Senator Is "Truly Sorry" For Racial Slur

[CShine]

OLYMPIA -- State Sen. Alex Deccio yesterday apologized on the Senate floor for using a racial slur against another white lawmaker during a private meeting last week.

"I realize this has been very hurtful to members of the African American community and for that I am truly sorry," said Deccio, R-Yakima. "I feel if the Rev. Martin Luther King were here today, he would accept my apology, so I'm asking you to do the same."

During an argument Thursday, Deccio accused Rep. Tom Campbell, R-Roy, of being a perennial obstacle to health care reform, and called him a "nigger in the woodpile" on the issue.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/159099_apology03.html

[Robb]

1. You have got to be fucking kidding me.

I'm sorry, did I wake up and it's 1930?!?

[gatlingforme]

18. do you really think that?

honestly, I do not know what the big deal is --- we are all a biased in some way at some time, he put his foot in his mouth and now he is paying for it. Bias is alive now as it always has been.... to say he should resign is rediculous. the next Dem will say something stupid like this then what --- noone will be in office the way people are talking here. I think he was just an idiot for not thinking before he spoke.

[FlashHarry]

20. Interesting response.

By the way, "no one" is two words. Just here to help. Another thing, you might want to get a few more posts under your belt before you defend something such as this.

[peacetalksforall]

70. Are you kidding or what?

[kysrsoze]

81. You've got to be kidding

The guy used the word "nigger" on the Senate floor! That's not putting your foot in your mouth - it's being a complete asshole. The guy wasn't watching TV in somebody's basement. Dropping F-bombs is one thing, but no right-minded corporation would tolerate something like that. I would expect the same from our lawmakers.

[Sagan]

2. ah, another Repug moment of tolerance and racial harmony

Now they're calling each other "niggers". What a wonderful party the GOP has become.

[flamingyouth]

3. Speaking of boobs in the news...

:eyes:

He needs to resign ... yesterday. :argh:

[DrWeird]

4. LOL.

Yes, Martin Luther King was a real laid back kind of guy when it came to racial slurs.

[0007]

5. Deccio should be forced to resign to show true contrition -

Martin Luther King would accept both his apology and his contrition.

[Kremer]

6. Ouch! Assuming that MLK would accept his apology outright makes me

EVEN MADDER! To think in 2004 in America, we still have elected officials who think and talk like this! Awful! Funny, I heard -0- on the national news about this? I'm sure if any Dem had said it, it would be all over the place!!!!!!!!!!

[RUexperienced]

19. A sitting US Senator from West Virginia

used a similiar phrase on national TV just two (?) years ago.

And Robert Byrd is still a sitting US Senator.

[oneighty]

24. Yes.

And everybody heard about it as I recall.

[RUexperienced]

27. But there was no outrage and no calls for resignation

from resignation from anyone of importance.

I don't even think Jesse or Al showed up to protest outside Byrd's office.

[0rganism]

31. You mean his comment that "there are white niggers too"?

Interesting. I seem to recall much concern and displeasure and a fair amount of media coverage. Maybe we should go look it up again and see what Sen. Byrd meant and what he did about it.

[RUexperienced]

36. I would be very interested to see if there were any significant

calls for his resignation.

I would be happy to eat crow if the Congressional Black Caucus issued a resolution.

And I also eat crow if Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton held news conferences condemning Byrd's remarks.

Yes, the very dumb remarks made national news. He is a UNITED STATES Senator.

[EllieDem]

47. Nothing was done and there was only coverage about it

in right wing circles. He got a pass.

[bsiebs]

82. yeah, right...only the right wing media circles...

lets see...it was on cbs, nbc, abc, cnn, cspan, fox (!), washington post, ny times, latimes... wow, you are correct...only the right wing circle.

EllieDem, perhaps you did not watch or read the news in 2001 - but I did and it was in all the media. Most is archived now, but I was paying attention and it was all over the news. Heck, it originated on Fox News.

[0rganism]

90. The entire mass media is part of "right wing circles" these days

For example, here's CNN's coverage of Byrd's gaff (on Fox news) and immediate apology:
http://www.cnn.com/2001/ALLPOLITICS/03/04/byrd.slur/

Byrd's situation is kind of unique, as a repentant former klan member who now has a record of supporting affirmative action and civil rights. I wouldn't expect Jesse Jackson to call for Byrd's resignation, that'd be shooting his cause in the foot.

