O'Reilly said Virginia Beach mayor "should be baking pies, not running a major city"
On the April 6 edition of his nationally syndicated radio show, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly stated that Virginia Beach Mayor Meyera Oberndorf "should be baking pies, not running a major city." O'Reilly made the comment while discussing a March 30 automobile accident that resulted in the deaths of two teenage girls, reportedly at the hands of an illegal immigrant who said he had been drinking the night of the accident. O'Reilly blamed Oberndorf in part for the accident, saying that Virginia Beach's "sanctuary city policy" prevented police from detaining and deporting the driver, despite three previous alcohol-related convictions.
O'Reilly also stated that "Oberndorf, is, with all do respect -- I'm trying not to be insulting here -- limited in her intellectual capacity" and called Virginia Beach Police Chief Alfred M. Jacocks Jr. "an arrogant incompetent." As Media Matters for America has documented (including here, here, here, and here), O'Reilly has often denied that he makes "personal attacks" despite his history of repeatedly doing so.
Additionally, O'Reilly again commented on the March 7 Bronx fire that killed nine people, saying: "You know, the kids in the Bronx all burned to death because the city -- sanctuary city of New York -- doesn't regulate how many people you cram into a slum." As Media Matters for America has documented (here and here), O'Reilly blamed the victims' deaths on the "compassion crowd" and responded to a viewer's email critical of his comments by saying, "Your so-called compassion helped kill those kids." He added in response to the viewer, "It's people like you, [viewer], who promote that kind of chaos in the name of compassion, who look the other way while poor workers and children are exploited by greedy landlords and businesses because you don't like the immigration laws."
From the April 6 edition of Westwood One's The Radio Factor:
O'REILLY: Now, the crux of the matter is that the guy who killed these girls, [Alfredo] Ramos, an illegal alien from Mexico, was allowed to stay in this country even after three alcohol-related convictions. OK? And another identity theft conviction. Everybody in the Virginia Beach area knew this guy was a criminal, yet no one would take action to even report him to the federal authorities so he could be deported. No one. And that's because of the crazy sanctuary city policy. All right?
Now, the mayor of Virginia Beach, Meyera Oberndorf, is, with all do respect -- I'm trying not to be insulting here -- limited in her intellectual capacity.
[...]
O'REILLY: OK. The ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement]. You know, look, and this is for everybody in Virginia Beach, if you're gonna elect a person like this, you're gonna have chaos. All right? This woman should be baking pies, not running a major city. Now, the real villain in this, as we continue to investigate, is Chief Alfred Jacocks. It is the chief who refuses to obey the law.
[...]
O'REILLY: We have no business doing so. So if we have a criminal illegal alien in our community, Chief Alfred Jacocks is not going to do anything. All right. Now, you have the combination of the mayor and the chief, and you know why you have two dead girls. OK? You know, you know. There's no doubt about it, there's no debate about it. This is what you have, and as long as people like that are in a position of responsibility, you're gonna have dead girls in the street.
[...]
O'REILLY: All right, look. There's no question -- I don't know what's going on in Cincinnati politics. I know it's a, it's a tough city. But there's no question in Virginia Beach that the mayor is clueless. The mayor has -- the ICE -- she has no idea what's going on. And the police chief is an arrogant incompetent.
All right. Now, if you elect these people, that's what you're gonna get. Dead girls.
[...]
O'REILLY: Because, look, just listening to her soundbites, just listening to her try to explain the situation, she is not capable of running the city. As I said, she should be home baking pies. This is not a woman who has any grasp of public policy. So, I have nothing personal against this woman. I couldn't care less about her. I just wanna protect Americans and I wanna protect illegal aliens.
Remember, these people are dying -- 500 died in the desert trying to cross into the USA last year. You know, the kids in the Bronx all burned to death because the city -- sanctuary city of New York -- doesn't regulate how many people you cram into a slum. And now we have to the two dead American girls in Virginia.
