We once had a Joint Chiefs chairman named Richard Myers, who has a niece named Julie Myers. The president nominated her to be assistant DHS secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The thinness of her resume raised enough questions--even among Republicans like George Voinovich--that the president snuck her in as a recess appointment.
Even Michelle Malkin, of all people, called this a "monumental political and policy blunder."
Now we know she's not fit to judge a costume contest.
Myers sat on a 3-judge panel for a Halloween costume contest at a party to benefit the charity Combined Federal Campaign. Which costume did she praise for its "originality"?
The employee wore a striped prison outfit, dreadlocks and darkened skin make-up to the party hosted by Julie Myers, head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
When word got out that this was in extremely poor taste, at best, Myers sprang into damage control:
Myers called House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson, a Democrat from Mississippi, about the incident and is expected to meet with him before the end of the week, a Thompson spokeswoman told CNN.
Myers also contacted the National Association of African-Americans in the Department of Homeland Security. In a letter to NAADHS members, the group's vice president, Sjon Shavers, said the group "appreciates (Myers) reaching out to us so quickly in order to keep us apprised of the matter and we commend her on moving so swiftly toward appropriate corrective action."
Well, at least we know she's capable of moving quickly in a crisis. So maybe there's hope.