May 11, 2009 2:32 pm ET
|
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
CONTACT Jessica Levin (202) 772-8162 |
Washington, D.C. -- Today, VoteVets.org and Media Matters for America responded to CBS Sports golf analyst David Feherty's apology for his controversial comments that "if you gave any U.S. soldier a gun with two bullets in it, and he found himself in an elevator with Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and Osama bin Laden, there's a good chance that Nancy Pelosi would get shot twice, and Harry Reid and bin Laden would be strangled to death."
Eric Burns, President of Media Matters:
"I am pleased to see Mr. Feherty apologize for insulting Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid with his disturbing comments. It is disappointing, however, that Mr. Feherty, who has shown such dedication to helping our troops, failed to apologize for his inappropriate suggestion that, given the opportunity, American soldiers would attack the leaders of the very democracy they have sworn to defend."
Jon Soltz, Iraq war veteran and chairman of VoteVets.org:
"Having spent so much time with troops, David Feherty has to know that his statement wasn't just offensive to Speaker Pelosi and Senator Reid, but to those of us who served. To even joke that we'd consider inflicting physical harm on our elected officials is way off base. Even those of us who disagreed with President Bush's policies would have put our lives on the line to protect him. Feherty also has to know that the vast majority of troops do not take violence lightly -- we do it out of necessity in the war zone. A joke that's based on the premise that a majority of troops would be equally as violent at home, if only given the chance, isn't one that most troops would laugh at."
BACKGROUND:
As Media Matters documented, in the April issue of D Magazine, Feherty wrote:
From my own experience visiting the troops in the Middle East, I can tell you this, though: despite how the conflict has been portrayed by our glorious media, if you gave any U.S. soldier a gun with two bullets in it, and he found himself in an elevator with Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and Osama bin Laden, there's a good chance that Nancy Pelosi would get shot twice, and Harry Reid and bin Laden would be strangled to death. I've never met a soldier who didn't love this president and this country, and I've met a bunch of them, at home and abroad, in hospitals and in theater. At Walter Reed, Bethesda Naval Medical Center, and the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, I have visited dozens of patients, and I always ask of them before I leave: "What do you want to do when you get out?" No matter how broken or burned, or how many limbs they are missing, they give only one answer: "I want to go back. I want to rejoin my team, to finish our mission." They are rightfully proud of what they have done and want nothing more than to be with their brothers and sisters in arms, because they know the consequences if their job is left unfinished.
After portions of Feherty's column, including his comments about Pelosi and Reid, were read during the May 8 broadcast of The Rush Limbaugh Show, Media Matters requested that CBS Sports ask Feherty to apologize. On May 10, Feherty responded to the controversy:
"This passage was a metaphor meant to describe how American troops felt about our 43rd president," Feherty said in a statement. "In retrospect, it was inappropriate and unacceptable, and has clearly insulted Speaker Pelosi and Senator Reid, and for that, I apologize. As for our troops, they know I will continue to do as much as I can for them both at home and abroad."
###
&mdash
Copyright © 2009 Media Matters for America. All rights reserved.