Congresswoman McKinney Punches Police Officer
- Thread starter Jakesnake
- Start date
VegasGuy said:Inappropriate touching? WTF? I bet she told her beautician the same damn thing.
-VG
What beautician??????????????She should have slaped her beatuician,if she had one, instead of that cop.
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Jakesnake said:Developing story........
Rep. Cynthia McKinney (D-GA) punched a U.S. Capitol Police officer today after he mistakenly pursued her for failing to pass through a metal detector, HOTLINE reports... The entire incident is on tape. The cop is pressing charges and the USCP are waiting until Congress adjourns to arrest her.
Think about this,,,,,,,,Black people should beable to go into any building without question,But Latinos can't cross the border of a continient that they are indigenous too????????????
stfuBrown Pride said:Think about this,,,,,,,,Black people should beable to go into any building without question,But Latinos can't cross the border of a continient that they are indigenous too????????????
Cynthia should have just hopped the fence to the capital mexican style and they wouldnt have even looked her way
"ohh im indigenous to the earth I should be able to go anywhere on earth.........." Okay Hose A stop smokin that loco dust and come back to fuckin earth dipshit
I hope a native of Michigan jumps through your window and takes everything you have
Dolemite said:
Check this out _____,you the product of an American who was doing time in panama.He most likely went out on most nights and got shit faced drunk,because Panamenos hate Americans,yet your father found some .... theing but a _____ who is considered a trater to her people.So now you are nothing but a whoreson and get no respect in panama because you are the product, of amreicas rape of this continent.You better learn mi hermano,before you fall like ....This is what does in the casaputas in your homeland
.You will do the same unl;ess you learn from me.Do not learn from this crackkka lover quinazi............because he will lead you down a crackkka path,that lead to were your moms is today...........
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Interview w/Alex Jones, McKinney articulates her opinion on current events in U.S.
[RM]http://we-dont.gotdns.org/~culhavoc/audio/2006-02-9-Alex-Jones_-_Cynthia-McKinney.mp3[/RM]
[RM]http://we-dont.gotdns.org/~culhavoc/audio/2006-02-9-Alex-Jones_-_Cynthia-McKinney.mp3[/RM]
Patrick Kennedy and Cynthia McKinney
Patrick Kennedy and Cynthia McKinney
May 17, 2006
In politics, timing is everything. From my perspective, Patrick Kennedy’s timing could not be better. We are in for a treat as the mid-term elections loom in half a year. The GOP’s opportunity has arrived.
Cynthia McKinney’s reaction to the obvious and blatant favoritism enjoyed by Patrick Kennedy is likely to be something to savor. She is already on the record about the indignities she received at the hand of a white cop. But now she sees that for the white boy, supervisors stepped in, relieving the officers at the scene and driving the staggering Kennedy home.
She faces potential legal jeopardy, and now a rich white boy walks away without so much as a breathalyzer test from circumstances that would ordinarily demand a drunk driving investigation. At least one cop reportedly says he smelled alcohol.
There are reports that a complain has been filed with the union over the supervisors coming in. Supposedly, the Capitol Police have a bit of a generation gap between the older supervisory ranks, accustomed to treating Congress like royalty, and the post 9/11 recruits, many of them ex-military, who see their job as protecting the Capitol from serious terror threats and who see the rules applying to all.
Kennedy has a history of trouble:
Kennedy’s past includes several troubling episodes, starting with his treatment in 1986 for cocaine use. More recently, a charter company accused him of causing $28,000 in damage to a rented yacht in 2000. That same year, he acknowledged that he was “on a lot of different medications for, among other things, depression,” and was accused of shoving an airport security guard at Los Angeles International Airport when she tried to make him check his bag.He was in a traffic incident last month in his home district, according to Boston Herald columnist Howie Carr, who reported that the mishap occurred as Kennedy was hurrying into the parking lot of a pharmacy in Portsmouth, R.I.
Never known for self-control or thoughtfulness, Representative McKinney is going to have a hard time keeping her mouth shut.
She could denounce favoritism, of course. But she is asking for favoritism herself, so that won’t work out too well. Even McKinney can see this.
So she will demand “equal treatment” – meaning equal immunity from the laws which govern the rest of us.
But that argument raises awkward questions for the rest of the United States Congress. We are going into an election, with opponents of either party ready to remind the voters that Congressman X has lost touch with the ordinary folks back home. One would expect a flurry of statements from members of Congress affirming the need elected representatives to live by the same laws as the rest of us.
But to affirm this would then lead the demand that Congress hold hearings on the Capitol Police’s handling of the Kennedy incident. That is a demand that no Congressman wants to heed. They enjoy the special treatment, the outright coddling, they receive from the Capitol Police, as much as you and I would. And the Capitol Police, whose budget is passed by Congress, are happy to oblige.
But we are in the midst of a really serious election, much-hyped by the Democrats as a chance to turn over control of Congress. Nothing concentrates the Congressional mind so wonderfully as the prospect of losing majorities and maybe one’s own seat. The GOP, on the receiving end of a campaign against its own corruption, can perform political jiu-jitsu and turn the issue against the Democrats, with well-timed hearings on the Capitol Police and its treatment of members.
If they don’t, they are going to hear from me and my friends. The GOP base is already angry about a number of issues. The last thing a GOP-controlled Congress ought to do is stand for the principle of immunity from the demands they impose on the rest of us. They will hear this from the grass roots, right as they head home more often as campaigners.
Who will be the first member of Congress to stand-up and demand hearings on the Capitol Police’s treatment of members of Congress?
http://www.americanthinker.com/comments_print.php?comments_id=5056
Patrick Kennedy and Cynthia McKinney
May 17, 2006
In politics, timing is everything. From my perspective, Patrick Kennedy’s timing could not be better. We are in for a treat as the mid-term elections loom in half a year. The GOP’s opportunity has arrived.
Cynthia McKinney’s reaction to the obvious and blatant favoritism enjoyed by Patrick Kennedy is likely to be something to savor. She is already on the record about the indignities she received at the hand of a white cop. But now she sees that for the white boy, supervisors stepped in, relieving the officers at the scene and driving the staggering Kennedy home.
She faces potential legal jeopardy, and now a rich white boy walks away without so much as a breathalyzer test from circumstances that would ordinarily demand a drunk driving investigation. At least one cop reportedly says he smelled alcohol.
