Clinton Apologizes to Black Voters for Racial Comments
WASHINGTON — Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton did something Wednesday night that she almost never does. She apologized. And once she started, she didn’t seem able to stop.
The New York senator, who is in a tight race with Illinois Sen. Barack Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination, struck several sorry notes at an evening forum sponsored by the National Newspaper Publishers Association, a group of more than 200 black community newspapers across the country.
Her biggest apology came in response to a question about comments by her husband, Bill Clinton, after the South Carolina primary, which Obama won handily. Bill Clinton said Jesse Jackson also won South Carolina when he ran for president in 1984 and 1988, a comment many viewed as belittling Obama’s success.
“I want to put that in context. You know I am sorry if anyone was offended. It was certainly not meant in any way to be offensive,” Hillary Clinton said. “We can be proud of both Jesse Jackson and Senator Obama.”
“Anyone who has followed my husband’s public life or my public life know very well where we have stood and what we have stood for and who we have stood with,” she said, acknowledging that whoever wins the nomination will have to heal the wounds of a bruising, historic contest.
“Once one of us has the nomination there will be a great effort to unify the Democratic party and we will do so, because, remember I have a lot of supporters who have voted for me in very large numbers and I would expect them to support Senator Obama if he were the nominee,” she said.
The Clintons long have enjoyed overwhelming support from black voters, but that has been eclipsed during the primaries and caucuses by enthusiasm and support for Obama, who has pulled huge margins among black voters. Arguments over the role of race and gender have flared up repeatedly throughout the contest between Obama, who would be the nation’s first black president, and Clinton, who would be its first female one.
Earlier in the day, Hillary Clinton supporter and fundraiser Geraldine Ferraro gave up her honorary position with Clinton’s campaign after she said in an interview last week that Obama would not have made it this far if he were white. Obama said Ferraro’s remarks were “ridiculous” and “wrong-headed.”
Of Ferraro’s comment, Hillary Clinton told her audience: “I certainly do repudiate it and I regret deeply that it was said. Obviously she doesn’t speak for the campaign, she doesn’t speak for any of my positions, and she has resigned from being a member of my very large finance committee.”
As first lady and senator, Clinton rarely cedes an inch to her critics. On the issue of her vote to authorize the Iraq war, for instance, she steadfastly has refused to apologize, coming close by saying she regrets it, despite calls from many anti-war voters in the party to make a more explicit mea culpa.
Her third conciliatory statement of the evening was more in keeping with that fighting stance.
Asked about the government’s efforts in the Gulf States after Hurricane Katrina, Hillary Clinton turned an apology into a criticism of President Bush, who happened to be speaking at a Republican event in another room at the same hotel.
“I’ve said it publicly, and I say it privately: I apologize, and I am embarrassed that our government so mistreated our fellow citizens … It was a national disgrace,” she said.
Here’s Sean’s Good Friend Oliver North.
This is a picture of Ollie lying to Congress after he tried to take the fall for the Iran Contra affair, where he helped sell weapons to a hostile state, then turned around and sold weapons to a rogue band of rebels
Here’s Sean and his Good Friend Ann Coulter. She angered family members of Oklahoma City bombing victims when
she told a reporter her only regret about Timothy McVeigh was that “he didn’t go to the New York Times building.
Sean Hannity has never forgiven Bill Clinton for having a romantic liaison with a woman who was not his wife. He refers to it almost daily.
It doesn’t bother him so much, though, that his Good Friend Ex-Congressman Newt Gingrich
not only cheated on his wife, but dumped her and married the younger mistress.
CHECK OUT HANNITYISAMORON.COM
I think Obama owes America an apology for pulling the wool over their eyes!!
First, why did Obama campaign for Raila Odinga? The below link will take you to the picture of Obama campaigning for RAILA AMOLO ODINGA to become president. The picture is on the right of the page, you may have to wait for it to scroll by. http://www.myspace.com/railaodinga
(You may also arrive there by going to Odinga’s website http://WWW.RAILA07.COM. From there click on myspace at the bottom of the page).
