Steele Sends letter to Democratic Rivals

[JaJae]

October 4, 2006
Dear Congressman Cardin, Governor Dean, Chairman Lierman and Senator Schumer:
For several months, I have been trailed by Democrat operatives filming my public events. At these events – speeches, press conferences, county fairs and parades – my every word and move has been recorded.
I realize this has become a part of modern campaigning and I welcome the scrutiny. In fact, I always make a point to say a friendly hello to whomever the Democrat Party sends to follow me. However, recent actions have crossed the line from political activity to an invasion of privacy.
On the morning of September 30, I participated in a homecoming ceremony for the Army National Guard 243rd Engineers. The event – as fitting for the occasion – was non-political. Republicans and Democrats joined together to welcome home brave men and women returning from Iraq and I attended in my official capacity to spend time with the troops and their families.
While speaking with two mothers whose sons had died in Iraq, I noticed the ever present Democrat operative filming our conversation. A conversation with parents who have lost a loved one in combat is private in nature and has no place in partisan politics, and certainly not in the smear campaign you have waged against me even before I entered the race for United States Senate. The filming of this conversation demonstrates a callous disregard for families who have lost a loved one and is an indefensible invasion of privacy.
Unfortunately, I have come to expect such ugly, gutter politics from you. Congressman Cardin, while saying you have expressed outrage to “all concerned parties” for the racist comments on your senior staffer’s blog, you have yet to apologize to me. Chairman Dean, your personal pollster, Cornell Belcher, advocated racist attacks to “knock” me down and “discredit” me, and yet I have received no apology from you. And, Senator Schumer, your staffers pled guilty to a crime when they stole my credit report and violated my privacy and that of my family, but I have had no apology from you either.
I did not think until this past Saturday, however, that such ugliness would intrude upon the return of our troops from Iraq. As I told your colleague, Congressman Steny Hoyer, who attended the event, this action represents a new low in Maryland politics and has no place in this campaign.
My campaign is focused on having a conversation with the voters of our state about the issues affecting Maryland and I am committed to building bridges over that which divides us. But, ugly partisan political tricks only work to divide our communities and represent the very type of political behavior voters are sick of.
If your respective organizations are as concerned as I am about the use of such poor judgment by your staff(s), you would take immediate steps to hold all responsible parties accountable.
I eagerly await your prompt response.
Sincerely,
MICHAEL S. STEELE

I like Steele. He's a black conservative politician who seems pretty centrist and open minded.

He seems like a pretty cool guy and it isn't often minorities take to politics, especially Republican ideals. He's an interesting politician.

It's a shame he can't give a speech without people throwing Oreo cookies at him. Democratic challengers have admitted to eating Oreo cookies before debates and public appearances with him as if it's a joke. AP Reporters have said they've seen Democratic campaigners handing out Oreos to the crowds so they can be thrown at him.

So this thread I guess is to deal with a few questions.

First, why the racist campaign against him? Why are people like Howard Dean and big named Democrats calling him:

"Terms like Uncle Tom, sellout, Stepin' Fetchit those terms have not come from nowhere. They have a history," he said. "It is deserved, to the degree that they support anti-racial policies."

They have images made of him as a black clown with big lips. They use racist epithets against him, etc etc...
I thought Democrats were supposed to champion minorities? Do they only stand up for minorities if they vote Democrat?

Secondly, what's the deal with illegally going after his credit record? When was the last time we've heard about a politician's credit record being illegally optained and presented to the media? Tax statements, yes and that is legal. But, credit records???

Is video recording a mother talking to Steele going too far? What were they expecting him to do/say? Why invade on people's privacy like this? Is eavesdropping on a mother talking to a politician and recording her conversation an indefensible invasion of their privacy?

[6SpeedTA95]

I too like Steele, I find it ridiculous the shit people have to put up with in regards to non political events.

Not to derail your thread but the party of "tolerance" likes to beat up minorities that aren't in their party which I find they did the same kind of shit to JC Watts here JC was a badass.

