By now most of you know about the situation involving Shirley Sherrod, the department of Agriculture official who was unceremoniously fired on Monday after Andrew Breitbart on his Big Government website, and Fox News played an edited version of her speech to the NCAAP months ago in which she is seen discussing why she didn't help a white farmer.
As that video was played incessantly on Monday, including on Fox News O'Reilly Factor, news came across the transom that Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack had sacked Sherrod. Since then, of course, we have learned that it was an edited videotape of Sherrod's speech, and that in fact she was discussing her previous racism - and that ultimately she had helped the white farmers.
Rich Lowry of the National Review writes today after viewing Sherrod's entire speech that it should be a no-brainer that the woman should be rehired.
Its politics aside, her full speech is heartfelt and moving. It's the tale of someone overcoming hatred and rancor when she had every reason not to. Her saga over the last couple of days is a lesson in how the culture of offense often works in contemporary America—chewing people up and spitting them out before they even have a chance to defend themselves. Of course she should get her job back, although the Department of Agriculture is bizarrely standing by her firing so far. Here's hoping President Obama convenes a beer summit between Secretary Vilsack and Sherrod as soon as possible and sorts this thing out.
On CNN last night, Breitbart was given the chance to repent last night. But he blows it in not owning up to the error he made in his posting.
On Breitbart's Big Government website Wednesday morning, a faithful reader acknowledged the obvious out of all this: Breitbart, in his apparent zeal to embarrass the NAACP regarding their charges last week of racism within the Tea Party movement, did zero vetting before posting the video, and neither did Fox News.
It backfired on Andrew. He was the fool for not asking for the whole tape and
reviewing it before taking it to the media. That's what happens when you trust somone else and not think for yourself.
He just took that man's word and went along with him wanting to get something on the NAACP. The tea party should ban all racist signs before being in public. All that they need to do is get on the bull horn and make the announcement. Is that a hard thing to do?
Still no word on whether Secretary Vilsack will rescind the termination of Sherrod. But White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs needs to be hit hard today on the report that the administrator who called Sherrod Monday afternoon to can her said it was urgent because Glenn Beck was going to do a story about her. Vilsack has a lot to explain as well.
