When Congressmen Attack
James Poulos ·
Jun 14, 2010 at 7:27am
Rep. Bob Etheridge, North Carolina Democrat, smacks around a student on the streets of Washington -- while cameras roll. The student's offense? Asking him if he supports Obama's agenda. Watch:
Hat tip Radley Balko.
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Jun '10
Re: When Congressmen Attack
This guy needs to be made famous. He's a congressman? It seems like he assaulted that young man. The congressman would look better in orange. I will say that the student would have done better by identifying himself, although I don't think that ameliorates the congressman's position.
Re: When Congressmen Attack
Finally, our politicians are showing some leadership in the area of beating up young people. Now I feel much better about that high school kid I left for dead. Asked me if I'd buy some M&M's to support his athletic program. Decked him. You got a problem with that?
Re: When Congressmen Attack
And this is an elected representative? He works for the people, and yet when one of them has the temerity to question him, he responds with physical force? His compassion for the little guy is historic, no? I think I'd like to meet him. Maybe he'll grab my arm too! He'd regret it of course, but it would bring a great big lopsided smile to my face.
Jun '10
Re: When Congressmen Attack
Actually, now that you mention it Mr. Klavan, who the heck does that young wippersnap think he is? Imposing his ungrateful self upon the consciousness of one of our Royal Leaders should be punishable. Perhaps 20 lashes and a week in the stockade.
May '10
Re: When Congressmen Attack
Wouldn't that be fun to watch...
Re: When Congressmen Attack
Awww. I don't know. I mean, of course, he shouldn't have put his hands on the young man. But it smells like a "set up" to me. I mean, why not just say who you are? That's Journalism 101 if you want answers to your questions. And sort of obvious civility in real life, too. Then again, if what you want is sensational tape ... maybe you don't follow Journalism 101. Just strikes me as .... off ... somehow.
Re: When Congressmen Attack
Here's the latest, Ursula. Etheridge has apologized abjectly; national Dems are rushing to his defense, accusing the kids of being GOP operatives; and Dave Weigel, intrepid reporter on the righty beat, is still trying to learn who they really are. DEVELOPING...
Re: When Congressmen Attack
MORE...identity of "students" -- as they call themselves -- still not known, reports Weigel.
Jun '10
Re: When Congressmen Attack
Unless there is context, which the congressman's apology seems to eliminate, what does it matter who these young men are?
May '10
Re: When Congressmen Attack
I'm reminded of this scene from the movie Big Trouble:
"I hope you realize you've just committed assault."
"I know, I know. You know, I remember a time was you actually had to hit somebody."
I'm not saying what Etheridge did was acceptable. But assault? Please.
A sad consequence of hedonism is disproportionate protection of the body. It's the same reason Americans think locking someone in a concrete cage for 20 years is more humane than a physical injury that heals completely in mere months.
May '10
Re: When Congressmen Attack
cdor: Unless there is context, which the congressman's apology seems to eliminate, what does it matter who these young men are? · Jun 14 at 11:51am
Can you imagine if the tables were turned? That the student -- whoever he is -- had pushed around and physically restrained the Congressman? This is outrageous.
May '10
Re: When Congressmen Attack
Why the visceral reaction to the question? Is he ashamed of supporting the Obama agenda?
It is apparent to me that the "students" were hoping for such a reaction but why give them what they want rather than simply walking away. If I voted for what I thought was the right thing to do, I could hold my head high and take pride in my record, instead of getting defensive when asked about it.
May '10
Re: When Congressmen Attack
I find this whole episode dispiriting for both sides of the debate. If the young men were really just students engaged in a school project, they would have identified themselves clearly and immediately. They were out there trying to get Etheridge to say something damaging -- clearly. And his response was deplorable. But now it becomes a media frenzy? I enjoy your work and your intellect James, but this is inside-the-beltway nonsense that should disgust both sides of the political spectrum. There is nothing in this that speaks to political ideology. It could easily have been obnoxious progressives waylaying some Republican in which case all the comments above would be reversed. And as simple partisan red meat it does nothing to advance the country or Ricochet.
Re: When Congressmen Attack
Trace, I've gotta reject the "both sides" argument here. Some things don't require a measured response. This is one of them. Doesn't matter who the kid is. Doesn't matter what he was up to. The congressman acted like a mob thug. The media frenzy is entirely deserved. If he were a Republican, he would be out of office even as I type.
Re: When Congressmen Attack
Trace Urdan: I find this whole episode dispiriting for both sides of the debate. · Jun 14 at 1:57pm
I'm with you on this one, Trace. The congressman should not have grabbed the young man, but perhaps Etheridge was just having a bad day. If someone approaches on the street, video camera recording, asking questions and refusing to identify himself, well, I'd find it off-putting as well.
May '10
Re: When Congressmen Attack
I, for one, welcome our new Congressional Overlords.
May '10
Re: When Congressmen Attack
Andrew -- I don't disagree with you that the media response would be uneven. But grant me that there is partisanship at work here such that if the situation were reversed, all the comments would be reversed and Ricochet readers would be decrying the media's over-reaction. Etheridge's response was undignified but also seems the consequence of an undignified political age. I dare say that if people waited for me on the Street shoving a camera in my face, trying to trap me into a gaffe, I'd already be serving time by now.
May '10
Re: When Congressmen Attack
I'm concerned about the lack of consistency in these responses by our elected representatives. While Rep. Etheridge showed laudable initiative in his physical response to this provocation, it's possible that other Congresspersons similarly confronted might decline to comment, run away, burst into tears, or experience auditory hallucinations of racial epithets. This is true whether a citizen has the temerity to speak to them on the street, or when constituents confront them in a town hall meeting, obviously confused about the purpose of such a forum.
If the failures of the radical, dare I say laissez-faire Bush administration have shown us anything, it is that in the absence of a firm Federal guiding hand, chaos ensues. In fact, I would go so far as to say that this unfortunate incident, like so many others, can be laid directly at the feet of our former President.
We need to spare our representatives any further embarrassment. We need a major piece of regulatory overreach, preferably with an irrelevant or confusing name, to establish an agency to develop and enforce strict and consistent standards for constituent behavior, with a strong educational component. Or perhaps re-education component, if you catch my drift.
Re: When Congressmen Attack
Trace, all the kid said was, "Do you fully support the Obama agenda?" How on earth would that trap someone into "a gaffe?" Unless, you know, he'd rather obfuscate his real response? And he could have kept walking. (I do that a lot when I saunter along in Venice Beach, beset on all sides by nutjobs and hobos and left-loons.) Instead, he got angry. Angry because he knows he's trapped -- trapped by his party, trapped by his president, and in political trouble. The point really isn't that he grabbed the kid, the point is he got so furious and so outraged at this simple question: "Do you fully support the Obama agenda?" How about a simple: "I represent my district," or "I support him on some things, on some I don't," or "Call my office, kid, and make an appointment like a serious person."
Instead: anger and outrage. A crystal-clear symbol of the trouble the Democratic party is in, and why.
May '10
Re: When Congressmen Attack
I wonder if he would have grabbed at a man the same size as himself? He could have kept walking and said nothing or that he supported the president. Did the student call him a n*****?
I think this little scuffle will pale compared to the reaction tax-paying Americans will have when the government reneges (oops, am I allowed to type that?) on its promises. If it comes down to between the country-clubber and the trucker...