Georgia, Are You Embarrassed Yet?
I see where the Associated Press is reporting that Representative Cynthia McKinney (D-Tranquility Base) issued an “apology” on the House floor related to the recent episode in which she struck a Capitol Police officer for having the audacity to do his job. But if anyone thinks Ms. McKinney has acknowledged that she was just flat wrong for her actions and attitude, they are sadly mistaken.
According to the story, the Representative of Georgia’s Fourth District stated, “There should not have been any physical contact in this incident,” and went on to say, “I am sorry that this misunderstanding happened at all and I regret its escalation and I apologize” (emphasis mine).
Those of us who have taken notice of her antics in recent years strongly suspected that Ms. McKinney would never allow herself to admit that she acted inappropriately – and she didn’t disappoint us.
To say that you regret that an incident happened is a long way from saying that you recognize that you were the cause of the incident. I regret that my house was broken into a few years ago, but I refuse to admit that the fact that it was broken into is my fault.
What is missing from her sorrow over the “misunderstanding” and regret over its escalation is recognition that all of this was the result of her failure to abide by the rules, as evidenced by her statement that “there should not have been any physical contact in this incident.”
It is that “physical contact” crack that serves as evidence that she still feels that the whole thing is the fault of the “racist” police officer. But the fact is, in view of the circumstances, physical contact is exactly what was called for when Her Majesty McKinney refused to respond to the officer’s calls.
But wait, says Ms. McKinney. He shouldn’t have questioned her right to bypass the security checkpoint to begin with. She’s a member of Congress, and her face should be instantly recognizable as one of the 535 people, among the 30,000 who pass through the capitol complex every day, who can mosey right on in.
The thing is that recognizing over 500 people by their face alone under such circumstances is extremely difficult, even to the skilled and trained eyes of those who serve honorably as protectors of those who work on, and visit, Capitol Hill. For that reason, members of Congress are given lapel pins to wear in order to help the officers in carrying out their duties. But, of course, it has been noted several times that Ms. McKinney refuses to wear her pin.
I have yet to read any explanation of why the Representative doesn’t wear her pin, so I won’t try to speculate – as tempting as that is. But one thing is for sure, by refusing to wear it, she demonstrates that she is not overly concerned with making a difficult job as easy as possible for those charged with her protection.
Of course, she has responded to this fact by stating that the pin could be duplicated. While that is true enough, it is not an argument against her wearing hers, and it is certainly not a convincing defense of her actions. If anything, her statement in this regard could serve as a reason to force even people wearing the pin to go through the metal detectors, rather than allowing people not wearing it to bypass them.
The thing is, in the age of heightened security against terrorist threats, I suspect that most members of Congress wouldn’t have a problem with undergoing tighter security themselves, as most are level-headed enough to see that such is for their own good and protection. Cynthia McKinney’s steadfast refusal to acknowledge that she acted in an irresponsible, and arguably criminal, manner only reduces her stature in the eyes of most Americans, be they Democrats or Republicans. Whether the people of Georgia’s Fourth District are embarrassed by her, I don’t know. But I’m embarrassed enough for them, and I only live in the Fourth District of a state that borders Georgia.
According to the story, the Representative of Georgia’s Fourth District stated, “There should not have been any physical contact in this incident,” and went on to say, “I am sorry that this misunderstanding happened at all and I regret its escalation and I apologize” (emphasis mine).Those of us who have taken notice of her antics in recent years strongly suspected that Ms. McKinney would never allow herself to admit that she acted inappropriately – and she didn’t disappoint us.
To say that you regret that an incident happened is a long way from saying that you recognize that you were the cause of the incident. I regret that my house was broken into a few years ago, but I refuse to admit that the fact that it was broken into is my fault.
What is missing from her sorrow over the “misunderstanding” and regret over its escalation is recognition that all of this was the result of her failure to abide by the rules, as evidenced by her statement that “there should not have been any physical contact in this incident.”
It is that “physical contact” crack that serves as evidence that she still feels that the whole thing is the fault of the “racist” police officer. But the fact is, in view of the circumstances, physical contact is exactly what was called for when Her Majesty McKinney refused to respond to the officer’s calls.
But wait, says Ms. McKinney. He shouldn’t have questioned her right to bypass the security checkpoint to begin with. She’s a member of Congress, and her face should be instantly recognizable as one of the 535 people, among the 30,000 who pass through the capitol complex every day, who can mosey right on in.
The thing is that recognizing over 500 people by their face alone under such circumstances is extremely difficult, even to the skilled and trained eyes of those who serve honorably as protectors of those who work on, and visit, Capitol Hill. For that reason, members of Congress are given lapel pins to wear in order to help the officers in carrying out their duties. But, of course, it has been noted several times that Ms. McKinney refuses to wear her pin.
I have yet to read any explanation of why the Representative doesn’t wear her pin, so I won’t try to speculate – as tempting as that is. But one thing is for sure, by refusing to wear it, she demonstrates that she is not overly concerned with making a difficult job as easy as possible for those charged with her protection.
Of course, she has responded to this fact by stating that the pin could be duplicated. While that is true enough, it is not an argument against her wearing hers, and it is certainly not a convincing defense of her actions. If anything, her statement in this regard could serve as a reason to force even people wearing the pin to go through the metal detectors, rather than allowing people not wearing it to bypass them.
The thing is, in the age of heightened security against terrorist threats, I suspect that most members of Congress wouldn’t have a problem with undergoing tighter security themselves, as most are level-headed enough to see that such is for their own good and protection. Cynthia McKinney’s steadfast refusal to acknowledge that she acted in an irresponsible, and arguably criminal, manner only reduces her stature in the eyes of most Americans, be they Democrats or Republicans. Whether the people of Georgia’s Fourth District are embarrassed by her, I don’t know. But I’m embarrassed enough for them, and I only live in the Fourth District of a state that borders Georgia.
posted by JeffreyH | 12:48 PM
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