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.
The police officer was trying to kiss her ring.
For some reason, her explanation at the conference yesterday was less than convincing. It looked like even she knew her goose was cooked.
The GOP is not being attacked here. I think all smart Congress members (regardless of party or race) will steer clear of this situation.
This is between C.M. and the Capitol Police. I don't see how the GOP should have any involvement at all.
There is VERY little reporting on this. A small story in the NYTimes, no mention on NPR. Consider that the NYTimes spent millions on the Florida elections, invistigating clandestine CIA flights, or digging into the evil that is Halliburton. The fix is in to bury this story. With any luck McKinney will keep it alive.
Exlcusive NYTimes
White Police officer in McKinney abuse scandal reportedly has a sister that once attended a High School where the KKK symbol was scratched into the walls of a bathroom stall.
I always leave the circus just before the elephants dance.
This is the victimhood of the Congressional Black Caucus. We can thank the Democratic Party for this kind of crap. When will that party finally join the Whigs on the ashheap of history?
Posted on 03/31/2006 7:20:48 PM PST by doug from upland
Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney (D-GA)
Black Caucus racist hit a cop...Cindy Jihad
Black Caucus racist hit a cop...it's time for jail
She smacked him while he did his job...Cindy Jihad
She smacked him while he did his job...who's posting bail?
If you let her choose...she would smack all Jews
She'll play victim and launch her attack...she is serving while black
A man's there who can't get a cab...Cindy Jihad
A man's there who can't get a cab...Glover sure blows
Banana-man then spews his hate...Cindy Jihad
Banana-man then spews his hate...everyone knows
If you let her choose...she would smack all Jews
She'll play victim and launch her attack...she is serving while black
Hee hee... ain't it the truth!
LLS
You've been listening too much to Sheila Jackson Lee! LOL
Liberalism is a mental disease.
"But they don't fool us anymore, we all know the Left media (former MSM :)....."
No indeed, they do not fool us anymore, and some of us never were fooled. (I was in my early teens in the Watergate/End of Vietnam years, and though I barely paid attention to the news back then, I could tell that both stories were largely lies based on destructive anti-Americanism).
You are on the money, the worm has turned and I try to encourage my conservative friends that the media will NEVER again be able to get away with the crap they've pulled in the last 30 - 40 years.
I see it like this:
The idiot Left has always had a voice, but through various means-largely the existence of a relatively widespread diversity of opinion in print media, their disgusting point of view was always held in check. That is, until the ascendency of television. In the last 10 years we have been thankfully exiting an unfortunate period in which 3 major networks (with a "liberal" elite calling the shots)controlled the news and programming (let us not forget the propaganda of All in the Family, MASH, and others. The rise of cable TV and the Internet brought a long-overdue return of fire against the liberal horeshit. Conincidentally, an old medium, radio experienced a renaissance as part of the counteroffensive.
I think this revolution has just begun. I am hoping we will see a TRULY conservative network complete with a fully-developed news gathering and reporting capability. I have a LOT of ideas in this area.
Unfortunately, this will apparently require a single individual or group with a lot of cash. But there are billions to be made, as to a large extent, a huge vacuum still exists. Much of this vacuum has to do with the very SIMPLE fact that "news" is almost always approached with a negative bias.
Anyone know if Phillip Anschutz is a Freeper?
Does anyone have a photo they can post of the Honorable Representative from Georgia and the junior Senator from New York?
you are right to point out the security aspect of this.
mckinney may have inadvertently done everyone a favor, by demonstrating that there may be a major security problem there. IF the police routinely let people in on the basis of facial recognition--as opposed to ID's (and it is not clear to me if this is the case)--then anyone who looks like some congressman could walk right in with a weapon.
Does anyone have a photo they can post of the Honorable Representative from Georgia and the junior Senator from New York?
I hate that I'm having flashbacks to the Clinton days.
"then anyone who looks like some congressman could walk right in with a weapon."
I'm not convinced that loss of even large numbers of congressleeches, particularly in the House of Lords, would on balance, be a bad thing for our great Republic.
Agree. Main thing - and fun part - is make the lefties aware we KNOW, we know how they operate :)
Have you seen the stock of the NYT lately? Take a look at this beautiful picture!.. you see that little dive an the end.. he-he-he
When she cries 'racism' what she means is that the police failed to apply relaxed rules to her because she is a member of an anointed Victim Group.
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