Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Ill. lawmakers accuse colleague of 'racial hatred'

From the Pantagraph...
Three Republicans in the Illinois House are accusing a Democratic colleague of "race-baiting" and spreading "racial hatred."

They're asking the speaker of the House to investigate comments made this morning by Representative Monique Davis.

The dispute arose when a committee debated legislation to help ex-convicts get jobs and start businesses.

Both sides agree Davis claimed that lawmakers with prisons in their districts oppose that kind of legislation because they want to keep the prisons full.

Outraged Republicans say she made it a racial issue and said they want prisons filled with "black people from Chicago."
Davis denies this although the exact statement is disputed. Here's more from the Capitol Fax...
REP. RON STEPHENS: “The Representative from Cook was shouting in a very accusatory tone. At first I thought she was being sarcastic, so I started laughing, and then I realized that she was serious…

“I heard her say the term ‘blacks from Chicago’, but I could have misheard her…

“In all the 22 years that I have been here I have never been accused of being tough on crime in order to keep prison jobs in my district.”
Go over there to read more quotes, there might be more updates on this.

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