There are reports that a complain has been filed with the union over the supervisors coming in. Supposedly, the Capitol Police have a bit of a generation gap between the older supervisory ranks, accustomed to treating Congress like royalty, and the post 9/11 recruits, many of them ex-military, who see their job as protecting the Capitol from serious terror threats and who see the rules applying to all.
Kennedy has a history of trouble:
Kennedy’s past includes several troubling episodes, starting with his treatment in 1986 for cocaine use. More recently, a charter company accused him of causing $28,000 in damage to a rented yacht in 2000. That same year, he acknowledged that he was “on a lot of different medications for, among other things, depression,” and was accused of shoving an airport security guard at Los Angeles International Airport when she tried to make him check his bag.He was in a traffic incident last month in his home district, according to Boston Herald columnist Howie Carr, who reported that the mishap occurred as Kennedy was hurrying into the parking lot of a pharmacy in Portsmouth, R.I.
Never known for self-control or thoughtfulness, Representative McKinney is going to have a hard time keeping her mouth shut.
She could denounce favoritism, of course. But she is asking for favoritism herself, so that won’t work out too well. Even McKinney can see this.
So she will demand “equal treatment” – meaning equal immunity from the laws which govern the rest of us.
But that argument raises awkward questions for the rest of the United States Congress. We are going into an election, with opponents of either party ready to remind the voters that Congressman X has lost touch with the ordinary folks back home. One would expect a flurry of statements from members of Congress affirming the need elected representatives to live by the same laws as the rest of us.
But to affirm this would then lead the demand that Congress hold hearings on the Capitol Police’s handling of the Kennedy incident. That is a demand that no Congressman wants to heed. They enjoy the special treatment, the outright coddling, they receive from the Capitol Police, as much as you and I would. And the Capitol Police, whose budget is passed by Congress, are happy to oblige.
But we are in the midst of a really serious election, much-hyped by the Democrats as a chance to turn over control of Congress. Nothing concentrates the Congressional mind so wonderfully as the prospect of losing majorities and maybe one’s own seat. The GOP, on the receiving end of a campaign against its own corruption, can perform political jiu-jitsu and turn the issue against the Democrats, with well-timed hearings on the Capitol Police and its treatment of members.
If they don’t, they are going to hear from me and my friends. The GOP base is already angry about a number of issues. The last thing a GOP-controlled Congress ought to do is stand for the principle of immunity from the demands they impose on the rest of us. They will hear this from the grass roots, right as they head home more often as campaigners.
Who will be the first member of Congress to stand-up and demand hearings on the Capitol Police’s treatment of members of Congress?
http://www.americanthinker.com/comments_print.php?comments_id=5056
Re: Patrick Kennedy and Cynthia McKinney
<font size="5"><center>Cynthia McKinney & The 4th Hip Hop Power Shop</font size></center>
Monday, 29 May 2006, 9:28 am
Press Release: US Congressional Representative
Press Advisory, May 25, 2006
WHO: Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney
WHAT: Hosts the fourth annual Hip Hop Power Shop
WHEN: Saturday, June 10th, 2006 10:00 am - 4:00 pm
WHERE: Tupac Amaru Shakur Center, 5616 Memorial Drive, Stone Mountain, GA
Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney and the Hip Hop community are coming together to promote the awareness and empowerment of young people. We are "ARMING OUR YOUTH WITH WEAPONS OF MASS INSTRUCTION," teaching the young how to engage in the social-political system. Congresswoman McKinney believes that young people will be able to take their destiny into their own hands, and soar to heretofore-unseen levels of achievement. To that end, this year's H.H.P.S. will be the most informative and inspiring ever.
Confirmed as participants joining Rep. McKinney in the fourth Annual Hip Hop Power Shop: Bobby Brown, Professor Griff, Gotti, Public Enemy, Chuck D, M-1 (Dead Prez), Rosa Clemente, Davey D, Nappy Roots - Scales, DJ Jelly, Monica Benderman, wife of prisoner of conscience Sgt. Kevin Benderman, Ingemar Smith, Veterans for Peace, Denise Thomas Military Families Speak Out, Rev. Markel Hutchins, community activist, Steven Waddy Georgia Coalition for a People's Agenda, Rev. Lennox Yearwood, Baba Curtis and Minister Server and many more.
Nationally known DJ Greg Street from Atlanta's #1 radio station, V-103 will be the Master of ceremony.
This year's Hip Hop Power Shop will also feature participation from Mr. Tony Gray a nationally recognized radio consultant, programmer and station owner.
Events include a Katrina Tribunal, Mock Congress on the Tupak Shakur Records Release Act, poetry readings, and panels on Countering Culture: Attacks on Political Musicians and Youth, and Hip Hop History and Speak Out, and on Countering Recruitment: Realities of War and Military Service.
The Hip Hop Power Shop will wrap up with a performance by Moodswing Productions recording artist: "JR".
COUNTERING CULTURE: CHALLENGES AND SURVIVAL FOR YOUTH OF COLOR
Arming Our Youth With Weapons of Mass Instruction.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0605/S00552.htm
<font size="5"><center>Cynthia McKinney & The 4th Hip Hop Power Shop</font size></center>
Monday, 29 May 2006, 9:28 am
Press Release: US Congressional Representative
Press Advisory, May 25, 2006
WHO: Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney
WHAT: Hosts the fourth annual Hip Hop Power Shop
WHEN: Saturday, June 10th, 2006 10:00 am - 4:00 pm
WHERE: Tupac Amaru Shakur Center, 5616 Memorial Drive, Stone Mountain, GA
Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney and the Hip Hop community are coming together to promote the awareness and empowerment of young people. We are "ARMING OUR YOUTH WITH WEAPONS OF MASS INSTRUCTION," teaching the young how to engage in the social-political system. Congresswoman McKinney believes that young people will be able to take their destiny into their own hands, and soar to heretofore-unseen levels of achievement. To that end, this year's H.H.P.S. will be the most informative and inspiring ever.
Confirmed as participants joining Rep. McKinney in the fourth Annual Hip Hop Power Shop: Bobby Brown, Professor Griff, Gotti, Public Enemy, Chuck D, M-1 (Dead Prez), Rosa Clemente, Davey D, Nappy Roots - Scales, DJ Jelly, Monica Benderman, wife of prisoner of conscience Sgt. Kevin Benderman, Ingemar Smith, Veterans for Peace, Denise Thomas Military Families Speak Out, Rev. Markel Hutchins, community activist, Steven Waddy Georgia Coalition for a People's Agenda, Rev. Lennox Yearwood, Baba Curtis and Minister Server and many more.
