Common Cause Can't Distance Itself From Hateful Rhetoric

Common Cause would have us believe they aren’t responsible for hateful rhetoric spewed at the Right from protesters at a recent Koch brothers protest they organized. A statement was issued only after it came to light that a protester had called for the lynching of Supreme Court Justice, Clarence Thomas. But a review of the official event video proves that Common Cause actually worked to inspire such hate through the selection of official speakers. They cannot simply disown it, now.

Common Cause condemns bigotry, hateful statements caught on film at rally

Common Cause’s 40 year history of holding power accountable has been marked by a commitment to decency and civility – in public and private. So we are of course outraged to find that a few of those attending the events around a gathering Common Cause helped to organize Sunday near Palm Springs voiced hateful, narrow-minded sentiments to an interviewer in the crowd.

In their own clips of chosen and highlighted speakers for the formal panel they organized at the protest, you will repeatedly hear the Right, their honest political opposition, cast as hateful, evil, cruel and worse. Writing at Hot Air, John Sexton pointed out just some of the official unhinged rhetoric from Van Jones at the Common Cause event.

Van Jones: “We Will Not Live on an Economic Plantation Run by the Koch Brothers

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In this video, another official panelist, DeAnn McEwan, claims the Koch’s “have their fingers on the pillows that are suffocating all of us,” while citing the plight of various individuals needing intensive medical treatment. In effect, official Common Cause panelist McEwan is accusing the Kochs of being murderers. She even details a patient’s failed struggle to cling to life, in essence, blaming her death squarely on the Kochs.

DeAnn McEwan, Co-President of the California Nurses Association, speaks at the “Uncloak the Kochs” panel on January 30, 2011 in Rancho Mirage, CA.

After inciting protesters with such over-the-top, vile and hateful officially sanctioned rhetoric, Common Cause cannot now simply pretend to distance itself from the hate-filled environment they themselves helped create. Sorry, Common Cause, until you clean up your act, police your official events and purge them of hateful rhetoric from unhinged speakers acting as official participants, your apology is not accepted.

Actually, they didn’t even apologize but simply sought to rationalize away the very hate they intended to create with the official part of the program. Common Cause needs to take responsibility for its official actions, not simply place the blame on this, or that protester caught up and carried away by their irresponsible programming at the recent event.