It’s no big surprise that it was a Congressman from South Carolina who, to use a term popular in that state, “showed his ass” during President Obama’s speech last night. Acting like a drooling, knuckle-dragging brute is a pre-existing condition for many politicians in my lovely home state. Just because yelling at the President during a speech to Congress is considered comparable to farting loudly in church, that doesn’t bother a certain breed of arrogant, white South Carolina politicians. You can look it up. Don’t forget, this is the state that gave us Lee Atwater, the undisputed modern king of vicious political sleaze — heck, he’s the guy who trained Karl Rove in gutter tactics. It was S.C. that gave us Strom Thurmond, who once filibustered a civil rights bill for 24 straight hours in order to keep African-Americans “in their rightful place,” i.e., in his bed, if you’re a black woman … And it gave us Preston Brooks, a Congressman who, in 1854, nearly beat anti-slavery U.S. Sen. Charles Sumner to death with a walking stick. So, yelling at a president? Especially when you apologize for it right away? Pfftt — that’s nothing for politicians in our nearby sister state. Apology or no apology, you can bet Wilson’s taking a few high-fives from his buddies today.
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This article appears in Sep 8-15, 2009.
Grooms you’re absolutely on target!
Joe Wilson will be another cringe worthy historical footnote in a long line of South Carolina embarrassments.
I dont see what the big deal is.
Joe Wilson spoke his mind, it might have been a bit rude but he told the truth. I think it was jealous rage.
Still, Obama was lying.
I’d love to have seen him get upset at Bush for doing the exact same thing. Wilson is one of those turncoats who voted yea on the trillion dollar medicare drug benefit and yea on the 1st trillion dollar bailout.
Kinda hypocritical but hey at least he said SOMETHING.
How is Joe Wilson any different from Harry Taylor? Other than that Harry Taylor is a developer who profited from the Wall Street bailouts.