[OAW]

NPR has fired longtime news analyst Juan Williams, also a commentator on the Fox News Channel, after he told Bill O'Reilly that he gets nervous when he sees people in Muslim garb on an airplane.

In a statement late Wednesday, National Public Radio said it was terminating Williams' contract as a senior news analyst over his comments on Fox's "The O'Reilly Factor."

NPR executives had previously complained about his remarks on Fox, including saying first lady Michelle Obama could be a liability for her husband shortly after his inauguration.

The latest comments came Monday, when O'Reilly brought on guests to discuss his own appearance last week on ABC's "The View," during which Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg walked off the set to protest his views on Muslims.
"Where am I going wrong here, Juan?" O'Reilly asked.

Williams, 56, responded that too much political correctness can get in the way of reality.

"I mean, look, Bill, I'm not a bigot. You know the kind of books I've written about the civil rights movement in this country," Williams said. "But when I get on a plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous."

A phone message left for Williams at his home in Washington was not immediately returned Thursday morning.

Williams appeared briefly Thursday on Fox News and said he was abruptly fired Wednesday by Ellen Weiss, NPR's vice president for news. He said he told Weiss he meant what he said on the O'Reilly show, but that she told him he had made a bigoted statement and crossed a line.

The Associated Press: NPR fires news analyst after remarks about Muslims

Thoughts? PC run amok? Or a bigoted statement deserving of termination? Or somewhere in between?

OAW

[SpaceMonkey]

It crossed the line for NPR, and it's their right. I'm not going to complain if Fox News decides to fire Glenn Beck.

[ort888]

The left is doing to Juan Williams what the right did to Shirley Sherrod. - By William Saletan - Slate Magazine

[The Final Dakar]

I think slate summed it up well.

The left is doing to Juan Williams what the right did to Shirley Sherrod. - By William Saletan - Slate Magazine

[ort888]

BOOM! Simulpost!

Anywho, it's just a side effect of our current "soundbite" obsessed society. God forbid anyone look into anything deeper. Oh, he said sumpin about muslims? Racist!!!

What, read something... okay... uh...

[The Final Dakar]

Originally Posted by ort888 

BOOM! Simulpost!

Simultaneous postulation.

[CRASH HARDDRIVE]

Such a stupid thing to fire anyone over. Very typical of PC bullshit run amok.

And by the way, it's stupid to say the right did anything to Sherrod. The only one who did anything to her was Obama, who -using PC bullshit run amok- fired her before he had all the facts. Again, typical.

[ort888]

Uh, I guess Breitbart posting the video and Fox News playing it over and over and over again are nothing.

It's like going up to a guy on the street and telling him his mom is an alley whore and you spent all last night doing unspeakable things to her... and when he punches you in the face saying that it's his fault you got hit... Yes it is, but guess what...

At any rate, I'm so sick of this "Right" and "Left" bull****. The Right did this, the Left does this. Blah blah blah. Like an entire political ideology operates as a hivemind or something.

No, one retard did something. The entire conservative movement in the united states DID NOT.

[OAW]

I think I'm going to have to change my position on this one.. The first and only thing I had read when I started the thread was the AP article. From that I took a position inspired by Chris Rock. "I ain't saying he should've said it ... but I understand! " But after reading the more in-depth transcript in the Slate article I will have to go with "PC run amok". I wouldn't be surprised if Williams gets his NPR job back within a week. Then again, the NPR brass has long been uneasy with his Fox News gig so they might just use this as an excuse to disassociate NPR from him despite the fact that this "controversy" is some BS.

OAW

[The Final Dakar]

Originally Posted by OAW 

Then again, the NPR brass has long been uneasy with his Fox News gig so they might just use this as an excuse to disassociate NPR from him despite the fact that this "controversy" is some BS.

That's the way I read it. They created a controversy so they could use to end their contract with him.

