Those shiftless, lazy people
It's their fault
Racially charged e-mail stirs outrage
Rep. Welker cites his 'poor judgment' in forwarding essay
By Lynn Bartels, Rocky Mountain News
March 10, 2006
A Loveland lawmaker has been blasted by his colleagues for e-mailing an essay written by someone else that accused "welfare-pampered blacks" of waiting for the government to save them from Hurricane Katrina.
Rep. Jim Welker, a Republican, said Thursday morning that he forwarded the article because of its message about society victimizing people by making them dependent on government programs.
He said he didn't agree with everything in the essay.
One passage says, "President Bush is not to blame for the rampant immorality of blacks."
House lawmakers - black and white, Republican and Democrat - expressed outrage that Welker would forward such an essay.
Rep. Debbie Stafford, R-Aurora, who worked with Katrina evacuees when they came to Colorado, said she was "appalled and sickened."
"These (were) poor people. Many of them were senior citizens and had no way to escape the hurricane," said Stafford, who is white.
Rep. Terrence Carroll, D-Denver, called it "one one of the most irresponsible e-mails someone in this chamber has sent out."
"It shows (Welker's) complete and utter disregard, at worst, and the misunderstanding, at best, of the lives of people of color," said Carroll, who is black.
After the uproar, Welker issued the following statement late in the afternoon:
"Forwarding this e-mail, particularly without comment, showed poor judgment on my part. I found the opinions expressed by this individual, especially if taken literally, to be offensive and inappropriate. I should not have assumed that this would be clear when received by others."
He earlier said he should have put a disclaimer on the e-mail, and will do so in future e-mails of other writers' material.
Welker said he forwarded the e-mail over the weekend on his own computer.
But Democratic lawmakers have asked the legislature's technical staff to determine why copies of the e-mails forwarded to them by people who were upset with the content bear a time stamp of Monday afternoon, when Welker was in a committee hearing with his laptop computer.
Welker, who is white, said he wasn't implying anything about blacks by forwarding the essay.
"Some of my best friends are of different skin color, like Ed Jones," said Welker, referring to Sen. Jones, a Colorado Springs Republican who is black.
The odious e-mail was written by professional negro Jesse Lee Peterson, who seems not to like being black all that much. He's so crazy, he made Larry Elder shrink back.
On the News Blog we like to write about black Republicans, hell, challenge black Republicans a lot. Because, for the most part, they're pathetic dupes who continually swallow the disrespect of the GOP for reasons which I cannot fathom.
Peterson thinks he's some kind of challenge to the NAACP, when he would have been chased from any large room of black people. The last time I saw this loon on TV, he was in a room full of white people at the Heritage Foundation. I mean, at every turn, you see these people, from the always pathetic LaShawn Barber to people like Peterson, grovelling for the support for people who hold them in utter and complete contempt.
The Republicans never listen to the black professionals in their ranks, not that most black people have any respect for them anyway. I once saw former USA Today columnist Deborah Mathis ask some GOP lackey "why was she a Republican" in the kind of tone people usually reserve for child molesters and cannibals.
What most people don't get is that black Republicans, are in a way, seen as betraying the community. The idea that someone like Lynn Swann can walk into a black church and get votes is well, silly. Because the black church is a repository for professionals, teachers, nurses, the people most likely to be unionized and least likely to be interested in the tired and insulting GOP pitch that black people are on the "democratic plantation".
The RNC went nuts, along with their blogger amen choir, when a study showing racists gravitate to the Republican party.
Gee, between Fancy Ford rollin' in an Escalade and wearin' Armani, and the rantings of Jesse Lee Peterson "self-hating negro", why would anyone think that the GOP appeals to racists?
posted by Steve @ 3/10/2006 09:42:00 AM
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