Nationally known DJ Greg Street from Atlanta's #1 radio station, V-103 will be the Master of ceremony.
This year's Hip Hop Power Shop will also feature participation from Mr. Tony Gray a nationally recognized radio consultant, programmer and station owner.
Events include a Katrina Tribunal, Mock Congress on the Tupak Shakur Records Release Act, poetry readings, and panels on Countering Culture: Attacks on Political Musicians and Youth, and Hip Hop History and Speak Out, and on Countering Recruitment: Realities of War and Military Service.
The Hip Hop Power Shop will wrap up with a performance by Moodswing Productions recording artist: "JR".
COUNTERING CULTURE: CHALLENGES AND SURVIVAL FOR YOUTH OF COLOR
Arming Our Youth With Weapons of Mass Instruction.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0605/S00552.htm
Re: Patrick Kennedy and Cynthia McKinney
<font size="5"><center>Rep. McKinney Won't Be Charged in Scuffle</font size></center>
Jun 16, 5:26 PM (ET)
Associated Press
By LAURIE KELLMAN
WASHINGTON (AP) - A grand jury declined to indict Rep. Cynthia McKinney on Friday in connection with an incident in which she admitted hitting a police officer who tried to stop her from entering a House office building.
The grand jury had been considering the case since shortly after the March 29 incident.
The confrontation led to much discussion on Capitol Hill about race and the conduct of lawmakers and the officers who protect them.
http://apnews1.iwon.com//article/20060616/D8I9I4D80.html?PG=home&SEC=news
<font size="5"><center>Rep. McKinney Won't Be Charged in Scuffle</font size></center>
Jun 16, 5:26 PM (ET)
Associated Press
By LAURIE KELLMAN
WASHINGTON (AP) - A grand jury declined to indict Rep. Cynthia McKinney on Friday in connection with an incident in which she admitted hitting a police officer who tried to stop her from entering a House office building.
The grand jury had been considering the case since shortly after the March 29 incident.
The confrontation led to much discussion on Capitol Hill about race and the conduct of lawmakers and the officers who protect them.
http://apnews1.iwon.com//article/20060616/D8I9I4D80.html?PG=home&SEC=news
Re: Patrick Kennedy and Cynthia McKinney
<font size="5"><center>Black Republican Will Challenge Cynthia McKinney</font size></center>
By Nathan Burchfiel
CNSNews.com Staff Writer
June 16, 2006
(CNSNews.com) - A little known African American woman announced Thursday that she will try to unseat Georgia Democratic Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney, who has been mired in controversy since she struck a U.S. Capitol policeman in the chest with her closed fist.
Catherine Davis, a human resources manager who has never held elected office, said she is running because McKinney's "dismal legislative record and her outrageous behavior are an embarrassment to the hard-working folks in my district." McKinney represents Georgia's 4th Congressional District.
Davis is conservative. She favors a strict approach to immigration reform - the immediate securing of the borders and deportation of illegal residents, privatizing Social Security, Health Savings Accounts, school vouchers and the Fair Tax, which would eliminate the federal income tax and establish a federal sales tax.
McKinney was first elected to the U.S. House in 1992 to represent Georgia's heavily Democratic 11th District. The district was redrawn by order of the U.S. Supreme Court in 1995 and McKinney was elected in the new, but still heavily Democratic 4th District in 1996. She lost her seat in 2002 when she was beaten in a Democratic primary, but when the winner then attempted a bid for the U.S. Senate in 2004, McKinney recaptured her old seat.
Davis said she believes the district is ready for change after the controversy that has swirled around McKinney.
In March, McKinney was criticized for hitting a Capitol police officer when he tried to stop her at a security checkpoint in the Cannon House Office Building. McKinney was not wearing her congressional pin at the time and was sporting a new hairstyle that the officer did not recognize.
McKinney apologized for the incident taking place, but did not specifically apologize to the officer she struck. McKinney had earlier accused the officer of "racial profiling" and "inappropriate touching."
In the aftermath of the incident, McKinney again came under fire for telling a reporter not to air comments she had made off camera that were derogatory toward a staff member. McKinney forgot to remove her microphone before saying that staff member Coz Carson "is a fool."
"While in the past simply being a Democrat was enough to get you elected," Davis told Cybercast News Service , "I believe the voters of the 4th are shifting and they're looking for leadership. I also believe that they are tired of the talking loud and saying nothing -- antics that the current congresswoman has engaged in."
Davis is critical of the way McKinney handled the incident with the Capitol police officer. She said she understands McKinney's initial reaction to the police offer grabbing her, but said the congresswoman should have immediately apologized.
Davis told Cybercast News Service that voters in the 4th District are upset that McKinney "took the last bastion of systemic discrimination in this nation -- racial profiling -- and cheapened it to a level to say that that's what happened to her because she couldn't control her impulse to strike out."
There are "one or two" people who support McKinney's actions, Davis said, but the majority of people she has met with in the district are "looking for a leader who will bring answers to the many problems that are plaguing them in the district."
Davis, a human resources manager for Sprint, graduated Magna Cum Laude from Tufts University in three years with a double major in psychology and education. Her previous political experience is limited to working for former Virginia Gov. George Allen, now a U.S. senator, as a welfare reform outreach coordinator. But she does not think her lack of experience will hurt her.
"I believe people want a fresh face and I have corporate experience that can translate into any venue in which I choose to take it," Davis said. "While I don't have the legislative experience yet, I believe that my lobbying experience as well as my corporate experience, [have] fully prepared me to be today's leader to begin addressing the issues of the 4th District."
It's possible that Davis won't get a chance to face McKinney at all, because McKinney must defeat two Democratic opponents, John Coyne II and Hank Johnson, in the district's July 18 primary to get the party's nomination.
A spokesman for McKinney did not return calls requesting comment Thursday.
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewPolitics.asp?Page=/Politics/archive/200606/POL20060616a.html
<font size="5"><center>Black Republican Will Challenge Cynthia McKinney</font size></center>
By Nathan Burchfiel
CNSNews.com Staff Writer
June 16, 2006
(CNSNews.com) - A little known African American woman announced Thursday that she will try to unseat Georgia Democratic Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney, who has been mired in controversy since she struck a U.S. Capitol policeman in the chest with her closed fist.
