Racist Democrat--
but I repeat myself--Dick Harpootlian, wants to send South Carolina republican governor and Indian-American daughter of Sikh immigrants, Nikki Haley "back to wherever the hell she came from.â€
Sun May 5, 2013, 08:22 PM
alp227 (20,249 posts)
SC Dem chair resigns after "send Nikki Haley back to wherever the hell she came from" remark
Dick Harpootlian, the chair of the South Carolina Democratic Party, resigned on Saturday. As Politico reports:
South Carolina Democratic Chairman Dick Harpootlian, imploring party activists Friday night to defeat this state’s Indian-American governor, predicted next year’s Democratic standard-bearer would “send Nikki Haley back to wherever the hell she came from.â€
Haley was raised in South Carolina and attended college here, but her parents were Sikh immigrants.
Harpootlian, a longtime Democratic figure who has a history of using harsh rhetoric, made the comments at the party’s Jefferson-Jackson dinner just moments before Vice-President Joe Biden took the stage.
Asked what he meant by comment, Harpootlian wrote in an email: “Lexington County.â€
Before being elected governor in 2010, Haley lived in the suburban Columbia county and represented the area in the state House.
As to whether he thought the comment could be seen as touching on her race and parents’ immigrant status, Harpootlian responded: “No, she was born in Bamberg (South Carolina) and lived in Lexington. Anybody implying anything different is attempting to feign insult.â€
The article by Jonathan Martin concludes:
As was long planned, Harpootlian stepped down from his post Saturday. He was replaced by Jaime Harrison, who became the first African-American party chair in a state with an ugly racial past.
Never mind this statement was pointedly about an election, even with the awkward phrasing, once again the Politico.com comments section is full of the typical right wing drivel response that the media expected. Ugh. I've heard this "go back to where you came from" comment from birther types directed at Obama. Harpootlian probably knows that too. Why'd he use that language then?
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022803450Only one DUmmy has bothered to reply to the OP. To condemn the racist Harpootlian? No, to make excuses for him.
Response to alp227 (Original post)Sun May 5, 2013, 08:36 PM
tblue (13,786 posts)
1. I agree. A poor choice of words.
An apology can never hurt in a situation like this, but I wouldn't even say he has to make one. My mom is from Asia and if someone made that comment about me, I wouldn't think he wanted to send me to Japan. Um...I'm not from Japan. I feel sorry for anyone who makes a non-PC statement by accident when they really would never ever do it on purpose. He should not have to lose his job. Good grief.
Oops, I might have to take this one back. Harpootlian now says that what he meant when he said that
Haley should be sent back to wherever the hell she came from is that
she should be sent back to work in a dress shop.
http://hotair.com/archives/2013/05/07/former-sc-dem-chair-i-meant-to-say-that-nikki-haley-should-go-back-to-a-dress-store/Yes, that's much better Harpootlian, go with sexism instead of racism.
I am not fooled, it's racist
and sexist.
More fun facts about Harpootlian.
He's homophobic:
What? You forgot that, huh? That little moment back in 2002 when Lindsey Graham was running against former College of Charleston President Alex Sanders for Strom Thurmond's U.S. Senate seat, and Harpootlian decided to crack all wise and get a dig in at Lindsey, proclaiming that Graham was "a little too light in the loafers to fill Strom Thurmond's shoes." It was an ugly comment then, and it's an ugly comment now.
http://www.charlestoncitypaper.com/charleston/harpootlian-is-not-fit-to-be-the-head-of-the-sc-democratic-party/Content?oid=3263346Then there's this too:
Dick Harpootlian Compares Nikki Haley To Hitler's Mistress Eva Braun
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/05/dick-harpootlian-nikki-haley_n_1858006.htmlRacism, sexism, homophobia. It's not hate speech if it's directed at a republican.