On the case of Shirley Sherrod. I have this to say.

[Liberal Veteran]

If she is not reinstated and apologized to by the administration, I wash my hands of them and shake the dust from under my feet in testimony against them.

My tolerance for idiocy is at its end.

That is all.

[reformist2]

1. ITA. They need to reinstate her.

[BrklynLiberal]

2. It will surely be more than disappointing if this situation is not corrected..ASAP.

[madmax]

3. This is a big

fucking deal and it needs to be rectified.

[fascisthunter]

4. I have little faith

but just maybe this embarrasses them enough to do what is right.

[Celebration]

5. Everyone write the White House

Like I have done

http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact

[Liberal Veteran]

6. Already done and expressed exactly the same sentiment in my OP.

This story pissed me off.

[panader0]

16. Done

[Monique1]

20. I plan to write the WH this evening

It appears they are more afraid what Glen Beck would say? WTF?

[mod mom]

22. Done. Thanks for providing the link!

:hi:

[jtuck004]

54. Thank you for the link. Done. n.t.

[peekaloo]

65. Done.

:hi:

[yourout]

7. The sad thing is it proves the WH is more concerned with what Fox has to say then they are ...

with what the folks that elected him do.

[vi5]

8. They've already shown their hand too many times now...

I know where they stand and whose opinions they are worried about.

They ignore the pleas and cries of people who are speaking the truth and they cater and fawn over and provide cover to those who lie.

I'm done with it.

They'll get over it I'm sure, since I'm told on here and elsewhere that they don't need my support anyway and where else am I going to go.

[SargeUNN]

9. she should be given a full review and Fox should

be held responsible if proven they were purposely doctoring the tape. I think it is past time for Fox and their ilk to be called on the carpet.

[HughMoran]

12. I agree

& it might take more than a nanosecond to resolve this.

[Connie_Corleone]

10. As one of those called an "Obamabot", I wholeheartedly agree she should be reinstated...

and offered a PUBLIC apology by this administration for rushing to judgment.

This has really pissed me off.

On edit: I emailed the White House too.

[AspenRose]

25. Yep.

This was just wrong and they need to admit it.

I emailed the White House too.

[yella_dawg]

11. I agree.

But this is bigger than that. First ACORN, then Helen Thomas, now this. Death by a thousand paper-cuts is still dead.

[inna]

You forgot Van Jones.... Same people behind vilifying and ousting good progressives. nt

[Parker CA]

13. Completely agree. K&R

[inna]

14. What happened? I missed the story. I did a quick google search just now,

but it's not clear at all what actually happened. Context/clues, anyone?

[Liberal Veteran]

21. Here's a link that tells the story pretty well.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/20/shirley-sherrod-agricultu_n_653329.html#comments

[inna]

26. thanks! K&R btw.

:hi:

[handmade34]

15. K&R

this is worth fighting for... calls, emails and letters please

[Bitwit1234]

17. You all understand THAT

this doctored tape that started this controversy is not going to be the last thing that the republicans post and show on Fox. They are going to go back and find any little bit of crap they can. Doctor it up and re-arrange it and show it.

I think any one in the Obama administration that does not make this guy appear before a committee and show the original tape/or article. When it is shown that he is manufacturing lies etc he should be dealt with accordingly. Failure to do so just goes to show the Democrats lack a spine and any integrity we thought they had.

[donal dubh]

18. hire Sherrod - fire Vilsack

she showed class and courage discussing her own struggles
he showed cowardice and poor judgement...

give her his job... I guess that can't happen tho, huh? *sigh*

[Ignis]

37. Welcome to DU.

:hi:

[donal dubh]

51. thanks...

:D

[imnKOgnito]

19. I believe I concur

Interesting that I opened this thread right as I was thinking about that old "straw that broke the camel's back" game. I know Obama has done a lot right, perhaps even more than he is given credit for here, and is far better than any Republican we'd otherwise be stuck with, but the areas he is failing in are unconsciable. The Democratic party is the only hope for this country to prevent a complete slide into Fascism, but they seem unwilling to fight it. They allow the right to frame every debate and fall for every dirty trick in the book, telegraphed or otherwise. Whether that is by cowardice, stupidity, or intent is hard to say anymore. All I know for sure is they had one final chance to change the course of this country and that opportunity is slipping away due to completely stupid and combatible shit like this. I hate to say that I am feeling like it's time to get on with letting the slide finish to completion so we can start fighting it in other ways.

