Cynthia McKinney, the Georgia congresswoman who had an altercation with a Capitol Police officer, said yesterday that the officer started the incident by "inappropriately touching and stopping" her after she walked past a security checkpoint.
McKinney, speaking at a news conference where she was joined by singer Harry Belafonte and actor Danny Glover, said she understands that a case against her may be referred for prosecution but declared that she will be exonerated.
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And I read Aravosis:
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I'm sorry, but what a pitiful excuse for a Democrat. Yes, let's cry racism and sexism and Democratism, I guess you'd call it, because a cop didn't recognize you and you decided to not even wear your member of Congress pin, or turn around when the cop called out to you while we're at war. Next time, it'll be better if the cop lets strangers without their pins just barge into the halls of Congress, bypass security, and oh blow the hell out of the entire building because they're afraid the person they stop might be - what? - a Democrat?
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And also John Emerson:
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John Aravosis of Americablog, normally one of my favorite blogs, just posted an intemperate and unjustified slam at Rep. Cynthia McKinney, NOW, and the NAACP. The issue was McKinney's recent altercation with the capitol police. Aravosis and several commenters went completely out of control, as did Neil Boortz. I don't know enough about the specifics of the case to be sure what I think, but neither did Aravosis.
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And Pam has Neal Boortz:
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BOORTZ: No, it's not braided. It just flies away from her head in every conceivable direction. It looks like an explosion in a Brillo pad factory. It's just hideous. To me, that hairstyle just shows contempt for -- no, it's not an Afro. I mean, no, it just shows contempt for the position that she holds and the body that she serves in. And, I'm sorry, there's just no other way to -- it's just a hideous and horrible looking --
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Number one, Boortz is a simple-minded, racist idiot. That said, I'm going with Aravosis on this. McKinney provoked the confrontation, knowingly or not. She should have worn proper identification and there would have been no problem. There are 435 members of Congress and the police can't be expected to know them all on sight. If wearing a pin was all that was needed or, in lieu of that, her being asked for ID (which I believe the cop was trying to do), this situation never would have arisen. Ask Al Sharpton about a young woman named Tawana Brawley and how playing the race card when it's unjustified affects your credibility. I also think Emerson, much as I like him, went a bit overboard putting Aravosis in the same league as Boortz.
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