Ever wonder what Barack Obama and his Justice Department think of the New Black Panthers? You know, those folks who put a bounty on the "dead or alive" head of George Zimmerman, whose involvement in the shooting of Trayvon Martin has prompted calls for his prosecution.
It appears an answer is not forthcoming, after White House press secretary Jay Carney today declined to even allow the question to be asked.
It happened when Les Kinsolving, WND's correspondent at the White House, attended the briefing and was prepared to ask two questions.
He wanted to know, "Does the president believe it is legal for the New Black Panthers to offer $10,000 'dead or alive' for George Zimmerman, who they called a 'child killer' and warned Zimmerman 'should be fearful for his life.'"
He also was prepared to ask, "Has the president any regret about his intervention in the case, when he said, 'If I had a son, he'd look like Trayvon?"
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But Kinsolving was among the dozens of reporters at today's briefings who were not allowed by Carney to participate by asking questions. AP and CNN were allowed four each and NBC, Bloomberg and American Urban Radio were allowed three each.
The issue was, however, raised in the Washington Times.
In an editorial there, the newspaper asked just "What is it about the Justice Department and the Black Panthers?"
"On March 24, Mikhail Muhammad, leader of the New Black Panther Party, offered a $10,000 bounty for the 'capture' of George Zimmerman, who shot and killed Trayvon Martin. The Panthers distributed wanted posters, calling him a 'child killer' and offering the bounty 'dead or alive.' Muhammad warned that Mr. Zimmerman 'should be fearful for his life.'"
Continued the editorial, "These acts were almost certainly criminal. Florida Code 787.01 makes it a felony to threaten someone or abduct them with the intent to terrorize. Florida Code 777.04 further criminalizes solicitation which 'commands, encourages, hires or requests another person' to engage in criminal activity such as kidnapping."
The issue reflects some of the fundamental beliefs of Obama, the commentary said.
"This scandal offers an opportunity for the Obama administration to show it can act impartially and calm racial tensions. So far, the White House has failed to lead on the issue. President Obama's high-profile public statement – 'If I had a son, he'd look like Trayvon' – was bizarre and seemed to show undue bias. Taking swift action against those who seek to incite racial violence would demonstrate that the federal government enforces the law without prejudice."
The commentary noted Zimmerman's family has asked Attorney General Eric Holder why has his office not arrested the New Black Panther Party members for hate crimes.
"Since when can a group of people put a bounty on someone's head, circulate Wanted posters publicly, and still be walking the streets?" the newspaper asked.
It was reported that Michelle Williams, of the party, drew back from her earlier comments that, "My prize right now this evening … is gonna be the bounty, the arrest, dead or alive, or George Zimmerman. You feel me?"
An earlier Obama DOJ statement on the same party came shortly after the 2008 election.
See the video:
Then, WND reported, in Philadelphia, a case was brought against the organization and several individuals who witnesses say derided voters with catcalls of "white devil" and "cracker" and told them they should prepare to be "ruled by the black man."
One poll watcher called police after he reportedly saw one of the men brandishing a nightstick to threaten voters.
"As I walked up, they closed ranks, next to each other," the witness told Fox News at the time. "So I walked directly in between them, went inside and found the poll watchers. They said they'd been here for about an hour. And they told us not to come outside because a black man is going to win this election no matter what."
He said the man with a nightstick told him, "'We're tired of white supremacy,' and he starts tapping the nightstick in his hand. At which point I said, 'OK, we're not going to get in a fistfight right here,' and I called the police."
Subsequently, former DOJ attorney J. Christian Adams testified before the U.S. Civil Rights Commission that the Voting Section of Holder's organization is dominated by a "culture of hostility" toward bringing cases against blacks and other minorities who violate voting-rights laws.
Further, two other former U.S. Department of Justice attorneys later corroborated key elements of the explosive allegations by Adams.
One of Adams' DOJ colleagues, former Voting Section trial attorney Hans A. von Spakovsky, told WND he saw Adams was being attacked in the media for lack of corroboration. He said he knew Adams was telling the truth, so he decided on his own to step forward.
Adams had been ordered by his superiors to drop the case prosecutors already had won against the New Black Panthers. When they were ordered to stop prosecution, Adams and the team of DOJ lawyers had already won the case by default because the New Black Panthers declined to defend themselves in court. At that point in the proceedings, the DOJ team was simply waiting for the judge to assign penalties against the New Black Panthers.
Ask President Obama your own question.