M
miles
Guest
Wednesday, July 25, 2001
WASHINGTON - Prominent members of the Congressional Black Caucus have refused to make any comment on Dan Rather’s racial slur.
Of the 37 members of the caucus, NewsMax.com attempted to elicit comment from eight of the most high-profile or outspoken lawmakers.
In each case, we read and offered to fax Rather’s exact words on the Don Imus radio program Thursday.
Imus’s invitation was prompted by the news anchor’s ignoring the Chandra Levy case. At the behest of CBS executives, Rather finally broke the silence on Wednesday and grudgingly referred to it as one of several thousand missing persons cases. This, of course, ignores the fact that a congressman, Rep. Gary Condit, D-Calif., was involved and that allegations of obstruction of justice had been added to the mix.
In each case, NewsMax.com read and/or faxed to the members staffers the following Rather comment:
"What happened was they [CBS management] got the willies, they got the Buckwheats. Their knees wobbled and we gave it up.”
We also pointed out that a California civil rights leader, the Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson had denounced the remark as "demeaning to African-Americans.”
The lawmakers from whom we attempted to get comments on this were:
Reps. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Texas, chairwoman of the Caucus; Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Ill.; Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., ranking member on the House Ways and Means Committee; John Conyers, D-Mich., ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee; Maxine Waters, D-Calif.; Melvin Watt, D-N.C.; Albert Wynn, D-Md., best known this session for co-sponsoring a bipartisan alternative to the anti-First Amendment campaign finance "reform” bill; and Edolphus Towns, D-N.Y.
Some of the staffers, while promising to ask their bosses about the comment, did not hold out much hope that there would be a response.
"I don’t think he’s going to want to say anything about a remark from a TV commentator,” said Rangel spokesman Emile Milne, who serves not only as press secretary, but also Rangel’s legislative director. His reaction reflected a reluctance elsewhere amongst Black Caucus members.
The thundering silence on Capitol Hill is in stark contrast to the frenzy that ensued in 1992 when then Vice President Dan Quayle simply stated that the TV sitcom character Murphy Brown’s decision to give birth out of wedlock was not helping in the fight against teen pregnancy. At that time, every editor in Washington seemed to believe that every public official should join a pile-on chorus and voice an opinion on Murphy Brown.
Quayle had not insulted anyone. He had just stated an undeniable truth.
Lawmakers have every right, of course, to withhold comment on this or any other issue. But one must ask: Would they be just as reticent to comment if Rush Limbaugh had made the remarks that Dan Rather uttered?
WASHINGTON - Prominent members of the Congressional Black Caucus have refused to make any comment on Dan Rather’s racial slur.
Of the 37 members of the caucus, NewsMax.com attempted to elicit comment from eight of the most high-profile or outspoken lawmakers.
In each case, we read and offered to fax Rather’s exact words on the Don Imus radio program Thursday.
Imus’s invitation was prompted by the news anchor’s ignoring the Chandra Levy case. At the behest of CBS executives, Rather finally broke the silence on Wednesday and grudgingly referred to it as one of several thousand missing persons cases. This, of course, ignores the fact that a congressman, Rep. Gary Condit, D-Calif., was involved and that allegations of obstruction of justice had been added to the mix.
In each case, NewsMax.com read and/or faxed to the members staffers the following Rather comment:
"What happened was they [CBS management] got the willies, they got the Buckwheats. Their knees wobbled and we gave it up.”
We also pointed out that a California civil rights leader, the Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson had denounced the remark as "demeaning to African-Americans.”
The lawmakers from whom we attempted to get comments on this were:
Reps. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Texas, chairwoman of the Caucus; Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Ill.; Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., ranking member on the House Ways and Means Committee; John Conyers, D-Mich., ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee; Maxine Waters, D-Calif.; Melvin Watt, D-N.C.; Albert Wynn, D-Md., best known this session for co-sponsoring a bipartisan alternative to the anti-First Amendment campaign finance "reform” bill; and Edolphus Towns, D-N.Y.
Some of the staffers, while promising to ask their bosses about the comment, did not hold out much hope that there would be a response.
"I don’t think he’s going to want to say anything about a remark from a TV commentator,” said Rangel spokesman Emile Milne, who serves not only as press secretary, but also Rangel’s legislative director. His reaction reflected a reluctance elsewhere amongst Black Caucus members.
The thundering silence on Capitol Hill is in stark contrast to the frenzy that ensued in 1992 when then Vice President Dan Quayle simply stated that the TV sitcom character Murphy Brown’s decision to give birth out of wedlock was not helping in the fight against teen pregnancy. At that time, every editor in Washington seemed to believe that every public official should join a pile-on chorus and voice an opinion on Murphy Brown.
Quayle had not insulted anyone. He had just stated an undeniable truth.
Lawmakers have every right, of course, to withhold comment on this or any other issue. But one must ask: Would they be just as reticent to comment if Rush Limbaugh had made the remarks that Dan Rather uttered?
