By Antonio D. French
Filed Sunday, October 08, 2006 at 1:35 PM
PUB DEF was quoted on "Meet the Press" this morning during the debate between Sen. Jim Talent and State Auditor Claire McCaskill. Labels: Props, Quotables, U.S._Senate_Race
MR. RUSSERT: Let me turn to George W. Bush, because he’s become an issue in the campaign. Ms. McCaskill, you were quoted in the pubdef.net giving a speech which was blogged, saying, “She reminded people that ‘George Bush let people die on rooftops in New Orleans because they were poor and because they were black.’” One, why would you say that, and do you believe it?
MS. McCASKILL: Well, first, I was acknowledging how thousands and millions of Americans felt. The visual that we all saw in Hurricane Katrina was frankly, something none of us will ever forget. Incompetence turned tragic because the people there were unable to help themselves. This administration...
MR. RUSSERT: But do you think the president let people die because they were poor and black?
MS. McCASKILL: I do not, I do not believe the president is a racist. I was acknowledging the feelings of many, many Americans that this administration has left the most vulnerable, helpless—this administration has been about Wall Street and not about average Americans.
MR. RUSSERT: But do you apologize for this statement?
MS. McCASKILL: I, I think if it is misinterpreted that I was calling the president a racist...
MR. RUSSERT: Misinterpreted? “George Bush let people die on rooftops because they were poor and because they were black.”
MS. McCASKILL: That was—I was acknowledging what Americans believed at the time.
MR. RUSSERT: So you stand by it?
MS. McCASKILL: Absolutely, that’s what Americans believed. Now, I don’t believe he’s a racist, and if that—if people think—and maybe I shouldn’t have said it that way, Tim. Maybe I should have said it another way. I probably should have said it another way. But the feelings are real.
And by the way, if we had that tragedy, how ready are we for a disaster in this country? After the billions of dollars spent—once again, no accountability—they still are not looking in Congress at how all the money was misspent in Katrina. With all the billions spent on homeland security, our citizens died because we couldn’t get them food or water. This is not an administration that is ready to protect us.
Click here to read the transcript. Click here to read our original story in which this comment was first reported. And check back later to see the video from today's debate.
UPDATE: Click here to watch the entire debate on MSNBC's website.
UPDATE 2: Thanks to Christina Bellantoni for mentioning PUB DEF in her article on the debate in Monday's The Washington Times.
17 Comments:
Way to go Antonio!
10/08/2006 2:18 PM
Jayzuz! Why all the backpedaling? Poor black people died on roofs because no one in the government really made it a priority to safe guard them or their property.
Does anyone believe that this situation would've been allowed to see thousands and thousands of white people stranded on rooftops for days on end?
Why has it become so terrifying in this country just to simply speak the truth and stand by it?
If she won't say it, I will (and I am white). G.W. Bush is a racist.
10/08/2006 3:31 PM
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10/08/2006 5:05 PM
I am not a "W" apologist, sympathizer or supporter, so please don't take this the wrong way.
GW is not a racist. As Texas Governor, he was able to work across racial lines with many Hispanic groups.
What GW is, is a CLASSIST. While he doesn't care about the color of your skin, he DOES care wholly about the color of your money. It doesn't matter to him if you are black, white or brown, as long as you have the green.
Since there is a definite link between minorities and poverty, it is understandably easy to overlook his true motivations. But look beyond the "skin deep" analysis and you will see its all about the Benjamins.
10/08/2006 5:06 PM
Travis...
As a former resident of Texas I'm gonna split that hair.
Scooter crossed racial lines to get votes and consolidate power, which is a time honored tradition we call pandering. Pandering in no way indicates a lack of anything except substance.
He might not be a racist, but his record in Texas...particularly the lack of action regarding the dragging death of Mr.Byrd...doesn't indicate an understanding or appreciation of racial history in this country.
The fact that class is often married to race in America blurrs the line.
