House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.)

[KingOrfeo]

Does anyone know what he said to them?

Not, at any rate, anything having to do with the "Stelly Plan" tax reform, as Scalise insists. The dates don't fit.

 

[KingOrfeo]

Looks like the WH has learned the right lesson from what the Pubs have done with Benghazi.

Tuesday, Jan 6, 2015 03:08 PM EST

GOP’s Scalise saga worsens: White House aggressively trolls House leadership

The furor over Steve Scalise's dicey associations seemed to be calming. The White House is trying to keep it alive

Jim Newell

You may have missed the BREAKING POLITICAL NEWS that BROKE in the final week of 2014 about how a top Republican may kinda-sorta be racist, or at least have “talked to racists” at some point in his life. If either of these things is true, then House majority whip Steve Scalise is… basically just like any Republican politician from the past 40 years. We hope that you missed this story because you were spending the holidays doing better things than “reading Internet politics articles about some racist.” Racist Republican dudes can always wait; holiday cheer is fleeting.

To catch you up to speed: It was revealed last week that new-ish House majority whip Steve Scalise, chief cattle-herder and no. 3 overall guy in the Republican leadership, gave a speech to the European-American Unity and Rights Organization (EURO) in 2002. That’s the white supremacist group founded by former Klansman and Louisiana politician David Duke. A couple of days ago, a Louisiana reporter claimed that Scalise also liked to describe himself as “David Duke without the baggage” early in his political career.

Some conservative commentators have argued that Scalise should resign his leadership position. He’s just some whip, after all. But Speaker John Boehner and majority leader Kevin McCarthy have stood by their man. Incoming Republican Rep. Mia Love, who is black, has also defended Scalise, which makes everything okay.

It was likely the hope of Boehner, McCarthy and everyone else in the GOP who’s responsible for protecting the party’s “national image” that the revelation would enter and exit the news cycle during the quiet period between Christmas and New Year’s without becoming a whole big protracted thing. Not a bad bet: by Sunday night, the Scalise-talking-to-racists story seemed to be settling into its plot in the graveyard of news cycles past. New, important items, like the New Jersey governor hugging people at a football game in Texas, would take their rightful places leading “the conversation.”

But the White House wasn’t that interested in letting this latest episode of “Republican leader caught being racist/talking to racists” finish its course just yet.

Press Secretary Josh Earnest was asked about Scalise, and what should be done with him, at Monday’s press briefing. We’d have expected him to say something like, “It’s up to the Republicans to decide who they want to be in their leadership” and leave it at that. And sure enough, that’s where he started: “It’s ultimately their decision to make.”

But then Earnest added: “There’s no arguing that who Republicans decide to elevate into a leadership position says a lot about what the conference’s priorities and values are.” Meow! He didn’t stop there, either:

Mr. Earnest three times referred to Mr. Scalise’s reported description of himself as “David Duke without the baggage” — a quote he reportedly gave to a veteran Louisiana journalist 20 years ago.

Republicans have talked extensively about the “need to broaden their appeal to young people, and to women, to gays and to minorities.The success of their party will depend on their ability to broaden their outreach,” Mr. Earnest said.

“It ultimately will be up to individual Republicans in Congress to decide whether or not elevating Mr. Scalise into leadership will effectively reinforce that strategy. I’m sure that part of that decision will be what kind of message it sends.”

This is a surprisingly comprehensive trolling effort from the White House. We’ve got the passive-aggressive “what they do will say a lot about their values” trolling, the “they need to consider what’s best for their party” concern trolling, and the aggressive-aggressive “He called himself ‘David Duke without the baggage!’ for God’s sake” trolling. That last one is most notable, given that it’s just one reporter’s claim that that’s how Steve Scalise liked to describe himself. (What even is “David Duke without the baggage” anyway? Someone who’s really racist but does a decent job keeping it on the down-low? Someone who’s good at politics but not racist? Between those two possibilities we’ve described a lot prominent politicians, and most of them wouldn’t think to call themselves “David Duke without the baggage,” so it’s got to be something else.)

