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The Obama administration came under fire recently for inviting friend and cop-killer promoting rapper Common to the White House for poetry night. Common wrote this lovely ballad “A song for Assata” in dedication to Black Panther Assata Shakur, formerly known as Joanne Chesimard, who was convicted for the 1973 slaying of Trooper Werner Foerster on the New Jersey Turnpike. Common is a friend from Obama’s radical Chicago church. Yesterday, First Lady Michelle Obama bragged to school children about inviting the cop-killer promoting rapper to the White House.

    The First Lady is not content with corrupting American children at the White House. In a Q&A with British high school girls at Oxford University Michelle continued to promote the rapper Common. Bizarre. And then we had a poetry night and Common was there. He's very cute. But everybody from poet laureates to hip-hop folks, being able to mix up the world in that very interesting way, the White House allows you to do that. A bitter Michelle can't help getting a dig in about "the White House" allowing her to "mix up the world." (Did she really go...

If any administration was going to invite to the White House a rapper whose lyrics have supported a cop killer and advocated the killing of President George W. Bush, it would be this one, as demonstrated by its hosting this week of rapper Common. But why should rap “music” be the preserve of thugs who preach violence. How about a conservative rap song, like this: He’s a socialist prez and his name is Barack; he has American freedom under attack. He was elected on speeches that mesmerized, but his lips are betrayed by his lying eyes. He came with a...

Michelle Obama has invited rapper "Common" to the White House to read poetry. Conservative groups are displeased with the invitation and that is causing a predictable reaction from the left: Even though it's 2011, we're still litigating whether rap music in and of itself is a societal corrosive or an artistic expression that channels raw experience and expurgates emotions in the form of a catharsis. It's really the old Plato versus Aristotle rap battles over the artistic merits of tragedy -- at least we can dance to it, so there's that. But the news today is that Michelle Obama is...

The Obamas want credit for bringing American culture to the White House. When they decided to celebrate poetry at the White House on May 10, it was really not a surprise they would try to make it socially "relevant" by inviting a rap music "artist" to unload some rhymes. The rapper goes by the name "Common" (real name: Lonnie Rashid Lynn Jr.). He is celebrated by many on the left as a "socially conscious" street poet. But that's not the way it was seen by cops in New Jersey. ABC reporter Jake Tapper blogged that Dave Jones, president of the...

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) on Wednesday slammed the White House's decision to invite the rapper Common to participate in a poetry event. Palin, a potential presidential candidate and frequent critic of Obama, said that the invitation was "too easy" to decry because Common is "someone who has glorified cop killing" in his lyrics. "The judgment is just so lacking of class and decency and all that's good about America with an invite like this," Palin said during an interview on Fox News. Common's presence at the event drew flack from media figures who drew attention to some of...

Washington Post Company chairman Donald Graham told shareholders Thursday morning that he was unaware of the controversy surrounding the rapper known as Common, whom Michelle Obama has invited to a poetry event, until Cliff Kincaid of the watchdog group Accuracy in Media asked him about it. Graham apparently missed a story on the front page of his newspaper, which offered a defense of Common’s lyrics. “Mr. Kincaid, I thank you for informing me of something I didn’t know about,” Graham said. “You have brought our attention to an interesting controversy.”

President Obama and wife Michelle faced a storm of protest after they played host to a rapper who praised a convicted cop killer and a poet who condemned inter-racial marriage. In song lyrics he celebrated the former Black Panther Assata Shakur who was convicted for shooting a New Jersey police officer in 1973. [She is the step-aunt of Tupac Shakur]. In ‘A Song for Assata’ he uses lyrics such as ‘Your power and pride is beautiful. May God bless your soul.’ David Jones, president of the State Troopers Fraternal Association union told NBC: ‘The young people who read this stuff,...

As you may have heard, First Lady Michelle Obama on Wednesday welcomed a "gathering of poets, musicians and artists" to the White House to "celebrate American poetry and prose." This has become a mini-scandal for the Obama administration due to the fact that one of invitees was the controversial rapper/poet "Common," whose real name is Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr. What is so controversial about Common? Well, for starters, he has offered words of support for two cop killers, Mumia Abu-Jamal and Assata Shakur. Both Mumia and Assata were at one time members of the radical black nationalist Black Panther Party....

