Virginia GOP nominee compared Planned Parenthood to KKK
(CNN) - An outspoken and provocative conservative who emerged from Saturday's Republican Party of Virginia Convention as the party's nominee for lieutenant governor once compared Planned Parenthood to the Ku Klux Klan and blasted African-Americans for their "slavish devotion" to the Democratic Party.
E.W. Jackson, an African-American pastor and attorney from Chesapeake, made the comments in a self-produced "message to black Christians" posted on YouTube last year.
"The Democrat Party has created an unholy alliance between certain so-called civil rights leaders and Planned Parenthood, which has killed unborn black babies by the tens of millions. Planned Parenthood has been far more lethal to black lives than the KKK ever was," he said in the video. "And the Democrat Party and the black civil rights allies are partners in this genocide."
Sensing an opportunity to tie Jackson to the rest of the Republican ticket in Virginia, especially conservative gubernatorial nominee Ken Cuccinelli, Democrats have already started highlighting those remarks and others in emails to reporters.
Cuccinelli, the state Attorney General, will face Democrat Terry McAuliffe, the former Democratic National Committee chairman, in the November election.
"Extremely divisive rhetoric from Jackson and Cuccinelli reflects the social agenda they would impose on Virginia. At a time when Virginians are looking for leaders who focus on jobs, the Tea Party has nominated a ticket whose careers have been defined by a radical social agenda," McAuliffe campaign spokesman Brennan Bilberry said in a statement.
Cuccinelli and Jackson were nominated at Saturday's GOP convention in Richmond, where Jackson beat out six other candidates for the number two spot on the ticket. Party activists tapped Mark Obenshain to be their nominee for attorney general.
Jackson, the founder of a nondenominational church, is a former Marine and graduate of Harvard Law School. But he is rapidly becoming known for a raft of controversial statements that have bubbled up online in the wake of his surprise victory on Saturday. He has publicly questioned President Barack Obama's faith and has been spearheading efforts to recruit black Democrats to the GOP since last year, when he unsuccessfully ran for Senate in Virginia.
"Shame on us for allowing ourselves to be sold to the highest bidder. We belong to God," he said in the video. "Our ancestors were sold against their will centuries ago, but we're going through the slave market voluntarily today."
As lieutenant governor, Jackson would hold the tie-breaking vote in what is currently an evenly divided state Senate. Republicans currently hold the lieutenant governorship and control of the 40-seat body. But with the unpolished Jackson as the GOP nominee, Democrats are now a safe bet to pick up the lieutenant governor's office and control of the senate.
Democrats will decide their nominee in a June 11 primary. To the frustration of establishment Republicans, GOP activists in the state chose to nominate their candidates at a convention instead of in a primary, a move that gave a relatively small group of conservative activists control over the nomination process.
A purple state, Virginia currently has a Republican governor, Bob McDonnell, but voted for Obama in the last two presidential elections.
Poll numbers so far show neither party with a sizable lead in the race, less than six months before Election Day. Because Virginia voters elect the governor and lieutenant governor separately, it's possible that the winners could be from different parties.
- CNN's Peter Hamby and Ashley Killough contributed to this report.
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Is this Allen West twin brother?
Another religious right wing nut job. With the population of this earth growth past the 6 billion mark family planning is needed desparately. I wonder what these religous right to life folks have to say about overpopulation destroying life on this planet. You may soon have the right to no life if people keep breeding at this rate.
A black man who is willing to ignore his history and say incredibly stupid things always has a place on the republican ticket.
I love the Tea Party... It isn't often you get to see one faction of a National Party completely take over and begin to destroy the entire group in the process. They are a Godsend.
itsgoodtobewally
Its refreshing to hear a politician say it like it is! I'd vote for him if I could...Fix the deficit, cut PP funding!
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Fix the deficit and cut PP funding you say?? Ok... in the 2008-2009 report from PP they say that they received $363.2 million in "Government Grants and Contracts." So, let's give you one (even though I highly doubt it) and say that this year they get $500 million.