[SpaceMonkey]

Originally Posted by OAW 

I think I'm going to have to change my position on this one.

Hey you can't do that, this is the PWL.

[The Final Dakar]

I always took OAW for a flip-flopper.

[hyteckit]

What about Rick Sanchez getting fired by CNN for saying things about Jon Stewart and Jews. Wouldn't it be more similar to that?

Juan Williams talks about muslims and Rick Sanchez talks about Jews. Both got fired by their news organizations.

[The Final Dakar]

Originally Posted by hyteckit 

What about Rick Sanchez getting fired by CNN for saying things about Jon Stewart and Jews. Wouldn't it be more similar to that?

Not unless Muslims own NPR. They don't. They own Fox News.

[Atheist]

Where's the "Williams is a tool" option?

[OAW]

Originally Posted by The Final Dakar 

I always took OAW for a flip-flopper.

Moi?

OAW

[Big Mac]

It may surprise some, but I chose the third option. Even I wouldn't say what Williams said - it was a very poor way to express the point he was trying to make. It seems like he was looking to get fired from Radio Moscow West.

[OAW]

Originally Posted by Big Mac 

It may surprise some, but I chose the third option. Even I wouldn't say what Williams said - it was a very poor way to express the point he was trying to make.

Agreed. That's why I voted the same in the poll. But after I saw the more in depth transcript in the Slate article it was quite evident that Mr. Williams wasn't expressing bigotry with that comment because he went on to say that we can't broadly paint an entire group of people with the narrow brush of the extremists among their ranks. Whether those extremists are Christian, Muslim, or whatever. What he was expressing is the initial anxiety that many people feel when they see identifiable Muslims and/or Arabs on a plane ... and then quickly dismiss when reason kicks in and they realize that the chances of that particular individual being an actual terrorist is virtually nil. It's the same sentiment Jesse Jackson expressed some years back when he said something to the effect of when walking on the streets at night and hearing footsteps behind him and being "relieved" when he turns around and sees that the person is white. Certainly Jackson isn't "bigoted" against black people. But the facts are that people are more likely to be a victim of a crime committed by someone of their same racial background. At the same time, the chances of that person walking behind you actually being a criminal out to get you is fairly low.

The thing is ... our fears and anxieties as human beings tend to latch onto certain facts a lot faster than our reason can put them into proper perspective with larger facts. Mr. Williams certainly could have expressed this more "artfully" for sure. But since the transcript clearly shows that his overall point wasn't bigoted ... and the NPR brass still seems unwilling to admit they were wrong ... that's the reason why I now think this is PC run amok.

OAW

[Gee-Man]

I think Williams said something pretty stupid, but he didn't deserve to get fired over it. Neither did Rick Sanchez - his comment about Jews in the media was equally stupid, but he should have apologized (which he did) and CNN should have accepted and moved on.

Brian Kilmeade's "all terrorists are Muslim" comment on Fox & Friends, however, crosses the line past a slip of the tongue into actual bigotry, and I think he should have been fired for that one. Especially since he doubled down on the comment when confronted over it.

Unfortunately, the worst of the recent foot-in-mouth comments is the one least likely to result in actual consequences.

[finboy]

Originally Posted by hyteckit 

What about Rick Sanchez getting fired by CNN for saying things about Jon Stewart and Jews. Wouldn't it be more similar to that?

Juan Williams talks about muslims and Rick Sanchez talks about Jews. Both got fired by their news organizations.

Uh, what Sanchez was anti-Semitic and over-the-top racist, talking about "those people".

Juan Williams was talking about his feelings of discomfort. Nothing he said could be construed as racist or bigoted or anything else.

How are they the same, exactly?

Mara Liasson is under the heat too.

http://mediamatters.org/blog/201010210014

Soros' fingerprints are all over these, BTW. I guess it's time to break a few eggs, huh George?

[hyteckit]

Originally Posted by finboy 

Uh, what Sanchez was anti-Semitic and over-the-top racist, talking about "those people".

