Missouri’s Republican lieutenant governor said Tuesday night that Gov. Jay Nixon (D) was “wrong” to prejudge the fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager in Ferguson, Mo.
Fox News host Shepard Smith asked Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder (R) to discuss a statement Nixon gave earlier Tuesday, in which the governor said “a vigorous prosecution must now be pursued” in 18-year-old Michael Brown’s death at the hands of a white police officer. The incident sparked over a week of ongoing, heated protests against law enforcement in Ferguson.
Smith kicked off the discussion by suggesting that the case may have “already been decided.”
“Mr. lieutenant governor, isn’t it possible that there might be a need for justice for this police officer?” he asked.
“It’s really heartbreaking to see a man elected to an office that high in our state government, the chief executive of Missouri state government, come out with a statement like that that does prejudge the case,” Kinder responded. “I’ve been asking for everyone to step back from a rush to judgement.”
“It would be wrong for a prosecutor to say what the governor said here tonight and it’s wrong for the governor of Missouri to have said it,” he later added.
Who cares what he thinks?
More importantly, is there anything worth less than a bunch of articles that are basically “Side A says what Side B does/says is wrong”?
I’m kind of starting to wonder about these pictures of Nixon, though. He seems to look different in all of them. Are they all actually him?
One thing to keep in mind. Every official response to the unrest in Ferguson, from the president (unfortunately) to the DOJ to Gov. Nixon to local Missouri officials, is calculated to appease white residents and voters. Hillary’s silence is also calculated. In the minds of many whites, Michael Brown was their working image of the big black brute. It’s perfectly fine with them if we have a separate and unequal justice system. Execute first. Sweep under the rug. Move on. There will be a resounding backlash against African Americans come 2014, when the Republicans take over the Senate. It’s already under way with the erosion of voting access for people of color.
The residents of Ferguson and many predominant black communities are finally waking up to the reality. Your country doesn’t give a damn about you. So please go away and if not, we can certainly expedite the process.
I’d be interested to see their voting participation over the last 20 years. Maybe this year it’ll go up.
It is, of course, perfectly acceptable to pre-judge Mike Brown. He must have been a robber all hopped up on the demon weed who was charging the cop with his deadly fists.