Birds of a Feather
Michael has an interesting post up about Al Franken attending an event featuring Rep. Maxine Waters. Waters is one of the most out there liberals in Congress. What I found fascinating is that Rep. Waters once wrote Fidel Castro. Here’s what Michael posted about that letter:
Waters Wrote Fidel Castro To Urge Him Not To Deport Convicted Killer. “Assata Shakur, a member of the Black Panthers formerly known as Joanne Chesimard, fled to Cuba after being convicted of the 1973 execution-style killing of a New Jersey state trooper, Werner Foerster. The final shots to his head were fired as he lay wounded on the ground. Shakur’s friends helped her break out of prison. Federal officials have been trying to get her back from Cuba since she surfaced there in the 1980s. Despite Shakur’s murderous acts, U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., wrote Cuban President Fidel Castro and urged him not to deport Shakur. Waters claimed Shakur had been persecuted ‘as a result of her political beliefs and political affiliations.’” (David B. Cooper Op-Ed, “Murderers Deserve No Part Of Clemency,” Akron Beacon Journal, September 9, 1999)
The name Assata Shakur rang a bell for me. Here’s why:
But Ellison’s call to the crowd was broader than a plea to aid Soliah. “We need to come together and free…all the Saras,” he proclaimed.
Like who? Like Assata Shakur, Ellison told his audience. Shakur is a former member of the Black Liberation Army, a “revolutionary activist organization,” who killed a New Jersey state trooper “execution-style at point-blank range,” according to the FBI’s Wanted Fugitives website.
Shakur escaped from prison in 1979, and eventually fled to Cuba. She “should be considered armed and extremely dangerous,” says the FBI, which is offering a reward of up to $1 million for information leading to her apprehension.
Ellison, however, lauded Shakur. “I am praying that Castro does not get to the point where he has to really barter with these guys over here because they’re going to get Assata Shakur, they’re going to get a whole lot of other people,” he told the crowd. “I hope the Cuba[n] people can stick to it, because the freedom of some good decent people depends on it.”
Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? The thought that Al Franken would associate himself with someone that doesn’t want a cop killer be brought to justice is disgusting enough. What’s worse is that Keith Ellison agreement with that.
Rep. Ellison should be ashamed of calling Shakur a “good decent person.” When did convicted cop killers become good, decent people?
Al Franken, Maxine Waters and Keith Ellison are indeed birds of a feather.
Technorati Tags: Al Franken, Maxine Waters, Keith Ellison, Assata Shakur, Cop Killer, black Panther, Fidel Castro
Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog
December 12th, 2007 at 2:16 pm
You may want to read the details of Ms. Shakur’s case. The conviction was extremely grey at best; with a neurosurgeon testifying that her ability to fire a weapon at anyone, let alone an armed officers, was “anatomically impossible”.
More on this case, with cited sources, can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assata_Shakur