I am going back to the Imus story.
Compared to Bill O'Reilly, Don Imus is the greatest orator since William Jennings Byran.....
I think this may be the topic that puts ol' Billo in the loony bin. He can't handle the myriad of topics in this one story - immigration, drunk driving, dead young girls, housing regulations, police chiefs who "fail" to uphold the law, exploitation of children, pie baking, etc.
I'm afraid his head is going to explode. Well, it almost did the other night with Geraldo.
It's Virginia Beach's fault that the guy wasn't deported? Gee, all this time I thought it was the federal govt's job to do that. Glad that got cleared up.
I think this is Bull OhReally?'s underlying claim. If the city had reported the illegal to the feds, he would have been deported. But, for the personal attack, the Bull should be fired (or at least suspended for a couple of weeks.)
Well we have to get our daily anti OReilly story in.
Or Bill has to get his daily ludicrous distortion in and MMFA does its job AGAIN. I fail to see why it is MMFA's problem that O'falfel LIES and distorts so much.
MMFA didn't refute anything O'Reilly said here. They simply posted a transcript of O'Reilly's opinion on the issue. Pretty boring. O'Reilly has a certain view on this issue and you have a certain view. There's no misinformation here, and what he said wasn't even controversial in the least. It's just another daily opportunity for you and your fellow liberals to bash O'Reilly.
Rino,
This is here because its a comment he would not have made had it been a male mayor. I respect your opinion, but let me just explain why I find this ironic. My mother, who is a staunch conservative who would not vote for a Democrat if a gun were placed to her head, is still offended by Hillary saying of her law/political career: "I could have stayed home and baked cookies."
Every time Hillary is brought up or on screen, my mom (who was a housewife) scoffs and repeats that comment. She is a wonderful mother who chose to be a housewife when she became pregnant with me. She watches O'Reilly daily and I think I will send this to her. Its insulting to every woman who has chosen to stay home and be a full-time mother. By saying the mayor should have stayed home and made pies insults my mother by saying housewives somehow lack the smarts to do anything else.
Ya, you have a point there. I never thought of it like that. My mom was always a house wife as well when I was growing up, so I know what you're talking about. Good observation.
True enough by my response was in the context of his pattern. While this was just a ludicrous misogynist opinion MMFA has refuted a whole lot of lies the falafel man has told and corrected a ton of his misinformation.
you really need to start paying attention. Where is it legally requried that MMFA 'refute' every idiotic comment made as opposed to simply making sure a wider audience see's just how moronic and pathetic people like Bull and his defenders are (that would be you) are?
'Sanctuary city' reminds me of aiding and abeiting Catholic priests in Boston..
It's reached the point where I just wish he would get caught sleeping with an animal on the set of his show, putting on a hood at a Klan meeting, sleeping with Murdoch's wife... anything... that would get this guy out of the public consciousness.
I'm so tired of him and his usual garbage. To spin a local drunk driving story into a referendum on immigration is, just as Geraldo said, CHEAP!
I still cant get over the concept of O'falfel denigrating someone ELSES intellect. On a good day the guy has the intellectual capacity of a tangerine
Solon.. i've known tangerines that were far more intelligent than the Fascist Falafel
One doesn't approach his intellect until one begins to examine amoeba
As somebody who lives in Virginia Beach, I have to say that in no way shape or form is Virginia Beach a "sanctuary city" for illegal aliens. Was there some crappy law enforcement here regarding this man? Yes. But here is Bill O'Reilly making a huge generalization about a city he clearly know nothing about. We have no "sanctuary policy." You hardly see an Hispanic, and I've been to just about every nook and cranny of Virginia Beach and I've lived there my whole life. It's a beautiful place and many tourists from all over the world and the country come here. Although many of O'Reilly's viewers are now cancelling vacation plans to come here, which will take away about maybe .01% of our tourists.