On an interesting note, Odinga uses a certain theme for his campaign “Change”! Sound familiar? This is the same thing that Obama has been chanting to his crowds. Odinga fires off “Be Part Of Change”. He has also coined himself “Your Agent for Change.” http://www.raila07.com/sms.html
Second, Obama supports Islamic Hope. The organization follows the teachings of the Holy Quran and the example of Prophet Muhammad. If you click the link below it will take you to the site where you will see Obama’s picture at the top of the page.
http://www.islamichope.org/
On the main page it explains what the organization stand for … WHAT IS PROJECT ISLAMIC H.O.P.E.? (Helping Oppressed People Everywhere)
Project Islamic H.O.P.E.is a national civil rights organization that advocates for the human rights of oppressed People regardless of race, gender or religion.
Project Islamic H.O.P.E. follows the teachings of the Holy Quran and the example of Prophet Muhammad. (Peace Be Upon Him)
We support and follow the leadership of Imam W. Deen Mohammed, one of the world’s foremost Islamic leaders.
Why should Clinton be made to apologize. Other groups are the first to call on their right to “free speach”, but it seems that white politicians are always so quick to apologize for speaking their minds. Stop and think about it. Would Obama have made it this far if he were not African American? A relatively young politician without much experience compared to the “mighty” Clintons? And to the people of New Orleans and MS, is it not time to move on and do for yourself, instead of waiting for the government to come in and try to fix your problem? It has been two years. How long are you going to wait? Our country is heading in the wrong direction and we will not stop the downward spiral until people start to take some initiative and do for themselves, have some accountability and stop waiting for the government to come in and “save the day”. Oh, and by the way, we will all be speaking spanish by the next election if we do not do something about border control.
“It’s A Blog Post, Sean”: Kirsten Powers Shuts Down Sean Hannity
ETP Staff | Posted Wednesday February 28, 2007 at 12:04 PM
Courtesty of NewsHounds, we got to see this so- ridiculous-it’s-almost-funny segment on FNC’s “Hannity & Colmes” featuring guests Kirsten Powers (busy this week) and James Taranto (busy last week) discussing the comments on our own fair HuffPo regarding yesterday’s bombing in Afghanistan targeting Vice President Cheney. While Taranto used the opportunity to somehow assert a “disinhibition on a certain part of the left-wing fringe” — twice — with anecdotal evidence from his circle of friends, Powers stuck to the facts and reminded everyone that, hello, these were commenters, not contributors. The best part, though, is when she tries to explain to Sean Hannity what a blog post is. Runner up is when Hannity asks Taranto if the Secret Service should be worried, and she snorts in exasperation. There’s not enough snorting in exasperation on cable these days.
L. Coleman is full of it. I am still sorting out the real issues myself on who I think can lead our country best. Your suggestion of the black people making history by voting in the first black president because he is black is ridiculous. How about vote him in on the issues. It is people like you that create divides in our country. Do you even pay attention to the issues, or just the skin? Please, if you don’t have an educated vote…..DON’T!!!
EXACTLY RON!! “The Ferraro incident is quite interesting and would be comical if it weren’t so sad. She is very hurt that she is being called a racist. That is very understandable since she is not a racist. She simply experienced the fate of every white person who ever says publicly anything slightly disagreeable to some portion of the black community. Even the most casual observer can look at the vote results so far and see that Obama owes his lead over Clinton not solelty but largely to the black vote. Why is it racist to say that? Perhaps at least Ms. Ferraro can now commiserate at least somewhat with the many white public figures on the right side of the political spectrum who are regularly tarred with the racist brush for speaking the obvious.”
Clinton shouldn’t apologize for the truth being spoken. I appreciate what Ferraro said and appreciated her not backing down when interviewed by ABC this morning. Too bad Clinton is backing off. It is not the Clintons or the Republicans that we have to worry about being racist. Jeremiah Wright and Louis Farrakhan are the racist: preaching and teaching hatred to Whites, America and Jews. Obama is just as guilty for being a member of that type of church. He made the choice to go to Jeremiah Wright’s church–for 20 years. I make a choice where I go to church and I can tell you if there was hatred of any race being preached, I would not stay. God Bless America and God help us if Obama is elected!! Hilliary, it is time you took a stand for America too. It doesn’t take much time or intelligence to look up all the hate and racists comments Jeremiah Wright has preached and written. Look up his church and Obama’s background. He is not for the best interest of America.