Juan Williams was talking about his feelings of discomfort. Nothing he said could be construed as racist or bigoted or anything else.

How are they the same, exactly?

Mara Liasson is under the heat too.

What about Mara Liasson? | Media Matters for America

Soros' fingerprints are all over these, BTW. I guess it's time to break a few eggs, huh George?

What Rick Sanchez said was over-the-top racist? Really?

All I remember Rick Sanchez said was that Jon Stewart was a bigot and that Jews control the media and should not be considered a minority.

You hear a lot far worst on FOX news and Rush Limbaugh.

[CRASH HARDDRIVE]

Originally Posted by ort888 

Uh, I guess Breitbart posting the video and Fox News playing it over and over and over again are nothing.

Aww boo hoo. Some guy on the web played a video, and something was on Fox News. Quick, Obama, fire someone over that like a puppet on a string! It was lame when it happened, it's still lame, and as I said, a perfect example of how those with P.C. disease never bother to get all the facts before they act on emo-autopilot. "B-but, some guy on the internet said something!"

And of course, the P.C. weenies (purposefully) missed the point from the start- the video wasn't even about Sherrod- it was an illustration of a bunch of NAACP assholes reacting to someone telling them they'd abused their position due to a person's race- the reaction was clear as day before the 'reveal'. This was all brought on by the NAACP itself hypocritically casting the racism charge at others. Typical- the usual suspects can dish crap all day long against everyone else, but can't take it themselves for a single instant.

[Lint Police]

Jesse Jackson made almost the same comment about being wary when a black man is walking behind him on the sidewalk.

Liberal response... *crickets*

[CRASH HARDDRIVE]

Meh. Williams just got a 3-year, $2million deal with Fox News out of all this nonsense. I'm sure right about now he's singing, "Up yours, NPR!"

[Chongo]

Originally Posted by hyteckit 

You hear a lot far worst on FOX news and Rush Limbaugh.

You can hear far worse on MSNBC (Mr Ed Show, Countdown, and Maddow)

[ebuddy]

The one black on-air personality NPR employs and they witchhunt the guy over expressing his feelings on another program? Then, the decision-maker won't even talk to Juan, but instead has a schlep call him on the phone to terminate his employment of 10 years while the decision-maker goes elsewhere referring to him as in need of counseling?

I've seen people who can't stand one another treat one another with more respect. This is deplorable. I'm sure I wouldn't be able to find a Muslim professor on NPR stating deplorable things about Israelis... nooooo.

Double-standard, witchhunt, news-shaping, and had nothing to do with political correctness and everything to do with serving a consultancy for a news agency that employs conservatives as well as liberals. Public dollars for this shilling scheme? No. Let them fail in the market and go the way of Air America as far as I'm concerned. They no longer serve the public interest. Let Soros' money keep them afloat exclusively. "NPR flat-out wrong" should have been an option in this poll.

[BadKosh]

Williams was right. How do you not wonder if your flight will have Air Marshal's or terrorists on it. Its not like it hasn't happened before. Perhaps better behavior from the muslim world might have an effect? Less violence perhaps.

[The Final Dakar]

Originally Posted by CRASH HARDDRIVE 

Meh. Williams just got a 3-year, $2million deal with Fox News out of all this nonsense. I'm sure right about now he's singing, "Up yours, NPR!"

Pretty predictable outcome, IMO.

[SpaceMonkey]

Originally Posted by BadKosh 

Williams was right. How do you not wonder if your flight will have Air Marshal's or terrorists on it.

I flew a couple of weeks ago and did not wonder about these things.

[The Final Dakar]

Originally Posted by SpaceMonkey 

I flew a couple of weeks ago and did not wonder about these things.

That's because you're just another CLUELESS lib.

[osiris]

Originally Posted by The Final Dakar 

Not unless Muslims own NPR. They don't. They own Fox News.

Zing!

