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Cynthia McKinney hits Capitol Police in altercation

Cylinder

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Cylinder
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McKinney scuffles with Capitol Police

CAPITOL HILL Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney's office isn't commenting on what's being called a scuffle with a Capitol police officer today.

Capitol Police say the incident happened after the Georgia Democrat entered a House office building unrecognized and refused to stop when asked.

There are conflicting accounts of what happened next. A police official, who didn't want to be named, says McKinney hit the officer when the officer tried to stop her.

Police say no charges were filed. A spokeswoman says only senior officials know about the incident and are investigating.
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McKinney has since commented on the incident in a press release.

"Earlier today I had an unfortunate confrontation with a Capitol Hill Police Officer. It is traditional protocol that Capitol Hill Police Officers secure 535 Members of Congress, including 100 Senators. It is the expectation of most Members of Congress that Capitol Hill Police officers know who they are. I was urgently trying to get to an important meeting on time to fulfill my obligations to my constituents. Unfortunately, the Police Officer did not recognize me as a Member of Congress and a confrontation ensued. I did not have on my Congressional pin but showed the Police Officer my Congressional ID.

"I know that Capitol Hill Police are securing our safety, that of thousands of others, and I appreciate the work that they do. I deeply regret that the incident occurred. I have demonstrated my support for them in the past and I continue to support them now."
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I live in her district, and even got to vote against her in 2000.

Thankfully, I'm moving soon.
 
It looks like she expects security to bend the rules for her and is upset when they don't.

Members of Congress do not have to walk through metal detectors as they enter buildings on the Capitol complex. They wear lapel pins identifying them as members.

McKinney routinely doesn't wear her pin and is recognized by many officers, the police official said, adding that she wasn't wearing it when she entered a House office building early Wednesday.

By one police account, she walked around a metal detector and an officer asked her several times to stop. When she did not, the officer tried to stop her, and she then struck the officer, according to that account.
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http://www.forbes.com/business/feeds/ap/2006/03/29/ap2632568.html
 
So all she has to do to be exempt from going through security is to wear a pin, and she can't even be bothered to do that?

Anyone else annoyed by the language in the press release?

"...a confrontation ensued." and "I deeply regret that the incident occurred."

How about "I deeply regret that I didn't bother to wear my congressional pin and then hit a police officer because he was doing his job." You know, actually taking responsibility for her actions, and the like.
 
ARubberChickenWithAPulley said:
So all she has to do to be exempt from going through security is to wear a pin, and she can't even be bothered to do that?

Anyone else annoyed by the language in the press release?

"...a confrontation ensued." and "I deeply regret that the incident occurred."

How about "I deeply regret that I didn't bother to wear my congressional pin and then hit a police officer because he was doing his job." You know, actually taking responsibility for her actions, and the like.
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You must be thinking of your congresswoman. Mine would never say anything like that.

I first heard about her before I even moved here, back when she wrote something about how Al Gore's negro tolerance level wasn't very high.
 
ARubberChickenWithAPulley said:
Anyone else annoyed by the language in the press release?

"...a confrontation ensued."
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A confrontation ensued. "Yeah, there I was, minding my own business, signing a few autographs, asking people about the weather back home, when suddenly, without warning, and for no apparent reason, a confrontation ensued. Just broke out. Can you imagine that?"
 
Good old McKinney. A regular speaker at ANSWER anti-war rallies. Member of the House Armed Services Committee.

Now she hits a cop and says she has supported them. Why am I not surprised?
 
Amazing. She can't even bring herself to take responsibility for not wearing her identification. How classy would she have looked if she had taken responsibility and apologised to the officer, explaining that she was in a hurry and simply forgot to wear her ID at the same time commending him for his vigilance in this day and age - maybe even making a joke hoping she hadn't hurt him too bad when she hit him.
No, instead she decides to blame him:

"It is the expectation of most Members of Congress that Capitol Hill Police officers know who they are. "

Right Cindy, all 635 of them.
 
DaChew said:
Amazing. She can't even bring herself to take responsibility for not wearing her identification. How classy would she have looked if she had taken responsibility and apologised to the officer, explaining that she was in a hurry and simply forgot to wear her ID at the same time commending him for his vigilance in this day and age - maybe even making a joke hoping she hadn't hurt him too bad when she hit him.
No, instead she decides to blame him:

"It is the expectation of most Members of Congress that Capitol Hill Police officers know who they are. "

Right Cindy, all 635 of them.
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535
 
Obviously she is representative of all Democrats. It just goes to show that the american people knew they could vote in a party with "family values" who would never hassle with rent-a-cops ....

Charlie (is this really news?) Monoxide
 
Charlie Monoxide said:
Obviously she is representative of all Democrats. It just goes to show that the american people knew they could vote in a party with "family values" who would never hassle with rent-a-cops ....

Charlie (is this really news?) Monoxide
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With the exception of the original article, you are the first to bring her Party into this discusssion, as far I as I can tell. The rest of us are mocking her because she happens to be a nut.

And for some reason you felt the need to insult the Capitol police.
 
BPSCG said:
He probably deserved it. He was probably a Jew. J-E-W.
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Her father is a certifiable lunatic; she actually had to fire him as her campaign manager because he couldn't/wouldn't control the streams of crazy and stupid that flew out of his mouth. I remember bumping into him after the primary she lost; I was actually proud of how I handled myself, and my neocon friends loved it.