And, for the record, I will be sending these thoughts to the President and my Senators and Rep's, as well.

[jgraz]

23. The last thing I expected from this president is that he'd be an enabler for racists.

Obama needs to tell Andrew Breitbart to go fuck himself.

[Name removed]

28. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Atticus]

24. I have just said as much in an email to the White House. They need to hear this

from all of us.

[Atticus]

27. I have just said as much in an email to the White House. They need to hear this

from all of us.

[SargeUNN]

29. Yet another reason to do away with the Telecom act of 96

that a republican congress passed and Clinton signed. That act is what opened up room for Fox News to be what it is.

[AspenRose]

30. Absolutely

[Sebastian Doyle]

31. Yep.

It also allowed the existence of Clear Channel, which was literally founded with Bush Crime Family money (a byproduct of Chimpy's stint as "owner" of the Texas Rangers baseball team.)

And both radio AND the live music industry have suffered greatly for it.

[Ignis]

38. Add another vote to the list, but who's listening?

This doesn't seem to be at the top of the list for most politicians--even those who would stand to gain the most from it!

:banghead:

[Booster]

32. I'm totally embarrassed that this Administration jumped to a wrong

conclusion just on the word of someone writing a stupid blog. That doesn't say leadership to me; it doesn't even say smart to me. What it says to me is this Administration is spineless and stupid all roled up in one. I wish I could apologize to Ms. Sherrod personally, and I expect no less from the powers that be. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

[joe black]

33. Yeah me too.

I'd love to help her if she needs help of any kind.

[Bluenorthwest]

34. Van Jones, Acorn this is not the first time they have fallen for

cheap conman's games and betrayed excellent people and organizations because of that idiocy. It is wrong to allow this to continue, and frankly, this is what keeps people from serving in government, or supporting this administration.

[Overseas]

35. I'm surprised they didn't learn enough from the right wing campaign to smash ACORN.

Give the more reasonable investigators time to see how the right wing has doctored each new assault.

Reward them with instant dismissals and they'll keep cranking out their bull.

[FiveGoodMen]

36. Why would they learn from that?

They weren't harmed by it.

ACORN was, of course, but not the assholes that destroyed ACORN on some right-wing lying bastard's say-so.

Didn't hurt them at all.

[Overseas]

55. Understanding the right wing smear machine. Not falling for it again.

Not jumping up in outrage and firing or defunding people the moment the right wing smear machine comes up with a bright new video.

And it did harm them. They bought the package and fired a good person. Again.

[FiveGoodMen]

57. "And it did harm them. They bought the package and fired a good person"

You're assuming that the people who made the snap decision care whether or not there's a good person in that position.

I don't think that's true.

They look out for their own pay checks. And that's it.

[Ignis]

39. K&R. Did you catch this in the the details of her "resignation?"

Sherrod said she was on the road Monday when USDA deputy undersecretary Cheryl Cook called her and told her the White House wanted her to resign because her comments were generating a cable news controversy.
Story continues below

"They called me twice," she told The Associated Press in an interview. "The last time they asked me to pull over to the side of the road and submit my resignation on my Blackberry, and that's what I did."

-- HuffPo @ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/20/shirley-sherrod-agricultu_n_653329.html#comments

Classy. Reeeeeeeeeeeeal classy. :thumbsup:

[senseandsensibility]

40. That was low

I can only hope this will be rectified soon. If not, the administration might FINALLY pay a price for catering to the far right fringe liars.

[Ignis]

42. Yeah, but it's not like the RW media is going to suddenly grow a conscience.

FAUX will attack Obama no matter what he does on this issue.

But on the Left? I say this is a great teaching moment about what's broken with the American "news" industry today. Let's grab it and use it!

