Bush Making Big Return To White House
Annette Insdorf: The Central Park Five Premieres in Cannes
Wait a minute now. Unless I'm reading it wrong, it looks like racial profiling has jumped from the 'hood to Capitol Hill.
According to a Politico article, the House Ethics Committee is actively investigating seven African American lawmakers under full-scale ethics probes, but not a single white person serving in Congress is under the same kind of scrutiny.
To be clear, the report came from the Office of Congressional Ethics, which is a quasi-independent agency. There are as many as 23 Democrats and six Republicans named, but only Maxine Waters (pictured above), Laura Richardson (D-Calif.), Carolyn Cheeks-Kilpatrick (D-Mich.), Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.), Donald Payne (D-NJ) and Donna Christensen (D-V.I.) are the subject of all-out investigations.
Several of the allegations involve the use of corporate funds to pay for lawmakers' trips to the Caribbean. All of those accused deny any wrongdoing.
Now, I'm not saying that hands caught in the cookie jar shouldn't be smacked. Goodness knows former Rep. William Jefferson (D-La.) had to go after getting busted with $90,000 in his freezer, which was intended as a bribe for a Nigerian official. It does seem funny, though, that the only people whose investigations have gone this far are black representatives.
What's worse is the the Office of Congressional Ethics was actually created by Democrats to weed out any questionables within their ranks. Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) came up with the idea after the Jack Abramoff scandal.
There really shouldn't be a problem with keeping a watchdog's eye on lawmakers, since our pennies go to pay for everything they do and then some. At the same time, though, I've got to question whether these folks are being punished for being corrupt -- there is still a question as to whether it was wrong for a corporation to sponsor trips to the Caribbean, and Rangel hasn't been found guilty yet of not paying his taxes -- or if it has something to do with their support of the Fairness in Cocaine Sentencing Act and the repealing of mandatory minimum sentencing effort.
A major issue is that there aren't enough voters aware about what's happening to make a fuss, but I dare say it's an insidious way to neutralize empowerment within the black community. Take away political clout and what do you have?
Don't get me wrong, corruption is corruption, but I'll be less skeptical of what's going on when I'm seeing that it's not just black folks who are thrown into the fire for bad behavior.
Comments: (224)
Add a comment
By: ron on 11/09/2009 9:44AM
let me first say greed of any kind that leads to crime is a human problem,for any white or black to point fingers back and forth is useless we all seem to have our problems on both sides.no one has cleans hands to say one race is worse than the other.i will say this,the cameras are always pointed at the black community, while you hide behind walls and commit the worse crimes against your families, incest, sexual abuse etc..
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: *seriousintentions* on 11/10/2009 10:17AM
You're not making any sense 'kid', "Jim-crow's sons". That's what this whole argument is- about...On this specific web-page. Some people (mainly those of European decent) are trying to say that racisim does-not exist. Therefore, they can't see any disproportanates amongst the color-lines. If you really want to know where the (real) weak-spot is...In white America. Then you'll have to start fighting them, in the spheres of their world-wide attitudes, and/or their agendas. When you stop supporting them on their logics about Pakistan, and/or the wars in Iraq, and Afganistan. That's when "we" (as black people) can take (step-one) as-too getting our voices, unified, and heard. Step #2, will soon be comming-too a web-site near you! Stay tuned!
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Michael Lofton on 12/26/2009 11:45AM
"Are Black Congresspeople Being Blacklisted?" by Madison Gray, Black Voices/Black Spin
......and the members of the Democratic Congressional Black Caucus who fit the description should not only be blacklisted, but also recalled or removed from a position of influence as an elected official.....
.....because far too often these individuals are:
1. Sleazy, incompetent, criminal, unethical.
2. Fail or have no duty to uphold his or her mandated sworn oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution and/or respective State Constitutions.
3. A Disgrace to the essence of what it means to be and elected official.
4. Any combination of 1, 2, and/or 3.
http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-352814
http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-182700
....Thank You Dr. Boyce Watkins for staying on point.
.....Unlike what you are seeing on "Black Voices", outside of the confines of the internet, meaning those in the trenches who have faced the music.......
....and/or those who have been a witness to other law abiding Black people egregiously violated by the atrocities of government, know differently.....
.......all while President Barack Obama, Attorney General Eric Holder and/or other misfit elected Black leaders, lawyers, etc., remain silent, or condemn and blanket the inner-city Black men, male, as being irresponsible, dead beat, you name it.....
....without a thread of evidence to prove that this is so!!!!
......and furthermore these individuals know, that more so than the rank and file in the Black community......
........it is our own elected Black leadership, and/or a misguided Black middleclass, who are......
.....blatant liars, irresponsible, dead beat, hypocrites, treasonous, unfit for elected office, sleazy, cut-throat, pimping the Black community for their own self efficacy, you name it.
.........Finally, there are many law abiding U.S. born Black people who do not have praise for President Barack Obama, and/or many other misfit elected Black leaders affiliated with the Democratic Party, political party responsible for the vestible of Slavery in the U.S., whose un-American and disgraceful actions keep the Democratic Party's buried Past Alive!
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Carmarger on 5/03/2011 4:15AM
Well, well ... aUGUSTUS hOWARD on 11/08/2009 1:39AM: Carmarger here on May 3, 2011, checking in to see if the article above was still available to be read and discussed. Since I could not reply in return to your reply (and I did not wish to report you), I just wanted to chime in and hope to find that you have been well. Since you utilized the words: 'WHITE', 'YOUR PARTY', and 'ANTI AMERICAN', in your reply toward me, I wanted you to know one thing: I agree with you on Glenn Beck. He is not just out past the left field fence, he's not even in the Parking Lot! Be well my friend, as there is no true reason for anger anywhere in, or between, our conversations.
Reply to this Comment | Report This