"Aren't you Billy McKinney?"
"Yes, I am."
"My name's ------. J-E-W. I voted for your daughter."

The look on his face was priceless. :D


(The irony is that McKinney Sr. wasn't actually wrong, even if he's a crazy anti-semitic old kook. Money from Jewish organizations did have quite a bit to do with Majette's win in the primary.)
 
In the original article I read, the officer did press charges. I wonder how he was compensated/threatened.
 
By Contrast...

Some years ago, Congresswoman (now ex-Congresswoman) Connie Morella (R), from Maryland, was visiting my agency headquarters building for something or other, as I happened to be walking through the lobby. The guard, not recognizing her, and having explicit instructions to challenge anyone not wearing an agency building pass, stopped her.

Morella's agency escort got all kinds of indignant, "Do you know who this is?" and you could see the guard was about to fire back when Morella told the escort it was okay and started digging through her purse for her driver's license or congressional ID or whatever.

Class act; she could have made a scene, or allowed the escort to make a scene, but instead acted like she had no more right to walk into our building than any other Joe Citizen off the street.

Conclusion: Republican congresswomen have more class than Democratic ones. :duck:
 
Charlie Monoxide said:
That would be "a piece of slime with an opinion" ...

Charlie (1st ad hom in a while) Monoxide
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You were wrong about the Capitol police, quite apart from whether you are a piece of slime.

Manny didn't say you were wrong because you're a piece of slime. The meaning of his post is that what you said is wrong and you are a piece of slime for saying it.
 
aerocontrols said:
You were wrong about the Capitol police, quite apart from whether you are a piece of slime.

Manny didn't say you were wrong because you're a piece of slime. The meaning of his post is that what you said is wrong and you are a piece of slime for saying it.
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Wow, the ad homs just keep rolling in.

Charlie (it's nice to know you're loved) Monoxide
 
Cylinder said:
I do not think she can be arrested while Congress is in session (not that she will be after.)
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Not sure about that. Article I, section 6:
Section 6. The Senators and Representatives shall receive a compensation for their services, to be ascertained by law, and paid out of the treasury of the United States. They shall in all cases, except treason, felony and breach of the peace, be privileged from arrest during their attendance at the session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any speech or debate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any other place.
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If stabbing the policeman gets her charged with a felony...

In any case, it doesn't say anything there about her being immune from civil suit.
 
As much as I deplore this, there is a good reason to never apologize for such incidents, even when you're at fault: the apology will be used as evidence against you in court when they sue. "See, she damns herself with her own words, admitting responsibility!" After that, it would just be a matter of deciding how many thousands of dollars the plaintiff gets.
 
TragicMonkey said:
As much as I deplore this, there is a good reason to never apologize for such incidents, even when you're at fault: the apology will be used as evidence against you in court when they sue. "See, she damns herself with her own words, admitting responsibility!" After that, it would just be a matter of deciding how many thousands of dollars the plaintiff gets.
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When you're as in the wrong as she is here, you should own up, show some repentance, seek out the injured party personally and apologize face-to-face, offer to pay any and all expenses, and do this all privately, and hope he growls and shakes your hand and that's the end of it. Then, if he wants some money, shut up and pay it and be done.

As opposed to hiding behind a bunch of legalese and passive voice-evasion-of-responsibility phrases ("an altercation ensued...") that can only aggravate the injured party's feelings and make him decide he wants not just money for actual damages, but for punitive damages as well, to teach you a lesson.

And you hire a lawyer at $500/hour and six months later, as the court proceedings drag out, you realize that you've paid the lawyer more than you'd ever pay your victim.
 
Now wait a minute. When has a cop sued someone he had to detain? There's not going to be any lawsuit here.
 
BPSCG said:
When you're as in the wrong as she is here, you should own up, show some repentance, seek out the injured party personally and apologize face-to-face, offer to pay any and all expenses, and do this all privately, and hope he growls and shakes your hand and that's the end of it. Then, if he wants some money, shut up and pay it and be done.

As opposed to hiding behind a bunch of legalese and passive voice-evasion-of-responsibility phrases ("an altercation ensued...") that can only aggravate the injured party's feelings and make him decide he wants not just money for actual damages, but for punitive damages as well, to teach you a lesson.

And you hire a lawyer at $500/hour and six months later, as the court proceedings drag out, you realize that you've paid the lawyer more than you'd ever pay your victim.
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Unless the victim decides from the start that this is his ticket to becoming a millionaire. Don't underestimate greed. Who's content with "damages" when they think they have a shot at living in luxury like rap stars? Thanks to television's portrayal of the legal system, we have people walking around who think being in a fender bender might mean megawealth.
 
manny said:
Now wait a minute. When has a cop sued someone he had to detain? There's not going to be any lawsuit here.
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True enough, but most people cops detain aren't worth more than a couple hundred bucks, not counting the street value of the stuff in their pockets.

Can a cop sue someone if getting hit is considered an occupational hazard?
 
Jocko said:
Probably not, but he can request a warrant to arrest someone who has assualted him... as has apparently happened in this case.
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Feh. Then Rep. McKinney was right not to apologize. Maybe the first time she's ever been right. Unless the officer was seriously injured I think this is an overreaction.
 
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