Posted on 04/09/2006 5:53:16 AM PDT by NotchJohnson
Media darling stunned; public reaction mixed JIM MORRILL jmorrill@charlotteobserver.com
Friday was not a normal day for Harry Taylor.
He did two national TV interviews. His phone rang all day. E-mails flooded his inbox. People he never met called him a hero and a patriot. He became a darling of Internet blogs, including one called simply: thankyouharrytaylor.org.
"It's like I've got 10,000 butterflies jumping up and down in my stomach," he said in an afternoon interview. "It's been that way for 27 hours now."
A day before, President Bush called on Taylor during a question session after a speech at Central Piedmont Community College. "I have never felt more ashamed of, nor more frightened, by my leadership in Washington, including the presidency," Taylor told Bush. "And I would hope from time to time that you have the humility and the grace to be ashamed of yourself."
"I'm not your favorite guy," Bush interrupted at one point, waving off boos directed at the Charlotte businessman and giving him a chance to speak.
Even Taylor lauded the president's gracious response. But his comments made waves way beyond CPCC's Halton Theatre.
His public scolding was picked up by media from around the country and as far away as South Africa. Even the official Chinese news agency reported it. The media reaction began when a flock of reporters mobbed him right after he left his seat Thursday.
"I felt like I had just hit the home run to win the World Series," he told CNN's Soledad O'Brien Friday morning. When she asked if he'd spent a lot of time thinking about what to say if given a chance, Taylor had a ready answer.
"Yes, about six years worth," he said.
Taylor, 61, is a slender, soft-spoken man with a mop of wavy salt-and-pepper hair. He runs a commercial real estate business out of a one-room office off Morehead Street. It's an unpretentious setting, lined with architectural drawings and renderings and a Charlie Chaplin wall clock.
A divorced New Jersey native, he has lived in Charlotte for almost 20 years. He's president of the Charlotte Folk Society and has spent more time playing the banjo and mandolin than in political activism.
He's an unaffiliated voter and says he hasn't belonged to a political party for three decades. His political involvement began a few years ago through his membership in the Sierra Club, and he has spoken out about environmental and other issues.
It was through his membership in the Charlotte World Affairs Council that he scored an invitation to the president's appearance. A few minutes with a microphone brought an avalanche of response. He said he has gotten calls from servicemen and their families, almost all positive. E-mails to the Observer ran 4-1 in support, though reactions were mixed on charlotte.com.
"He wasn't a raging liberal just spewing out accusations," said Stephen Demetriou, a commercial photographer from Maine who read about Taylor on a blog. "There's a lot of people who share his views."
Critics, however, called Taylor rude, embarrassing and misguided.
"I thought it was very out of place," said Dean Davidson, a real estate broker from Waxhaw. "I could hear the pacifism in his voice. To me it's just the same old, same old you hear every day; criticism of the administration's policies but never a new idea."
Other critics posted comments on the Observer's Web site.
"Mr. Harry Taylor made a fool of himself with that retarded speech he made in front of the wolrd (sic)," one poster wrote. "Taylor and Cindy Sheenan (sic) would make a great couple."
Taylor isn't worried about the exchange hurting his business. And Theresa Salmen, executive vice president of the Charlotte Region Commercial Board of Realtors, said developers she met with Friday morning didn't seem to mind.
"They were really impressed with how Bush handled it, as well as the way Harry had handled his questions," she said. "Everybody has a right to their opinions."
On Friday, Taylor juggled all the phone calls and e-mails with a business meeting and plans for a Friday night Folk Society concert at Central Piedmont, not far from where he confronted the president.
So much has happened to Taylor since Thursday he isn't sure what to expect next. "I didn't set out to change my life," he said. "But I'm really passionate about humanity and fairness. ...We only come around this way once."
When things settle down, he plans to write Bush a letter.
"I just want to tell him, `Thank you for listening to me and quieting 900 people down so I could talk,' " he said. "And remind him that civil discourse is critical to the successful operation of a communal society."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jim Morrill: (704) 358-5059
And a "new" Cindy Sheehan is born.......................
Parallel universe, shake your head, and turn the page.
He's a moveon.org leader and the media is covering this fact up. He has been at many moveon.org rallies.
The MSM is covering this up.
Right now I've no doubt that there is a grilling of the advance team going on trying to find out just how the hell Harry Taylor got in there in the first place.
Thought so.
Who would have ever guessed? </sarcasm>
IS he now........hmmmmmmmmmm............now isn't that special.
Doesn't have to be pious. Just two-faced.
This is a joke right? Some hate-America leftist spews out Hate-Bush speech directly at the president and then he's a folk hero? That is Childish.
someone threw hot water on him?
Where might I find documentation of this little tidbit?
In other words we have a grayhaired ponytail banjo hitter who has been a Bush-hater since BEFORE the president was even elected. Boy, the hard left media is desperate for heroes.
Those are the worst. They come up with silly half-assed streetnames like Earthsaver Pointe and Foreman's Search (for Dave Foreman).
Interesting. Source?
He's a lot prettier than Cindy Sheehan, so I guess she's been officially dumped by the Bush-haters now.
Wonder why conservatives never got close enough to embarrass Clinton during his eight-year fiasco. Looks like those inquiring minds in the msm would want to acknowledge that Pres. Bush has real "town hall" meetings, not the phoney ones #42 had, but they won't.
"And a "new" Cindy Sheehan is born.."
Yup. Useful idiot
Scalded? David Gregory and Helen Thomas are far more inappropriate than this guy.
He's likely a child of the 60's in his politics, so why should anyone be surprised that he detests the President, and no wonder he's a darling of the media. I guess this guy is the new 'pony-tailed' guy who thinks the President should 'take care' of everyone, and never be contentious at all.
"...but he is also a real estate developer."
A COMMERCIAL real-estae developer. His buildings won't be sheltering small families, they will be contributing to the evil capitalistic machine.
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