A Senator Loses It
By Jeffrey Page
In 2006, Senator George Allen, the noted conservative from Virginia, was happily sailing along toward election to a second term. There was even talk about his making a run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008.
But in a campaign stop, he saw a young Indian-American man taping his speech, and sarcastically introduced him to the crowd. Twice he referred to the man as “macaca,” which may be a historic European mispronunciation of macaque (ma-KAK), a genus of monkey that inhabits North Africa and South Asia. But enough of science. “Macaca” is a racial slur used by certain ignoramuses to describe dark-skinned people.
“Welcome to America and the real world of Virginia,” Allen addressed the man. If anyone needed an introduction to the real world it was Allen. The man, S.K. Sidarth, was born in California, raised in Virginia and was working for Allen’s opponent, Jim Webb. The last time anyone checked, this was legal.
The press had a field day with Allen, as well it should. He lost the election to Webb.
Last week, Senator Charles Schumer, the noted liberal from New York who’ll probably seek a third term next year, was aboard an airliner in Washington with Senator Kirsten Gillibrand for the flight to New York. Both were on their cell phones. A flight attendant, a woman, went over and told them they would have to end their calls so the pilot could get the trip started.
There were words; Schumer’s an important guy. But he and Gillibrand ended their calls, and as the attendant walked away, Schumer turned to Gillibrand and muttered a one-syllable description of the attendant.
“Bitch.”
The slur that will not die, and used here by a powerful member of the United States Senate against someone with no such power, someone doing her job.
It’s likely the story would have ended there, but a Republican party staffer was on board and heard Schumer reveal something about himself that a lot of us didn’t know. The GOP aide made the appropriate phone calls. It took a while, and Schumer finally apologized. But his regret reeked of phoniness.
Follow this chronology and statement. The flight was on Dec. 13. Schumer was so stricken by his use of this particular slur that he didn’t say a word about it until it was reported by politico.com on Dec. 15. His apology came on Dec. 16. Did Schumer go before the cameras and recite it? He most certainly did not. After all, he’s a senator.
Instead, he sent an aide out front: “The senator made an off-the-cuff comment under his breath that he shouldn’t have made, and he regrets it.”
The Times reported that Schumer called the flight attendant to apologize – also after the politico story appeared.
One of the things we learned about Schumer in this smelly episode is what he did not do. A moment after he uttered the word “bitch,” Schumer didn’t slap his hand over his mouth, apologize to the flight attendant then and there in front of all the passengers who heard the slur, and ask her for forgiveness.
Schumer’s 20 million constituents need more information.
–Who was the last woman member of the Senate Schumer called a bitch? Or does he reserve that title for ordinary people who displease him?
–What would Schumer have said if the flight attendant had been a man? Especially if the man had been six or eight inches taller than the senator?
–Does Schumer dismiss other groups with other slurs? You know the words; I’m not going to catalogue them. Or are women special?
George Allen’s political career tanked after “macaca,” but so far there doesn’t seem to be too much outrage over “bitch.” We know what this incident says about Schumer. Does the relative silence about it say something about the rest of us?
Jeffrey can be reached at jeffrey@zestoforange.com
Tags: Jeffrey Page
December 24th, 2009 at 1:57 pm
I agree – Chuck should have had the decency to apologize within minutes of the affront but, alas, many celebrities have been known for their narcissistic arrogance until some major event cast them in a different light (Christian Bale anyone?). What is ‘expected’ of senators and other public figures is that they show some class at all times, but after eight years of GW, the bar has been considerably lowered.
Is Schummerhorn sexist? His one incident doesn’t speak volumes, at least not to me. But far more important – did he vote for deregulating banks and who are some of his major campaign contributors? If the answers are ‘yes’ and ‘banks and insurance companies’, then I’d say he has a lot more to apologize for than calling someone a bitch. Like Hilary, did he vote yes to invade Iraq and blank-check funding for seven years? If yes, then he owes thousands of apologies to veterans, their families and tax payers, way overdue by about nine years.
I think constituents expect ‘political expediency’ from their public servants, not political correctness, plus as a rule-of-thumb: pork rules until reality breaks through voter apathy.
Democracy does have it shortcomings.
December 25th, 2009 at 10:52 pm
I was disappointed and angered, but not surprised by Sen. Schumer’s comment. Many years ago, when President Reagan was caught calling someone (was it a reporter?) in the crowd a son-of-a-bitch, he at least made a feeble – but not believable – “explanation” that he had really said, “it’s sunny and you’re rich.” Nobody beyond the second grade believed him, but at least he acknowledged that he had said something he shouldn’t have. The glib senator from New York surely could have come up with something creative, if not apologetic. Maybe he doesn’t do apologies. Maybe he should think again.
September 22nd, 2010 at 3:12 pm
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