Anyway, Steve Scalise better step down his leadership role immediately, otherwise people might get the impression that the Republican party turns a blind eye towards racism.

 

[LeatherChaps]

Byrd never denied, although he did renounce his involvement with that particular organization. As for his political affiliation, he was a Democrat during the era of the conservative Democratic "solid south" and one of the few to remain when many left to join the Republican Party when the parties realigned.

Byrd said, in 2005, "I know now I was wrong. Intolerance had no place in America. I apologized a thousand times ... and I don't mind apologizing over and over again. I can't erase what happened."

Unlike Mr. Scalise, who has tried to claim ignorance of something that there is no possible way he could be ignorant of, then associates of Mr. Duke tried to lie to cover his ass.

So not such a clear parallel at all.

Well.... yes it is. Byrd remained a racist all his life.

In a March 4, 2001 interview with Tony Snow, Byrd said of race relations:

They're much, much better than they've ever been in my lifetime ... I think we talk about race too much. I think those problems are largely behind us ... I just think we talk so much about it that we help to create somewhat of an illusion. I think we try to have good will. My old mom told me, 'Robert, you can't go to heaven if you hate anybody.' We practice that. There are white niggers. I've seen a lot of white niggers in my time, if you want to use that word. We just need to work together to make our country a better country, and I'd just as soon quit talking about it so much.[64]

Clearly there is a double standard here. To deny this reveals your own double standards.

 

[RobDownSouth]

Well.... yes it is. Byrd remained a racist all his life.

You're not very smart, are ya?

 

[Wrong Element]

Well.... yes it is. Byrd remained a racist all his life.


Clearly there is a double standard here. To deny this reveals your own double standards.

Yeah, I pre-emptively brought up Byrd way back at the beginning of this thread, to get the inevitable mention out of the way so we could focus on current life in the United States.

The topic is Steve Scalise. Do you think he should be in the party leadership?

 

[Busybody]

Yeah, I pre-emptively brought up Byrd way back at the beginning of this thread, to get the inevitable mention out of the way so we could focus on current life in the United States.

The topic is Steve Scalise. Do you think he should be in the party leadership?

One speech 12 yrs ago about tax policy

vs

Ayers

Wright

Farakhan

Sharpton

Shabaz

 

[Busybody]

in 2008 we were told sitting in a PEW for 20 yrs in Wrights Church doesn't mean Obama agreed with him

now we are told ONE speech 12 yrs ago on TAX policy is RACIST

 

[Boxlicker101]

Looks like the WH has learned the right lesson from what the Pubs have done with Benghazi.

Tuesday, Jan 6, 2015 03:08 PM EST

GOP’s Scalise saga worsens: White House aggressively trolls House leadership

The furor over Steve Scalise's dicey associations seemed to be calming. The White House is trying to keep it alive

Jim Newell

You may have missed the BREAKING POLITICAL NEWS that BROKE in the final week of 2014 about how a top Republican may kinda-sorta be racist, or at least have “talked to racists” at some point in his life. If either of these things is true, then House majority whip Steve Scalise is… basically just like any Republican politician from the past 40 years. We hope that you missed this story because you were spending the holidays doing better things than “reading Internet politics articles about some racist.” Racist Republican dudes can always wait; holiday cheer is fleeting.

To catch you up to speed: It was revealed last week that new-ish House majority whip Steve Scalise, chief cattle-herder and no. 3 overall guy in the Republican leadership, gave a speech to the European-American Unity and Rights Organization (EURO) in 2002. That’s the white supremacist group founded by former Klansman and Louisiana politician David Duke. A couple of days ago, a Louisiana reporter claimed that Scalise also liked to describe himself as “David Duke without the baggage” early in his political career.

Some conservative commentators have argued that Scalise should resign his leadership position. He’s just some whip, after all. But Speaker John Boehner and majority leader Kevin McCarthy have stood by their man. Incoming Republican Rep. Mia Love, who is black, has also defended Scalise, which makes everything okay.