[osiris]

I've never been a fan of political correctness. I still call stewardesses 'stewardesses' (boy, does that piss them off), though I often refrain from slapping them on the ass if they're cute (that really pisses them off, and often brings with it badged, uniformed officials bearing weapons upon arrival).

In this case, Muslims have a bit of tarnish on their image, regardless of who is to blame, so I can understand Juan's comment (akin to Chris Rock's opinion).

[finboy]

Originally Posted by CRASH HARDDRIVE 

the video wasn't even about Sherrod

Nope, it was about the reaction of the crowd, like you said.

Hey, have you guys heard about the 94,000 black farmers who are each going to get $50,000 from the USDA? I want to say the name "Pickford" was involved in the lawsuit. Sherrod and her husband stand to make MILLIONS from this, personally, and that's why she was thrown out so fast, evidently.

So it's 40 acres, a mule, and $50,000 for your great great grandchildren.

[Atheist]

Just out of curiosity, does anyone know how many muslims in traditional garb have perpetrated an act of violence on a plane in the U.S.?

[OAW]

Originally Posted by finboy 

Nope, it was about the reaction of the crowd, like you said.

Hey, have you guys heard about the 94,000 black farmers who are each going to get $50,000 from the USDA? I want to say the name "Pickford" was involved in the lawsuit. Sherrod and her husband stand to make MILLIONS from this, personally, and that's why she was thrown out so fast, evidently.

I certainly have. And your characterization of the situation is, unsurprisingly, quite inaccurate.

It was 1985, 20 years after her father was murdered by a white man who was never prosecuted, and the nearly 6,000-acre collective farm she had helped form in the early 1970s to create a sort of African-American utopia in the midst of Georgia's white farming community was going under. Governor Lester Maddox, a segregationist, called the tract of land "Sharecropper City," and refused to sign off on a grant that could have helped the families who owned the farm stay afloat. They had applied for loans from the Department of Agriculture's Farmers Home Administration, but often they were turned down or approved late in the crop season, delaying planting and harvesting, to devastating economic effect. The USDA would not let the collective restructure loans or take over the land and lease it back, as had been done for other farmers. Eventually, the land was sold to a white businessman and later turned into subdivisions.

Back then, local USDA offices with power over loans were run by whites, and it took three times as long, on average, to process loan applications from black farmers as it did for whites. The Reagan Administration had shuttered the civil rights division in the USDA, which meant that complaints about discrimination were routinely discarded or thrown in drawers even as black ownership of farmland was on a steep decline. The failure of New Communities was so emotionally devastating to its participants that Shirley Sherrod's husband Charles later told the Washington Post, "For two years after all this happened, I wouldn't even talk about it. Couldn't talk about it, it hurt so much."

It was later that same year, with New Communities dead, in the heart of a farm community that still favored whites over blacks, with the USDA known as the "last plantation," that Sherrod was tasked with helping Eloise and Roger Spooner save their farm. As she recounted many years later in a now widely viewed speech, Sherrod, by then working at a nonprofit organization that assisted farmers in danger of losing their farms, did not feel particularly motivated to help the Spooners, a white couple. Eventually, as any viewing of the entire speech makes clear, Sherrod changed her mind. She did help the couple, with whom she has remained friendly, and the experience became a turning point in her life when she learned to see beyond skin color and sought to work with blacks and whites battling to save small family farms that were shuttering by the thousands.

But while Sherrod may have become close friends with the Spooners and begun a new phase of her life, she did not let the USDA off the hook. New Communities became part of a massive class-action lawsuit against the department that was initially settled in 1999, reopened in 2008 and continues to pay claims for thousands of black farmers found to have been ignored, dismissed or mistreated by the USDA in the 1980s and 1990s. Out of about $1 billion paid out so far — reportedly the biggest civil rights settlement in history — the largest amount went to New Communities, which got some $13 million, with $330,000 awarded to Shirley and Charles Sherrod for mental suffering alone. "Thirteen million sounds like a lot, but it was not nearly enough. The land itself is probably worth at least $9 million," says the lawyer for New Communities, Rose Sanders (also known as Faya Toure).

