Top Tampa GOP Figure Circulates Joke About Killing Obama

http://www.tboblogs.com/index.php/news/story/top-tampa-gop-figure-circulates-joke-about-killing-obama/

Posted Oct 15, 2008 by William March
Updated Oct 15, 2008 at 05:58 PM

Al Austin, a longtime, high-level Republican fundraiser from Tampa, today sent to his list of political contacts an e-mail containing a joke that refers to the assassination of Barack Obama.

When asked about the e-mail, Austin said it was a mistake and apologized and that he wouldn’t knowingly have circulated it. He said he planned to send an apology and retraction to the same e-mail list.

Al Austin/ Tribune file photo

The joke concerns a group of schoolchildren discussing the definition of “tragedy” as opposed to “great loss” or “accident.” The punch line comes when one child says that if an airplane carrying Obama and his wife, Michelle, “was struck by a ‘friendly fire’ missile and blown to smithereens,” the event might be a tragedy “because it certainly wouldn’t be a great loss, and it probably wouldn’t be an accident either.”

Austin acknowledged sending the e-mail to his list of political contacts but said he forwarded it without fully reading it and didn’t know what it said. That list included at least two reporters.

Some GOP spokeswoman with an annoying shrill voice will issue a lame "apology":

"If I offended anybody... I regret that...no harm was intended, etc, etc."

I quite frequently take the time to forward emails that I haven't read. Therefore, you shouldn't blame me if I accidentally send you a racist email that I haven't even read because I HAVEN'T READ IT. It's science.

You forward e-mails that you haven't read. Why in the hell would you forward something that you haven't the slightest clue of its content?

just before he was about to get his sorry a$$ canned. And our repuke governor was at the head of the line calling for his head.

http://www.starbulletin.com/news/breaking/HTA_Chief_Executive_Rex_Johnson_resigns.html

Hawaii Tourism Authority Chief Executive Rex Johnson resigned this evening after an eight-hour meeting, much of it behind closed doors.

"At this point, certain accusations have made Rex a lightning rod for controversy. This has become a distraction to the effectiveness of the HTA and we respect his decision," said HTA Chairman Kelvin Bloom....

Both Johnson and the HTA have been under fire since June when a state auditor flagged Johnson's e-mail account for pornography. In August, the board punished Johnson by docking his pay to $200,000 and cutting his four-year contract to one-year. However, when new allegations surfaced in September that the content of some of the e-mails that Johnson had chosen to forward to friends also included racist and sexist jokes, the issue reignited in the community.

The poor asshole. Proof that Lingle and her cronies are too weak to stand up to the extremists in the GOP.

then it became known that racist and sexist crap had passed through the aptly named Johnson's :evilgrin: inbox as well. At that point, Lingle belatedly caught on and publicly called for his scalp. Ironically, former Dem gov John Waihe'e spoke in Johnson's defense at one of these hearings. :wtf:

:rofl:

People who send me ANYTHING with 2 FWD'S get blocked. No exceptions.

:eyes:

and his ass is hauled in ...

Apparently mama's apron wasn't available