Sarah Palin says that the White House inviting Common to speak at poetry night reflects poor judgement and common decency on them and it’s as if Obama want’s Republicans to ask “C’mon Barack Obama. Who are you palling around with now?”. She also weighs in on Newt’s run for 2012 talking only of his strengths that he brings to the table for fixing America’s problems. She welcomes not only Newt but others in the race for the nomination as she says competition is good in elections too. Lastly she’s asked if Obama is a shoo-in because he got Osama bin...

White House officials have sidelined a rapper who glibly validated threats and violence against police, and quietly dropped him from the afternoon session of today’s poetry event at the White House. First lady Michelle Obama welcomed the invited poets to the event, but notably did not mention the controversial rapper, whose stage-name is Common. “Rita Dove, Billy Collins, Kenny Goldsmith, Alison Knowles, and Aimee Mann, let’s give them a round of applause,” Ms. Obama said. “We’ll get to hear from these folks,” she added. The first lady’s office declined to comment on whether Common will play a role in the...

CBS News Radio White House Correspondent Mark Knoller via Twitter:WH says Pres Obama opposes violent & misogynist lyrics, but defends participation of rapper known as Common in WH poetry event tonight.WH says some criticism of Common is distorted and lyrics suggesting a threat against police are not the sum total of his work.

The White House is standing behind its decision to welcome rapper Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr., AKA “Common,” to Washington, D.C. Wednesday night amidst controversy over the hip hop artist’s lyrics which include support for violence against cops and former President George W. Bush. “The president opposes those kinds of lyrics,” said Jay Carney, White House Press Secretary. Despite that opposition, Carney indicated that Common would still be welcome at “An Evening of Poetry at the White House” tonight. “He’s known as a socially conscious hip hop artist or rapper, who in fact, has done, a lot of good things,” offered...

This is a perfect example of what the left thinks of the Catholic Church. In their eyes the church is an evil entity that abuses and molests children. And, now they’re smearing the pope as the molester in chief. Obama lackey, Huffington Post contributor and author Keli Goff compared cop-killer promoting poet Common, a member of Barack Obama’s former radical church, to the "child molester enabling" Pope Benedict. What an outrageous statement.

Sarah Palin tweeted into the growing controversy over Michelle Obama’s decision to invite Chicago rapper ‘Common’ to a White House arts event for students. “Oh lovely, White House,” she said about Common’s “A Letter to the Law” rap-poem, which was transcribed and published in yesterday’s Daily Caller. The 2007 rap includes threats to kill police and a call to kill then-President George W. Bush. “Them dick boys got a lock of cock in them “My people on the block got a lot of [Tu]pac in them… “Burn a Bush cos’ for peace …” The planned event, titled “An Evening of...

The invitation of rapper Common to a White House this week is drawing the ire of the union representing New Jersey state police. While not even casual hip-hop fans would characterize him as a controversial rapper, Common found himself under the microscope after First Lady Michelle Obama invited him to the White House for an arts event. FOX News and Sarah Palin criticized the decision after the Daily Caller published some of Common's lyrics, including some that criticize President George W. Bush. For Jersey police, the outrage centers on a song by Common about Assata Shakur, formerly known as Joanne...

Michelle Obama has chosen to invite the rapper Common to perform at the White House Wednesday evening, and he is expected to lead rap workshops with school children prior to his performance, which is part of a greater event showcasing America’s poets, musicians, and artists. Common’s lyrics have referenced killing policemen and have called for the burning of George W. Bush.  Maybe he’s not the best choice to be teaching school kids? Here is a video of Common performing:

First Lady Michelle Obama has invited a rapper who called for the burning of George Bush to perform at the White House. Lonnie Rashid Lynn Jr, who uses the stage name ‘Common’, will be welcomed at an event celebrating American poetry on Wednesday. He is expected to take part in rap workshops with schoolchildren in the afternoon before performing in the evening. In footage on YouTube he is seen calling for the burning of the former president. ‘Burn a Bush cos for peace he no push no button,’ the hip-hop artist raps in one video, which has more than 800,000...

WASHINGTON (AP/THE BLAZE) — President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, will celebrate American poetry and prose with a gathering of poets, musicians and artists at the White House next Wednesday night. Professionals Elizabeth Alexander, Billy Collins, Rita Dove, Kenneth Goldsmith, Alison Knowles, Aimee Mann and Jill Scott will read, sing and highlight poetry’s influence on American culture. And there is another poet whose works will be honored: as NH Journal points out, “One of the poets who will attend is Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr. who goes by the name ‘Common.’” “Tell the law my Uzi weighs a ton …...