Catherine Davis, a human resources manager who has never held elected office, said she is running because McKinney's "dismal legislative record and her outrageous behavior are an embarrassment to the hard-working folks in my district." McKinney represents Georgia's 4th Congressional District.
Davis is conservative. She favors a strict approach to immigration reform - the immediate securing of the borders and deportation of illegal residents, privatizing Social Security, Health Savings Accounts, school vouchers and the Fair Tax, which would eliminate the federal income tax and establish a federal sales tax.
McKinney was first elected to the U.S. House in 1992 to represent Georgia's heavily Democratic 11th District. The district was redrawn by order of the U.S. Supreme Court in 1995 and McKinney was elected in the new, but still heavily Democratic 4th District in 1996. She lost her seat in 2002 when she was beaten in a Democratic primary, but when the winner then attempted a bid for the U.S. Senate in 2004, McKinney recaptured her old seat.
Davis said she believes the district is ready for change after the controversy that has swirled around McKinney.
In March, McKinney was criticized for hitting a Capitol police officer when he tried to stop her at a security checkpoint in the Cannon House Office Building. McKinney was not wearing her congressional pin at the time and was sporting a new hairstyle that the officer did not recognize.
McKinney apologized for the incident taking place, but did not specifically apologize to the officer she struck. McKinney had earlier accused the officer of "racial profiling" and "inappropriate touching."
In the aftermath of the incident, McKinney again came under fire for telling a reporter not to air comments she had made off camera that were derogatory toward a staff member. McKinney forgot to remove her microphone before saying that staff member Coz Carson "is a fool."
"While in the past simply being a Democrat was enough to get you elected," Davis told Cybercast News Service , "I believe the voters of the 4th are shifting and they're looking for leadership. I also believe that they are tired of the talking loud and saying nothing -- antics that the current congresswoman has engaged in."
Davis is critical of the way McKinney handled the incident with the Capitol police officer. She said she understands McKinney's initial reaction to the police offer grabbing her, but said the congresswoman should have immediately apologized.
Davis told Cybercast News Service that voters in the 4th District are upset that McKinney "took the last bastion of systemic discrimination in this nation -- racial profiling -- and cheapened it to a level to say that that's what happened to her because she couldn't control her impulse to strike out."
There are "one or two" people who support McKinney's actions, Davis said, but the majority of people she has met with in the district are "looking for a leader who will bring answers to the many problems that are plaguing them in the district."
Davis, a human resources manager for Sprint, graduated Magna Cum Laude from Tufts University in three years with a double major in psychology and education. Her previous political experience is limited to working for former Virginia Gov. George Allen, now a U.S. senator, as a welfare reform outreach coordinator. But she does not think her lack of experience will hurt her.
"I believe people want a fresh face and I have corporate experience that can translate into any venue in which I choose to take it," Davis said. "While I don't have the legislative experience yet, I believe that my lobbying experience as well as my corporate experience, [have] fully prepared me to be today's leader to begin addressing the issues of the 4th District."
It's possible that Davis won't get a chance to face McKinney at all, because McKinney must defeat two Democratic opponents, John Coyne II and Hank Johnson, in the district's July 18 primary to get the party's nomination.
A spokesman for McKinney did not return calls requesting comment Thursday.
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewPolitics.asp?Page=/Politics/archive/200606/POL20060616a.html
[FRAME]http://www.fromthewilderness.com/free/ww3/080503_take_it_back.html[/FRAME]
Re: Patrick Kennedy and Cynthia McKinney
So...Tempest Bledsoe won't be indicted...and she's a moron for pulling the race card. *Summary Complete*
So...Tempest Bledsoe won't be indicted...and she's a moron for pulling the race card. *Summary Complete*
Re: Patrick Kennedy and Cynthia McKinney
<font size="5"><center>McKinney faces runoff </font size>
<font size="4">Congressional Black Caucus Divided </font size></center>
The Hill
By Jonathan E. Kaplan
and Josephine Hearn
July 20, 2006
Rep. Cynthia McKinney (D-Ga.) will face DeKalb County Commissioner Hank Johnson in the Democratic primary runoff next month with little money and only tepid support from her colleagues on the Hill.
In Tuesday’s primary election, fewer than 1,500 votes separated McKinney and Johnson, who held the sixth-term lawmaker to just 46.9 percent of the vote, according to the Georgia secretary of state. Johnson received 44.5 percent and John Coyne, a white businessman, finished a distant third, with 8.6 percent.
The outcome surprised political observers in Washington and Georgia and threatened a repeat of the 2002 election upset. That year McKinney lost her primary to Democratic challenger Denise Majette, the eventual election winner, by 14 points, a dismal showing for an established incumbent. McKinney regained her seat in 2004 after Majette pursued a Senate nomination.
Several observers expressed surprise that McKinney did not win the nomination outright Tuesday.
“It’s a shocker in every respect,” said former Rep. Buddy Darden (D-Ga.), a practicing attorney in Atlanta.
Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) said, “I had no idea she had a race.”
McKinney now faces an uphill battle to hold on to her seat and Johnson is the likely front-runner, political observers said.
“[McKinney] is in a very difficult position. A well-known person tends to get all the votes they’re going to get the first time around. That’s the history,” a knowledgeable CBC lawmaker said, predicting that Johnson would get Coyne’s votes.
Merle Black, a political scientist at Emory University in Atlanta, said, “An incumbent who is forced into a runoff is a serious sign of weakness. Johnson’s vote will go up, he’ll raise a lot of money, and the momentum has gone over to Johnson.”
McKinney may have been hurt by a bizarre incident this spring in which she struck a U.S. Capitol Police officer with her cell phone after he did not recognize her and asked to see her identification at the entrance to a House office building. A grand jury declined to indict her.
She also failed to appear at two televised debates leading up to the primary.
Black lawmakers, who are among her most loyal supporters, had mixed reactions to the results of the race. Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.) predicted that most of her congressional colleagues would not rally to her aid.
“Some will, but a great majority will distance themselves. It’s called ‘avoidingitis,’” he said. “We avoid her. Cynthia won’t approach people beyond her real friends.”
But others were more sanguine.
Rep. Albert Wynn (D-Md.), chairman of the CBC’s political action committee, said the group would continue to support McKinney.