In a passionate recounting of the events leading up to the settlement, the federal judge who decided it in 1999, Paul Friedman, wrote in his decision that "the USDA and all of the structures it has put in place have been and continue to be fundamentally hostile to the African American farmer."

It must have seemed ironic then, or perhaps even redemptive, for Sherrod when she was hired by the USDA in May 2009. The very behemoth she had battled for decades had chosen her to lead its Office of Rural Development in Georgia. "We're very proud of her and were delighted when she got the job at USDA," says Starry Krueger, president of the Rural Development Leadership Network, whose mission includes helping people living in poor rural areas earn advanced degrees and where Sherrod was a board member.

When Shirley Sherrod Was First Wronged by the USDA

Originally Posted by finbody

So it's 40 acres, a mule, and $50,000 for your great great grandchildren.

A profound display of ignorance on so many levels. The least of which is the fact that the "40 acres and a mule" was a promise never fulfilled. Sort of like the 1.25 billion dollar settlement reached in February 2010 for decades of proven discrimination by the USDA that has yet to be funded because of GOP obstructionism.

OAW

[Snow-i]

OAW, you do realize that you linked to a site titled "Talking Points Maker" and an article headlined and principally about Harry Reid's aide's comments, right? I just want to make sure that we're on the same page and that you disclaim your bias before you try to cite it.

[ort888]

bah

[hyteckit]

Originally Posted by Chongo 

You can hear far worse on MSNBC (Mr Ed Show, Countdown, and Maddow)

So FOX News is now overly Political Correct?

FOX News - scary scary Muslims. Muslims are scary. All Terrorists are Muslim.

[OAW]

Originally Posted by Snow-i 

OAW, you do realize that you linked to a site titled "Talking Points Maker" and an article headlined and principally about Harry Reid's aide's comments, right? I just want to make sure that we're on the same page and that you disclaim your bias before you try to cite it.

You mean this one? Believe me the link is there in my post.

Reid aide assails GOP on 'injustice' - Meredith Shiner - POLITICO.com Politico.com

Or how about this one?

Law.com - Settlement Funding for Black Farmers, American Indians Stalls Again in Senate Law.com

Or perhaps this one?

Senate leaves without funding black farmers suit | Reuters Reuters

Will this one suffice?

Senate fails to OK funds for years-old settlement with minority farmers - CNN.com CNN

This one do it for you?

Another bogus Sherrod smear: Conservatives attack her participation in discrimination suit Media Matters

Will this one work?

GOP: Billion Dollar Black Farmer Settlement a Massive Fraud | The FOX Nation Fox Nation

Maybe this one?

Funding for black farmers and Indians stalls again - Yahoo! News Yahoo News

Surely this one?

US Senate leaves without funding black farmers suit - FoxBusiness.com Fox Business

And do you know what these various news sources ALL say?

The funding for the 1.25 billion settlement with the black farmers because of USDA discrimination is being obstructed by GOP members of Congress.


This is a fact. If you choose to dismiss factual information as "bias" then oh well.

OAW

[Snow-i]

I do, because even John boyd, the founder and president of the National Black Farmers Association doesn't agree with you. It is only a fact that you have an opinion on the matter...one that is quite obviously biased towards one group. The quote from the link you provided

From: Senate fails to OK funds for years-old settlement with minority farmers - CNN.com CNN

{quote=John Boyd]Boyd declined to lay blame at the feet of Republicans alone. "I think one party is just as responsible as the other," he said.[/quote]


So next time you try to attribute poor politics to republicans instead of congress as a whole you should disclaim your bias, instead of waiting for someone to do it for you.

[finboy]

Originally Posted by OAW 

A profound display of ignorance on so many levels
OAW

I heard Breitbart mention it in passing on the radio yesterday or the day before. I didn't know what Pigford I or Pigford II were until I looked them up just now.

It's not as bad as I thought

In calling for the probe, the GOP lawmakers said there were 94,000 claims filed under the settlement even though Census data shows there are only 33,000 black farmers in the United States.

Boyd said that was a misunderstanding of the settlement. The agreement is set up to resolve discrimination claims of those who farmed as well as those who attempted to farm between 1981 and 1997.

From The Hill, 9/29/10.

with "attempted to farm" being the key.

I think the census numbers from when it was actually taking place showed far fewer than 33,000. But who knows how many "attempted" it?

Wow. Yet another freaking shakedown. Unreal.

Reparations anyone????? Just amazing.

[OAW]

Originally Posted by Snow-i 

I do, because even John boyd, the founder and president of the National Black Farmers Association doesn't agree with you. It is only a fact that you have an opinion on the matter...one that is quite obviously biased towards one group. The quote from the link you provided

From: Senate fails to OK funds for years-old settlement with minority farmers - CNN.com CNN

Originally Posted by John Boyd

Boyd declined to lay blame at the feet of Republicans alone. "I think one party is just as responsible as the other," he said.

So next time you try to attribute poor politics to republicans instead of congress as a whole you should disclaim your bias, instead of waiting for someone to do it for you.

John Boyd was frustrated. This case had gone on for over a decade. There's a Democrat in the White House for the last two years. And the Congress has had a Democratic majority for the last two years. Yet the case continued to drag on. Now the man is politically astute and he knows that the settlement won't get funded without GOP support because the Democratic majority in the Senate is not filibuster-proof. So he was smart enough to not "lay blame at the feet of Republicans alone" ... in hopes that the Senate might actually get it done before their session was over in September. And this statement was made in August.

Now having said that. The sources provided all show the same thing. The latest 1.25 billion dollar settlement was announced in February 2010. President Obama has called on Congress to fund it repeatedly. Congressional Democratic leaders have repeatedly tried to get it funded. And it has been repeatedly blocked by one GOP Congressional member or another. In the latest attempts, the culprit has been Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Ok). The Senate is no longer in session. So let's see what Mr. Boyd had to say in October shall we?

Originally Posted by John Boyd

Black farmers and thousands of supporters across the country are heartbroken this evening at the insidious action of Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma. Senator Coburn can pat himself on the back for delaying an important issue as he did with the Emmett Till Act. At the end of the day, this was a fully paid for settlement with ample safeguards including the authority of the court and a court-appointed neutral to adjudicate the claims. No one who wasn't discriminated should be compensated. Make no mistake, Judge Friedman is nobody’s fool. It is what it is – it seems in the eyes of Senator Coburn and a very small minority of politicians black farmers are guilty until proven innocent. Blacks who farmed and dreamed of farming continue to die waiting for a day of justice that has once again been delayed – the doctor turned senator has committed legislative malpractice in the first degree. We call on Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to live up to the promises and explain to black farmers why they will have to continue to wait.

National Black Farmers Association

Still not convinced?

After three weeks of driving his tractor, “Justice,” around Capitol Hill, John Boyd, president of the National Black Farmers Association, has been denied for the ninth time.

Justice has been once again delayed for thousands of black farmers across our country thanks to the rogue actions of one US Senator, Tom Coburn (R-OK). The landmark settlement that would right decades of discrimination against black farmers by the US Department of Agriculture had been a rare point of bipartisan agreement. After negotiations between leading Democrats and Republicans, it was set to be passed by unanimous consent, which requires all senators to support the measure.

