One Apology Too ManyA Commentary by J. D. Longstreet
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Congressman Joe Wilson of South Carolina should never have apologized the first time.As a resident of North Carolina for nearly fifty years, and a native of South Carolina, I qualify as a “Carolina Boy.” I am as much at home in one Carolina as the other. Thus, you have my "bona fides."
If you paid attention in history class, you may have noticed that we “Sandlappers,” of South Carolina, are famous, or infamous, depending upon your viewpoint, for our hot tempers. It doesn’t take a great deal to set us off and then we tend to burn hot for rather a long time. The last time the men of South Carolina lost their collective tempers it took four years and a lot of blood, sweat, and gunpowder to quench it.
Nobody is completely sure of the source of all that passion. But never doubt it, we are a passionate people. We may speak a little slower than you folks in the cooler climes but we think and act just as fast. Our slow speech can be a little off-putting and disarming and we often use it to charm our way to a sought after goal. It has been said that if America had a natural warrior class it would be the southern male. South Carolina is justifiably proud of her son’s performance in all the wars America has seen fit to involve herself in whether within her borders or without.
When secession became imminent, back in 1861, South Carolina was the first state to vote for secession – and -- South Carolina was the only Confederate state to vote unanimously for secession. You see, in South Carolina, it is 100% -- or nothing. We don’t do anything half way.
I tell you this so you will not be surprised when Joe Wilson, the Congressman from South Carolina who called the President a liar, in public, does not apologize again. Many of us think his one and only apology was one too many.
I, for one, believe Congressman Wilson was correct. Why? Well, it seems that some of the folks over at the White House admitted, late last week, that ObamaCare would, in fact, need a verification system of some kind to keep illegal aliens from receiving free healthcare under ObamaCare. Now, here’s the problem. It seems that every time a verification system comes up in the discussions -- the democrats oppose it – effectively killing it. Last we heard, no verification system had been agreed upon. So, as it stands, illegal aliens WILL receive free healthcare under the current plans for ObamaCare! Of course, that is subject to change. Yeah. Right!
In an article titled: “Tea Party Crowd Stands Behind Republican Rep. Joe Wilson” CNSNEWS.COM reports the following: “The House bill -- in Title II, Subtitle C, Section 246 – states that there will be “no federal payment for undocumented aliens.” However, the legislation provides no mechanism for verifying the legal status of beneficiaries, making it difficult for insurers and medical personal to know who legally qualifies for federal subsidies under the plan.” You can read the entire article HERE.
Well, there IS another way to “fix” the problem and that is for Obama to kick his “amnesty for illegal aliens plan” through Congress and -- Walla! No illegals aliens, and -- they get free healthcare, too!
So – what is there for Congressman Wilson to apologize for -- the truth? Wilson told reporters: “"I've apologized one time. The apology was accepted by the president, by the vice president, who I know. I am not apologizing again."
Sen. James DeMint (R-S.C.) is reported to have said: “Joe apologized for saying what he did in that setting, but he proved to be right,”
Of course, the Democrats are having their usual conniption fits. They vowed to propose a resolution of disapproval this week if Wilson did not publicly apologize to Congress. Earlier this week the US House formerly rebuked Congressman Wilson. If a “rebuke” by THIS Congress were not so ridiculous it would be funny! If anything, Congress ought to be apologizing to the American people! Many of us REBUKE THEM daily!
As we have learned over the decades one can always count on the Democrats to play the “race” card at every opportunity. This incident presented a terrific opportunity for them to do so. They trotted out former President Jimmy Carter who promptly tossed the race card into the mix by reportedly saying: “I think it's based on racism. There is an inherent feeling among many in this country that an African-American should not be president." Carter, apparently upset at recent demonstrators who had compared Obama to Nazi leaders, is reported to have said: “Those kind of things are not just casual outcomes of a sincere debate on whether we should have a national program on health care." Carter went on to say: "It's deeper than that."
Just so we are clear here, if Jimmy Carter was still in the White House and was proposing the same healthcare program as Obama, I, as a conservative southerner, would be opposing him every bit as much as I oppose Obama! Further, if his actions and proposals resembled those of the Nazis, as a part of the loyal opposition, I would be derelict in my duty if I DID NOT point that out to the American people!
It certainly appears the democrats are extremely delicate. They suffer from a malady known as “thin skin.” It is manifest by the easily observable fact that they can dish it out – but they can’t take it!
Mr. Carter referred to “a sincere debate” over Obamacare. Mr. Carter KNOWS the last thing Obama and the democrats want is a REAL debate. The fact is, and they are fully aware of it, they cannot win by debating their proposals on ObamaCare! A debate will only allow the American public to learn more about ObamaCare. We already know the more Americans learn of the power grabbing, socialist, program called ObamaCare the less they like it.
Seventy-four percent (74%) of Democrats now support the plan while 80% of Republicans are opposed. Among those not affiliated with either major party, 67% are opposed." You can read the entire report HERE.
Many, many, questions about the constitutionality of ObamaCare are waiting for the Supreme Court to answer. When one compares ObamaCare to the Bill of Rights, one can readily see that a number of amendments are in jeopardy.
We southerners were expecting this kind of reaction if Obama was elected President. More than once, long before the election, I heard southerners lamenting the expectation that if they opposed a “President” Obama they would be derided as “racists.” You see, we KNEW it was coming. As a southerner, I do not hesitate to tell you that choosing between Wilson and Carter is not a difficult task. While Carter is an embarrassment to me as a southerner, I am proud to support fellow southerner Congressman Joe Wilson.
Now, I admitted that I am a Carolina Boy at the beginning of this piece and proudly so. As a result, I am sure that it comes as no surprise to you that I would defend Congressman Joe Wilson. At the same time, it should not surprise you that what troubles me about the entire incident is not Congressman Wilson’s conduct, but the less than honest conduct of the President of the United States.
J. D. Longstreet
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