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Thread: Cynthia McKinney Accused Of Hitting Officer

  1. #91
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    PLATE TECTONICS
    Almost every armchair pundit (left or right) who has criticized Cynthia McKinney has told only part of her story.

    When she was returned to congress, her party, overlooking well-documented procedure with a number of historical precedents, refused to give her back the seniority to which she was entitled. In terms of committee assignments, instead of being a six-term senior member of her committees, she was a freshman. This placed her last on the list of questioners, last in terms of pecking order, last in terms of recognition, and last in terms of agenda setting. She was denied her old spot on the House Foreign Relations committee. She was moved further and further away from the coveted and influential title of “ranking member” that she should have been approaching. Should the House revert back to Democratic control this year she might have even chaired a committee. God forbid!

    They did throw the Negro woman McKinney a bone in the form of a nicer office than before (the only place where her true seniority was recognized). “Here bitch, drive this Cadillac and shut up!”

    While House Democratic leadership under Nancy Pelosi of California has been brutal to Cynthia McKinney, the treatment afforded her by the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) has been equally despicable. Not only did the CBC not fight for McKinney’s legitimate seniority, it also seems that they have taken pleasure in snubbing her. Solidarity my ass.

    One anecdote paints the picture pretty clearly.

    Last fall, after I had acted as a questioner for two panels sponsored by McKinney at the CBC’s annual convention, I was surprised as she handed me a ticket to the CBC formal banquet. This is a big annual event and I sat just a few tables away from John Kerry. Howard Dean was a few tables past Kerry. More than a thousand people, dressed to the nines, filled a crowded ballroom.

    Cynthia was a no-show and it didn’t take long to figure out why. As every black member of Congress was introduced by seniority, starting with the Honorable John Conyers of Michigan, Cynthia McKinney’s name was saved for last. Even the Congressional Black Caucus could not recognize a sister’s seniority and service, not even when it wouldn’t have cost them a thing.

    Where was Cynthia during that dinner? She wasn’t there. She was off violating a direct order from Nancy Pelosi not to attend a massive anti-war rally on the Mall. She was standing with Cindy Sheehan. She was giving a speech denouncing the war in Iraq and the Bush administration. She was doing her job. I sat at McKinney’s table next to my ad hoc dinner partner Kathleen Cleaver, weeping over the insult on McKinney. Not once since have I seen Cynthia McKinney even flinch over it.

    I have watched Cynthia McKinney quietly and gracefully endure monstrous insults, sleights and provocations that I could never keep silent over. I have watched the world wait for a misplaced burp or worse from her and I have watched her refuse to take the bait on at least fifty occasions.

    Are revolutions started because those in revolt rise to offered bait? I think not.

    In the case of Cynthia McKinney and the Capitol Hill Police officer, I, like the rest of those reading this story, have not seen what happened. There may be a tape that will surface at some point as we wait to see whether a grand jury will indict her on idiotic charges of assault. I don’t know whether the Capitol Hill Cop was white or black, young or old, a rookie or a veteran. I wish it all hadn’t happened and I’d bet Cynthia feels the same way.

    But then again…

    THE GREATEST COMPLIMENT OF MY LIFE
    In the spring of 2004 as I was arranging a speech and fundraiser for Cynthia McKinney in Los Angeles wherein we visited a small local museum of the civil rights movement. It was only about two miles from where I had once worked. Pictures of Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy triggered painful memories for me. As I stood transfixed looking at a picture taken circa 1965 of an LAPD black and white with two helmeted officers wielding batons high above their heads in a street fight with blacks, Cynthia McKinney walked up and stood beside me. Quietly, so that only I could hear she said, “That’s what you used to do when you used to be white.”

    Human being.

    John Kennedy and even Dwight Eisenhower were forgiven for having affairs. Bill Clinton was forgiven for a dozen crimes. Ronald Reagan was forgiven for everything. Who will dare call it justice when and if Cynthia McKinney is not forgiven and approved of for being real? There is an easy way for most people to avoid reaching their limits and the risk of being embarrassed. The first rule is: don’t do anything risky. Don’t stretch the envelope.

