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Congressman says McCain sowing 'seeds of hatred'

by Dave Keating | October 13, 2008 at 01:41 am

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There has been increasing alarm over the past week over the hateful rhetoric being used by attendees at McCain/Palin rallies. Attendees have been heard to scream out "terrorist!" and "kill him!" at Sarah Palin's rallies, and analysts are saying the language the two are using, particularly Sarah Palin, is encouraging this mob-like behavior.

Democratic congressman John Lewis, a veteran civil rights leader, accused Republican John McCain and his running mate Sarah Palin on Saturday of "sowing the seeds of hatred and division" and said it reminded him of the segregationist era of Alabama Gov. George Wallace.

McCain, trailing Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama in the polls in an increasingly tense campaign, quickly hit back, branding Lewis's remarks "shocking and beyond the pale" and calling on Obama to immediately repudiate them.

The Obama campaign said while Lewis was right to condemn "hateful rhetoric" the Illinois senator did not believe McCain or his policy criticism were comparable to Wallace or his segregationist policies as governor of Alabama in the 1960s.

The issue of race has mostly been an undercurrent in the presidential contest between McCain and Obama, who would be America's first black president, and it remains unknown how much of a factor it will play in the Nov. 4 vote.

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r2g2

at 03:07 on October 13th, 2008

Sarah Palin does a lot of palling around with radical Anti-American extremists in Alaska; she should be flayed alive for her hypocrisy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eniG9l_7its

r2g2 has contributed a photo to this story.

donalruth

at 05:56 on October 13th, 2008

My wife and I attended a play at the South Coast Repertory Theater on Oct 4. When we came out of the play (a matinee), there on the corner was a noisy protest to welcome Sarah Palin. Sarah Palin had been in Carson, Ca earlier in the day for a rally and now had come to Orange County for a fund raiser at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. I took these pictures with my cell phone.

We crossed the street and joined the protest. Whoever had organized the protest had provided blank poster board and magic markers for people to make their own signs. Some signs were brought from home and some were made on the spot. Here are several shots of the crowd and some of their signs.

donalruth has contributed a photo to this story.