It was likely the hope of Boehner, McCarthy and everyone else in the GOP who’s responsible for protecting the party’s “national image” that the revelation would enter and exit the news cycle during the quiet period between Christmas and New Year’s without becoming a whole big protracted thing. Not a bad bet: by Sunday night, the Scalise-talking-to-racists story seemed to be settling into its plot in the graveyard of news cycles past. New, important items, like the New Jersey governor hugging people at a football game in Texas, would take their rightful places leading “the conversation.”

But the White House wasn’t that interested in letting this latest episode of “Republican leader caught being racist/talking to racists” finish its course just yet.

Press Secretary Josh Earnest was asked about Scalise, and what should be done with him, at Monday’s press briefing. We’d have expected him to say something like, “It’s up to the Republicans to decide who they want to be in their leadership” and leave it at that. And sure enough, that’s where he started: “It’s ultimately their decision to make.”

But then Earnest added: “There’s no arguing that who Republicans decide to elevate into a leadership position says a lot about what the conference’s priorities and values are.” Meow! He didn’t stop there, either:



This is a surprisingly comprehensive trolling effort from the White House. We’ve got the passive-aggressive “what they do will say a lot about their values” trolling, the “they need to consider what’s best for their party” concern trolling, and the aggressive-aggressive “He called himself ‘David Duke without the baggage!’ for God’s sake” trolling. That last one is most notable, given that it’s just one reporter’s claim that that’s how Steve Scalise liked to describe himself. (What even is “David Duke without the baggage” anyway? Someone who’s really racist but does a decent job keeping it on the down-low? Someone who’s good at politics but not racist? Between those two possibilities we’ve described a lot prominent politicians, and most of them wouldn’t think to call themselves “David Duke without the baggage,” so it’s got to be something else.)

Anyway, Steve Scalise better step down his leadership role immediately, otherwise people might get the impression that the Republican party turns a blind eye towards racism.

I think it's worth noting here that David Duke was a Democrat through most of his political life, as were and are most of the worst racists in the history of the US. Even if not actually registered Dems, they tend to favor Dem. politicians.

 

[Disgustipated]

I think it's worth noting here that David Duke was a Democrat through most of his political life, as were and are most of the worst racists in the history of the US. Even if not actually registered Dems, they tend to favor Dem. politicians.

So you make crap up and expect us to believe it.

 

[KingOrfeo]

I think it's worth noting here that David Duke was a Democrat through most of his political life, as were and are most of the worst racists in the history of the US.

Were. Not "are."

Even if not actually registered Dems, they tend to favor Dem. politicians.

That has not been true since the Southern Strategy. Racists vote R now.

 

[Boxlicker101]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Boxlicker101 View Post

I think it's worth noting here that David Duke was a Democrat through most of his political life, as were and are most of the worst racists in the history of the US. Even if not actually registered Dems, they tend to favor Dem. politicians.

So you make crap up and expect us to believe it.

Are you saying I am making up George Wallace and Lester Maddox and Orval Faubus and Theodore Bilbo and Robert Byrd and David Duke? What those men have in common is they were all Democrats, all notorious racists and, except for Duke, all governors or US senators.

As for current racists, I would include Jeremiah Wright, Louis Farrakhan and Al Sharpton and I'm sure there are others. Although not elected officials, they are all advisors to the Democrat who is currently POTUS.

 

[RobDownSouth]

I challenge Grampa Kiddiefucker to name any elected Democratic racist who has won an election post-Reagan.

 

[KingOrfeo]

As for current racists, I would include Jeremiah Wright, Louis Farrakhan and Al Sharpton and I'm sure there are others.

Yeah?

Although not elected officials, they are all advisors to the Democrat who is currently POTUS.

Advisers? Do you think he even takes their calls? Wright's, maybe, but just to chat.