[BigBadDaddy-O]

7. Amazing the media missed it huh?

Like everything else.

[DemoTex]

8. Jeeze, I saw the subject line and thought Trent was back in the news.

Looks like the Washington "Lege" (as Molly Ivins calls that august body in Texas) is skewing the stereotype of the racist Republican a bit west and north of its normal lurking ground.

[w13rd0]

9. WHAAA??!?!

On the Senate floor? Called someone a 'nigger'? Health Care Reform? yikes

[David Zephyr]

10. Where Is Any National Coverage of This Outrage?!

Vile.

[Judi Lynn]

11. What an odd man.

He's certain if the REv. Martin Luther King were there today, he would accept his apology.

I guess it's o.k., then, as long as the Rev. King wouldn't go balistic, but then he was known for being really decent to everyone.


Alex Deccio

These Republicans have absolutely no grace, whatsoever. Pure rude, crude, thoughtless, selfish, ugly ignorance. They never reach their adult peak, as they start deteriorating around 8 years old, or even earlier.

Have you ever met many truly well developed (psychologically) Republicans?

[T Bone]

71. check out the smiley face on Deccio's tie

what a rube.

[Native]

94. Have you ever met many truly well developed (psychologically) Republicans?

NO.

[Jax]

12. Here is a good Editorial

about this sleeze bag. From Seattle's KOMO News 4's Ken Schramm:

http://www.komotv.com/kenschram/story.asp?ID=29600

snip...

"Deccio gave us an unvarnished glimpse of who, and what, he is.

He says he didn't mean it.

I'll bet. Most closet racists don't mean to reveal themselves on purpose.

But that's the way it is with boobs: When they pop out in public, there's nothing more to hide."

Well said Ken.

Jax

[UpInArms]

13. I do believe that

Martin Luther King would accept ....


his resignation.

[goclark]

14. Resignation Accepted

:nopity:

Resignation,resignation where are you??

What makes him think that he has a pipe line into the thoughts of our great moral leader?

For shame!

goclark

[JoFerret]

15. This is crap

Go after racist policies not this nonsense.

[DrWeird]

17. Or the racists who make racist policies.

Like Senators.

[JoFerret]

32. We are all racists....

but some of us work on it and may be considered recovering racists. It is not one slip of the tongue into a familiar (racist) expression (IF that is what it was....I don't know)that matters but more a refusal to acknowledge racist attitudes, then attitudes and policies.

[DrWeird]

48. Why are you apologizing for Deccio?

You may make the philosophical argument that everybody is a racist, but not everybody is thinking "nigger in the woodpile" (wtf does that mean anyway?) and most of us would never say it as a "slip of the tongue."

This prick has no business being a senator.

[JoFerret]

72. I'm not.

Period. However - the REAL racist issues are out there. Let's go after them. Now - I have no info on this person's record - but on the basis of this one remark....? Crap. He sounds like an idiot twerp - let's pursue the record not the slip of the tongue.

[FredScuttle]

99. This is a REAL racial issue

this legislator didn't have the sense or decency to think or consider his words before letting loose with an unforgivable racial slur. Then, to add insult to injury, in the midst of his "apology" (more like self-serving rant), he has the utter gall to bring Dr. King up and baldly state that he would be on his side.

Can blacks and other minorities truly believe this man represents their interests when he utters a disgusting remark, then turns his "apology" into a insult to Dr. King's legacy? This man is unfit for office as he obviously does not "get it"

[Tomee450]

73. I disagree

We are not all racists. I am an African American who has experienced racism. Despite this fact, I have no prejudice whatsoever against people of different races. In fact, I prefer neighborhoods with diverse populations.

[JoFerret]

79. We all grew up in a racist society

....we have internalized so many racist images and attitudes. No-one escapes that. Ditto heterosexism. Being black, or gay, or gay and black etc. does not mean you can escape that. You can however be aware of it and work on it. THAT is what makes the difference.
Ditto sexism.