This is the second time that Senator Coburn has apparently broke with Republican leadership to object to the funding. In May, Coburn objected saying the settlement funds were not offset by budget cuts elsewhere. The present unanimous consent motion was fully offset, and yet Coburn objected again. John Boyd has this to say. “I am reminded of another piece of landmark civil rights legislation, ‘the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act,’ as I recall that legislation passed the House 422-2, and was expected to pass the Senate by unanimous consent but Senator Tom Coburn placing a hold on the bill. Once again Coburn has stood with a very small minority of radical politicians to deny justice to the powerless in our country.”

National Black Farmers Association

Oh and lest you think that Sen. Coburn is the only GOP Congressional member involved ...

House Republicans on Wednesday charged that a multibillion-dollar settlement with black farmers supported by the Obama administration was rife with fraud.

At a press conference in the Capitol Visitor Center, Reps. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and Steve King (R-Iowa) alleged that a $1.25 billion Agriculture Department (USDA) settlement to resolve discrimination claims included individuals who were never farmers.

Bachmann said the discrimination claim process was subject to “massive and widespread fraud and abuse.” King also said he believes the Obama administration has ignored the fraud allegations surrounding the settlement.

....

John Boyd Jr., president of the National Black Farmers Association, has been driving his tractor to the Capitol this month to protest the delay in the settlement. He has called on the Senate to approve the funds.

“A lot of the things they are raising just don’t stand up,” Boyd said about the GOP lawmakers’ charges. “I don’t think Mr. King and the crew have their facts straight here.”

In calling for the probe, the GOP lawmakers said there were 94,000 claims filed under the settlement even though Census data shows there are only 33,000 black farmers in the United States.

Boyd said that was a misunderstanding of the settlement. The agreement is set up to resolve discrimination claims of those who farmed as well as those who attempted to farm between 1981 and 1997.

“The census has nothing to do with that,” Boyd said.

In addition, he said Pigford II is a “not a blanket settlement” and every claim has to go through a court-appointed arbitrator to determine if it is valid.

Reps. Bachmann, King allege fraud in black farmers settlement - TheHill.com

Oh and need I mention that the 1.15 billion dollars the US pledged to help rebuild Haiti after the devastating earthquake there as well as the 3.4 billion dollar settlement for Native Americans whose trust accounts were mismanaged by the US government is being held up by ... guess who? GOP Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma.

So again ... the facts are clear.

The funding for the 1.25 billion settlement with the black farmers because of USDA discrimination is being obstructed by GOP members of Congress.

So who's being "biased" here? The person with source after source after source from across the political spectrum that ALL back up what he's saying? Or the person that cited the last, outdated statement from a single article ... conveniently ignoring the entirety of the text that came before that actually supported what the other guy was saying?

But hey ... if you still wish to contend with me on this point feel free. It would be most amusing to see you embarrass yourself even further.

OAW

[Snow-i]

Your links support that payment has been blocked in congress time and time again.

Your assertion as fact that it is due to republican obstructionism remains wholly unsubstantiated. They are conclusions drawn to fit a purpose then retrofitted onto articles that you googled. Color me unimpressed. There are real issues at stake here. As much as you want to cry about Republicans wanting to make sure the numbers add up, I for one am glad that we are ensuring that they do before handing out billions of dollars. With the current administration and congress' chronic inability to add and subtract readily apparent, I would say the root cause is the piss poor quality of the politicians currently holding power that forces obstructionism to be the only tenable position until those issues are resolved - less you want that money going out to those who have no claim to it and without it being covered in the budget.

[besson3c]

I don't really care about Sanchez or Williams, but I do find it perplexing how people that have spent a career in the news business watching people put their foot in their mouths and what this effect is would be so emboldened to even approach this subject matter in such a seemingly clumsy and awkward manner?

I hate it when politicians are extremely guarded in their speech, I'm not at all suggesting that these subjects should be avoided, that certain subjects are necessarily taboo, nor am I promoting that everything should be ultra PC, but isn't this the sort of thing that you want to plan through carefully and rehearse? If they felt as strongly as they did surely they would have realized this in advance and thought about how they might want to express this?

