Mother Jones: Fox Takes Another Scalp

[marmar]

Hoo boy. Conservatives apparently aren't going to back down from ever more overt appeals to racial resentment this summer. BigGovernment.com "broke" a story yesterday about a speech given a few months ago by Shirley Sherrod, USDA Georgia Director of Rural Development, at an NAACP Freedom Fund dinner. In it, Sherrod tells a story from 24 years ago about not helping a white farmer as much as she could have because she was "struggling with the fact that so many black people had lost their farm land."

The point of this story, told in a public venue, was that she quickly realized that she had done wrong. "That's when it was revealed to me that it's about poor versus those who have. It's not so much about white...it is about white and black but it's not, you know...it opened my eyes." This could easily be a heartwarming, three-hankie movie on Lifetime, but no matter:

Sherrod told CNN on Tuesday that she was told repeatedly to resign Monday afternoon after the clip surfaced. "They harassed me," she said. "I got three calls from the White House. At one point they asked me to pull over to the side of the road and do it because you are going to be on Glenn Beck tonight."

Sherrod said the calls came from Cheryl Cook, USDA deputy undersecretary for rural development. "The administration was not interested in hearing the truth. They didn't want to hear the truth," she said.

Sherrod said she and the white farmer she referred to in the video, Roger Spooner, became friends. Spooner's wife, Eloise, confirmed to CNN that she and her husband considered Sherrod friends. "She helped us save our farm by getting in there and doing everything she could do," Eloise Spooner said. "They haven't treated her right."

Sherrod said she told the story to make the point that at the time she thought that white farmers had the advantages because of their race but she learned that was not the case. "The point was to get them to understand that we need to look beyond race," Sherrod said.

In a second video, BigGovernment.com says "Ms. Sherrod confirms every Tea Partier's worst nightmare." Although this is ostensibly a reference to a joke she made about no one ever getting fired from a government job, that's not really every tea partier's worst nightmare, is it? On the other hand, a vindictive black government bureaucrat deciding to screw you over because you're white? Yeah, I'd say that qualifies. .............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2010/07/our-summer-race-war-heats

[provis99]

1. Cheryl Cook needs to be fired over this.

No resignation offer, just straight fired. She's an incompetent moron. And Vilsack should resign, if he has any morality.

[Skittles]

2. pitiful

The White House should stand up against these smear tactics but instead they run like scared rabbits

[meow mix]

3. they asked me to pull over to the side of the road and do it

stay classy there guys.. and definetly dont bother checking anything out.

[jillan]

8. It's unbelievable how they threw her under the bus.

I have forgiven this administration for alot of things - alot of policies that I don't agree with, but this is disgusting.

[lob1]

4. It actually shocks me that the White House fired her

without checking out the story first. Especially considering the source. How many times are they going to fall for the same trick?

[Rex]

5. I'm shocked! I didn't think stupid people were still running the country.

Guess Dick and Bush really did set the bar...gebus.

[gateley]

9. It would have shocked me if this wasn't the first time they reacted without

further investigation. Whether it was the White House (it's been disputed) or the agency, I would think that any shmo in any job would get a chance to explain. I can only hope this is the last time they fall for this, because we know Fox/Breitbart/Beck/whomever aren't going to cease and desist. It works for them too often. If it ain't broke...

[lob1]

10. I doubt that Obama knew anything about the firing, but

if he doesn't hire back an innocent woman, he's going to look terrible. And it doesn't help morale to keep throwing your own under the bus. He's gotta make it right.

[gateley]

11. Agree with everything you say. Although someone posted that since she

was a political appointee serving at the pleasure of the President she couldn't be fired without his say-so. Don't know if that's accurate or not but that's not the point. He's got to make it right and make sure this never happens again. They've got an opportunity here.

[IndianaGreen]

6. Atlanta Journal Constitution: USDA will not rehire.

Farmer's wife says fired USDA official helped save their land; USDA will not rehire

By Marcus K. Garner and Christian Boone

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack issued a statement Tuesday saying the controversy made Sherrod's position as a rural development director, a job she was appointed to last March, untenable.

"First, for the past 18 months, we have been working to turn the page on the sordid civil rights record at USDA and this controversy could make it more difficult to move forward on correcting injustices," Vilsack said. "Second, state rural development directors make many decisions and are often called to use their discretion. The controversy surrounding her comments would create situations where her decisions, rightly or wrongly, would be called into question making it difficult for her to bring jobs to Georgia."

http://www.ajc.com/news/farmers-wife-says-fired-574027.html

[Mimosa]

7. Shirley Sherrod, are you a Libran?

OMG,what you talked about happened so many years ago. I understand that you were talking about a moment in your personal growth. That doesn't work when you are employed by the government.

I have no big thoughts upon which to elaborate. I'm sorry that your personal words and your experience was distorted. And used for political purposes. Race is a divisive wedge.