Hoyer: Comments by Cole Are Outrageous, Wrong, and Should be Repudiated

[Maddy McCall]

30 minutes ago. Press Release.

House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (MD) released the following statement today regarding remarks attributed to Rep. Tom Cole (OK-4). According to press reports, Congressman Cole said a vote against President Bush's re-election is like supporting Adolf Hitler during World War II, and that, "If George Bush loses the election, Osama bin Laden wins the election."

"If the news reports by radio station KTOK in Oklahoma City regarding Congressman Cole's comments are correct, then he ought to be ashamed of himself and Members on both sides of the aisle ought to repudiate them as completely wrong, unacceptable and out-of-bounds.

"Senator John Kerry is a war hero who served our nation with honor and distinction. For Congressman Cole to disagree with Senator Kerry's views is one thing. But for him to impugn John Kerry's patriotism and career-long commitment to our national security by suggesting that a vote against George Bush is like supporting Adolf Hitler or Osama bin Laden is beyond comprehension. Congressman Cole ought to know better.

"In the past, Republicans have often come close to the line of making direct attacks on the patriotism of Democrats. But these comments are so brazen and so base that I urge all of my colleagues -- Democrat and Republican alike -- to denounce them as clearly wrong and unacceptable.

more: http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/040304/dcth046_1.html

[Maddy McCall]

1. Democrats, how can we remain so fractured when Republicans say such things

If this isn't a rally cry for Democratic unity, I don't know what is.

:grr:

[redqueen]

11. Where the F is MacAuliffe????

:grr:

[BootinUp]

16. He's been silenced I guess

Its up to Kerry to jump on this.

[BootinUp]

2. I tell ya its going to get interesting

I want to see Kerry or Clark on TV now talking about this!

[Maddy McCall]

4. I think Kerry should sic Clark on Cole...NOW!

[blm]

3. Cole never read Kerry's 1997 book on terrorism The New War

and unfortunately neither did George Bush.

A vote for George Bush is a vote for a dumbass who doesn't have the SENSE to protect this nation by reading up on anti-terror warnings before tragedy happens.

Kerry wrote a BOOK on terrorism and its international funding in 1997....Would Cole or Bush really want to debate Kerry on terrorism?

[Maddy McCall]

6. Clark has two books on assymetrical warfare, too.

Clark has also written two books on assymetrical warfare.

[CO Liberal]

8. Bush Is Working On a Book, Too

He hopes to finish coloring it some time next week. He's getting better about staying in the lines.....

[Maddy McCall]

13. LMFAO!!!

HAHAHAHAHA!!! Good one, CO! LOL!

[BootinUp]

14. LOL!

Then he's going to cut out pictures from the newspaper and glue them on construction paper. He is supposed to cpation them like:

Evilduuers

They Hate Murikans

[salin]

5. Great response by Rep. Hoyer.

I am stunned by the whole incident. It is almost as if, to be elected by the GOP these days one has to be a frothing, one-dimensional zealot with no impulse control. Slips like this aren't little ones. They are stunning. Outrageous. And potententially self-damaging.

It tell you... it keeps feeling like the gop is starting to crack.

[Maddy McCall]

7. ...or on crack.

;-) :hi:

[salin]

19. *snarf*

indeed! :hi:

[ithacan]

9. are the Repugs gonna self-destruct?

I can really see themselves doing that, they are so arrogant and ignorant and clueless...

And they have NOTHING they can actually run on.

[JI7]

10. John Kerry had relatives killed in the holocaust

pretty disgusting for them to compare him to adolf hitler, especially since the bush family made profits from working with the nazis in that war.

[DieboldMustDie]

24. Hasn't the Bush family has done business with the bin Ladens too?

:evilgrin:

[quinnox]

12. Cole stepped over the line

I have a feeling even republican House leaders are gonna shun this type of rhetoric.

Even if some of them are fascists at heart, it is not something to be public about.

[chocolateeater]

15. Good statement by Rep. Hoyer,

Stupid, bad, hypocritical statement by Cole. The Republicans have given us something else to hit them over the head with.

[IrateCitizen]

17. And the fact that a "mainstream" type like Hoyer said this...

... should result in a virtual cascade of condemnation coming from ALL Democratic elected representatives.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Hoyer the House Whip?

[Maddy McCall]

20. Yes, he is.

I think we will see Democrats converging to lambast Cole. All of the presidential candidates--former and still in--should adamantly denounce such extreme fascist posturing.

[chocolateeater]

23. Yes he is.

I hope you are right, because every one of them should be all over this. It's like a pitch in the middle of the plate to Hank Aaron, this one should be hit out of the park.

[charlie]

18. Haha!

Check out Cole's official "refutation" of the inaccurate reporting of his remarks:

For Immediate Release
March 4, 2004

Congressman Cole Corrects Inaccurate Potrayal of Comments

Washington DC- "The Yukon Review mischaracterized my remarks in the opening lead of their story published yesterday. However, they did accurately quote parts of my speech during the Canadian County Republican Convention held last Saturday."

"I do believe that if President Bush is not re-elected, the United States' enemies around the world will take comfort and strength in the fact that such a strong war time leader would be out of office. I never said and do not believe that a vote against President Bush is equivalent to a vote for Adolf Hitler. The patriotism of candidates and voters who oppose the President is not in question," Congressman Cole said.

During the Canadian County Convention, Congressman Cole did say the following:

"I promise you this, if George Bush loses the election, Osama bin Laden wins the election, it's that simple. It will be interpreted that way by enemies of the United States around the world."

"What do you think Hitler would have thought if Roosevelt would've lost the election in 1944? He would have thought American resolve was ."

"What would the confederacy have thought if Lincoln would have lost the election of 186<4>?"


"I stand by these statements and do believe that this November is again another important time in history, just like Lincoln's victory in 1864 and Roosevelt's victory in 1944. President Bush has proved that he will stand up to our enemies and I believe that is his most important job as Commander in Chief," Congressman Cole said.

http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/ok04_cole/react.html

[Maddy McCall]

21. OMG how pitiful...

This needs its own thread. Charlie, everyone should see this kind of pitiful hole digging.

:grr:

[charlie]

22. Have at it

And link to his page-o-pork while you're at it:

http://www.house.gov/cole/grantsinfo.shtml

He's pretty cheery about milking the govt teat for a gummint-hating conservative.

[chocolateeater]

26. Someone needs to take away his shovel.

He'll be striking molten rock any time now.:evilgrin:

[arcane1]

25. if Bin Laden is SO SCARED of the mighty Bush

then why did he attack us while Bush was president?

3 years later and Osama can still cause orange alerts, etc. Doesn't seem to me like Bush has done much to scare him....

[LoneStarLiberal]

27. What A Mouth-Breather

It's funny how few of these people I've heard of before the take their appointed turn on the Republican Stalinist Thug of the Moment carousel to make asses out of themselves.

Someone ought to point out to him that we had actually declared war according to the Consitution in both of the cases he cites whereas we are only talking war, not at war right now.

Except for all the American soldiers killed and maimed and the thousands of Afghan and Iraqi civilians killed and maimed.

What a coward. A big Stalinist coward.

[Maddy McCall]

28. kick

[Maddy McCall]

29. kick