Posted on 05/18/2012 8:31:51 PM PDT by SmithL
Whats good for Jay Leno, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert is apparently not good for corporate lawyers.
A group of Bay Area congressmembers sent a stern letter to Pleasanton-based Safeway CEO Steve Burd admonishing the grocery giant for a joke its top lawyer reportedly made at the expense of Hillary Clinton and Nancy Pelosi during a May 15 stockholder meeting.
General Counsel Robert Gordon reportedly told a joke involving the Secretary of State and the House Minority Speaker from San Francisco, pigs and the Secret Service. Gosh, it already sounds funny. (Read the full narrative below.)
Lighten up, people.
If members of Congress start writing to every business organization where a national politician was the butt of a joke, theyll be busier than a genuine Arkansas razorback hog farmer at feeding time.
Heres the letter:
Mr. Steve Burd
President and CEO
Safeway Inc.
5918 Stoneridge Mall Road
Pleasanton, CA 94588
By Fax (925) 467-3230
Dear Mr. President,
We are writing to express our strong disapproval of inappropriate comments reportedly made by Safeway General Counsel Robert Gordon at Safeways May 15 shareholder meeting. We are deeply disappointed by these comments and believe Safeway must take corrective steps immediately.
According to an audio recording reportedly taken from the shareholder meeting, General Counsel Gordon inappropriately used House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as the butt of his joke, as follows:
You know, this is the season when companies and other institutions are interested in enhancing their reputation and their image for the general public, and one of the institutions thats doing this is the Secret Service, particularly after the calamity in Colombia. And among the instructions given to the Secret Service agents was to try to agree with the president more and support his decisions. And that led to this exchange that took place last week, when the president flew into the White House lawn and an agent greeted him at the helicopter. The president was carrying two pigs under his arms and the Secret Service agents said, Nice pigs, sir.And the president said, These are not ordinary pigs, these are genuine Arkansas razorback hogs. I got one for former Speaker Nancy Pelosi and one for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. And the Secret Service agent said, Excellent trade, sir.Poking fun at politicians is part of our culture, and TV comedians carry this out nightly. But sexist jokes told by a top executive of a Fortune 500 company to an international audience are completely inappropriate and demonstrate a shocking lack of respect, not only for two of the most important and respected people in our country but for all women.
Safeway owes an apology to Secretary Clinton, Leader Pelosi, and the country. It is up to the Safeway board to decide what action to take against its general counsel for his comments but let there be no doubt as to our strong disapproval and deep disappointment in your company for what he said.
Sincerely,
Reps. George Miller, Anna Eshoo, Zoe Lofgren, Mike Thompson, Lynn Woolsey, Jerry McNerney, John Garamendi, Doris Matsui, Barbara Lee, and Mike Honda
Oh, please.
I’m an admitted liberal and I have heard this joke before (usually it was Bill getting something for Hillary.) It’s funny. These guys need to grow a sense of humor.
Where’s the sexist part of the joke?
Personally, I think that joke is offensive to razorback hogs.
Funny, just the other day I was walking along pushing ten pigs in a wheelbarrow, and someone came up to me and asked, "where'd you get those pigs?" And I said...
I am known as “Mr No Sense of Humor” but thought this was hilariously funny and laughed out loud. Yes, it is a variation of an old joke but a good one, especially for the Bay Area.
"Shut up! I wasn't talking to you!"
LMAO!!!!! 8^D
I don’t get it. That was a GREAT trade.
I just like the mental picture of obama carrying around pigs.
“a joke its top lawyer reportedly made at the expense of Hillary Clinton and Nancy Pelosi...”
s’okay!:)
A flip of the wee birdie if the Leftist whiners can’t take a joke.
Have any of you seen the World's Smartest Woman lately ... since her Botox injections have worn off? Lightman is right ... that joke is highly offensive to Razorback hogs!
Too funny. Been a long time since I read/heard the old Hillary term of PIAPS. I hope she doesn’t run. I’d rather not hear, or read it again. Rather she, and her partner in crime would just retire out of sight, and out of mind if we can’t get them into Leavenworth.
I am an attorney and willing to file suit on behalf of the pigs. To only value them equal to Hillary and Nancy is indeed an insult.
I noticed that fish-face Maxine didn’t sign on. Got a feeling she wanted the pigs to roast over a burning car or building in Watts if Zimmerman is found not guilty.
Now that there is down right funny!
I’ve heard Reagan himself tell a variant of this joke - involving Russians, of course.
“Reps. George Miller, Anna Eshoo, Zoe Lofgren, Mike Thompson, Lynn Woolsey, Jerry McNerney, John Garamendi, Doris Matsui, Barbara Lee, and Mike Honda
“
I guess Fartney Stork was off his meds, because he didn’t sign. The list above is the bucket of cocks that “represents” the SF Bay Area. McNerney is my a$$hole!
The political ladies insisted on being treated like one of the guys. Now that they get the verbal roughhousing, they... squeal!
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