“The first principle of the CBC PAC is to support our incumbent members. ... If she’s an endangered incumbent, we’ll do everything we can to protect her,” Wynn said.
Rep. Mel Watt (D-N.C.), chairman of the CBC, said that he was “surprised and disappointed” and that he would give to McKinney’s campaign.
“I don’t think anybody viewed that she was in a distressed race. ... I was personally disappointed. She’s an outstanding representative. She represents her district well,” Watt said.
One CBC member denied that McKinney had been damaged politically by her much-publicized tussle with police.
“I don’t know anybody here who’s pure as the driven snow. Everybody has baggage. Everybody,” said Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.). “Obviously, [Johnson] knows how to be political. The congresswoman will have to redouble her efforts.”
Black noted that turnout in the district had dropped to 60,000 voters from 95,000 voters in 2004. McKinney lost 20,000 votes from 2004; her total vote dropped to 28,000 from 48,000. She and Johnson ran evenly in DeKalb County, the district’s largest county, but she lost in Gwinnett and Rockdale counties.
“She’s so polarized the district that half who show up will be opposed to her,” Black said.
Johnson’s campaign aides were elated with the result and announced yesterday that they had earned an endorsement from the local chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP).
“There were plenty of naysayers, but we just knew,” said Carole Mumford, Johnson’s campaign manager, reacting to the tally. “It was a good effort on a shoestring budget. No humble pie is required. We are just moving on from here. People now know differently.”
Johnson spoke with Coyne on Tuesday evening, but the two men did not discuss the possibility of an endorsement and, with contingency plans in place for the runoff campaign, Johnson hit the ground running. In a television news interview yesterday, he challenged McKinney to more debates.
Johnson and McKinney will have to regroup for the 18-day sprint to the runoff.
At the end of June, McKinney had raised $244,896 and had just $43,000 on hand, according to PoliticalMoneyLine, which tracks campaign contributions. Johnson was just as strapped, having raised $129,000, and has $13,000 left in the bank.
“This by no means [indicates] that she won’t be coming back,” Darden said. “The runoff is all about who you bring back.”
The winner will face Republican Catherine Davis in November.
http://www.thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/072006/news3.html
<font size="5"><center>McKinney faces runoff </font size>
<font size="4">Congressional Black Caucus Divided </font size></center>
The Hill
By Jonathan E. Kaplan
and Josephine Hearn
July 20, 2006
Rep. Cynthia McKinney (D-Ga.) will face DeKalb County Commissioner Hank Johnson in the Democratic primary runoff next month with little money and only tepid support from her colleagues on the Hill.
In Tuesday’s primary election, fewer than 1,500 votes separated McKinney and Johnson, who held the sixth-term lawmaker to just 46.9 percent of the vote, according to the Georgia secretary of state. Johnson received 44.5 percent and John Coyne, a white businessman, finished a distant third, with 8.6 percent.
The outcome surprised political observers in Washington and Georgia and threatened a repeat of the 2002 election upset. That year McKinney lost her primary to Democratic challenger Denise Majette, the eventual election winner, by 14 points, a dismal showing for an established incumbent. McKinney regained her seat in 2004 after Majette pursued a Senate nomination.
Several observers expressed surprise that McKinney did not win the nomination outright Tuesday.
“It’s a shocker in every respect,” said former Rep. Buddy Darden (D-Ga.), a practicing attorney in Atlanta.
Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) said, “I had no idea she had a race.”
McKinney now faces an uphill battle to hold on to her seat and Johnson is the likely front-runner, political observers said.
“[McKinney] is in a very difficult position. A well-known person tends to get all the votes they’re going to get the first time around. That’s the history,” a knowledgeable CBC lawmaker said, predicting that Johnson would get Coyne’s votes.
Merle Black, a political scientist at Emory University in Atlanta, said, “An incumbent who is forced into a runoff is a serious sign of weakness. Johnson’s vote will go up, he’ll raise a lot of money, and the momentum has gone over to Johnson.”
McKinney may have been hurt by a bizarre incident this spring in which she struck a U.S. Capitol Police officer with her cell phone after he did not recognize her and asked to see her identification at the entrance to a House office building. A grand jury declined to indict her.
She also failed to appear at two televised debates leading up to the primary.
Black lawmakers, who are among her most loyal supporters, had mixed reactions to the results of the race. Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.) predicted that most of her congressional colleagues would not rally to her aid.
“Some will, but a great majority will distance themselves. It’s called ‘avoidingitis,’” he said. “We avoid her. Cynthia won’t approach people beyond her real friends.”
But others were more sanguine.
Rep. Albert Wynn (D-Md.), chairman of the CBC’s political action committee, said the group would continue to support McKinney.
“The first principle of the CBC PAC is to support our incumbent members. ... If she’s an endangered incumbent, we’ll do everything we can to protect her,” Wynn said.
Rep. Mel Watt (D-N.C.), chairman of the CBC, said that he was “surprised and disappointed” and that he would give to McKinney’s campaign.
“I don’t think anybody viewed that she was in a distressed race. ... I was personally disappointed. She’s an outstanding representative. She represents her district well,” Watt said.
One CBC member denied that McKinney had been damaged politically by her much-publicized tussle with police.
“I don’t know anybody here who’s pure as the driven snow. Everybody has baggage. Everybody,” said Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.). “Obviously, [Johnson] knows how to be political. The congresswoman will have to redouble her efforts.”
Black noted that turnout in the district had dropped to 60,000 voters from 95,000 voters in 2004. McKinney lost 20,000 votes from 2004; her total vote dropped to 28,000 from 48,000. She and Johnson ran evenly in DeKalb County, the district’s largest county, but she lost in Gwinnett and Rockdale counties.
“She’s so polarized the district that half who show up will be opposed to her,” Black said.
Johnson’s campaign aides were elated with the result and announced yesterday that they had earned an endorsement from the local chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP).
“There were plenty of naysayers, but we just knew,” said Carole Mumford, Johnson’s campaign manager, reacting to the tally. “It was a good effort on a shoestring budget. No humble pie is required. We are just moving on from here. People now know differently.”
Johnson spoke with Coyne on Tuesday evening, but the two men did not discuss the possibility of an endorsement and, with contingency plans in place for the runoff campaign, Johnson hit the ground running. In a television news interview yesterday, he challenged McKinney to more debates.
Johnson and McKinney will have to regroup for the 18-day sprint to the runoff.
At the end of June, McKinney had raised $244,896 and had just $43,000 on hand, according to PoliticalMoneyLine, which tracks campaign contributions. Johnson was just as strapped, having raised $129,000, and has $13,000 left in the bank.
“This by no means [indicates] that she won’t be coming back,” Darden said. “The runoff is all about who you bring back.”
The winner will face Republican Catherine Davis in November.
http://www.thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/072006/news3.html
Re: Patrick Kennedy and Cynthia McKinney
<font size="5"><center>McKinney's grip on district weakens</font size>
<font size="4">Johnson picking up votes in her traditional strongholds</font size></center>
By SONJI JACOBS, MAE GENTRY
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 07/24/06
U.S. Rep. Cynthia McKinney lost support last week in her political stronghold, south DeKalb County, forcing her into a runoff, an analysis of election results shows.
Former DeKalb County Commissioner Hank Johnson, who surprised many with his strong showing in the Democratic primary, made inroads in the predominantly black neighborhoods where McKinney traditionally has enjoyed staunch support. And he carried many precincts in largely white north DeKalb, according to the analysis by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Republican Catherine Davis, considered a long shot, in the November election.
McKinney was expected to win Tuesday's primary easily, but she won 47 percent of the ballots cast to Johnson's 44 percent. Alpharetta businessman John F. Coyne III, received 8.5 percent.
The AJC analysis looked at voter turnout in DeKalb, where most 4th District voters live. The AJC also compared Tuesday's election returns in 120 DeKalb precincts with the results of McKinney's 2002 race, which she lost to Denise Majette. (The Georgia Legislature drew new congressional lines in 2005, so only 120 precincts were the same in 2006 as in 2002.)
The analysis found:
• This year, 49 percent fewer voters cast ballots for McKinney than in 2002. That indicates those voters either did not cast ballots Tuesday, or voted for another candidate.
• Overall turnout was significantly lower this year than in 2002. Then, 47 percent of 4th District voters who live in DeKalb went to the polls; this year only 26 percent cast ballots.
• Support for McKinney dropped by an average of 4.5 percentage points across the 120 precincts. She experienced the biggest decline in south DeKalb precincts. In the precincts where McKinney was strongest in 2002, she still won majorities this year but by a lower percentage.
• Johnson had the strongest support in predominantly white north DeKalb, but he received a lower percentage of the vote in many of those precincts than Majette did in 2002. The third opponent, Coyne, received 10 to 20 percent of the vote in many of those precincts.
While the analysis gives some insight into what happened Tuesday, it's difficult to predict how many voters will go to polls for the runoff or how they will cast their ballots. Runoffs are known for very low voter turnouts.
Some south DeKalb voters who supported Johnson had backed McKinney in the past. Reginald Bolton, 47, who lives in southeast Atlanta and is self-employed, said he voted for Johnson on Tuesday, though he has voted for McKinney in other elections. Bolton said he got to know Johnson while working on a neighborhood project when the candidate was a commissioner.
"It was more of a vote for Hank Johnson," he said. "I don't have anything against Cynthia McKinney."
John Evans, McKinney's campaign manager, said low turnout helped prevent the incumbent from winning the primary. He also thought that traditional Republican voters "crossed-over" and voted in the Democratic primary against McKinney, but that data will not be available for several weeks.
"Naturally, there were some precincts where we surrendered too many votes," Evans said, "and we'll have to make that up by getting our message out, and getting out the vote."
Deb McGhee Speights, Johnson's press secretary, said he made gains in McKinney's stronghold because voters in that area are aware of his work as a commissioner. "I think it's important to remember that this is Hank's district as well," Speights said. "He's been elected twice [as a commissioner]."
In many of McKinney's strongest precincts, Johnson won a higher percentage of the vote last week than Majette did in 2002, the analysis shows. For example, McKinney lost about 20 percentage points from her majority at the County Line precinct in Ellenwood.
At the Kelley Lake Elementary precinct, McKinney's numbers slipped from 85 percent in 2002 to 75 percent this time. In 2002, Majette won 13 percent of the vote in Kelley Lake. Johnson received 22 percent last week.
But Melvin Meadows, a 59-year-old electrician who lives in the neighborhood, said he voted for McKinney, and he plans to vote for her again Aug. 8.
"She doesn't hold back or bite her tongue," Meadows said. "She's a strong black woman."
McKinney served five consecutive terms in Congress until 2002, when Majette unseated her in the primary. McKinney had created an uproar when she questioned whether President Bush had advance knowledge of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and did nothing to prevent them.
Two years later, McKinney made a comeback, beating five other Democrats to reclaim her seat while Majette unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. Senate. Many Americans were beginning to question the war in Iraq, which McKinney had criticized.
Then she had a run-in with a U.S. Capitol police officer in March. A police report stated McKinney hit the officer when he refused to let her into the Capitol. McKinney said the officer had grabbed her, and she blamed his failure to recognize her on the fact that she is an African-American. A grand jury declined to indict the congresswoman. Still, the incident created a wave of anti-McKinney sentiment.
Some experts say McKinney can win Aug. 8.
"I never count Cynthia out," said political analyst Bill Shipp. "Except for the Majette race, she's got magic for turning voters out. So while Johnson did surprisingly well, she's a very difficult candidate for anyone to beat."
Shipp said one strategy for Johnson might be to gather support in the Rockdale and Gwinnett County precincts that are new to the district. When the Legislature redrew the district, it moved out other precincts where McKinney had enjoyed her least support. That move, theoretically, should have helped her at the polls.
Johnson nipped McKinney in the Gwinnett portion, getting 847 votes to her 836, while Coyne received 371. Rockdale voters gave Johnson a clear majority, with 2,194 votes to McKinney's 1,592 and Coyne's 837.
Johnson has catapulted himself onto the national political stage by forcing McKinney into a runoff. Elected in 2000 to represent southeastern DeKalb, Johnson resigned his commission seat in April, saying, "I want to be the pothole congressman who takes care of the constituents back home."
His message appealed to voters in north DeKalb, where Majette enjoyed strong support in 2002. Johnson took more than 70 percent of the vote in 21 northside precincts, including Lakeside High, Briarlake Elementary and Winnona Park Elementary. Still, voter turnout in those precincts — mostly 20 to 30 percent — was substantially lower than in 2002, when some precincts exceeded 60 percent.
