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POTUS Obama Says Cops Who Arrested Gates "Acted Stupidly" Vs Nixon's "Manson Guilty"

Cicero

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POTUS Obama Says Cops Who Arrested Gates "Acted Stupidly" Vs Nixon's "Manson Guilty"

If Obama doesn't know all the facts, why is he making this statement in response to Lynn Sweet's question about race relations in America based on this incident?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcANlpO8_70

Nixon got lambasted for commenting on the Manson trial. Is it different if the POTUS makes a disparaging comment on law enforcement as opposed to making a proclamation on the guilt of the defendant in the middle of the trial?

BTW: Gates did not forget his keys. His front door was stuck.
 
Obama didn't have time to actually read the police report. He was too busy not reading his healthcare plan.
 
Obama didn't have time to actually read the police report. He was too busy not reading his healthcare plan.
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Why, I wonder, do you keep repeating errors when facts have been pointed out to you?
 
Cicero said:
If Obama doesn't know all the facts, why is he making this statement in response to Lynn Sweet's question about race relations in America based on this incident?
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He had enough facts to agree with the city of Cambridge that the arrest was "regrettable and unfortunate" (that's polite-speak for "stupid").

Further, Obama apparently is a personal friend of Gates. (That is, he knows the man is not someone who needs to be hauled away from his home in handcuffs.)

His seqway to discussing race relations was (emphasis added), "and, number three, what I think we know separate and apart from this incident is that there's a long history in this country of African-Americans and Latinos being stopped by law enforcement disproportionately. That's just a fact."
 
Is it different if the POTUS makes a disparaging comment on law enforcement as opposed to making a proclamation on the guilt of the defendant in the middle of the trial?
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Yes.
 
Cicero said:
If Obama doesn't know all the facts, why is he making this statement in response to Lynn Sweet's question about race relations in America based on this incident?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcANlpO8_70

Nixon got lambasted for commenting on the Manson trial. Is it different if the POTUS makes a disparaging comment on law enforcement as opposed to making a proclamation on the guilt of the defendant in the middle of the trial?

BTW: Gates did not forget his keys. His front door was stuck.
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I don't really think its necessary to know more facts than are already present to say that arresting an elderly man (black or white) in front of their home for yelling and being irate about being asked to prove their identity in their own home (however lawful the request was) on what can charitably be called a lame disorderly conduct charge is "acting stupidly".

Having said that, I think Obama should have said something like "foolish" or "showed poor judgment" or something a little more diplomatic. But, since he knows the man personally, my guess is it was an initial (dare I say "gut") reaction to a question he may not have been expecting.

So yes, the police did act stupidly (even if it was technically legal which it may not have been), but Obama probably should have chosen his words better.

As to the Manson comparison, I would say it is worse to comment on an ongoing criminal trial that might alter the judicial process by influencing jurors. Of course, there might very well be a civil action out of all of this as well so maybe its more of a toss up.
 
IMO, Obama was being a complete dick.

The Boston Police department has already taken step one: drop the charges. Obama decides to comment. For a guy as eloquent as he is, his choice of words is amazingly crude and low rent.

I think he should have been sly:

"I epxect the Boston Police department will look into this and resolve any problems that led to this mistaken arrest of my friend. "

Think about that as a way to say to the BPD that he's got his eyes on them ...
 
Cambridge, not Boston. There have been a lot of complaints about the Cambridge police in the past.
 
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While I agree with the assessment of that the officer acted stupidly, I do think he should have refrained from giving his opinion without knowing the details of the case.
 
Jon Stewart just said, "I wasn't there and I don't know all the facts...but I think President Obama acted .....stupidly."
Damned liberal, left wing media!
 
While I agree that the President (or any politician) could have chosen a more neutral word than "stupid"...

I actually find it rather refreshing to hear our President refer so directly to the perceived violation of a citizen's Constitutional rights. He did state clearly that he was not there and did not have all the facts. But, from what we do know at this point... two individuals were involved in this situation. One of these individuals did violate Massachusetts law. And that individual was the police officer, by refusing to provide badge number and identity when requested.
 
Darth Rotor said:
IMO, Obama was being a complete dick.

The Boston Police department has already taken step one: drop the charges. Obama decides to comment. For a guy as eloquent as he is, his choice of words is amazingly crude and low rent.

I think he should have been sly:

"I epxect the Boston Police department will look into this and resolve any problems that led to this mistaken arrest of my friend. "

Think about that as a way to say to the BPD that he's got his eyes on them ...
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I agree, but he doesn't have to worry since he gets a free pass on a lot of things and looks like this one won't be any exception... He did say at the get go that he was biased in it, but he could have still worded it a lot better if he wasn't entirely aware of the details concerning the case...
 
Oh my. A public official screws up and sticks his foot in his mouth. I'm shocked, shocked to my core. :rolleyes:

It was inevitable - sooner or later, Obama would say something... stupid... in public. And he finally did. Whoopie.

Now, while I really find all of this interesting, seeing as how there's more important things to worry about, I think I'll be leaving...

ETA: Btw, just so you all know, the arresting officer - Sgt. James Crowley - in the Gates' case says that he's still an Obama supporter. So if he can get over this, then I think some other people should be able to as well...

... Crowley said he still supports the president, who attended Harvard Law School in Cambridge and garnered 88 percent of the vote there in last year's presidential election. ...
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MattusMaximus said:
Oh my. A public official screws up and sticks his foot in his mouth. I'm shocked, shocked to my core. :rolleyes:

It was inevitable - sooner or later, Obama would say something... stupid... in public. And he finally did. Whoopie.

Now, while I really find all of this interesting, seeing as how there's more important things to worry about, I think I'll be leaving...
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Unfortunately (or fortunately?), that's always going to be the nature of politics. If you are the currently elected leader of a country, you will be evaluated for every noun, verb, and adjective you say. (Don't get me started on the adverbs!)

I'm still just waiting on a US President to drop an F-bomb during a press conference. Now THAT will be a news day! ;)
 
MattusMaximus said:
Oh my. A public official screws up and sticks his foot in his mouth. I'm shocked, shocked to my core. :rolleyes:

It was inevitable - sooner or later, Obama would say something... stupid... in public. And he finally did. Whoopie.

Now, while I really find all of this interesting, seeing as how there's more important things to worry about, I think I'll be leaving...
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Apparently, VP Biden's hoof-and-mouth disease is an affliction that is contagious. It may be too late to quarantine Obama.
 
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