As you must have heard by now, George Allen is a total racist. It's pretty evident from the video, and the blogosphere has really gotten this story out in the open. But, lo and behold, as you can see over at
NLS-the story breaker, the WaPo has changed their story, probably just in time for the print edition. Now, George Allen is
"sorry."
There are a lot of additions to the report. There are a few omisions, but thankfully not many. It still doesn't look too good for George Allen, though. I am going to blockquote the highlights for you. If anyone can provide a link to the first WaPo article, I will update and link.
The entire story can be found here.
The opening:
RICHMOND, Aug. 15 -- Virginia Sen. George Allen (R) apologized Monday for what his opponent's campaign said were demeaning and insensitive comments the senator made to a 20-year-old volunteer of Indian descent.
I don't like that it's the first line. They should leave it at the end, or run another article. This guy doesn't deserve one favor from anyone right now.
But, of course, it gets more disgusting:
Reached Monday evening, Allen said that the word had no derogatory meaning for him and that he was sorry. "I would never want to demean him as an individual. I do apologize if he's offended by that. That was no way the point."
Asked what macaca means, Allen said: "I don't know what it means." He said the word sounds similar to "mohawk," a term that his campaign staff had nicknamed Sidarth because of his haircut. Sidarth said his hairstyle is a mullet -- tight on top, long in the back.
Allen said by the comment welcoming him to America, he meant: "Just to the real world. Get outside the Beltway and get to the real world."
OK, Allen tries to cover his tracks. I can just hear his pained voice as he tries to lie about never having heard the word. It's also kind of funny that George Allen thinks that a 20 year old spends more time in the beltway than a Senator in VA. Maybe that's bc the senate "bores him" and he wishes he was born in Iowa.
Interestingly, Allen is sorry if the young man Sidarth is offended, but he's not sorry he said it. Also, I find it interesting that Sidarth calls his hairstyle a mullet. In my opinion, it is nothing like a mullet, but that may have been a very good move by Sidarth or the campaign. People in SW VA do know what a mullet is, and if they hear that, they might be more angry at Allen than they would have been had they not realized that George Allen thinks their hair looks like a mohawk.
More:
But the apology, which came hours after Allen's campaign manager dismissed the issue with an expletive and insisted the senator has "nothing to apologize for," did little to mollify Webb's campaign or Sidarth, who said he suspects Allen singled him out because his was the only nonwhite face among about 100 Republican supporters.
"I think he was doing it because he could, and I was the only person of color there, and it was useful for him in inciting his audience," said Sidarth, who videotaped the event for the Webb campaign. "I was annoyed he would use my race in a political context."
Told of Allen's apology, Todd added, "I hope Allen realizes that Virginians come in all colors."
The sense I get from those few paragraphs is a cool, calm, and collected Webb staff member, and a crazy man who is swearing at a reporter who works for Allen. Could it be time for Wadhams to go?
Now, the reviews from VA politicos:
Virginia Commonwealth University politics professor Robert Holsworth called Allen's comments a gaffe that probably wouldn't change the Senate race but could hurt his presidential ambitions.
"This doesn't turn the race around at all," Holsworth said. "But for a guy running for president, this is likely to be regularly aired this year and maybe beyond."
House Majority Leader H. Morgan Griffith (R-Salem), who represents southwest Virginia, said the Webb campaign is just "grabbing for stuff" to gain traction against Allen. Griffith said he doubts anyone at the rally even picked up on Allen's use of the word macaca.
"Not many people in southwest Virginia would think it is derogatory," Griffith said. "I didn't have a clue what it meant, and I doubt Allen did, either."
Sidarth, who is entering his fourth year at the University of Virginia and is an active Democrat, had been assigned to trail Allen with a video camera to document his travels and speeches for Webb, a common campaign tactic.
Steve Mukherjee, a spokesman for the Washington chapter of the Association of Indians in America, said Allen's comments were "hurtful," and he chided the senator for not being more sensitive.
"The world is so volatile and so delicate," Mukherjee said. "You have to be careful what you say and how you say it. The U.S. is no longer black and white."
Asked what macaca means, Mukherjee said: "What it means, I don't know. But it's going to cause him some grief."
And perhaps most importantly, the people are reminded of Allen's sordid history:
It's not the first time Allen has confronted charges of insensitivity to race or ethnicity from minority leaders and longtime political opponents.
Before he ran for governor in 1993, Allen was criticized for keeping a Confederate flag in a cabin near his Charlottesville home, part of a collection of flags, he has said. He stirred controversy as governor by issuing a proclamation noting the South's celebration of Confederate History Month without mentioning slavery.
This year, the New Republic magazine published a photo of Allen wearing a Confederate flag on his lapel during high school.
"It wasn't a racial statement; it was a statement about his rebellious nature," said John Reid, Allen's communications director.
It looks like time will tell. Some think this is going to haunt Allen to the point of a dropped Presidential run; some feel this will be over in a few days. I do know that this will be played out on the blogs for a while, and the MSM will hopefully catch up with us tomorrow.
I guess another big question is: how do we make a kiss float to depict this?