U.S. Congressman Raúl Grijalva released a statement yesterday on Keith Olbermann’s suspension without pay from MSNBC due to the contributions Olbermann made to Grijalva and U.S. Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and Kentucky Senate candidate Jack Conway:

I am personally distressed and saddened by the news of Mr. Olbermann’s suspension. If there were any way to undo what has been done, I would do it in a heartbeat. Mr. Olbermann is a respected media voice who has done good work at MSNBC for seven years, and I feel the network has overreacted with such a severe penalty. I welcome and appreciate his support, and the fact that his contributions were made as a private citizen — not as the host of Countdown — should be taken into consideration before MSNBC or the wider media make any final conclusions.

Unlike other national talk show hosts who use their programs to deceive the public or hawk self-promoting financial schemes, Mr. Olbermann has used his show to educate, inform and bring common sense to our airwaves. I would rather return the money he contributed than see this incident used to take him off the air. He made no effort to disguise his contributions from the Federal Election Commission, and at no time has he misled the public as to his intentions. MSNBC should reconsider its suspension and restore Mr. Olbermann as the host of Countdown.

Or here’s another way of looking at it from Grijalva’s challenger Ruth McClung from her Facebook page:

I will happily take 1/3 credit for the “indefinite suspension without pay” for Keith Olbermann! I am also proud that Jesse Kelly from my neighbor district can take another 1/3 credit. Go Arizona. We were 2/3 responsible for the removable of Keith Olbermann. Should Raul Grijalva ever want of boycott Arizona again, w…e will have to find another show to proclaim it on.

And even though AP declared Grijalva the victor, McClung said on her campaign website today she’s not ready to concede until every ballot is counted.

Thank you everyone for your encouragement and support!

Rest assured, I will not concede while there is a number of ballots still uncounted. Pima Co., our biggest voting block, is almost finished but Maricopa Co. still has many tens of thousands left to count.

Do I think we still have a chance to win? Probably not because of statistics. But we all fought hard for each vote and we want each one to be treated as important in the outcome of this election. Every

voter has a right to have their voice heard, and in a race this close, I feel it would be unfair to my supporters and all the people who have worked so hard on this campaign, if I did anything less than fight to the finish.”

Viva the People! God Bless you all!

Ruth

This article appears in Nov 4-10, 2010.

10 replies on “Grijalva on Olbermann Suspension”

  1. Grijalva should return the money. And as a matter of fact he should go a set further. He should resign his position and apply to take Olbermann’s place on MSObama, I mean MSNBC.

  3. Olbermann was on board to energize the liberals AKA the progressives starting in 2008 until now. Seeing the writing on the wall that the liberal love party is fizzling, this suspension for campaign donations was most likely a preplanned escape hatch for both him and the show. After all, who really wants tix for a losing team?

    Olbermann can now just switch back to ESPN fulltime for his weekly or daily gig there. He’s not hurting. America has once again been played, this time by the media.

  4. Hmm….looks like dementia has affected the vitriols here. Evidently KO has a lot of viewers, clueless that they are. Maggots come to mind.

  5. Olbermann can’t make $7,200 to Democratic candidates, but NBC’s parent company General Electric CAN make $2 million to primarily Republican candidates and causes – and that’s not considered a threat to journalistic integrity? Not to mention Joe Scarborough’s $4,600 donations to Republicans which MSNBC had no problem with.

    If there was every any question that mainstream media is corporate-Conservative-controlled, this should lay it to rest.

  7. This whole controversy is ridiculous.

    No one who watches Olberman could possibly think that he is an objective journalist. He is a commentator who makes no attempt to hide his bias. I don’t like or agree with Olberman, but it does not bother me one whit that he donated money to Democrat candidates. As long as there is proper disclosure, which there was, this is a matter between Olberman and his viewers.

  8. Grijavala is the reason as to why there are illegals here in the US. He was probably reelected by the corrupt Democratic-Latino group in his district.

  9. To hell with Ruth McClung. When I think of all of the “non-disclosed” money given to GOP causes by, say, those who sent money to the national CHamber of Commerce, etc., etc., etc., I say that anyone who objected to Mr. Olbermann giving (OPENLY) money to candidates is simply reprehensible. Screw Ms. McClung, and screw the GOP, which has RUINED Arizona.

  10. The message from home, the minds have closed. Az has turned racist, scared & facsisti. Now live in it(excrement) and we’ll see how long it takes to come back to Demoracy, after you live in your brutal riech.

Comments are closed.