Ed Rendell, who is Hillary's PA ally, invited Farrakhan to Philadelphia to calm racial tensions...

[JVS]

during his tenure as mayor in 1997.
"In a long church rally today, called to promote racial reconciliation after several recent high-profile crimes, Mayor Edward G. Rendell joined Louis Farrakhan, the Nation of Islam leader, in challenging residents of Philadelphia and the nation to put aside ethnic differences.

Mr. Rendell became one of the few big-city mayors ever to share a podium with Mr. Farrakhan, a circumstance that was all the more unusual because Mr. Rendell is Jewish and Mr. Farrakhan is widely regarded as anti-Semitic. Representatives from the city's leading Jewish and Roman Catholic organizations were invited to participate in the rally, but all declined.

...

As the keynote speaker before an enthusiastic audience of more than 3,000 at the Tindley Temple United Methodist Church, h Mr. Farrakhan praised Mayor Rendell, a popular Democrat, for ''his courage and strength to rise above emotion and differences that might be between us or our communities.'' Mr. Farrakhan added: ''I believe, Mayor Rendell, that history will applaud your efforts.''

Mr. Rendell, whose speech preceded Mr. Farrakhan's, commended the Nation of Islam for its emphasis on family values and self-sufficiency."

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F0CE1DD173FF936A25757C0A961958260

Very interesting to see just who is connected to Farrakhan and what campaign they work for.

[JI7]

1. kick

[bluestateguy]

2. Does he reject and denounce Farrakahn?

Hmmmmmm?

[JVS]

5. Well let's think about who benefits from Farrakhan's endorsement of Obama.

I doubt that it is a man who is already polling at 90% among black voters.

[Danzo]

15. Oh, But Wait A Second

Didn't you Obama zealots say that Ferrara was INSANE for saying that Obama's race is a factor in the primary?

[JVS]

22. It's the major factor involved in smears aimed Obama.

What better way for Rendell to help paint Obama as "America's scariest black man" than to call in a favor with Louis Farrakhan?

[City Lights]

3. Great find, JVS! K&R.

[BeyondGeography]

4. All of which proves that life is complicated

And, furthermore, Obama would have loved Rendell's endorsement and will take all the help he can from him in the general.

[rug]

6. Farakhan endorsed Obama not Clinton.

[BeatleBoot]

7. She's Doomed, Now!

:rofl:


:kick:

[jillan]

8. And your point is? That Rendell reached out to a black leader to rise against racial tensions?

And this relates to Obama by how???

[JVS]

9. Why would Rendell choose Farrakhan? That's gasoline to put out a fire.

[jillan]

26. A Jewish man reaches out to Farrakhan - I think that is a pretty decent example of getting above

the race issue.

Two completely different men coming together for the good of it's citizens.

[Joe the Revelator]

13. This is actually a fairly big deal

[shadowknows69]

10. Oops

[cbayer]

11. see, this is how desperate we are to find some shit to sling at the other candidate.

an eleven year old story about Farrakhan and Rendell meant to hurt Clinton because Rendell has endorsed her.

it's sad in one way, but inspires hope in another way.

[Joe the Revelator]

14. Did you miss the last 48 hours on DU?

If other people's actions and words effect our candidates, then this is fair game.

[cbayer]

25. An eye for an eye? Tooth for a tooth?

This is not a fucking game. You want a game, get nintendo.

This is just stupid.

I never object to legitimate criticism of either candidate. Never.

But this shit slinging contest is really getting old. And the major players are just getting boring.

So, peace out. I'm going to my local bar and get hammered. And I promise no one there will give a shit about any of this.

[JVS]

27. This isn't about Clinton. This is about Rendell. He's been behaving thuggishly lately...

with his strongarming of Ravenstahl and his seedy ways could stand some looking into.

[Joe the Revelator]

31. Goose and Gander. If Hillary and her supporters want to go down a certain road then we can go down

it, but we're going down it together, and the shit piles up on both sides. Sitting here playing nice when your opponent is covering you in mud is not to way to get ahead in the world or in politics.

[JVS]

18. But Rendell has made comments more recently playing up racial division in PA in Hillary's favor.

I just happened to be watching Farrakhan videos and heard that he had been invited to Philadelphia in 1997. The details were a quick search away.

