 2009 3:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
Another gem from the legacy of George W. Bush, specifically the "trickle down" part .
W. and the Repubs want us to believe that all authority figures, especially our political and military leaders are omnipotent and perfect, not subject to criticism. This "demand" for respect in the face of common sense has trickled down to local law enforcement.
July 23, 2009 4:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes, and Rush Limbaugh matters because ...???
Rush fans are racist idiots who vote 100% GOP.
So essentailly, it doesn't matter what happens, they will react according to the script, and so will he.
As far as electoral effects, I fail to see how this blowhard matters to the majority of Americans who don't listen.
July 23, 2009 4:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
wvbiker:
I think it interesting, if ironic, that as you so aptly point out:
"W. and the Repubs want us to believe that all authority figures, especially our political and military leaders are omnipotent and perfect, not subject to criticism...."
And, yet. When Obama weighs in, candidly, he is, in their view, fair game and subject to every criticism.
Thank you for this discussion.
July 23, 2009 4:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
Rush is a drug addicted delusional parasite on the people of the United States and a mouthpiece for profits rights over citizen rights.
Can we move on now?
Tax my car away, give me health care.
July 23, 2009 4:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
Rush didn't graduate from college. Al Franken, SENATOR Al Franken who wrote a book titled 'Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot' graduated from Harvard - supposed that has anything to do with Rushbo's contempt for Cambridge elites?
July 23, 2009 4:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Linbaugh, Cantor, Palin, et alii are driven by a racism that fears anybody not pure white. Their message is simply, "the GOP will save you from blacks and Latinos - no one else will!" They've even got Steele acting as if he wore 'black face,' a black clown to laugh at. What bothers me the most is that nobody will publicly call them on it. The southern solution is going to lead to a new final solution if the majority of Americans don't get this thing under control.
July 24, 2009 1:47 PM | Reply | Permalink