Nader Angers CBC With Demand For Apology
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Hans Nichols and Peter Savodnik, The Hill.com, Jul. 14
Tensions between Ralph Nader and the Congressional Black Caucus flared again yesterday, after a letter from the independent presidential candidate to the caucus chairman, Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), demanded an apology for an “obscene racial epitaph” at a tense meeting last month.
Black lawmakers reacted to Nader’s letter with a combination of anger and disdain, questioning his mental health and accusing him of acute and advanced egomania.
“He ain’t playing with a full deck,” said Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.), a member of the caucus and vice chairman of the Democratic caucus.
“I don’t think he gets it,” said Rep. Albert Wynn (D-Md.).
“The meeting was about strategy and the pragmatic planning to defeat [President] Bush,” said Wynn.
“We told him how at strategic level, his candidacy defeats a common a goal,” said Wynn, who criticized Nader for adopting a sanctimonious tone at the beginning of the meeting.
“We were particularly offended by Nader’s exhibitionism, his selfishness and egotism,” Wynn added.
Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) said, “If he didn’t understand what the meeting was about, not only is he an egotistical maniac, he’s dumber than I thought he was.”
Nader’s two-and-a-half-page letter, released to the media before many members of the caucus had a chance to see it, demanded an apology from Rep. Melvin Watt (D-N.C.). Nader took umbrage at Watt’s choice of words. Watt, Nader alleged, called him “just another arrogant white man, telling us what we can do. It’s all about your ego, another [expletive] arrogant white man.”
“Exclamations at the meeting descended into vituperative (e.g., Congresswoman [Carolyn] Kilpatrick’s [D-Mich.] tawdry, anatomical comment yelled loud enough so the press could hear it outside) and ending with the obscene racist epithet repeated twice by Yale Law School alumnus Congressman Melvin Watt of North Carolina,” Nader wrote Cummings.
As reported by The Hill, Kilpatrick told Nader to “get your ass out” at the June 22 meeting.
Caucus spokeswoman Candice Tolliver ruled out an apology. “It was a spirited exchange with the caucus,” Tolliver said. “We just share two different strategies, and that’s it.”
Black House members at the meeting had urged Nader to pull out of the presidential race so that votes wouldn’t be channeled away from Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), his party’s presumptive presidential nominee.
Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) dismissed the letter. “I’ll give as much consideration to that letter as constituents in my district will give him their vote,” he said.
Meanwhile, a left-leaning organization has accused a pro-business group headed by former House Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-Texas) of drumming up support for Nader’s candidacy.
John Stauber, executive director of the Center for Media and Democracy, said, “The Republican machine is mobilizing for Nader. Major Republican funders are sending checks to Nader, and a far-right industry-funded front group, Citizens for a Sound Economy [CSE], is organizing to get Ralph on the November ballot in a number of
swing states.”
CSE spokesman Chris Kinnan said the group’s local chapters have gotten involved to get Nader on state ballots. He said Nader’s candidacy “helps illuminate that Sen. [John] Kerry (D-Mass.) is running from his position. Kinnan added that CSE opposes Nader’s positions, but his run for the White House “furthers our issue agenda.”
Comments from Readers
From: Teutonicus
“He ain’t playing with a full deck,” said Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.), a member of the caucus and vice chairman of the Democratic caucus.
Watt, Nader alleged, called him “just another arrogant white man, telling us what we can do. It’s all about your ego, another [expletive] arrogant white man.”
“Exclamations at the meeting descended into vituperative (e.g., Congresswoman [Carolyn] Kilpatrick’s [D-Mich.] tawdry, anatomical comment yelled loud enough so the press could hear it outside) and ending with the obscene racist epithet repeated twice by Yale Law School alumnus Congressman Melvin Watt of North Carolina,” Nader wrote Cummings.
As reported by The Hill, Kilpatrick told Nader to “get your ass out” at the June 22 meeting.
These are not just some black people off the street saying these things in the halls of Congress, these are elected officials who are supposed to represent the best the black community has to offer. The press spends hours of air time ranting about how Dick Cheney violated the dignity of the Senate by telling someone to f*** off, and these people yell obscenities and racial epithets and then have the audacity to demand an apology. Is there any wonder that we all come to this website to converse about the standing of our nation and our race when these egregious double standards take place? These blacks use the halls of Congress as if it were a street corner in West Baltimore and then complain about tolerance, fairness and dignity when the whole of Congress assembles. Note that I said the whole of Congress; the little “Blacks Only” club meets separately to figure out what to demand from the white man. Perhaps we should all move to Belgium, as things seem to be good for our people there. Just think of Belgium’s productivity if a bunch of hard working American white people left the States and took our skills there! Better yet, think of all the tax dollars this country would lose if we did so! I can just picture Ted Kennedy, Hillary Clinton, John Kerry and John Edwards flabbergasted, holding the bill for welfare and other such society-draining programs when there are no white people to pay the those bills!
