Lando 
Posted on 04/01/2006 3:35:21 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife
WASHINGTON — Rep. Cynthia McKinney on Friday declared herself the victim of a racist Capitol Hill police officer who her supporters said used excessive force when he stopped her from skirting a security checkpoint earlier this week.
"The whole incident was instigated by the inappropriate touching and stopping of me — a female, black congresswoman," McKinney said at a news conference, abandoning the apologetic tone she struck earlier in the week.
Capitol police are considering filing assault charges against the DeKalb County Democrat next week. But her lawyers said she was acting in self-defense when she struck the officer who tried to stop her.
"Cynthia McKinney, like thousands of average Americans across this country, is ... a victim of the excessive use of force by law enforcement officials because of how she looks and the color of her skin," said one of McKinney's lawyers, James Myart Jr.
McKinney spoke on the campus of predominantly black Howard University, surrounded by more than a dozen African-American children from South Georgia's Coffee County who held signs reading "Is Cynthia a Target?" and "Recognize Our Congresswoman." The children had been in town to tour Washington and visit McKinney, said their escort, Hal Pressley, president of the Coffee County branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
Singer and activist Harry Belafonte and actor Danny Glover also appeared with McKinney. They said they had come not in judgment of the facts of the case, but, as Glover put it, "to support our sister."
McKinney's lawyers said the white officer involved in Monday's scuffle should be investigated.
Police declined to address the racial accusations.
"We're currently investigating the matter. That's as far as it goes with us right now," said Sgt. Kimberly Schneider, the police spokeswoman.
But police union officials from across the country denounced McKinney's tactics and said the officer involved — not McKinney — was the true victim.
"There was no excessive force here," said Lou Cannon, president of the Washington, D.C., chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police, which represents Capitol officers. "If she's trying to turn this into a racial issue, people should ask, 'Why is she doing this?' This is an insult to all police officers."
The FOP's national board, meeting Friday in Nashville, unanimously approved a motion commending the Capitol Hill officer, who has not been identified, and condemning McKinney, who was stopped because the officer didn't recognize her. Bill Peacock, a former DeKalb County police officer and a delegate to the national FOP organization, introduced the motion.
"There were two avenues she could take, one being the high road — admitting her error — and the other is to use the race card simply because the officer was trying to do his job," said Peacock.
McKinney's press conference marked the first time she has spoken publicly about the incident, in which the officer, not recognizing McKinney as a member of Congress, tried to stop her from walking around a security checkpoint, which members are routinely allowed to do.
Several Capitol police officials have said the officer involved asked McKinney three times to stop. When she did not, he placed a hand on her and she hit him, they said.
McKinney, who previously had released a statement saying she "deeply regretted" the incident, avoided details Friday. She said lawyers had advised her not to because of the possibility of charges against her.
As she had previously, she acknowledged that when she was stopped, she wasn't wearing the special lapel pin given to the 435 House members to help police and staff recognize them. But she said the officer still should have recognized her because he was trained to do so.
"I do wear the pin when I remember to wear the pin," McKinney said. "But the pin is not the issue. The issue is facial recognition."
"She's a victim," said Pressley. "For Ms. McKinney not to be immediately recognized by the Capitol police was, in itself, an insult. She's recognizable from around the world, so in D.C., our capital, you would expect that almost any police officer would recognize her, with all the controversy attached to her name."
Pressley said a Capitol Hill police officer — "like someone who just came off a plantation" — once treated some black children he brought to Washington "like animals."
Michael Raffauf, one of McKinney's attorneys, suggested that powerful Republican lawmakers who run Congress may be behind the accusations and possible criminal charges against McKinney.
"I find it highly unusual that this thing has gotten so blown out of proportion," he said.
Police have said it was extraordinarily rare, and possibly unprecedented, for a member of Congress to strike a Capitol Hill police officer.
McKinney said members of the Congressional Black Caucus are backing her, though members of Congress who were supposed to attend Friday's press conference didn't show up.
However, an influential African-American lawmaker, Rep. Juanita Millender-McDonald (D-Calif.), came to McKinney's aid Wednesday night. Millender-McDonald, the ranking Democrat on the House Administration Committee, which oversees the Capitol police, called the House sergeant at arms, Wilson Livingood, amid rumors that McKinney would be arrested, her spokeswoman, Denise Mixon, said Friday.
Mixon denied Millender-McDonald tried to prevent an arrest.
"The congresswoman did not intervene. All she did was ask a question: 'Where are we now?' " Mixon said.
She said the conference call also included McKinney and Tad Vandermeid, legal counsel to House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.).
Mixon said Livingood did not specifically address whether there were plans to arrest McKinney, saying, "An investigation is going on." Millender-McDonald asked to be kept abreast of any developments, and Livingood agreed to do so, Mixon said.
Staff writer Scott Shepard contributed information about Rep. Juanita Millender-McDonald and The Associated Press contributed an account of what officers said occurred in the incident with McKinney.
More Dems profiles in courage............
Hillary to Cynthia: "You were too kind to that fascist pig, I"d just have my driver run over him and keep going".
I'm not sure it wasn't because Denise realized that without the Republican crossovers in the 2004 primary, that she had in 2002, she would have lost the 2004 primary to McKinney.
Running for Senate gave her a relately graceful way out that increased her name recognition for future elected office.
I agree
I'd laugh, but I could see that actually. Scary.
The whole incident was instigated by the inappropriate touching and stopping of me — a female, black congresswoman,"
What a knucklehead. What makes Ms. McKinney think she doesn't have to go through security? Security procedures are in place to keep her tail safe too. I don't know why folks keep voting this lady back in office. (But personally, I love a good sturdy afro...)
Perhaps if her 'fro was more sturdy, she wouldn't look so crazy..... she looks ....craaaaaaazy!
SINthia has declared open WAR on a colorblind America. This RACSIST PIG must serve her maximum sentence of 5 years HARD LABOR! She represents the WORST in America!
On second thought, let's just hang the b!tch!!!
LLS
These poor Capital Police need TASERS!!! No touchee crapola any more! :-)
SINthia needs a 50,000 plus volt "howdy"!
LLS
/relately/relatively/
I really shouldn't post before coffee.
These people set back race relations in this country by decades.......and they're too stupid to even realize it.
It looks like she was already hit with one...
Whenever a pol declares that something is NOT the issue...I'm inclined to focus on that one thing.
So: where is the pin? I don't think she had it on at the presser. And another congressmen was quoted as saying she entered another secure area the same night...and she wasn't wearing the pin. Where is it? Has it been seen since the incident?
My curiosity is piqued by past known incidents where Code Pink and other activists were able to penetrate secure gatherings using credentials given to them by Dem operatives. Remember the GOP convention? The 2005 inaugural?
Has anyone actually seen McKinney's pin lately? If she did give it to others, she's caught beyond the point where she could quietly go to the sergeant at arms and ask for a replacement. I'm imagining all kinds of furious searches going on in commie pinko (blacko?) circles trying to find the last wacko who used McKinney's pin.
Is it too much to hope that some enterprising (unbiased) reporter will ask her to produce the pin?!
Actually, she may help race relations in America. This stuff wakes moderates (non lefty-dims and independents) up.
LLS
Lando
You know, SHE DOES! :-)
LLS
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