Obama: Fire Imus Obama First White House Contender to Call for Imus Firing Over Racial Slur

Source: abcnews

April 11, 2007— In an interview with ABC News Wednesday afternoon, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., called for talk radio host Don Imus to be fired, and said he would never again appear on his show, which is broadcast on CBS Radio and MSNBC television.

"I understand MSNBC has suspended Mr. Imus," Obama told ABC News, "but I would also say that there's nobody on my staff who would still be working for me if they made a comment like that about anybody of any ethnic group. And I would hope that NBC ends up having that same attitude."

Obama said he appeared once on Imus's show two

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"He didn't just cross the line," Obama said, "he fed into some of the worst stereotypes that my two young daughters are having to deal with today in America. The notions that as young African American women — who I hope will be athletes — that that somehow makes them makes them less beautiful or less important, it was a degrading comment, it's one that I'm not interested in supporting."




Read more: http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=3031317&page=1

garbage two years ago too.

I'm glad Senator Obama made his statement. Take that Al!

If he is calling for Imus's firing, then he should call for this woman to be prosecuted for false allegations.

I think it's proper context re: your comment. I forget the exact words but it was a strong statement that Nifong had not kept to the straight and narrow path that a prosecutor must and that he needed to be investigated and proper actions taken.

Aside from that, I must admit, when I saw Obama being ripped for not calling for Imus' firing yesterday, I assumed that there were other candidates who'd come out and called for it already. The top post here says not so. So what gives? (Edit: Not gonna assume so cut the last phrase out.)

I'm sure the poster will find some other irrelevant nonsense to bring up instead. There must be something that Obama didn't comment on that is passingly related in some fashion to that miserable asshole imus uttering hateful racist bile at those proud young women.

So I don't think it'll take much else to pile on.

There have been so many black people falsely accused over the ages and unfortunately many of them are still sitting in jail because they don't have the luxury of clearing their names with money. BTW, what does this have to do with the Imus situation anyway.

Times like these make me embarrassed to be white.

March 25, 2007 — Another voice has joined the call for a federal investigation into the handling of the Duke Lacrosse case — this one with the punch of presidential politics.

Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., in a written response to a constituent, said that an "independent inquiry is needed" into the conduct of Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong.

Nifong prosecuted and led the investigation into the alleged sexual assault of an exotic dancer at a lacrosse team party in March 2006.

Obama cited the fact that Rep. Walter Jones, R-N.C., has already asked Attorney General Alberto Gonzales for a federal investigation into Nifong's conduct. ABC News has learned that similar requests have been made by Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz., and Rep. Tom Feeney, R-Fla.

According to Obama's letter, Jones asked Gonzales to "review new evidence that Mr. Nifong withheld exculpatory DNA results from the defendants in order to determine if his conduct has illegally denied the students their civil rights as U.S. citizens under federal law."

Obama said of the call for a federal investigation that he "will be following its progress closely."

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/LegalCenter/story?id=2980582&page=1

I'm starting to warm up to obama. If he would take a leap on single payer UHC it would seal the deal.

if Obama came out for single payer fee for service I would take another look at him.

Imus?

It's not the problem. Imus is just a symptom of the problem.

<"What we've been seeing around this country is this constant ratcheting up of a coarsening of the culture that all of have to think about," Obama said.>

comment from Barack Obama! Buzzflash called for a Democratic boycott of imus in either 2000 or 2002..I can't find the paragraph today.

The Nation has a good article on what may be imus' Waterloo.. Her name is C. Vivian Stringer.

Snip~
"The radio shock jock Don Imus has joined a special corner of media hell. It's a corner occupied by Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh and all the other personalities who thought that one more twig of bigotry wouldn't break the camel's back. That's what happens when you think it's good fun to call Rutgers' women basketball players "nappy-headed ho's."

It's hard to imagine Imus was helped by a show of support from his good friend John McCain. Now that the McCainiac is done visiting Iraqi street markets with his army of Spartan snipers, telling everyone how safe it is, he has brought his delusions to Imus's defense, saying, "He has apologized. He said that he is deeply sorry. I'm a great believer in redemption.... I have made many mistakes in my life...and I have apologized, and most people have accepted that apology."

Imus's corporate masters at MSNBC and CBS, who have called him "brilliant and provocative," have given him a nice two-week vacation, and then it will be business as usual.

Or maybe not. This time Imus may have taken someone tougher and more tenacious than he. Her name is C. Vivian Stringer, and if he's only known her as the coach of Rutgers's slandered team, he's in for a rude awakening."


Much more..
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20070423/zirin

I think the reference to John Kerry in this article is under investigated..I understand imus always talked shit about Kerry which he should wear as a badge of honor.

I especially liked this excerpt:

a lot! :)

I'm glad he took a strong stance on the subject.

I watched Obama in both cable channels. The reason for the interview was not Imus, but the fact that John McCain had dropped Obama's name in his speech today to VMI. Obama was asked about Imus by both Wolfie and the CNN White House guy at the end of the interview. Obama was specifically asked if Imus should be fired. Obama's response was that NBC and MSNBC should not be carrying a show in which derogatory remarks are made about women and minorities. Obama went on further to comment on the negative impact that language that demeans women and minorities have (Obama referred to his young daughters).

where people are demeaning to others. Maybe he'll go on Fox next and tell them to clean up their act. Get rid of all this hate radio garbage.

about a black reverend who made unsupported allegations against 6 white men, claiming that they
assaulted, sodomized, raped and smeared feces on a young black girl?

I think that hurt the Reverend Al's reputation for a long, long time.

Just curious if someone in the media gave a heads-up to Obama that Imus was going to be fired, so Obama could make his bold statement just in time. :shrug: