Ryan Zinke To U.S. Rep. Whose Grandparents Were Imprisoned In WWII: Konnichiwa!
Source: Huffington Post
03/15/2018 06:43 pm ET
Zinke made the dumb comment in response to a plea that we not forget a dark moment in our countrys history.
By Ryan Grenoble and Kimberly Yam
Lets all hope President Donald Trumps next candidate for secretary of state isnt Ryan Zinke. Because as evidenced by a stupid blunder on Thursday, diplomacy isnt his strong suit.
The incident centers around Zinkes tone-deaf reaction to Rep. Colleen Hanabusa (D-Hawaii), whose grandfathers were incarcerated by the U.S. government during World War II for their Japanese heritage. She said one of her grandfathers, a U.S. citizen, didnt speak about the painful experience until much later in life.
Hanabusa shared the detail Thursday morning in a hearing with the interior secretary, seeking to persuade him to restore around $2 million in grant funds for organizations dedicated to preserving the memory of that ugly chapter in American history.
I believe that it is essential that we as a nation recognize our darkest moments so that we dont have them repeat again, Hanabusa urged Zinke.
Read more: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/ryan-zinke-internment-camp-wwii-konnichiwa_us_5aaacf27e4b05b2217fd44c6
Judi Lynn
(160,527 posts)By CRISTIANO LIMA 03/15/2018 06:51 PM EDT
Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) on Thursday called it flippant & juvenile for Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to respond to a question about preserving internment sites with a Japanese greeting.
The internment of nearly 120,000 Japanese Americans is no laughing matter, @SecretaryZinke, tweeted Hirono, the first U.S. senator born in Japan and the first Asian-American woman elected to the chamber.
During a House Natural Resources Committee earlier in the day, Zinke was pressed by Rep. Colleen Hanabusa (D-Hawaii), a fourth-generation Japanese-American, to commit to refunding a National Park Service program that offers grants toward the preservation of confinement camps where Japanese-Americans were held during World War II.
Are you committed to continue to grant programs that are identified, I believe, as the Japanese American Confinement Sites grants program which were funded in 2017? Will we see them funded again in 2018? Hanabusa asked.
More:
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/03/15/ryan-zinke-japanese-internment-sites-mazie-hirono-466151
fountainofyouth
(409 posts)Who addressed Indian-American U.S. government officials as if they were foreign!
http://foreignpolicy.com/2014/07/25/freshman-congressman-mistakes-senior-government-officials-for-foreigners/
Docreed2003
(16,858 posts)nwduke
(350 posts)Last edited Thu Mar 15, 2018, 10:04 PM - Edit history (1)
Thats all I have to say about that! No wonder he fits in so well with trumps mafia!
sheshe2
(83,751 posts)Never ceases to embarrass this country and what it has stood for.
red dog 1
(27,797 posts)K&R
Submariner
(12,503 posts)Although she strikes me as too much a Lady to curse, but maybe she will make an exception.
Nitram
(22,794 posts)She corrected his Japanese. "I believe it is still ohayo gozaimas."
47of74
(18,470 posts)BreweryYardRat
(6,556 posts)You can tell that she's thinking something along the lines of "ichiban baka yaro" in that shot.
mainer
(12,022 posts)Would have been a great response from Hanabusa.
yurbud
(39,405 posts)Google "republicans defend Japanese internment camps" and you'll see lots of them, including Trump.
hatrack
(59,584 posts).