 

[KingOrfeo]

I challenge Grampa Kiddiefucker to name any elected Democratic racist who has won an election post-Reagan.

Make sure you specify that black "racists" don't count.

 

[Busybody]

Yeah?



Advisers? Do you think he even takes their calls? Wright's, maybe, but just to chat.

How many times is Sharpton at the

W
H

 

[Busybody]

Yeah?



Advisers? Do you think he even takes their calls? Wright's, maybe, but just to chat.

I challenge Grampa Kiddiefucker to name any elected Democratic racist who has won an election post-Reagan.

Obama

 

[Curmudgeonly]

I challenge Grampa Kiddiefucker to name any elected Democratic racist who has won an election post-Reagan.

Isn't Sheila Jackson Lee your Congressperson?

 

[Boxlicker101]

Yeah?



Advisers? Do you think he even takes their calls? Wright's, maybe, but just to chat.

He doesn't need to take their calls. They come to the White House to see him. http://pamelageller.com/2010/03/whi...wright-sharpton-jackson-are-in-da-house.html/

 

[Wrong Element]

I think it's worth noting here that David Duke was a Democrat through most of his political life, as were and are most of the worst racists in the history of the US. Even if not actually registered Dems, they tend to favor Dem. politicians.

I don't think that's true about "most of his political life," since he switched parties sometime prior to getting elected to the legislature in Louisiana, and he's only 64 now.

But most people stay in the same party their entire lives, barring a dramatic change of views. Why do you suppose Duke became a Republican?

 

[cjh]

I think it's worth noting here that David Duke was a Democrat through most of his political life, as were and are most of the worst racists in the history of the US. Even if not actually registered Dems, they tend to favor Dem. politicians.



Are you saying I am making up George Wallace and Lester Maddox and Orval Faubus and Theodore Bilbo and Robert Byrd and David Duke? What those men have in common is they were all Democrats, all notorious racists and, except for Duke, all governors or US senators.

I wonder how many of those men were from the South?

 

[Boxlicker101]

I wonder how many of those men were from the South?

You know as well as I do all of them were southerners. Most of the worst white racists in American history were white Democrats from the South. I might include Woodrow Wilson, who was born in VA although he became prominent in NJ.

During the 20th Century, the Dems. almost always had at least one candidate on their national ticket who was from a former slave state. A few GOP candidates were too, but most of their candidates were from the North or West.

 

[RobDownSouth]

You know as well as I do all of them were southerners. Most of the worst white racists in American history were white conservative Democrats from the South. I might include Woodrow Wilson, who was born in VA although he became prominent in NJ.

Added an important qualifier that you once again left out..

 

[Boxlicker101]

I don't think that's true about "most of his political life," since he switched parties sometime prior to getting elected to the legislature in Louisiana, and he's only 64 now.

But most people stay in the same party their entire lives, barring a dramatic change of views. Why do you suppose Duke became a Republican?

He joined the KKK in 1967 and was a Dem candidate in LA in 1988. Because he was beaten so badly, he joined the GOP that same year and did get elected for one term to the state legislature. He basically left partisan politics in the 1990's.

 

[cjh]

You know as well as I do all of them were southerners. Most of the worst white racists in American history were white Democrats from the South. I might include Woodrow Wilson, who was born in VA although he became prominent in NJ.

During the 20th Century, the Dems. almost always had at least one candidate on their national ticket who was from a former slave state. A few GOP candidates were too, but most of their candidates were from the North or West.

And all those white racists from the south lost their racism when they switched parties due, in part, to LBJ's championing the Civil Rights Act of 1964?

(Yes, Ish, I know the importance of Northern Republicans to its passage.)

 

[cjh]

He joined the KKK in 1967 and was a Dem candidate in LA in 1988. Because he was beaten so badly, he joined the GOP that same year and did get elected for one term to the state legislature. He basically left partisan politics in the 1990's.

The Democratic KKK sympathizers wouldn't vote for him but the Republican ones would?