[thatguyoverthere]

Did Dean really call him a racial epithet? I didn't hear about that one yet.

The Oreo cookie thing is awful. Anyone campagining against him using his race is wrong. I agree on the credit records too. Isn't the NSA looking at our credit records also, or am I remembering that wrong? Either way, those are private.

As for taping him talking to the mother, it depends. If they were in a private room, of course that's wrong. If they were in public, I can't see any objection to filming their images. If their conversation was out of the earshot of others, then recording their conversation is wrong, too.

But if Steele and the mother were in public and within the earshot of others, I think that's fair game. You can hear a lot of one-on-one conversations between politicians and regular folks on C-Span election coverage all the time.

("Steele and the Mother" I loved that show back in the '70's...)

[ballz2wallz]

Originally Posted by thatguyoverthere

Anyone campagining against him using his race is wrong.

That's their only MO at this point isn't it?

[JaJae]

Originally Posted by thatguyoverthere

Did Dean really call him a racial epithet? I didn't hear about that one yet.

The Oreo cookie thing is awful. Anyone campagining against him using his race is wrong. I agree on the credit records too. Isn't the NSA looking at our credit records also, or am I remembering that wrong? Either way, those are private.

As for taping him talking to the mother, it depends. If they were in a private room, of course that's wrong. If they were in public, I can't see any objection to filming their images. If their conversation was out of the earshot of others, then recording their conversation is wrong, too.

But if Steele and the mother were in public and within the earshot of others, I think that's fair game. You can hear a lot of one-on-one conversations between politicians and regular folks on C-Span election coverage all the time.

("Steele and the Mother" I loved that show back in the '70's...)

Dean personally didn't call him a racial epithet. My post makes it seem like that so, but Dean did criticize him and make racial comments.

Something to the effect of "Who would have thought the RNC could have gotten so many black people in a hotel who weren't room service" in reference to one of Steele's speeches. Which is a racist joke, but nothing like what other senators and congressmen have said, such as Uncle Tom, etc. The thing about Dean though is that he defends what he said unlike other people when they're called on it. Dean has the who cares attitude and has no problem saying it.

Not that others don't:
'Party trumps race' for Steele foes*-*Metropolitan*-*The Washington Times, America's Newspaper

"There is a difference between pointing out the obvious and calling someone names," said a campaign spokesman for Kweisi Mfume, a Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate

Calling him an Uncle Tom is pointing out the obvious and not calling him names. Ok.

[thatguyoverthere]

Racial comments and insults are totally wrong, and the Democrats that are doing that to Steele are wrong, plain and simple. Racism is schism on the serious tip, yo.

I remember that Dean comment and I agree it's tasteless and classless. I like Dean, but that's backhanded racism at worst and just plain unfunny at best.

Keep up that kind of humor, Mr. Dean, and they just might ask you to host the Oscars. (As punishment.)

[6SpeedTA95]

Originally Posted by JaJae

"Who would have thought the RNC could have gotten so many black people in a hotel who weren't room service"

holy shit and people harp all over frist for saying you cant tell the difference between a shia and a sunni?

[KatKanPlay]

A few racists pigs, who call themselves liberals, are not representative of democrats.

[SoFlaJDM]

so then why all the hate for cindy sheehan

[JaJae]

Originally Posted by 6SpeedTA95

holy shit and people harp all over frist for saying you cant tell the difference between a shia and a sunni?

I think Condi Rice put it best when she said:

Originally Posted by Condi

I joined the party for different reasons. I found a party that sees me as an individual, not as part of a group....

[kinggovernor]

if half of what he says is true, holy shit

[KatKanPlay]

Originally Posted by SoFlaJDM

so then why all the hate for cindy sheehan

She opposed the war, she spoke out against Bush, she is unamerican and un patriotic, she deserves to be hated for that, dont you think?

[kinggovernor]

Originally Posted by KatKanPlay

A few racists pigs, who call themselves liberals, are not representative of democrats.

that just happen to be on the staff of key democrats