Current deficit: $16,745,640,552,514.61. That makes the the PP funding less than .0000000298% of the deficit. Yea.... You go right ahead and fix all of our fiscal problems by cutting their funding.
This is just despicable:
"But with the unpolished Jackson as the GOP nominee, Democrats are now a safe bet to pick up the lieutenant governor's office and control of the senate."
Does anybody on this site have any journalistic integrity or ethics? It's truly sad what this country has become.
I am trying to decide if the republican party intentionally finds these minority wacko's in an effort to make everyone think all minorities are wacko's.. or if they really believe this junk?
The Koch brothers have done an outstanding job of turning the GOP into a extreme right wing organization, the only way to stop them is to vote.
GOP please fund E.W. Jackson in his pursuit of leadership ... he's going to be a great one really .. please do this for the sake of late night TV comedy if for nothing else. Oh also, "do take our guns so we can kill people but don't have abortions to kill people" hummmmm
Keep it up... one more nail in the GOP's coffin.
Hmmmm.... I think that was more of a "contrast" than a "compare". But a good point.
"That makes the the PP funding less than .0000000298% of the deficit. Yea.... You go right ahead and fix all of our fiscal problems by cutting their funding."
No they want to cut PBS and Foreign Aid, too. In republican math that creates a surplus so they can add another 15% tax cut to the superwealthy; otherwise the terrorist's win.
Has anyone in their lifetime ever seen a National Political Party completely destroy itself from within?
Stay tuned.... it is happening.
Harvard Law strikes again!
only the GOP could make a statement like that. now a caucasion would have said something different, but no, an African American "uses" that statement. I fear for the future.
@Jason
Why is that quote 'despicable' and what does it have to do with 'journalistic intergrity'?
I'll bet the channel you watch is brimming with 'journalistic intergrity.
This kind of diatribe is what is killing the GOP and guess what moderate republicans? The Tea Party extremists taking over your party do not care.
It's a pity that Virginia does not present a moderate candidate for governor. McAuliffe is a heavily funded Clinton tool candidate with a dismal track record in everything but fund raising. But the only reason he has a chance is because of the frighteningly reactionary Cuccinelli. Virginia has a moderately conservative electorate, but apparently neither the money nor the interest is there to field a representative candidate for governor.
at the end of the convention cuccinelli said: this guy on my ticket ????
I'm sorry, but I don't think it's going to convince African-Americans to go Republican
it's sad to see a guy twist the strife of his ancestors for personal gain. this is the type of politics that has this country floundering. We need to dissolve the party system and make candidates run as individuals on their own platform. this democrat – republican garbage and all of it's banter is tearing this country apart.
@Jason – THAT's the part you found despicable? Or are you just trolling? Hilarious.
for the love of this country, someone please please start .............................................these republicans
Quote:
Jason
This is just despicable:
"But with the unpolished Jackson as the GOP nominee, Democrats are now a safe bet to pick up the lieutenant governor's office and control of the senate."
Does anybody on this site have any journalistic integrity or ethics? It's truly sad what this country has become.
end quote.
Any journalist with eyes can see that this candidate is going to be a longshot in a statewide ballot. That's not bias, that's a fact. What's sad is that you think that pointing out the obvious is somehow not journalism.
Another hit piece by CNN. See how long they leave my comment on before deleting. Everyone one wants freedom but no one wants to give it. When is the point when people will blindly follow the Democrats or the Republicans.l ends? This idea we have to have one or the other we think "man this is messed up but I cannot risk ....... getting elected (Bush or Obama) What a messed up system where the lesser of two evils is still evil and more importsntly, bad for me but I still support them???? We have and the main ones who could have stopped it, the news, but they are now all owned by Fortune 100 companies. And we believe it? Like there is not some crazy rich guys on both sides who just see us as pawns and know the golden rule " Divide and Conquer". Let us fight over the scraps...when do we see and change?
The NRA is a better analogy to Planned Parenthood.
You say all these things about the GOP when Obama doesnt have a clue on running this country. Enjoy the next few years because Obama has more ways to destroy this country up his sleeve.