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From: Esteban
Bravo for Nader, three words I’d have never expected to write nor say.
I’m all for any Arrogant White Man willing to stand up to these bullies. It’s refreshing compared to the usual kowtowing of the race traitors in the major parties.
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From: Sigurd
“just another arrogant white man, telling us what we can do.”
I think this quote sums up nicely the black view of the political process. The insatiable vengeance of black America grows by the day, the more we feed it the bigger it gets, and the bigger it’s appetite.
How insane it was, to set up the white man as the doer of all evil and the black a saint of heaven. Whatever secret vendettas were settled by these characterizations may have proved profitable for some in the short term but in the end will not have proved worth it. For how humiliating it will be, for those who desired to destroy the white man, when he emerges once more to save them from the consuming beast of their own creation.
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From: David
Ahem, Nader really isn’t white, he’s an Arab. This fact makes race a very confusing issue because in some parts of the world, race isn’t clearly defined. Look at Turkey with regards to the EU and you will figure out why. Europeans don’t consider the Turks to be suitable potential members of the EU because of “cultural” reasons. Turks themselves are a multiracial group of people some are blonde hair blue eyed and other are dark skinned. The same applies to Arabs, some are white and some are brown skinned. I have spent a good deal of time in Europe, in France and Germany, two countries with large Arab and Turkish populations, you would have a lot of trouble physically distinguishing members of these groups from Native Frenchmen and Germans. Nader doesn’t say much about his ethnic background, but there it is, Ralph Nader is an Arab. So how exactly can someone consider Nader a whiteman as in a white European man when he’s really an Arab?
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From: Brian
The thing that I will miss most when whites become the minority is the loss of civility. Some of them really do not understand the importance of debates and dialogue. I’ve been around enough blacks-including one that was attending Yale-to know that this attitude is common. On PBS there was a black man attacking Cosby’s lack of “dialogue.” Apparently he felt that Cosby should have been more sensitive in his remarks. If so then why do we not hear this same man going after these potty mouthed congressmen and women? I guess Cosby was correct-the parents of these politicians did not scold enough whenever the black members of congress refused to speak good English as children. Remember, these black members of congress are representatives and boy are they representing!
Now lets take a look at the way the NAACP reacted to Bush. They actually expect this man to buddy up with them. I wish that black leaders would get it through their heads that not all whites are masochist. It’s as if they expect whites to behave like that guy in the book Venus in Furs or a “punk” in prison. The sad thing is that there are whites who are more than willing to be the black man’s expletive.
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From: the Socialist Republic of New Jersey
I love it! Everytime a black group does something like this the democrats loose thousands of votes. I am going to send Mr. Nader a $100 contribution.
The democratic “party” and their “Crimson Tide” followers have become a threat to America,liberty and freedom. They have tried everything to bring down the Bush government and nothing has worked. I begin to fear that thier frustrations my make them dangerous.
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From: Bernie
Nader is a far left Arab and still the good ol’ black boys club hates him. If you are not 100% for them they will abuse you and get away with it. Look at what terrorists like Julian Bond and Kweisi Mfume say about Bush (a man who support affiramtive action and an immigration amnesty). There is no talking to racists like these.
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From: Robert Binion
It sounds as if Nader might be the candidate for a yellow dog like me. I’ve resisted successfully the tawdry desire to vote Republican but am getting weaker by the day. Weaker by the sound bite.
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From: Noerthwestman
A fine example of of the oxymoron that “Black Leadership” is.
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From: RobertB
I disagree with most of Nader’s policies- most, not all. However, I’m really growing to like him and his willingness, unlike Kerry and Bush, to actually stand for something and stick to it. As a man, he is actually a man.
Plus- think of the lesson he just learned and think about the effect it will have on him- all in good time.
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From: D. B. Yankton
The Congressional Black Congress needs to get more of the light of day.
Exposure of their primitive behavior will certainly bring more whites into our fold.
It is very likely that their meetings are filled with horrible shouting, cussing, and arguments over small slights.
We need to use their weaknesses against them.
(Posted on July 15, 2004)