Rahm Emanuel: 'F---ing Retarded'

UPDATE: Special Olympics: Apology not accepted

The vice president for communications at the Special Olympics, Kirsten Seckler, told me that this account of the conversation is "inaccurate."

"Tim didn't accept his apology," she said. "Tim can't do that. He can't accept an apology on behalf of all people with disabilities."

Shriver had simply said, she said, that he was willing to continue the conversation with the chief of staff.

...Emanuel met Wednesday with six disability advocates. He "sincerely apologized," again, for using the word, promising to sign an online pledge to end the use of the word, the advocates said in a joint statement.

Emanuel also promised to "examine" Congressional legislation that would remove the word from federal law.

"We are thankful to Mr. Emanuel for meeting with us today and hearing our concerns," said the joint statement from the six advocates whom he met, led by Shriver.

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Once again, the Obama administration is showing disrespect to the mentally challenged.

It was less than a year ago -- March 19, 2009, to be exact -- that Obama was a guest on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

During the interview, while discussing his poor bowling skills, Obama mocked Special Olympics athletes.

Transcript here.

He apologized and promised to have Special Olympics participants over to the White House to bowl and play basketball.

Months later, Obama's promise remained unfulfilled.

That wasn't the only time the Democrats showed insensitivity to the mentally challenged.

There was the Democrats' use of the term "retarded" in legislation.

From the New York Post:

The proposed health-insurance bill from the House of Representatives refers to mentally disabled people as "retarded" -- a term advocates, relatives and physicians find outdated and offensive.

The bill refers to: "A hospital or a nursing facility or intermediate-care facility for the mentally retarded..."

The phrase could cause more problems with groups for the developmentally disabled, who were angered when President Obama referred to his poor bowling skills on "The Tonight Show" as "like the Special Olympics." Obama later apologized.

Now, we have Rahm Emanuel losing it in typical foul-mouthed style, calling White House aides and members of liberal groups "F---ing retarded."

From the Wall Street Journal:

President Barack Obama's liberal backers have a long list of grievances. The Guantanamo Bay prison is still open. Health care hasn't been transformed. And Wall Street banks are still paying huge bonuses.

But they are directing their anger less at Mr. Obama than at the man who works down the hall from him. Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, they say, is the prime obstacle to the changes they thought Mr. Obama's election would bring.

The friction was laid bare in August when Mr. Emanuel showed up at a weekly strategy session featuring liberal groups and White House aides. Some attendees said they were planning to air ads attacking conservative Democrats who were balking at Mr. Obama's health-care overhaul.

"F—ing retarded," Mr. Emanuel scolded the group, according to several participants. He warned them not to alienate lawmakers whose votes would be needed on health care and other top legislative items.

Sarah Palin called out Emanuel on his disgraceful behavior, writing on Facebook:

The newly-released mind-boggling, record-smashing $3,400,000,000,000 federal budget invites plenty of opportunity to debate the merits of incurring more and more debt that will drown the next generation of Americans. Never has it been possible to spend your way out of debt. So... let the debate begin.

Included in the debate process will be opportunities for our president to deliberate internally the wisdom of this debt explosion, along with other economic, military and social issues facing our country. Our president will discuss these important issues with Democrat leaders and those within his inner circle. I would ask the president to show decency in this process by eliminating one member of that inner circle, Mr. Rahm Emanuel, and not allow Rahm’s continued indecent tactics to cloud efforts. Yes, Rahm is known for his caustic, crude references about those with whom he disagrees, but his recent tirade against participants in a strategy session was such a strong slap in many American faces that our president is doing himself a disservice by seeming to condone Rahm’s recent sick and offensive tactic.

The Obama Administration’s Chief of Staff scolded participants, calling them, “F---ing retarded,” according to several participants, as reported in the Wall Street Journal.

Just as we’d be appalled if any public figure of Rahm’s stature ever used the “N-word” or other such inappropriate language, Rahm’s slur on all God’s children with cognitive and developmental disabilities – and the people who love them – is unacceptable, and it’s heartbreaking.

...Mr. President, you can do better, and our country deserves better.

As long as Obama thinks Rahm Emanuel can help him politically, he'll tolerate anything that Rahm says.

And it's not as if Rahm isn't on the same page as Obama when it comes to insensitivity. They are so thoughtless and so cold.

The sad fact is, for Obama, Rahm is perfect.
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Another meaningless apology from the White House:

White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel has apologized for referring to liberals as "retarded" during a strategy session last summer.

A White House official said Emanuel called Tim Shriver, the CEO of the Special Olympics, last week after his comments were reported in a Wall Street Journal article.

"Rahm called Tim Shriver Wednesday to apologize and the apology was accepted," a White House aide said. "The White House remains committed to addressing the concerns and needs of Americans living with disabilities and recognizes that derogatory remarks demean us all."

...The Special Olympics has launched a campaign called "spread the word to end the word," which is aimed at eliminating the use of the word "retard" in reference to people with special needs.

Tim Shriver must be getting sick of taking these calls from the White House.

Shriver discusses his conversation with Obama after he slurred the Special Olympics athletes on The Tonight Show:

Speaking on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno in March, Barack Obama likened his bowling ability to "the Special Olympics or something". A thoughtless statement so out character that it warranted a call to Shriver soon after the show was recorded.

So, did Shriver admonish the president for his insensitivity, or thank him for the publicity? "Neither," he says. "I expressed to him that it was a difficult thing for our community, for many people it is quite painful to feel — even if he didn't mean it — to feel made fun of. But I also expressed my appreciation for his apology. I think all we ask of people is that they be more sensitive in the future, or open-minded — it's not just about controlling your speech, it's about opening your mind."

Sadly, I suspect Obama and members of his administration will be apologizing to Tim Shriver again.

I think Emanuel should place more than one call. Tim Shriver isn't the spokesman for all people with special needs. Getting Shriver to accept an apology doesn't let Emanuel off the hook.