[Hansel]

41. I'm sorry but I think this woman needs to sue under civil rights laws.

There is enough evidence that Fox News and that other racist idiot were harassing because she was Black. That they were trying to make a case that the Obama administration would not fire her because she was Black. So instead of a thorough investigation to determine if she in fact did anything wrong, they assisted Fox News in discriminating against her. But not for anything she did wrong on this job, but for something she supposedly said 20 years ago. The nature of the charge Fox and company made against her was that what she did was particularly egregious because she was Black.

I think this women needs a good lawyer and should set her sights on millions for the complete public humiliation resulting not only from the harassment perpetrated by people using doctored tapes, but from her employer who was not willing to hear her side of the story or to do even the most cursory investigation that would have revealed the fraud. They fired her because she was Black and Obama is Black and they couldn't take the rap that they were soft on Blacks. This is a pure and simple case of discrimination.

If the WH was behind this, and its hard to believe they were not, Obama is not much of a man.

[Ignis]

43. You make some strong points.

(But I'd edit that last line out, lest your post go missing. :hi: )

I agree that it was wrong to sacrifice Sherrod's rights on the altar of expediency--simply to get a jump on the cable news cycle.

:wtf:

I know it's politics, I know it's a tough game, I know bad things happen to good people, but damn this was poorly handled.

[KansasVoter]

44. Dramatic Much? But single payer was not worth doing it?

[Liberal Veteran]

53. Healthcare reform was a big battle not entirely in the control of the White House.

I can accept there was a less than perfect bill that came from all the players that were at the table on that even if I am not particularly happy about the outcome.

This on the other hand, seems rash, petty, and without any due consideration of the facts.

Without reliving the past debate on health care, I can at least rationalize the realities of the situation mitigate how things went down. For lack of a better word, this firing seems more personal, careless, and on the face of it, a capitulation with nothing on table to be gained.

[MrMickeysMom]

45. Don't forget to include a "Dear Mr. President" letter asking...

where he left his balls...

[lunatica]

46. I sent my smoking missive

I tried to make it sizzle and pop with contempt. She deserves a public apology and her supervisor should be the one who gets fired. Obama needs to personally apologize because it happened on his watch.

[Suich]

47. K&R! n/t

[meow mix]

48. K&R

[tsuki]

49. I have nothing but respect for her. She faced her racism and became

a better person for it. RacistRoo needs to look in the mirror.

[MrMickeysMom]

50. dupe

[sendero]

52. Yours has lasted...

...longer than mine. They are clearly ready to SUCK THE ASS of the Repugs at any opportunity. It is beyond disgusting.

[AspenRose]

56. Contact the Department of Agriculture

202-720-3631 (Vilsack office)

Dept. of Agriculture: 202-720-2791

[Ignis]

58. A kick for this info. Don't just get mad, make a difference!

:kick:

[Cary]

59. Whom do you think you're fooling?

You never had any tolerance. You washed your hands of them long ago. They never had any chance with you and they never will, so who gives a rat's butt?

Enable the "conservatives". Yeah. That's the ticket. :puke:

[Liberal Veteran]

61. I beg your pardon? I have been called an Obama Apologist many times.

You may want to do a cursory search of my posting history before accusing me of being an Obama basher, thank you very much.

[Cary]

66. My apologies.

I'm very pissed about this crap and it ain't right to blame Obama for Brietbart's and Faux Noise's fraud.

[Whisp]

60. you don't have to wash your hands.

Sherrod will either get her old job back, if she wants it, or a new one if she so choses. And apologies were already given to her. and accepted, graciously.

[alarimer]

62. And they all need to stop listening to Breitbart.

So many people have been victims.

This Administration does not stand up to the right-wing noise machine at all. They are willing to throw anyone under the bus: Van Jones, Elizabeth Warren, now this worker for the USDA. Cowardly assholes, the lot of them.

[spiritual_gunfighter]

63. Same here

I am done, and I mean it. This was the last straw for me. I have been fuming at this story since it broke. I watched the video when I came out like everyone else and saw that Shirley Sherrod was describing her awakening that this isnt about white or black it is about rich and poor.

I came away from that video not thinking she was a racist but thinking she was an amazing person to admit to that, something most people would never admit to.

Obviously the administration didnt see it that way. When Fox says jump the White House says how high. I am fucking sick of it!

[Orsino]

64. ...if she is willing to return to working for panicky fools. n/t