We have a law in Virginia Beach that we do not ask people their immigration status so that they will cooperate in criminal law enforcement without fear of being punished.
"O'Reilly was castigating a Virginia Beach policy that forbids patrol officers from asking the immigration status of defendants charged with misdemeanors.
Jacocks said the policy is similar to those used by other large cities and is necessary so that illegal immigrants will report crimes and help in the prosecution of crimes without fear of retribution from law enforcement."
Also, one of the girl's father, Ray Tranchant, is really upset about this being turned into something political.
"Ray Tranchant, Tessa's father, urged people not to treat the tragedy like "a political football."
"There's been some politicizing and mudslinging against the city," Tranchant said in a quiet voice. He added that he trusts "justice will be done."
And Jackocks makes a good point.
"Police Chief Jake Jacocks Jr. said he found it "ironic that had the intoxicated driver been born and raised in Virginia Beach, little notice would have been given to this senseless tragedy by the media or the community at large.
"Unfortunately, most who have been outspoken about this recent and all-too-common tragedy have lost perspective and focus," he said."
You all can read a local paper here. [link to content.hamptonroads.com]
Look in the photo, and the father is praising the mayor.
- Unfortunately, most who have been outspoken about this recent and all-too-common tragedy have lost perspective and focus - Jacocks
The ones who have lost focus are the people running the justice system in Chesapeake and Virginia Beach. How in the hell does someone with this criminal record have the freedom to drive or walk anywhere.
Convicted of DUI...twice convicted for public drunkeness...and convicted of identity theft...all the while being in America illegally and barely able to speak English.
It's easy to understand...with their crazy judicial system...why they also failed to prosecute him for failure to have a drivers license and not having insurance.
It is entirely the fault of the police departments and judicial systems in Chesapeake and Virginia Beach that two innocent girls sitting at an intersection with seat belts fastened...are dead.
Those people and the city administrations that support their efforts...should all be home baking pies.
The only thing that happened in Virginia Beach with this guy was drunk in public before the car crash. Drunk in public is not a felony. Virginia Beach did not know of Alfredo Ramos' immigration status until after the car accident. And according to immigration laws, you get deported if you committed a felony.
"Ramos faces deportation if he is convicted, according to U.S. immigration laws. People who are deported for criminal convictions have either committed felonies or "crimes of moral turpitude," including crimes such as murder, manslaughter, rape and most theft crimes, U.S. immigration law states."
O'Reilly is wrong in putting the blame on Virginia Beach. And one of the girls' father is upset about this being turned into a political spectacle.
Besides, why no ask the city of Chesapeake what happened? The three alcohol-related convictions were two drunk in publics in Virginia Beach and Chesapeake, and one DUI in Chesapeake (a close neighboring city of Virginia Beach). The Virginia Beach police department didn't know about the DUI until after this tragedy.
http://www.wavy.com/Global/story.asp?S=6321729
Billo, I just checked for lists of so-called sanctuary cities - although I couldn't find a good one, no city in the Hampton Roads area - Virginia Beach included - is on the list. Are you upset because there's two less girls you can sexually harass?
If, as O'Reilly asserts, that Virginia Beach and other selected major cities are well-known "sanctuary" cities for illegal immigrants, then isn't it puzzling that O'Reilly is not questioning why Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is not aggressively seeking out illegal immigrants in these well-known "sanctuary" cities? Isn't that their job?
I think Bill's confusing the word "sanctuary" with "asylum." But even then he's way off. Both have more to do with when a person is persecuted or seeking refugee status.
I doubt this very much applies to illegal immigration.
another one of those personal attacks that the falafel man claims he never does.
O'Reilly is proof that they really do stack manure that high.
He didn't say "housewives somehow lack the smarts", but "Some housewives somehow lack the smarts".
Perhaps President Bush would have been better off to "stay home and back cookies". This isn't to say ALL men lack the smarts, only some do.