He may or may not be a lot of things, but history will be the ultimate judge.
10/08/2006 5:52 PM
Antonio, you did her a favor by reporting this issue.
I'm glad she didn't apologize, and I hope she will show even more spine after she is elected. She needed to get even stronger rather than hedging about "maybe I should have said it another way."
GWB and friends need to be called exactly what they are, without apology or hedging. Real leadership means saying so, loudly and without apology, when the emperor is buck naked.
10/08/2006 6:34 PM
Congrats, Antonio. I usually watch Meet The Press, and regret I missed it today.
I also agree with Shark-fu. Despite having blacks on his cabinet, I see Bush as indifferent when it comes to African-Americans and African-American issues.
I also surmise Bush only works with "Hispanics" and supports many of their issues ie. guest worker program/amnesty because his brother is married to a Latina.
Again, congrats Antonio!
10/08/2006 6:40 PM
Hey it bears noting that "Hispanic" is
Not a racial catagory, it is not the same as being Black
and further that a great many 'Hispanic' folks regard themselves as white...so just because W reached out to certain segments of the Latino Community in Texas that doesn't mean, or even hint at him being racist or not. The point is Bush let people he could have helped die, and those folks were overwhelmingly poor and largely Black; thats a problem, period. If its not racist, its at least an example of the Class Warfare that this Administration has been waging on America's poor and working class citizens.
Jimmy Lappe
10/08/2006 6:45 PM
For those who missed it, the show is being replayed on:
MSNBC tonight (Sunday)
9:00 pm
midnight
KSDK
tomorrow (Monday)
2:28 am
KMOX
tomorrow (Monday)
1:00 am
10/08/2006 7:16 PM
What about the mayor of New Orleans and the governor of Louisiana, both Democrats? Did they have no responsibility to get people out of the city?
Claire McCaskill made a wholly inappropriate, inflammatory statement. She shouldn't have said it because it made her sound as though she was willing to sacrifice the truth--that there was plenty of blame to go around in New Orleans, even to Democrats--just to emotionally pander to a group of her supporters. We have a right to expect more from our candidates than crazy outbursts.
10/08/2006 7:17 PM
Thanks everyone for the words of support. I nearly fell off the sofa when Russert said "PubDef.net". It was a great feeling.
Who needs the RFT when you got NBC?
10/08/2006 9:13 PM
Anon #2:
VERY good point. Hispanics are either white or black, depending on their country of origin. While the majority are technically white, they are still considered a minority due to ethnic background (creed), and not their race, as you pointed out. Good catch, and thanks!
10/08/2006 10:58 PM
The darker you are in this country and the less categorically typical European features that you have, such as color of eyes, hair texture, nose shape, lip size, buttocks, etc., the worse you are treated in the United States. In fact, the only positive non-European feature that has been attributed to blacks is the size of the male penis, and this was only trumpeted in connection with Mandingo (the well endowed black male slave on the plantation, that was forced by a married white female slavemaster to be sexually subserviant and then accused of rape)!
Therefore, unless you exhibit a majority of these non-European features, you might not understand what the hell people that do-go through.
Anyone that argues against this common practice in America, may just feel guilty about the benefits they have received due to the practice of this system in the United States Culture.
The United States is definitely a tossed salad, not a melting pot. The kind of tossed salad they talk about in prison, where your butt hurts afterwards!!!!
10/09/2006 1:56 AM
Claire got her clocked cleaned. "We need troops in Kuwait and Qatar" what was that all about?
10/09/2006 11:02 AM
Maybe Ms. Mannies, the RFT and the rest of the posers around the Lou can learn to give props to AF when he breaks the news.
Just like Tim Freaking Russert.
Congrats Antonio. You are doing a great job.
10/09/2006 11:58 AM
way cool!
10/10/2006 11:09 PM
what if any help did the victims of hurricane Wilma receive?
1/14/2008 2:11 PM
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