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Vitter Refuses To Comment On Justice Who Won't Marry Interracial Couples
Versha Sharma | October 21, 2009, 1:41PM
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On Monday, we noted that Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) has not yet commented on a Louisiana justice of the peace who made national news by refusing to marry an interracial couple. Now, Vitter has actually been asked about the incident and dodged the question. Watch the video below.
Mike Stark asked Vitter about being "the only senior official" from the state not to have commented on the story, to which Vitter responded, "I don't think that's the case." Both Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-LA) and Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) have called for Hammond justice of the peace Keith Bardwell to be removed. When Stark pressed Vitter for a comment, Vitter smiled, thanked him, and left.
Watch:
(h/t Think Progress)
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Cool Blue Reason
October 21, 2009 2:09 PM
Let's be reasonable here. Sen. Vitter was clearly on his way to some very important business. The People's Business. It's not as if he's going to stop those elevator doors from closing to satisfy some ornery interlocutor -- that would just be crass.
And everyone knows miscegenation just creates Democrats. It's not like he's going to celebrate it.
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Mumphrey
October 21, 2009 2:51 PM in reply to Cool Blue Reason
I didn't know that sleeping with whores was the People's Business. Ah, well, live and learn, I guess...
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Cool Blue Reason
October 21, 2009 3:05 PM in reply to Mumphrey
You're quite right sir -- it's none of your business!
And I can assure you that Sen. Vitter's relations with hookers are as American as apple pie! No kissing. No sodomy. Home in time for dinner with wife.
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BluGrass
October 21, 2009 5:46 PM in reply to Mumphrey
I heard for a fact that when Vitter's sporting his Pampers, he refuses to get jiggy with a prostitute who's wearing Huggies. That kind of miscegenation would just be unacceptable to the good people of Louisiana.
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sandi
October 21, 2009 2:10 PM
So Vitter is still courting the white racists vote. Are we surprised?
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CT Voter
October 21, 2009 2:13 PM
This is just weird. He must actually believe it's appropriate for the justice to behave that way. Only explanation I can think of, because it's a no-brainer to echo Jindal and Landrieu.
Melancon (sp?) must be licking his chops over this.
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cole_dranx
October 21, 2009 2:22 PM in reply to CT Voter
I'm curious about this too - Louisiana Repubs tend to know enough (if they're running for statewide or national office anyway) to at least pay lip service to the idea of racial equality, at least insofar as it's already legislated (and then sound their dog whistles).
But not following Jindal? Less a dog whistle than a foghorn.
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rbeats
October 21, 2009 2:19 PM
What Vitter meant to say was "You can never consider yourself truly free until you have the freedom to subjugate the rights of others."
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LFC
October 21, 2009 2:20 PM
"Senator Vitter, what is your view on interracial sex between hookers and their customers? Is it only OK if the hooker is black and their client is white?"
"What is your view on the mixing of brown skinned 'Johns' with white diapers?"
Yeah, yeah, I know that was a cheap shot, but it was fun.
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kunda311
October 21, 2009 2:32 PM
I fail to see what's hard to understand about Vitter's position in the matter: he's white, male, Republican, and a big hypocrite.
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CT Voter
October 21, 2009 2:41 PM in reply to kunda311
Well, sure, that goes without saying. But this seems like political suicide. Surely he's savvy enough to recognize that even if he thinks the races should never mix (HORRORS!!!), he's gotta at least make an effort to appear to be living in the 21st century, right?
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Cool Blue Reason
October 21, 2009 2:44 PM in reply to CT Voter
For this crowd, The Dark Ages / A Handmaid's Tale are always just an election or two away. Or just one Christian Dominionist military coup.
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tbs
October 21, 2009 2:45 PM
Even his diapers are all white.
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engboy
October 21, 2009 2:59 PM
I was born in Louisiana and lived there until I was 37.
Vitter is not commenting because he thinks this will HELP him get votes. I'm completely serious. In Louisiana, people that frown on interracial marriage are not the far right extreme, they're just regular Republicans.
Anyone who thinks it's political suicide for him to do this has never lived in the state. I can't recall ever meeting one interracial (black/white) couple while living there.
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cole_dranx
October 21, 2009 3:43 PM in reply to engboy
engboy - where did you live in Louisiana? While I never saw any interracial couples in northwest Louisiana during the 80s when I lived there, they weren't that uncommon in Lake Charles in the southwest when I lived there during the 90s.
I'll grant you that some parts of the state are more racially divided than other parts, but do you think that Mary Landrieu and Bobby Jindal have committed political suicide by speaking out explicitly against the Justice of the Peace as they have?
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engboy
October 22, 2009 1:51 AM in reply to cole_dranx
I lived in Jefferson parish (David Duke country!) until 2007.
No, I don't think Landrieu and Jindal have committed political suicide by coming out against Bardwell, but they haven't already lost most of the center as Vitter already has. I think Vitter knows that he's lost a lot of the center and is appealing to the right and far right.
Racism was common where I lived. Not old school racism, using the "n" word and such (although that was common until I was in my teens). "New racism" where they discuss all sorts of political issues and current events that make their feelings on the subject perfectly clear.
The last year I lived there a lady came to a Halloween party in black face.
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Why oh why
October 21, 2009 3:04 PM
Prostitutes and diapers, fine, but interracial marriage? You have to draw the line somewhere.
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Why oh why
October 21, 2009 3:07 PM in reply to Why oh why
If you google 'prostitutes and diapers', the entire first page is a shrine to Senator Vitter's accomplishments. His family and friends must be so proud!
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colbito
October 21, 2009 3:47 PM
With all that flap over that Louisiana Justice of the Peace refusing to marry an interracial couple I find it interesting that if hehad refused to marry a same-sex couple it wouldn't have even caused a blip on the radar.....
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