[Tomee450]

84. I strongly disagree

When I encounter someone of a different race, I do not have negative opinions of him just because he is of a different race. If I develop a dislike for an individual it is because of his behavior, not race. Saying everyone is a racist is sometimes just a means to excuse racism.

[wickerwoman]

89. Racism goes deeper than just negative opinions about other races.

You can also internalize a lot of racist, sexist and homophobic garbage being raised in this culture. In many Hispanic and East Indian homes it's perfectly acceptable to express preference for a child with light skin. What is that if not internalized racism? I'm a woman and find myself making extremely sexist judgements about other women and myself sometimes. I don't say it out loud, I try not to act on it as far as I am conscious of it, but early programming doesn't just disappear as soon as you know better.

I don't consciously consider anyone inferior to my but you should hear some of the shit that pops into my head sometimes. I'm not saying everyone is equally racist, but at the same time, I've never experienced a completely unracist person of any color either.

[JoFerret]

100. Maybe you don't

...or think you don't. But we grow up surrounded by negative stereotypes of the "other". We all internalize them and act on those unconscious thoughts. Recovering racist, sexists and heterosexists are at least able to recognize that. For an excellent account of how this process works look at Beverley Tatum's book "Why are all the Black Kids sitting together in the Cafeteria".It is not conscious racism always but pernicious and poisonous nevertheless. And unless actively broken ait becomes a negaitive self-destructive cycle for all of us - white and black.

[Exultant Democracy]

86. That seems like junior varsity sophistry to me.

First of all you leave no room for people of mixed race. How are they supposed to be racist at all? You can't half hate yourself.

You also forget that for a generation now many Americans of all races grow up with MLK as one of their heroes. These people have internalized the messages of tolerance and brotherhood from a young age, and fight for it the rest of there lives.

[JoFerret]

101. You ever heard of

INTERNALIZED racism. The process by which - for example - black children learn to hate themselves for being black? Or gay people hate themselves for being gay....and so on. Freeing oneself of negative stereotypes is uphill work whoever you are.

[RapidCreek]

91. I'm not a racist...never was

wasn't raised that way. Speak for yourself.

RC

[RUexperienced]

16. Sounds like Robert Byrd's "white n*#%er" remark

How stupid anyone (of either party) to go down that road.

[snippy]

21. Reminds me of Bush spreading the rumor about McCain's "nigger daughter."

How very republican.

[RUexperienced]

22. Racism is a TWO party issue

There were lots of reports of both Bill and Hillary using similiar language in their Arkansas days.

[snippy]

23. True. But the republican party praises racists and openly solicits

their support. Most of the racist democrats crossed the aisle and became republicans. Also, I am not familiar with the reports of the Clinton's using racist language as part of their campaign strategy.

[CatWoman]

25. got any links?

[RUexperienced]

26. Try a Google search

"Clinton" "n#%*er" and "trooper"

The reports came from some of his state trooper body guards in Arkansas. Larry Patterson ??? or Peterson???

[CShine]

28. Just tried your google search and..........

......the only pages that came up were the usual extremist screamer sites from way out on the farthest fringes of the right-wing. As expected, there were no links to any major news organization reporting this story, just extremist screamer pages with their paranoid conspiracy theories..

[RUexperienced]

33. Here is an account from a non-RW source

The San Francisco Times



VITUPERATION IN HIGH PLACES
Just to review the bidding, five people have said they have heard Hillary Clinton use anti-Jewish slurs, one former state trooper bodyguard reports that the use of the word "nigger" was frequent in the Clinton household, Bill Clinton is on tape telling Gennifer Flowers that Mario Cuomo acted like a mafioso, and the American Spectator reports that HRC once called Maureen Dowd a "short Irish bitch." For those who feel there is a statute of limitations in such things, the latter incident allegedly occurred in 1996...


Former White House senior staff member George Stephanopoulos in his book, All Too Human, writes about Clinton's mishandling of the Somalia crisis and shows the depth of the President's violent emotions:

"'We're not inflicting pain on these fuckers,' Clinton said, softly at first. 'When people kill us, they should be killed in greater numbers.' Then, with his face reddening, his voice rising, and his fist pounding his thigh, he leaned into Tony , as if it was his fault. 'I believe in killing people who try to hurt you. And I can't believe we're being pushed around by these two-bit pricks'" . . .

At one meeting, Clinton told staff members he wanted everyone in the Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr's office audited by the IRS. "Several people in the meeting told the President he shouldn't do that," the staff member remember. "He slammed his fist down on the table and said: 'I can do any goddamned thing I want. I'm President of the United States. I take care of my friends and I fuck with my enemies. That's the way it is. Anybody who doesn't like it can take a hike."

http://sftimes.editthispage.com/stories/storyReader$53

[lancdem]

37. This quotes the debunked state trooper and the American

Spectator, who are RW sources. I also have no idea who these "five people" are. I'm not sure about the point of the quotes from the Stephanopoulos book. There's nothing racist there, just profanity.

[RUexperienced]

39. Debunked because YOU say so?

Has Bill Clinton ever denied using the N word?

[CShine]

87. Man, that was REALLY, REALLY weak.

Do you even read your crap before you post it? Apparently, you didn't even bother to look at the site before you linked it. You seem to be assuming that the thing is automatically a left-wing news organization just because it has the words "San Francisco" in its title.

WRONG!

"San Francisco Times" is not a news organization at all. It's merely a site that links to other sites. It links to sites of all political stripes. Hell, one of their regularly-linked columnists is goddam Bill Buckley!

You REALLY, REALLY don't have any idea what you're talking about. You've made that very clear here on this thread.

[CatWoman]

29. Is that the guy who was on the American Spectator's payroll?

[RUexperienced]

30. He was on Bill Clinton's payroll

while a state trooper in Arkansas. Beyond that, I'm not sure.

[lancdem]

34. Larry Patterson's allegations have been widely debunked

You need to read David Brock's book, "Blinded by the Right," and "The Hunting of the President" by Gene Lyons and Joe Conason. The man has zero credibility; he and his trooper friends were paid money by RWers with thick wallets to tell lies to Brock when he was with "The American Spectator." Those "reports" you refer to are garbage. I'm surprised you didn't know that. The Clintons are hardly racist. That has to be the dumbest thing I ever heard.

[EllieDem]

35. Debunked? I don't think so

one of Bill's former staff also accused Hillary of calling him a "damn jew bastard"... how about Hillary's Mahatma Ghandi offensive joke?? The clintons are closet racists in my opinion. He let the confederate flag fly proudly during his days in Arkansas.

[lancdem]

41. Give me a break

That campaign worker wasn't even Jewish. Why would she call someone a Jew bastard who wasn't Jewish? And that Mahatma Gandhi joke was a poor choice of words, but hardly a sign of racism. Bill Clinton appointed record numbers of minorities to positions while he was governor and president just so he could insult them behind their backs? Clinton is revered among the African-African community. I guess all those people are idiots, huh?

[RUexperienced]

44. Then you have no problem with Robert Byrd's "white n*#%r" remark?

Why would she call someone a Jew bastard who wasn't Jewish?

The repuke state legislator is accused of doing exactly that- using the word 'nigger' to refer to a white person.

Your response does not help your case. Did you even read the original story?

[CatWoman]

49. I don't understand why Robert Byrd keeps getting interjected into

these conversations.

Really I don't.

Let's stay on topic, shall we?

And last time I looked, Jewish is not a racist slur.

But Nigger is.

[DrWeird]

52. You don't?

Really?

[CatWoman]

62. no, I really don't

care to enlighten me?

[DrWeird]

66. Tis the standard republican response.

Tired of those crazy commie liberals keeping you down? No problem! Just accuse their party of what you're guilty of, regardless of the facts!


Worried that your sexual affairs might develop into a scandal? No problem, just hire women to make up stories about affairs with Clinton, and after a lot of bugging and entrapment we can maybe dig up some evidence!


Tired of hippies complaining about how republicans are wasting taxpayers time and money on important issues that face real americans, like Clinton having sex? Just say that Clinton is "wagging the dog" when he bombs terrorists in Afghanistan (yeah, right, like that's important)!


Can't get rid of those pesky accusations that George W. knew September 11th was going to happen? Just make up some story about how Clinton had bin Laden!



Tired of pinko homosexuals calling your party racists just because Bush gave a campaign rally at a white supremacist camp, and Trent Lott said, in effect, "this country would be in a better place if niggers didn't have rights."? (thank god he's still in office) Then just bring up decades old news about how one democrat was a member of the KKK decades ago (because he had to be to run for election) and has since apologized deeply for it and your sure to win the argument!

[CatWoman]

68. ahhhhhhhhhhh, gotcha

Dr.Weird -- always keeps me straight :D

:loveya:

[RUexperienced]

53. It can be argued that Robert Byrd sets the standard

for brazen hypocricy when it comes to race.

And if you can't agree that "Jew Bastard" is racist then we don't have anything else to talk about.

Good bye.

[CatWoman]

56. um ok

but if the person wasn't even Jewish that still makes it a slur??

:crazy:

see ya!!

[snippy]

92. Bush and the republican party have set the standard for racism in politics

And their standard is that racism is good and should be exploited because most racists vote republican.

[RUexperienced]

93. Are we talking about only white racists?

*** Added: We have DEMOCRATS on this thread that claim that "Jew Bastard" is not racist. And that "white nigger" is not racist.

They make my point that racism is a TWO party issue.

[snippy]

97. I am talking about the party which has chosen to appeal to racists.

[RUexperienced]

98. I understand your point

But what I am also saying is that, to paraphrase the senator in question, there are many racists "in OUR woodpile."

[Voltaire99]

55. Oh, come on

How was the Mahatma Gandhi slur merely "a poor choice of words"? No one believes that, including Hillary Clinton. She calculatedly told a racist joke.

And thus were we offered a window on her soul: a place where racism, even if in small degree, quite obviously dwells.

[Judi Lynn]

43. right-wing lunatics attempted to hijack that event and misrepresent it

We're all aware.

By deliberately refusing to "get it," they attempted to claim she actually was ridiculing both Mahatma Ghandi and his peers.

Stupid, and unbelievable clumsy attempt to take a kick at Hillary Clinton.

A well-balanced person wouldn't dream of going to those lengths to take a shot at someone. There are limits.

[thebigidea]

51. funny how Clinton can be used as a distraction for EVERYTHING

[CatWoman]

57. the ABC's of politics, my friend

Always Blame Clinton :hi:

[Kathy in Cambridge]

78. Funny how Clinton is used by certain people to perpetuate

right-wing talking points that have since been discredited. They mustn't have received the memo from HQ....

:crazy:

[Kathy in Cambridge]

75. I refer you to "Blinded By the Right" by David Brock.

all the points you and your cohort bring up are debunked.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

76. Dupe

[EllieDem]

46. Speaking of paying people

Remember Larry Flynt paid all those women to spill secrets on Hyde and the boys. Guess what? They were paid AND it was true. Paying someone doesn't mean its not true. Period.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

74. "Troopergate" was discredited, as were ALL the testimonies of the troopers

nice right-wing talking point you've decided to use as evidence.

[Judi Lynn]

38. self edit. n/t

[JoFerret]

40. WE ARE ALL RACISTS

- the issue is whether we try to do something about it or not. So forget this Ner, Ner Clintons etc. They are not a paragon of virtue. His policies and attitudes however were better for African Americans than Bush's That is what matters.

(Just as we are all African Americans (if American of course) - just that some of us recognize the African origins of the human race and many don't.)

[RUexperienced]

50. I agree with much of what you say.

I just wish we could concentrate on more issues of REAL racism and focus on fewer instances of imaginary racism.

[Fleshdancer]

42. Don't bring Rev. Martin Luther King Jr into it!

He should have just apologized with out saying "I feel if Rev. Martin Luther King were here today, he would accept my apology, so I'm asking you to do the same."

There's just something wrong with saying the n-word and then apologizing by trying to force people into accepting your apology by invoking the memory of a Civil Rights leader. A man who lacks the courage by using the n-word has no right to even say the name Rev. Martin Luther King.

:eyes:

[EllieDem]

45. Sorry but you CAN"T let a former Leader of the

Klan movement (Byrd) get away with using the N word a few years ago - and then expect people to jump all over this guy. You just can't. Its hypocrisy beyond belief.

[CatWoman]

54. I believe Byrd is correct

in saying that there are both black and white niggers.

