In the News
Paul Ryan: 'Inarticulate' about comments on inner cities
House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan said comments he made about men in inner cities not "learning the value and culture of work" were "inarticulate" and not about race. Ryan, the 2012 GOP vice presidential nominee, issued a statement Thursday about his remarks, which came during an interview with Bill Bennett on the former Education secretary's radio show. "After reading the transcript of yesterday morning's interview, it is clear that I was inarticulate about the point I was trying to … Continue Reading
March 13, 2014
Paul Ryan: Poverty comments were ‘inarticulate’
Rep. Paul Ryan on Thursday called remarks he made the day before "inarticulate," responding to a firestorm from the left that accused him of racially insensitive comments. "After reading the transcript of yesterday morning's interview, it is clear that I was inarticulate about the point I was trying to make," Ryan said in a statement emailed to reporters. The Wisconsin Republican was promoting his proposals for addressing poverty on Bill Bennett's "Morning in America" radio show … Continue Reading
March 13, 2014
Paul Ryan insists his ‘inarticulate’ comments about ‘inner city’ men were not about race
Paul Ryan attempted to walk back Wednesday's comment in which described a "culture in our inner cities in particular of men not working, and just generations of men not even thinking about working and learning the value and culture of work." In a statement issued to ThinkProgress, Ryan insisted that his comment wasn't "a thinly veiled racial attack," as Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA), a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, characterized it. "It is clear that I was inarticulate about the … Continue Reading
March 13, 2014
Paul Ryan says his comments on poverty were 'inarticulate'
Rep. Paul Ryan said Thursday he was "inarticulate" in his comments on poverty on Bill Bennett's radio show this week. During a radio interview Wednesday, Ryan blamed a "tailspin of culture, in our inner cities in particular, of men not working and just generations of men not even thinking about working or learning to value the culture of work" in discussing the roots of poverty. But Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) accused the Republican of "offensive and racially … Continue Reading
March 13, 2014
Paul Ryan Says His ‘Inner City’ Comments Were ‘Inarticulate’
House Budget Chairman Paul D. Ryan responded Thursday to criticism that he engaged in racial rhetoric when talking about his philosophy on poverty, saying that he was "inarticulate" in the point he was trying to make. "I was not implicating the culture of one community - but of society as a whole. We have allowed our society to isolate or quarantine the poor rather than integrate people into our communities," the Wisconsin Republican said in a statement. The GOP's 2014 vice presidential … Continue Reading
March 13, 2014
BuzzChatter Friday: Ryan tries to dig out from “offensive” remarks
Lots of stuff going on this weekend in KC. Here's the right way to begin it: • "Inarticulate." - Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan, a Republican, describing remarks he made this week about the culture of "inner cities." In those remarks, Ryan talked about "generations of men not even thinking about working or learning the value and the culture of work." California Rep. Barbara Lee, a co-chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, called those remarks "offensive" and a "thinly veiled … Continue Reading
March 13, 2014
Paul Ryan Backpedals, But Doesn’t Apologize, For Comments About Lazy ‘Inner City’ Men
House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI) has backtracked from comments he made on Wednesday, suggesting that young "inner city" men are "not even thinking about working or learning the value and the culture of work" because they rely on government assistance. The remarks, first reported by ThinkProgress, sparked outrage from a growing number of Democratic lawmakers, one of whom called the comments "a thinly veiled racial attack." In a statement issued to ThinkProgress, Ryan said he … Continue Reading
March 13, 2014
Ryan: Comments about Inner City Poverty ‘Inarticulate’
Representative Paul Ryan, who was assailed from the left for comments he made yesterday expressing concern about a "tailspin of culture in our inner cities," has said that he wasn't trying to implicate "the culture of one community." "It is clear that I was inarticulate," he said. Liberals accused Ryan of making essentially racist comments, and Representative Barbara Lee (D., Calif.) called the line a "thinly veiled racial attack." Ryan's statement today reads in … Continue Reading
March 13, 2014
Paul Ryan's Racist Comments Are a Slap in the Face to 10.5 Million Americans
The news: The art of blaming poor people for their poverty is certainly nothing new. It has a long history that's often rooted in racism and the convenient denial of facts. This is especially true in the United States, where politicians have used this method to avoid responsibility for the problems they've helped create. In the latest example, here's House Budget Chairman - and frequent "hey girl" meme fixture - Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.): In case you missed that, here's … Continue Reading
March 13, 2014
Ryan's anti-poverty push has produced more problems than solutions
Washington (CNN) -- Rep. Paul Ryan is trying to talk about the issue of poverty, but the talk so far has produced more problems than solutions. Trying to address the latest political snafu, the Wisconsin Republican said he was "inarticulate" when he talked on a conservative radio program Wednesday about a "tailspin of culture, in our inner cities in particular, of men not working and just generations of men not even thinking about working or learning the value and the culture … Continue Reading
