Reichert Caught In Lie About Driver Who Flipped Bird To Bush

[RamboLiberal]

http://electioncentral.tpmcafe.com/blog/electioncentral/2006/nov/03/wa_08_reichert_caught_in_lie_about_driver_who_fipped_bird_to_bush

A few days ago, a story broke out of Washington state saying that a school bus driver got fired by a local school board last June for giving the finger to President Bush. The story's set off a lot of buzz in Washington political circles, because of an unanswered question at the center of the tale: Did Rep. Dave Reichert (R-WA), who was with Bush during the incident, engineer the driver's firing behind the scenes as retribution for insulting the President? His spokesman has been saying that he didn't. But now Reichert -- who's fending off a tougher-than-expected challenge from Dem Darcy Burner -- has been caught on tape boasting to an audience of Republicans that, yes, he did engineer the driver's firing as retribution for the insult to Bush.

<snip>

Now that the story has just come out and gone national, Reichert spokesperson Kimberly Cadena -- and the school district rep -- have both been insisting that Reichert didn't engineer the firing, and that it wasn't political. From the AP:

Reichert later called to tell her about the incident, but by the time he got her on the phone, the bus driver had already been fired. District officials had already learned about it because the driver bragged to her colleagues about what she had done, Cadena said.

<snip>

But uh-oh -- it turns out that Reichert told a rather different story on August 12 to a group of Republicans, who'd be more likely to cheer Reichert for getting the woman axed. A tracker for the Washington Democratic Party recorded the talk, and the party has now sent TPM a copy, which you can listen to right here. http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/images/reichertstatement.mp3

Here's what Reichert said:

As the motorcade went by the President and I drove by on I-5. The President was having a great time. He was waving at everybody. And waving at the kids he got the biggest kick out of the kids leaning out the window to say hello to the President of the United States. The sad part of it is, though, we got to the last bus...the bus driver flipped the President off. So the very next day, you know what I did? I called the superintendent of that school district. And that bus driver no longer works for that school. (Loud Cheers) That's the old sherriff part of me still around.

[Ian David]

1. What a bastard. n/t

[LA lady]

2. I don't get it

When did he lie? He called the superintendent.

If my kid had been on a bus and the driver made an obscene gesture to ANYBODY I would want the driver fired. I would have called the school board IMMEDIATELY

[RamboLiberal]

4. He's lying about getting the driver fired

His hacks are saying he didn't and that he called a week later - guess there's a bit of a firestorm now - he told his base he called immediately.

Perhaps the driver should've been fired, but if that's the case most of we DU'ers better never take up school bus driving and have the Chimps motorcade pass in front of us!

[ShortnFiery]

5. What if there were NO children on the bus?

Hey, the hippie drivers who used to run over the curbs when I was a kid in the 70s didn't hesitate do that and more. Guess we have to guard our little "cult object" children that bus drivers are not supposed to have an opinion. ;)

[Hepburn]

6. LOL....

....I would have not hesitated to flip Bush off and I would have not had a problem doing it in front of my own child.

You know...some times there are only certain words which are adequate for a particular situation. In this case, that bastard Bush lied and nearly 3,000 U.S. Soldiers and thousands upon thousands of Iraqis died. Frankly, saying "FUCK YOU" to Bush by raising a middle finger to him?? I find that the ONLY honorable thing to do under the circumstances.

Bravo for the bus driver.

Just my opinion....

[angstlessk]

7. You would want a bus driver FIRED? WHY? Called on the carpet perhaps

but FIRED and put out in the COLD? are you CRUEL? Bus drivers are not CEO's of corporations who can go to their next job after being fired from their last and get $100,000,000 per year.

[Trillo]

14. Got any "evidence" to support such a wild and unsubstantiated

claim? The job market's stronger than it's been in years. Wages are rising! Millions of new jobs created!

Hopefully my sarcasm is evident.

[ima_sinnic]

17. oh, yes, protect the poor innocent widdle children from a heartfelt

and spontaneous gesture by a real human being. self-righteous people who like to get other people fired because they're "offended" give me heartburn.

[ShortnFiery]

3. So much for free speech in Bush-World ...

I guess she's lucky that she was just fired and not "arrested", "detained", "tortured" or "suicided." :shrug:

[rsmith6621]

8. Shit Is Hitting the HomeFront

http://www.king5.com/topstories/stories/NW_110306WAKreichertEL.b59be9.html

http://www.komotv.com

[Cha]

11. Ohhh, thank you!

The Plot Thickens. The little prissypants is responsible for getting a single mother fired cause of the same thing he did on tv..where that tape of bush flipping off whomever?

The "superintendent" must be a bushit, no?

[Lasher]

16. The Flipper in Chief

Here ya go:

http://politicalhumor.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ&sdn=politicalhumor&zu=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dw_bylg-Jjz8

[mcg]

20. Pics of Bush flipping off America ...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=364&topic_id=2546408#2546958

[rsmith6621]

9. Reichert Is A Proclaiming Family.....

Values....Born again Evangelical Christian.....

[Cha]

12. Natch...he's a LIAR.

Fucking hypocrite.

[Cha]

10. KNR~ It's looking better and

better for the Bus Driver!

What I want to know is..did fuckhead see himself getting a taste of his own medicine>}(

[Infinite Hope]

13. He's trying to take credit for her firing...

to look good to his base. That doesn't mean he really was the reason she was fired. We all know Republicans lie to their base to make themselves look strong.

[freeplessinseattle]

15. what a lying piece of shit! n/t

[The Backlash Cometh]

18. Finally! We caught one of those sons of bitches!

You know they're stickin it to us little guys.

on edit: Look guys, these blowhards are pushing their weight around even on a local level, and threatening to fire people is a big weapon they use. It's intimidation and it's effective. I don't care whether the guy actually had a direct impact on the firing, I care that it was his intentions to have the driver fired, and that he knew he could do it.

[kikiek]

19. But the VP telling a member of congress to go F themselves is not offensive.

Freedom of speech isn't for the little people.