It is unfathomable to exclude conservative media figures from criticism over the story. After all, they were the ones who created the entire “scandal” out of thin air and breathlessly promoted it. This story wouldn't have existed without their shameless dishonesty and irresponsibility.

This is not a defense of the administration, which quite obviously never should have trusted Andrew Breitbart in the first place.

Strangely enough, Big Government, which broke the story in question, seems to be making the same argument. After posting video of her appearance on CNN this morning, Big Government writer Jeff Dunetz writes [emphasis added]:

If this story is true, and there is no reason to doubt her, it shows the extent that Breitbart, Fox,and the Tea Party have gotten under the skin of the White House. Rather then to think it through they overreacted and forced Sherrod to pull over on the side of the road and resign without telling her side of the story.

It is also hard to understand why the NAACP would instantly condemn Ms Sherrod, if the speech was indeed as she said, why wouldn't they respond by releasing the entire speech? One explanation may be that she is lying, but if you listen closely to the end of the clip she does seem to be pivoting toward saying it was about income not race (and then seems to change her mind again).

Another explanation for the White House and the NAACP not releasing the entire tape is the possibility that Shirley Sherrod is their sacrificial lamb. Possibly they do not care about the truth. Perhaps they realized their resolution attacking the Tea Party as racist was such a political loser, especially coming right after disclosure of DOJ Black Panther scandal, they see the condemnation of Sherrod as a way out of theses crises and seem racially balanced.

Either way Shirley Sherrod is the victim of a White House so incredibly thin skinned, so frighted of the media and the citizens of the United States who believe these words written by William Shakespeare “Tell truth and shame the devil”