THE ANCHOR DESK:
MLK DAY AND KNOWING WHEN TO SHUT UP

Ok by now eveyone has heard the newsbytes from the unfortunate speeches made by NY Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin. sigh.....My question is to them is how can two obviously intelligent people with several staff members under them say such completely stupid things in a speech. I can understand being caught by a reporter on the street or at an event or fielding questions at a press conference and saying something ambiguous that could be interperted differently, but a speech... regarding or referencing race... ON MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. DAY!!! Are ya CRAZY! Senator Clinton's comments comparing the U.S. House of Representatives to "a plantation" at mostly Black audience in Harlem on Monday was bad enough, but the follow up portion "and you know what I mean." made it ten times worse. No Senator, we don't know what you mean. How could anyone know what you mean? Your statement, or at least the portion of it that you of ALL people should know would be turned into the sound byte of the week , was completely ambiguous to anyone not in the U s Congress. Sure I watch the news. Yes, I see that the Republican majority is able to throw their weight around both houses. And yes, the Democrats have to scream, fight, and cry in order to get anything accomplished. Actually, the more I think about it, the more heated battles always seem to come from the Senate. hmmm... Taking all of that into account, I STILL didn't get the reference. It seems the statement, according to CNN and a spokesman for Clinton, was pointing out that the GOP House leadership has stifled substantive debate. Ok that's fine. I understand. I understand that it may be in reference to something that former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said in 1994 after the Republicans took the majority in the House of Representatives where he claimes the Democrats thought in was "their job to run the plantation". He went further to say he was "actually willing to lead the slave revolution." Oh Newt.... Look, I think Senator Clinton is an amazing person and an incredible Senator. Should she take her seat back in November and decide to run for President, I would highly consider voting for her. But public comments like this cling to you like skunk stink. If you want to continue or go further in in public service, think before you speak. Be clear and be consice and then if you still have any doubts consult someone who's been in public life for advice, like the your husband you occasionally live with.Now on to New orleans Mayor Ray Nagin and his dreams of a chocolate city and thoughts of a vengful god sending hurricans to punish the US. Mayor Nagin, when Pat Robertson says that hurricans hit your fair city to punish the Emmy's for having out lesbian Ellen Degeneress host last year's show, we disgard it as the ravings of an obvious media whore. When YOU say hurricans are a sign that God was angry at the United States and it's black communities, you lose credibility as a local leader with national focus. The eyes of the whole country have been on you since Hurricane Katrina hit. The sympathies concern of an entire nation were with you since that day. Then, with one ambiguous comment, you throw that away or at best, raise some doubts. I know the Mayor is trying to get the displaced citizens of the city to come back and start over, especially since much of the 9th Ward may beyong saving and the city will not beable to rebuild that area, but this sort of grandstanding will not help your cause. Comments referring to any element of the race issue as "chocolate" plays badly in many places of this country. Rural areas that are not "rednecks" and are actually sensitive to the issue of race. it confuses them. It confused me. I think of the Mayor of my city making a comment like this. He would have been crucifed, because he's white. Now that gets off the issue a bit but it adds to the thought that race is still a hot issue. It doesn't matter the color of your skin because if a camera is on you, you are speaking to ALL colors. Also, since you are a man of national attention, your sound bytes, good or bad, will be heard EVERYWHERE. It'll be interpretted many ways. THINK BEFORE YOU SPEAK!!!!

- THE X-RAY IS NOW OFF -