March 13, 2014
Paul Ryan clarifies 'inarticulate' remarks on inner cities
Senior US Republican Paul Ryan has said that remarks he made on a radio talk show that were labelled as coded racism were "inarticulate". Mr Ryan, a 2012 vice-presidential nominee, said on the show there was "a real culture problem" of men in inner cities who did not want to work. Critics said it was a thinly veiled reference to African-Americans. The House budget committee chairman from Wisconsin said he had not meant to single out any community. 'Veiled … Continue Reading
March 12, 2014
Ryan: Poverty remarks 'inarticulate'
Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said Thursday he made an "inarticulate" statement about inner city poverty during an interview this week. "After reading the transcript of yesterday morning's interview, it is clear that I was inarticulate about the point I was trying to make," Ryan said in a statement. "I was not implicating the culture of one community - but of society as a whole." Democrats accused Ryan of making racially charged remarks when describing what he called a culture of people not … Continue Reading
March 11, 2014
War on Poverty: Progress, But More to Do
This year marks the 50th anniversary of President Johnson's War on Poverty. It was a multifaceted effort to tackle poverty in America and gave us initiatives that are still helping people today, such as Head Start, Food Stamps, Job Corps, and Medicaid. Last week, my colleague on the Budget Committee, Rep. Paul Ryan, put out a report: "The War on Poverty: 50 Years Later." Let's be clear, this report is nothing more than an ideologically bankrupt battle plan to attack the … Continue Reading
March 09, 2014
Activists mark 55 years since Tibetan uprising in San Francisco
Opponents of the Chinese occupation of Tibet gathered on the steps of San Francisco City Hall Monday to mark the 55th anniversary of the 1959 Tibetan uprising and subsequent exile of the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama. Today's anniversary comes on the heels of the Dalai Lama's visit to the Bay Area last month during which he made stops in Santa Clara, Berkeley, San Francisco and Richmond. Richmond Mayor Gayle McLaughlin spoke during Monday's San Francisco event and … Continue Reading
March 07, 2014
My Brother's Keeper Is a Program Whose Time Has Come
As the mother of two phenomenal black men, whom I raised as a single mother, I know personally why we need President Barack Obama's new initiative called My Brother's Keeper. Young men of color in America have been left behind, the economic gains of our recovery aren't reaching them, and time and again, they are marginalized and forgotten. They are stopped and frisked at will and incarcerated more than any other demographic. They are gunned down outside their homes. Their schools are … Continue Reading
March 06, 2014
Nation's African-American Doctors to Convene in DC; Will Discuss Affordable
Silver Spring, MD - The nation's oldest and largest organization representing African American physicians, the National Medical Association (NMA), will host it's 16th National Colloquium on African American Health, March 8-11, at the Marriott Metro Center Hotel in Washington, DC. Among the critical issues to be addressed by physicians and experts from around the nation will be the many challenges and opportunities posed by the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the … Continue Reading
March 04, 2014
Hot Ticket: Newsom's 'Winter of Love' Shindig at State Demo Confab
It should be THE party of the state Democratic convention Saturday, when Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom joins with Equality California in celebrating the 10th anniversary of the "Winter of Love" when gay and lesbian couples were first allowed to marry at San Francisco City Hall. Wilson Phillips and other "surprise guests" will be on hand with Newsom at the Bonaventure Hotel in Los Angeles for the shingdig, being held during this weekend's Democratic event there. It's part of a packed schedule as … Continue Reading
March 04, 2014
Hot Ticket: Newsom's 'Winter of Love' Shindig at State Demo Confab
It should be THE party of the state Democratic convention Saturday, when Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom joins with Equality California in celebrating the 10th anniversary of the "Winter of Love" when gay and lesbian couples were first allowed to marry at San Francisco City Hall. Wilson Phillips and other "surprise guests" will be on hand with Newsom at the Bonaventure Hotel in Los Angeles for the shingdig, being held during this weekend's Democratic event there. It's part of a packed schedule as … Continue Reading
March 03, 2014
Obama's Second Term: Midterm Elections, Agendas and Enemies
WASHINGTON (FinalCall.com) - Still more or less "going it alone," President Barack Obama walks through the fifth year of his second term in office with accomplishments and absolutely no personal, moral scandals to shame him or members of his inner circle, yet despite his achievements, despite his clean record, his image is still being shaped by his enemies. Not his foreign enemies, his enemies right at home, Republicans in the U.S. Congress, who have sworn since day one to make his … Continue Reading
February 26, 2014
Congressman Asks President for Funding, Support for National Ignition Facility at Livermore Lab
U.S. Representatives Eric Swalwell (CA-15) and Zoe Lofgren (CA-19) led a letter to President Barack Obama urging strong and sustained funding for the National Ignition Facility (NIF) at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) as he prepares his FY 2015 budget. The NIF is the world's most powerful laser and the preeminent research tool in the world for inertial confinement fusion research. NIF is conducting research key for stockpile stewardship and developing clean, safe, and … Continue Reading