[cbayer]

23. ahhhh, JVS, c'mon

you can't vilify one side for bringing up irrelevant flame bait then do it yourself. this is just pointless.

or do you just want to get credit for the next shitstorm?

[JVS]

24. I'm just pointing it out. It seems curious to me.

[cbayer]

29. oh bullshit.

you seem like an intelligent person and i don't think you are just pointing it out.

as i said above, i'm going to the bar now. after i wash all this shit off.

see ya later!

[Catherine Vincent]

35. ...

:thumbsup:

[JVS]

42. kick for the day crowd

[tishaLA]

12. I REMEMBER that! I lived very near the path of the march

(I lived on the 2300 block of St Albans and Farrakhan marched up Gray's Ferry). The atmosphere in the neighborhood was electric.

[Barack_America]

21. Gray's Ferry?

That's interesting. I still see Nation of Islam folk out at the intersection of Gray's Ferry and University every weekend.

[JVS]

38. When you say electric, do you mean that Farrakhan's presence added to the tension?

[madfloridian]

16. Interesting. That's the same Rendell who said "shoot Howard Dean"

as a way to solve the problems of Florida and Michigan.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/1872

[JVS]

36. I've also heard of him being on Hillary's short list of possible VPs

[Zynx]

17. That's a pretty loose tie to Clinton.

[JVS]

20. Yes but it is a close tie to Rendell, who has been out there working for her.

I know it's a loose connection to Clinton, but Rendell himself needs more scrutiny.

[Barack_America]

19. FYI, there is a large muslim African American population in Philadelphia...

And a strong Nation of Islam contingent.

[KittyWampus]

30. but the Mediawhores have taught us that Farrakhan must be renounced and rejected.

[JVS]

32. Wait it wasn't the mediawhores, it was Hillary who harped on that.

Maybe she needs to have a talk with Eddie about what company he has kept.

[Barack_America]

34. And why he's kept that company.

Considering everyone here assumes that Obama was reluctant to "reject and denounce" Farrakhan for fear of losing the black Muslim vote.

[uponit7771]

28. But that guy was white...not the same thing to MSM

[oasis]

33. Get back to us when Rendell and Farrakhan go skipping off to Libya to visit Khadaffi. nt

[Joe the Revelator]

37. He invited Farrakan into PA

HILADELPHIA (JTA) -- The city's Jewish community is boiling over Mayor Edward G. Rendell's inviting Louis Farrakhan to a rally, and then charging critical Jews with not caring about combating bigotry.

The Jewish mayor's criticism of Jews capped a bizarre week in which the mayor of the fifth largest city in America invited the Nation of Islam leader to speak at an "ecumenical" service called to heal racial and ethnic divisiveness in the city's Grays Ferry neighborhood.

Jewish and Roman Catholic leaders avoided the Monday event at Tindley Temple United Methodist Church, in response to Farrakhan's long and well-documented history of anti-Semitic and anti-Catholic rhetoric.

The five-hour-plus event turned into a test of endurance for the audience of more than 3,000, who listened to about two dozen speakers.

While not referring to leaders of the Jewish or Catholic groups by name at the rally, Rendell said, "If everyone cares, they should have been here. They should have been here to talk, and they should have been here to listen."

Jewish leaders maintain that they do not belong on a stage with someone who as recently as Sunday has claimed that Jews control blacks and funded Hitler.

"I have never felt quite so frustrated," said Burt Siegel, executive director of the Philadelphia Jewish Community Relations Council, adding he has worked in community relations since 1971.

--Snip---

http://www.jewishsf.com/content/2-0-/module/displaystory/story_id/6001/edition_id/111/format/html/displaystory.html

[JVS]

39. So Ed Rendell provided Farrakhan with a prominent platform despite the objections of...

Jewish and Catholic leaders. This is also interesting in that it was not long after his million man march, a period in time where Farrakhan was trying to establish himself as a top leader of African Americans. Thus Rendell was giving him an opportunity to legitimize this claim.

[oasis]

40. Uh, yeah. You made that clear in the OP. (eom)

[CreekDog]

41. d00d you are the man!

freakin' brilliant. :applause: