Nevada Assembly member Jim Wheeler has come under fire recently for a response he gave at a town hall regarding slavery.
When Wheeler was asked, "What if those citizens decided they wants to, say, bring back slavery? Hey, if it's what the citizens want, right Jim?," he responded with this:
"If that's what they wanted, I'd have to hold my nose, I'd have to bite my tongue and they'd probably have to hold a gun to my head, but yeah, if that's what the citizens of the, if that's what the constituency wants that elected me, that's what they elected me for. That's what a republic is about. You elected a person for your district to do your wants and wishes, not the wants and wishes of a special interest, not his own wants and wishes, yours."
After receiving plenty of backlash for his comments, Wheeler released the following statement yesterday:
"The media is having a good time with a clearly facetious statement I made in a town hall meeting earlier this year. I used an over the top example of something that I absolutely do not agree with, and even mentioned that to get me to vote for such a thing, my constituents would literally have to hold a gun to my head. In reality, that isn't the case at all. If my constituents wanted to do something as outlandish as bring back an abhorrent system, then I simply couldn't represent them anymore. They would remove me from office, or I'd have to resign."
Based on Wheeler's initial comments, I think one of three things is possible: A) He's the least smooth jokester this side of Mitt Romney, B) He doesn't know what facetious means, C) He only used "being facetious" as a cover after receiving negative publicity. I'm going to guess "C" is the most likely option, with "A" as the runner-up, and "B" finishes a distant third.
Sadly, after reading the article, I read through some commentary from people defending Wheeler's statement about bringing back slavery if that's what his constituents wanted, saying such things as: "Isn't that what he's there for?," "That's what he's supposed to do!," "You guys are taking his words out of context. He's not saying slavery is right; he's saying he'd bring back slavery if that's what the people wanted.," etc. Yes, while voters vote people into office to represent their wants and ideals, they do so wanting the newly elected officials to dress up like the Scarecrow from The Wizard of Oz and constantly sing the song, "If I Only Had a Brain."
Given Wheeler's response to the slavery question, here's how he'd likely respond to a some others:
Question: "What if your constituents wanted to legalize cocaine and prostitution in college towns?"
Wheeler: "Well, if that's what they wanted, if that's what they elected me for, I'd fight tooth and nail to get that accomplished."
Question: "What if your constituents wanted to make it legal for 6-year olds to purchase guns at gun shows without ID?"
Wheeler: "Well, if that's what they wanted, if that's what they elected me for, then I guess I'd have to do it. The 6-year olds may have to put a gun to my head to do that, but yeah, I guess I'd have to."
Question: "What if your constituents wanted you to jump off a bridge?"
Wheeler: "Well, if that's what they wanted, if that's what they elected me for, then by golly, I'd do it. My mama always asked me that question and I always said no until today."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-partisan/wp/2013/10/29/jim-wheeler-is-a-slave-to-his-constituents/
When Wheeler was asked, "What if those citizens decided they wants to, say, bring back slavery? Hey, if it's what the citizens want, right Jim?," he responded with this:
"If that's what they wanted, I'd have to hold my nose, I'd have to bite my tongue and they'd probably have to hold a gun to my head, but yeah, if that's what the citizens of the, if that's what the constituency wants that elected me, that's what they elected me for. That's what a republic is about. You elected a person for your district to do your wants and wishes, not the wants and wishes of a special interest, not his own wants and wishes, yours."
After receiving plenty of backlash for his comments, Wheeler released the following statement yesterday:
"The media is having a good time with a clearly facetious statement I made in a town hall meeting earlier this year. I used an over the top example of something that I absolutely do not agree with, and even mentioned that to get me to vote for such a thing, my constituents would literally have to hold a gun to my head. In reality, that isn't the case at all. If my constituents wanted to do something as outlandish as bring back an abhorrent system, then I simply couldn't represent them anymore. They would remove me from office, or I'd have to resign."
Based on Wheeler's initial comments, I think one of three things is possible: A) He's the least smooth jokester this side of Mitt Romney, B) He doesn't know what facetious means, C) He only used "being facetious" as a cover after receiving negative publicity. I'm going to guess "C" is the most likely option, with "A" as the runner-up, and "B" finishes a distant third.
Sadly, after reading the article, I read through some commentary from people defending Wheeler's statement about bringing back slavery if that's what his constituents wanted, saying such things as: "Isn't that what he's there for?," "That's what he's supposed to do!," "You guys are taking his words out of context. He's not saying slavery is right; he's saying he'd bring back slavery if that's what the people wanted.," etc. Yes, while voters vote people into office to represent their wants and ideals, they do so wanting the newly elected officials to dress up like the Scarecrow from The Wizard of Oz and constantly sing the song, "If I Only Had a Brain."
Given Wheeler's response to the slavery question, here's how he'd likely respond to a some others:
Question: "What if your constituents wanted to legalize cocaine and prostitution in college towns?"
Wheeler: "Well, if that's what they wanted, if that's what they elected me for, I'd fight tooth and nail to get that accomplished."
Question: "What if your constituents wanted to make it legal for 6-year olds to purchase guns at gun shows without ID?"
Wheeler: "Well, if that's what they wanted, if that's what they elected me for, then I guess I'd have to do it. The 6-year olds may have to put a gun to my head to do that, but yeah, I guess I'd have to."
Question: "What if your constituents wanted you to jump off a bridge?"
Wheeler: "Well, if that's what they wanted, if that's what they elected me for, then by golly, I'd do it. My mama always asked me that question and I always said no until today."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-partisan/wp/2013/10/29/jim-wheeler-is-a-slave-to-his-constituents/
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