    With 2,400 American KIA in Iraq, with the US economy ever-shrinking for the poor and middle classes, with US government corruption reeking like a rotting Elephant in the African sun, with voting rights being violated in a gentrifying and whitening New Orleans, with the crimes of 9/11 not only unsolved but covered up by both Democrats and Republicans, there would seem to be many reasons why the envelope needs to be ripped apart a bit.

    I have little hope for it now. All the “just get along” folks seem to be winning the day and my friend Cynthia McKinney has some big choices ahead for her. I and many others will be doing all we can from around the country to get her re-elected again this year if that’s what she asks.

    But let me say this clearly: If Cynthia McKinney wants to start a revolution over a cop who touched her, or anything else, I’ll welcome it and I know damn well which side I’ll be on.

    End
    No One Knows Everything. Only Together May We Find The Truth JG


  2. #92
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    The persecution of Cynthia McKinney

    http://www.workers.org/2006/us/mckinney-0420/

    By Monica Moorehead
    Published Apr 15, 2006 1:08 PM

    On March 29, Rep. Cynthia McKinney of Georgia reportedly had a physical altercation with Capitol Police as she attempted to enter the House of Representatives building in Washington, D.C. The African-American congresswoman stated at a March 31 press conference that an officer who stopped her at the metal detector entrance treated her with suspicion as she tried to gain entrance to her office. She added that House representatives are usually able to bypass the detector because they are recognized by the authorities, whether they wear special lapel pins or not.

    Although the nationality of the officer in question has still not been identified, McKinney stated that she was a victim of racial profiling. At a March 31 press conference at Howard Uni ver sity, McKinney went on to say, “This whole incident was instigated by the inappropriate touching and stopping of me, a female Black congresswoman. I deeply regret this incident occurred, and I am certain that after a full review of the facts, I will be exonerated.”

    Not waiting for a full review of the case, McKinney has been tried and found guilty by the big business media and her collea gues. The former House majority leader, Republican Tom Delay, labeled McKinney a “racist.” Rep. Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat from California, has refused to speak to her.

    After speaking privately to some members of the Congressional Black Caucus on April 5, McKinney formally apologized for the incident on the House floor on April 6. Even with this public apology, the Capitol Police and federal prosecutors are determining whether to seek a warrant for McKinney’s arrest for allegedly striking the officer.

    Real issues behind the backlash
    It is important to understand why the right-wing and ultra-right politicians have used this particular incident to launch an all-out racist offensive against Cynthia McKinney while, at the same time, so-called liberal politicians have all but abandoned her and treated her like a social pariah. Some of these same Democrats view McKinney’s actions as an unhelpful distraction as the elections loom ever larger.

    Millions of African Americans and other peoples of color can identify with McKinney being a victim of racial profiling. There isn’t a person of color in the U.S. who has not been either the direct or indirect victim of police scrutiny or outright harassment, whether they live in a poor, urban area or if they are an elected politician like McKinney.

    It is crucial that McKinney receive the benefit of the doubt in this case because racism is endemic throughout U.S. society in many forms and transcends class barriers.

    McKinney’s political history is also an important factor. She is an articulate, outspoken Black woman who has taken many progressive stances since she became the first Black woman elected to the Georgia state legislature, in 1988, and the first African American woman from Georgia to serve in the U.S. House of Represen ta tives, beginning in 1992.

    McKinney initiated conferences exposing the imperialist role of U.S. corporate interests in Africa, including the Congo. She openly accused the U.S. government of conspiring to allow the 9/11 attacks to happen. She has spoken at numerous rallies against the U.S. war and occupation of Iraq and cutbacks in social programs. In 2002, she lost her seat in the House when the right-wing mobilized against her. She won her seat back during the 2004 elections.