I mean, it seems like just about every week now we hear about some politician or semi-important figure just crashing and burning. I'm sure the election season has something to do with this, but...

[OAW]

Originally Posted by Snow-i 

Your links support that payment has been blocked in congress time and time again.

Your assertion as fact that it is due to republican obstructionism remains wholly unsubstantiated.

You say "blocked in Congress". Yet the sources indicate "blocked by Republicans in Congress".

Every. Single. Article.

Yet you are essentially taking a position that harkens back to the old Richard Pryor line ... "Who are you gonna believe ... me or your lying eyes?"

Unsubstantiated? Uhhhhh .... ok.

Originally Posted by Snow-i 

There are real issues at stake here. As much as you want to cry about Republicans wanting to make sure the numbers add up, I for one am glad that we are ensuring that they do before handing out billions of dollars.

We'll just note that you seem intent on ignoring the fact that Sen. Coburn blocked the bill in May supposedly for this reason. And then when it came up again in September and the cost had been fully offset ... he objected again. As the last article I cited indicated:

Jim Manley, a spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said Coburn was "just the latest face of what appears to be an intentional effort by Republicans to deny justice to black farmers and Native American trust account holders."

"Their opposition is a transparent sham," he said. "Every time we are close to a bipartisan agreement that would disburse court-approved settlements to these Americans who were denied earnings they deserve due to discrimination and mismanagement, Republicans yank the rug from under them by conjuring up a new reason to object."

So even if you choose to dismiss these comments since they come from Sen. Reid's spokesman, you still can't escape the fact that the measure was fully paid for ... yet Sen. Coburn still objected, echoing the same bogus crap that the three GOP House members did. Even though the facts show that claims would be handled by the courts. As Mr. Boyd indicated ....

Originally Posted by John Boyd

At the end of the day, this was a fully paid for settlement with ample safeguards including the authority of the court and a court-appointed neutral to adjudicate the claims.

It's called "moving the goalposts".

Originally Posted by Snow-i 

With the current administration and congress' chronic inability to add and subtract readily apparent, I would say the root cause is the piss poor quality of the politicians currently holding power that forces obstructionism to be the only tenable position until those issues are resolved - less you want that money going out to those who have no claim to it and without it being covered in the budget.

Oh so now you concede that it is in fact Republican obstructionism? Funny ... a minute ago you claimed that was "unsubstantiated".

But again ... the measure is fully paid for. Furthermore, it is not the Congress' role to renegotiate the case. It is not Congress' role to decide who is a valid claimant and who is not. That is for the courts to decide. This is a settlement of a lawsuit filed against the US government. Congress is obligated to fund it ... so the obstructionists in the GOP who are repeatedly blocking this measure need to quit making BS excuses. Many of the farmers affected by the settlement are quite elderly. More die everyday. And as the old saying goes ..

Justice deferred is justice denied.

OAW

[finboy]

It's...a...shakedown.

[Buckaroo]

It's time for the CEO of NPR to be terminated (fired).

[OldManMac]

Another opinion, and IMO, a more correct one.

NPR right to fire Juan Williams - CNN.com

[Chongo]

Jesse Jackson has been quoted as saying he was ashamed to admit that while walking alone one night in Chicago, he heard footsteps behind him and was when he looked to see who it was, was relieved to see it was a white guy.

Meanwhile, in LA: Man Fired for Wearing Bush Sweatshirt at Obama Rally (The ship his son is serving on)

[OldManMac]

Originally Posted by Chongo 

Jesse Jackson has been quoted as saying he was ashamed to admit that while walking alone one night in Chicago, he heard footsteps behind him and was when he looked to see who it was, was relieved to see it was a white guy.

Meanwhile, in LA: Man Fired for Wearing Bush Sweatshirt at Obama Rally (The ship his son is serving on)

He wasn't fired, he was removed from that job, and then he was called back by the Union, who is paying him for the day.