P.S. -- Byrd is no longer in the clan. Is he to pay for that the rest of his life?

He certainly has atoned.

If I can forgive him..............

[demdave]

58. "there are both black and white niggers"????

Then are we sure they are NOT in the woodpile????

[CatWoman]

59. sorry -- that's just the way I look at it

I don't think the word "nigger" just applies to the black race.

It identifies ignorant low-lifes, in my opinion. And you find those in all races.

Again -- in my opinion.

[EllieDem]

61. Someone in here is missing the point

LancDem? You're saying its not racism if the person is not even of the race of the slur (i.e. "damn jew bastard") ..... but this senator is calling a white guy the "n" word. So you're saying this isn't racist either. Just trying to keep everyone consistent

[CatWoman]

64. I think you are talking to me

It seems to me that Jewish is a race, not a slur. So how can calling someone non Jewish "Jewish" be a slur?

Bastard is a cuss word. Or maybe not. The dictionary gives several options. I suppose it depends on context.

Nigger on the other hand is a slur. And, again, in my opinion, it transends race.

[RUexperienced]

63. She also claims that "Jew Bastard" is not racist

So I guess she makes my point that racism is a TWO party issue.

[CatWoman]

65. see my response above

I thought you were gone??

I suppose you're calling me racist? Well - I've been called worse. And by people who know me a great deal better than you do.

p.s. -- I think both of you are unfairly targetting the wrong poster.

I can hold my own, and stand by my words.

Don't try to put it on LancDem.

[Terwilliger]

67. what's the difference between a bastard and a Jew bastard?

:shrug:

[CatWoman]

69. LOL

one is kosher? :shrug:

[Tomee450]

77. I didn't get angry with Byrd and I'm black.

I don't know of too many black people who were upset at Byrd because we knew exactly what he was trying to say. As far as his Klan membership, that was years ago. I am not going to harbor resentment against an old man for something he did fifty years ago and for which he has repeatedly expressed regret.

[Catherine Vincent]

60. I don't think it's a big deal.

He was having a private conversation. As long as it wasn't on the senate floor then he should apolgize and move on. The guy is probably prejudiced but we can't help that. If he doesn't mind using the n word then that is his problem. He just better keep it off the Senate floor.

[Dogmudgeon]

80. An opportunity

While all of us -- and presumably the Washington State Republican Party -- are arguing over our responses to racism, we should stop for a moment to see the opportunity that petty racism gives us.

If Deccio can confront this and "come clean," he will be well-placed to take on racism within the Republican Party -- unless, of course, he is a really-for-real racist. By turning the spotlight on the GOP's unregenerate racists, the power of the neo-cons can be reduced and give Republican moderates and progressives a chance to re-assert themselves in their party.

In the short run, it means more victories for the Democrats. In the long run, it means less racism anywhere.

Bob Bauman is the exemplar here. He was a fire-breathing anti-gay right-winger who got nabbed in a police sting having sex with an underage boy. He spent most of the rest of his life promoting gay rights among the Republicans, with the result that the Log Cabin Republicans are one of the strongest "liberal" blocs within that party.

For us Democrats, it means that we won't be so quick to think of ourselves as devoid of all racism. Racism (and other forms of xenophobia and bigotry) is a deeply-rooted disease in the cultural psyche of the West; it will not go away easily without effort on the part of all people.

The cry ought not to be "Racist!" but "Repent!" None of us is above Deccio's stupidity, and all of us should use every opportunity that presents itself to eliminate hatred.

--bkl
(descends from soap box)

[Endangered Specie]

83. Bad case of Trent Lotticus (aka foot in mouth disease)

[bobbyboucher]

85. Lots of true colors being shown

in this thread. No surprises though.

[Barkley]

88. MLK would be more interested in Deccio's "health care reform"

and its impact on the African American community and poor
than his personal apology.

By the way, what exactly about health care were they debating?

[rocktivity]

95. "Nigger in woodpile" is not a slur

It's a direct epithet.

THIS is a slur:
"I feel if the Rev. Martin Luther King were here today, he would accept my apology, so I'm asking you to do the same."


rocknation

[ElsewheresDaughter]

96. holy crap!.......trent lott looks like a member of the NAACP by comparison