    McKinney will be a central figure in the upcoming documentary “American Blackout,” which calls for a full investigation of the disenfranchisement of Black voters during the 2000 and 2004 presidential elections.

    The right-wing likes to go after an influential figure who visibly stands up and defends the rights of the most oppressed, and this is the main reason why they have seized on this latest incident to politically persecute Rep. Cynthia McKinney.
    No One Knows Everything. Only Together May We Find The Truth JG


  3. #93
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    McKinney report cites assault with 'closed fist'

    http://ajc.printthis.clickability.co...&partnerID=553

    By BOB KEMPER
    Published on: 04/19/06

    The official police report on Rep. Cynthia McKinney's clash with a Capitol Hill police officer three weeks ago says the DeKalb County congresswoman struck the officer "in his chest with [a] closed fist."

    The "event report" — obtained Tuesday by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution — describes the altercation as an assault on a police officer.

    The officer involved in the incident, identified as Paul McKenna, filed the report with his supervisors immediately after the incident occurred at 8:55a.m. March 29.

    The report for the first time provides specific details of what happened when McKenna tried to stop McKinney from going around a security checkpoint at a House office building.

    There had previously been reports that McKinney "stabbed" the officer with a cellphone or that she slapped McKenna with an open hand.

    McKinney said she was the victim of racial profiling and that the officer had touched her inappropriately when he tried to stop her.

    But under pressure from House Democrats and the Congressional Black Caucus, McKinney, a Democrat, apologized for the incident on the House floor last week.

    McKinney's office declined to comment on the report Tuesday, saying it involved a pending legal matter.

    The report does not identify McKinney by name. It only describes her and identifies her as a suspect.

    That's routine procedure for Capitol Hill police, who list the identities of lawmakers and congressional aides involved in incidents only on confidential supplemental reports, police familiar with the process said.

    McKinney's age — 51 — is also reported incorrectly. The report lists her as 40. Congressional and police authorities, however, confirmed the report's authenticity.

    The decision as to whether McKinney will be charged remains in the hands of a grand jury in Washington.

    U.S. Attorney Ken Wainstein turned the matter over to the grand jury two weeks ago. Chuck Canterbury, national president of the Fraternal Order of Police, said he met last week with McKenna and asked him to consider filing a lawsuit against McKinney.

    Canterbury also called on McKinney to apologize directly to McKenna.
    No One Knows Everything. Only Together May We Find The Truth JG


  4. #94
    Partridge Guest
    http://www.counterpunch.org/blankfort04172006.html

    Six years ago this May, Lantos was driving his car in Washington, D.C., and ran over the left foot of 13-year-old Owen Sanderson. Sanderson and his eighth grade classmates from a school in Bolton, Mass., were crossing the plaza in front of the Capitol when the congressman drove over the boy's foot, sending him to the pavement screaming in pain, the boy and his teachers told the press. Lantos then left the scene without getting out of his car to see whether the boy had been hurt.

    As the Boston Globe described it, "While several horrified teachers and the principal shouted at Lantos to stop, the California Democrat sat rigidly, staring straight ahead and refusing to get out of his white Ford Taurus, which carried U.S. Congress plates."
    "The first thing I heard was Owen screaming," said Ken Tucker, principal of the Worcester-area school. "Owen's foot was pinned under the car."
    Lantos, 72 at the time, finally reversed slightly, freeing Owen's foot and ankle, and drove off without checking on his condition, said Tucker and several teachers. Lantos said he had no idea the boy had been hurt. "I was driving to my office," he said. "There was a typical spring mob of tourists and kids and so on. … One of the kids, horsing around, not looking or something, jumped in front of the car, stumbled, then got up and walked away."
    Owen's teachers and principal were dismayed at what they saw as insensitivity and arrogance by a government official, the Boston Globe reported. "If he had stopped and spoken to us, we would have had a much different response to this," said Malin, the art teacher. "It's called human decency."
    Youngsters "learn too often in life that if you have money and power, you're above the law," said Perkins, the school nurse. "That's not the way it's supposed to be."
    The teachers, Tucker and the tour guide disputed Lantos' assertion that he did not know Owen was hurt. Lantos "was asked several times to get out of the car by myself and the teachers," Tucker said. "He was told, 'You hit a kid and you need to stop.'"
    "He was trying to drive through a crowd of kids, was what he was doing. Why or how, I don't know," Tucker said. "He didn't roll down his window. He made no offer to get out of the car."
    Laura Friend, an English teacher who was among those chaperoning the 68 students, said she raced toward the Taurus and screamed at Lantos through a half-open window.