Coyne, who is white, said he courted white voters in north DeKalb and Gwinnett. He has declined to endorse Johnson or McKinney. The analysis suggests Coyne voters are more likely to cast their ballots for Johnson. Johnson did better than McKinney in majority white neighborhoods.
Norman Werling, 70, of Stone Mountain, votes at the North Hairston precinct, where Johnson won 49 percent of the vote and McKinney took 45. The retiree had voted for McKinney five times but switched to Majette in 2002 because of McKinney's comments about Sept. 11. In the 2004 general election, he returned to the McKinney camp. "I just can't bring myself to vote for somebody who supports George W. Bush and his policies," he said.
This time, though, Werling backed Johnson, saying he had tired of McKinney's antics.
McKinney supporter Ruthie Pumphrey, a 61-year-old nurse, said she believes the incumbent's outspokenness has done some damage but said McKinney has constituents' interests at heart.
"So many people get angry with what she says, but she speaks her mind," Pumphrey said. "You don't have to wonder where she stands."
— Database editor David A. Milliron contributed to this article.
http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/dekalb/stories/0724metfourth.html
<font size="5"><center>McKinney's grip on district weakens</font size>
<font size="4">Johnson picking up votes in her traditional strongholds</font size></center>
By SONJI JACOBS, MAE GENTRY
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 07/24/06
U.S. Rep. Cynthia McKinney lost support last week in her political stronghold, south DeKalb County, forcing her into a runoff, an analysis of election results shows.
Former DeKalb County Commissioner Hank Johnson, who surprised many with his strong showing in the Democratic primary, made inroads in the predominantly black neighborhoods where McKinney traditionally has enjoyed staunch support. And he carried many precincts in largely white north DeKalb, according to the analysis by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Republican Catherine Davis, considered a long shot, in the November election.
McKinney was expected to win Tuesday's primary easily, but she won 47 percent of the ballots cast to Johnson's 44 percent. Alpharetta businessman John F. Coyne III, received 8.5 percent.
The AJC analysis looked at voter turnout in DeKalb, where most 4th District voters live. The AJC also compared Tuesday's election returns in 120 DeKalb precincts with the results of McKinney's 2002 race, which she lost to Denise Majette. (The Georgia Legislature drew new congressional lines in 2005, so only 120 precincts were the same in 2006 as in 2002.)
The analysis found:
• This year, 49 percent fewer voters cast ballots for McKinney than in 2002. That indicates those voters either did not cast ballots Tuesday, or voted for another candidate.
• Overall turnout was significantly lower this year than in 2002. Then, 47 percent of 4th District voters who live in DeKalb went to the polls; this year only 26 percent cast ballots.
• Support for McKinney dropped by an average of 4.5 percentage points across the 120 precincts. She experienced the biggest decline in south DeKalb precincts. In the precincts where McKinney was strongest in 2002, she still won majorities this year but by a lower percentage.
• Johnson had the strongest support in predominantly white north DeKalb, but he received a lower percentage of the vote in many of those precincts than Majette did in 2002. The third opponent, Coyne, received 10 to 20 percent of the vote in many of those precincts.
While the analysis gives some insight into what happened Tuesday, it's difficult to predict how many voters will go to polls for the runoff or how they will cast their ballots. Runoffs are known for very low voter turnouts.
Some south DeKalb voters who supported Johnson had backed McKinney in the past. Reginald Bolton, 47, who lives in southeast Atlanta and is self-employed, said he voted for Johnson on Tuesday, though he has voted for McKinney in other elections. Bolton said he got to know Johnson while working on a neighborhood project when the candidate was a commissioner.
"It was more of a vote for Hank Johnson," he said. "I don't have anything against Cynthia McKinney."
John Evans, McKinney's campaign manager, said low turnout helped prevent the incumbent from winning the primary. He also thought that traditional Republican voters "crossed-over" and voted in the Democratic primary against McKinney, but that data will not be available for several weeks.
"Naturally, there were some precincts where we surrendered too many votes," Evans said, "and we'll have to make that up by getting our message out, and getting out the vote."
Deb McGhee Speights, Johnson's press secretary, said he made gains in McKinney's stronghold because voters in that area are aware of his work as a commissioner. "I think it's important to remember that this is Hank's district as well," Speights said. "He's been elected twice [as a commissioner]."
In many of McKinney's strongest precincts, Johnson won a higher percentage of the vote last week than Majette did in 2002, the analysis shows. For example, McKinney lost about 20 percentage points from her majority at the County Line precinct in Ellenwood.
At the Kelley Lake Elementary precinct, McKinney's numbers slipped from 85 percent in 2002 to 75 percent this time. In 2002, Majette won 13 percent of the vote in Kelley Lake. Johnson received 22 percent last week.
But Melvin Meadows, a 59-year-old electrician who lives in the neighborhood, said he voted for McKinney, and he plans to vote for her again Aug. 8.
"She doesn't hold back or bite her tongue," Meadows said. "She's a strong black woman."
McKinney served five consecutive terms in Congress until 2002, when Majette unseated her in the primary. McKinney had created an uproar when she questioned whether President Bush had advance knowledge of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and did nothing to prevent them.
Two years later, McKinney made a comeback, beating five other Democrats to reclaim her seat while Majette unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. Senate. Many Americans were beginning to question the war in Iraq, which McKinney had criticized.
Then she had a run-in with a U.S. Capitol police officer in March. A police report stated McKinney hit the officer when he refused to let her into the Capitol. McKinney said the officer had grabbed her, and she blamed his failure to recognize her on the fact that she is an African-American. A grand jury declined to indict the congresswoman. Still, the incident created a wave of anti-McKinney sentiment.
Some experts say McKinney can win Aug. 8.
"I never count Cynthia out," said political analyst Bill Shipp. "Except for the Majette race, she's got magic for turning voters out. So while Johnson did surprisingly well, she's a very difficult candidate for anyone to beat."
Shipp said one strategy for Johnson might be to gather support in the Rockdale and Gwinnett County precincts that are new to the district. When the Legislature redrew the district, it moved out other precincts where McKinney had enjoyed her least support. That move, theoretically, should have helped her at the polls.
Johnson nipped McKinney in the Gwinnett portion, getting 847 votes to her 836, while Coyne received 371. Rockdale voters gave Johnson a clear majority, with 2,194 votes to McKinney's 1,592 and Coyne's 837.
Johnson has catapulted himself onto the national political stage by forcing McKinney into a runoff. Elected in 2000 to represent southeastern DeKalb, Johnson resigned his commission seat in April, saying, "I want to be the pothole congressman who takes care of the constituents back home."
His message appealed to voters in north DeKalb, where Majette enjoyed strong support in 2002. Johnson took more than 70 percent of the vote in 21 northside precincts, including Lakeside High, Briarlake Elementary and Winnona Park Elementary. Still, voter turnout in those precincts — mostly 20 to 30 percent — was substantially lower than in 2002, when some precincts exceeded 60 percent.
Coyne, who is white, said he courted white voters in north DeKalb and Gwinnett. He has declined to endorse Johnson or McKinney. The analysis suggests Coyne voters are more likely to cast their ballots for Johnson. Johnson did better than McKinney in majority white neighborhoods.
Norman Werling, 70, of Stone Mountain, votes at the North Hairston precinct, where Johnson won 49 percent of the vote and McKinney took 45. The retiree had voted for McKinney five times but switched to Majette in 2002 because of McKinney's comments about Sept. 11. In the 2004 general election, he returned to the McKinney camp. "I just can't bring myself to vote for somebody who supports George W. Bush and his policies," he said.
This time, though, Werling backed Johnson, saying he had tired of McKinney's antics.
McKinney supporter Ruthie Pumphrey, a 61-year-old nurse, said she believes the incumbent's outspokenness has done some damage but said McKinney has constituents' interests at heart.
"So many people get angry with what she says, but she speaks her mind," Pumphrey said. "You don't have to wonder where she stands."
— Database editor David A. Milliron contributed to this article.
http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/dekalb/stories/0724metfourth.html
Melvin Meadows, a 59-year-old electrician who lives in the neighborhood, said he voted for McKinney, and he plans to vote for her again Aug. 8.
<font size="5"><center>McKinney Loses Georgia Runoff</font size></center>
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: August 8, 2006
DECATUR, Ga. (AP) -- Cynthia McKinney, the fiery Georgia congresswoman known for her conspiracy theories about the Sept. 11 attacks and the scuffle she had earlier this year with a U.S. Capitol police officer, lost a runoff election Tuesday for her district's Democratic nomination.
Attorney Hank Johnson, a former county commissioner, soundly defeated McKinney by more than 12,000 votes, winning 59 percent of the total vote. More than 70,000 votes were cast -- 9,000 more than in the primary three weeks ago.
Johnson, a political unknown three weeks ago, strode into the ballroom of his campaign party to shouts of, "Hank! Hank! Hank!"
"I'm here to serve you," Johnson told cheering supporters. "I'm going to make you proud. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to serve you."
Meanwhile, there was no sign of McKinney at her campaign celebration for most of the night. Her campaign manager, John Evans, blamed the loss on the ABC -- Anybody But Cynthia -- strategy.
"It's over," he said shortly after 11 p.m. "Folks just beat us. They got a lot of white votes, a lot of Republican votes and they took some of our votes where we have been stable."
Evans also pointed to low voter turnout and the March scuffle between McKinney and a Capitol Hill police officer as reasons for her defeat.
Leading up to the July 18 primary, McKinney had expected an easy return to Congress this year. Instead, she was upset for the second time in the past three primary elections. Four years ago, McKinney lost to political newcomer Denise Majette, who was backed by an organized, well-funded Republican effort. McKinney returned to Congress in 2004 after Majette left the seat to run for the Senate.
McKinney was hoping the core of her constituency -- centralized in south DeKalb County, home to one of the country's most affluent black populations -- would mobilize this time to send her to a seventh term in Congress.
At White Oak Hills Baptist Church in Stone Mountain, the precinct where McKinney votes, Tony Wilson cast a ballot for her with mixed feelings.
"She's a radical, but she's ours," said Wilson, a 36-year-old software developer.
Still, Wilson said, McKinney's public image has jeopardized her political future.
"She makes us look bad," he said.
The polarizing politician has a reputation for bringing out her base, although it has not always led her to victory. In 2002, McKinney was ousted from Congress despite getting 85 percent of the black vote.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/08/us/08cnd-mckinney.html?_r=1&ref=washington&oref=slogin
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: August 8, 2006
DECATUR, Ga. (AP) -- Cynthia McKinney, the fiery Georgia congresswoman known for her conspiracy theories about the Sept. 11 attacks and the scuffle she had earlier this year with a U.S. Capitol police officer, lost a runoff election Tuesday for her district's Democratic nomination.
Attorney Hank Johnson, a former county commissioner, soundly defeated McKinney by more than 12,000 votes, winning 59 percent of the total vote. More than 70,000 votes were cast -- 9,000 more than in the primary three weeks ago.
Johnson, a political unknown three weeks ago, strode into the ballroom of his campaign party to shouts of, "Hank! Hank! Hank!"
"I'm here to serve you," Johnson told cheering supporters. "I'm going to make you proud. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to serve you."
Meanwhile, there was no sign of McKinney at her campaign celebration for most of the night. Her campaign manager, John Evans, blamed the loss on the ABC -- Anybody But Cynthia -- strategy.
"It's over," he said shortly after 11 p.m. "Folks just beat us. They got a lot of white votes, a lot of Republican votes and they took some of our votes where we have been stable."
Evans also pointed to low voter turnout and the March scuffle between McKinney and a Capitol Hill police officer as reasons for her defeat.
Leading up to the July 18 primary, McKinney had expected an easy return to Congress this year. Instead, she was upset for the second time in the past three primary elections. Four years ago, McKinney lost to political newcomer Denise Majette, who was backed by an organized, well-funded Republican effort. McKinney returned to Congress in 2004 after Majette left the seat to run for the Senate.
McKinney was hoping the core of her constituency -- centralized in south DeKalb County, home to one of the country's most affluent black populations -- would mobilize this time to send her to a seventh term in Congress.
At White Oak Hills Baptist Church in Stone Mountain, the precinct where McKinney votes, Tony Wilson cast a ballot for her with mixed feelings.
"She's a radical, but she's ours," said Wilson, a 36-year-old software developer.
Still, Wilson said, McKinney's public image has jeopardized her political future.
"She makes us look bad," he said.
The polarizing politician has a reputation for bringing out her base, although it has not always led her to victory. In 2002, McKinney was ousted from Congress despite getting 85 percent of the black vote.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/08/us/08cnd-mckinney.html?_r=1&ref=washington&oref=slogin