    "I was saying, `Stop, stop, stop! Back up, back up, back up!' He didn't look at me. He didn't even take his hands off the wheel or anything," Friend said.
    When it appeared Lantos might not stop, Tucker said, he stepped in front of the car. A Capitol Police officer twice told the principal to move out of the way or he would be arrested, Tucker and several teachers recounted. "The officer said, 'Look at his license plates. He's a congressman. If we need to get in touch with him, we can find him if need be,'" Friend recalled.
    The boy he hit said he did not harbor bad feelings toward Lantos or his wife, Annette, who was a passenger in the car.
    But "it's disappointing that they didn't get out and say, 'Are you OK?' I just feel bad he didn't call to apologize."
    Lantos paid a $25 fine after being issued a ticket for "failure to pay full time and attention," said Lt. Dan Nichols, spokesman for the Capitol Police, adding that the investigation was closed.
    Which brings us back to the Capitol Police and Cynthia McKinney and her accusations of racism on its part.

  5. #95
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    McKinney Calls Staffer 'A Fool' On Tape

    http://www.bet.com/News/mckinneytape...7E4249C5FB7%7D

    By Tracy Stokes, BET.com Staff Writer & Wire Reports

    Posted April 24, 2006 – Embattled U.S. Rep. Cynthia McKinney (D-Ga.) is back in the spotlight.

    During an interview with WSB-TV in Georgia Saturday, a reporter asked her if the controversy over the confrontation with a Capitol Hill Police officer last month had been a distraction for her.

    McKinney fired back, telling the reporter, “You’re a distraction because that seems to be all you want to talk about.”

    A frustrated McKinney got up and walked out of the interview, still wearing a microphone, and could be heard bad-mouthing her communications director, Coz Carson. “You know what? They lied to Coz and Coz is a fool,” the congresswoman said.

    When McKinney realized she was still miked, she let it be known to the reporter that the comments she made about Carson were off the record.

    But the station aired the footage saying they don’t make “deals” with people being interviewed about what it can air.

    McKinney, a DeKalb County Democrat, is running for re-election in the Fourth Congressional District.

    A federal grand jury in Washington is considering whether McKinney should be charged in connection with the scuffle.

    She first charged police of racial profiling and later apologized on the House floor, saying the confrontation should not have happened.
    No One Knows Everything. Only Together May We Find The Truth JG


  6. #96
    beltman713 Guest
    She just doesn't know when to quit.

  7. #97
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    Quote Originally Posted by beltman713
    She just doesn't know when to quit.
    I saw the news coverage. The guy kept asking her about the "incident", and she didn't want to talk about it... she got up, walked away, said what she said on mike, came back to the chair, and said that anything she said off of "this chair" is not for use publicly... They used it anyway.
    No One Knows Everything. Only Together May We Find The Truth JG


  8. #98
    PhilosophyGenius Guest
    This lattest McKinney incident reminds me of the scene from one of the Naked Gun movies where Leslie Neilson had to go to the bathroom in the middle of a press conference. When he was in the bathroom he forgot to take off his microphone on and everyone at the confrence heard Neilson take a big long piss and everyone just sat there in shock of what they were hearing.

  9. #99
    jetsetlemming Guest
    I saw the guy she's running against last night on tv (can't remember what show; it was playing in the backround while I tried to bring my computer back to life). He looked like he had something wedged far, far up his ass.

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