Repeated Gaffes from Wasilla Republican
(This piece is cross-posted at The Huffington Post – HERE)
Wasilla City Councilman, Republican State House candidate (and former candidate for Alaska Lt. Governor in 2010), Mark Ewing just keeps talking. And then trying to untalk. And then talking again. And it’s just not good.
In a recent debate at the Greater Wasilla Chamber of Commerce candidates forum, Ewing squared off with his Republican primary opponent. All started predictably with both candidates in favor of a controversial coal mine, a controversial copper mine, and another boondoggle bridge to almost nowhere.
But soon Mr. Ewing distinguished himself in the Rock ‘em Sock ‘em Robot battle of conservative Mat-Su Valley Republicans. After talking about cutting the operating budget, he cited education as one of the problems. “We are spending millions and millions of dollars educating children that have a hard time making their wheelchair move and, I’m sorry, but you’ve got to say, ‘no’ somewhere. We need to educate our children, but there are certain individuals that are just not going to benefit from an education.”
It’s worth remembering that another Wasilla Republican whom you may have heard of happens to have a special needs child in the district. Trigg Palin is not in a wheelchair, so we don’t know for certain if he is one of those whom Mr. Ewing feels isn’t worth educating.
After his comment in the debate was published in The Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman, he received a lot of email. He reacted on a local right wing radio show by saying:
“Actually, you know, that was a response that isn’t politically correct. But I’m going to use a quote from Jack Nicholson and that is, ‘most people can’t handle the truth.’”
That didn’t work.
Then he went on to insinuate in Facebook posts (now deleted) that he’d been misquoted by The Frontiersman, prompting the paper to write a scathing editorial entitled “Can You Handle the Truth?”
“Ewing, in comments he made Friday on talk radio, would have you believe that what he said was that the children ‘can’t even figure out how to make their wheelchair work.‘ Truth is, he did not say that. The audio of the debate proves our reporting was correct and Ewing is now backpedaling, trying to rewrite the record. How his revision makes the quote any better we will leave to Ewing to explain.”
A comment on the op-ed, appearing to be from Ewing, stated that he’d “checked the Wasilla Chamber web site and realized the words in the paper were mine and I should have made that point clear and apologized to the Frontiersman…and also to the public. It was a poor decision on my part to not remember what I said used to describe children with special needs. I know now that what I meant to say and what I said were completely different and after reading comments from a broad parental base that all children can learn regardless of their handicap I am not against teaching special needs children and clearly not trying to hurt any students or parents that have a child in that situation. This election is not worth my creditably or using a bone headed remarks that may hurt others…” (sic)
If he has come out of this with even some of his “creditably” intact, it would still seem that this mega-gaffe and backpedaling fits a pattern of “gaffe and erase.”
A habit of posting and deleting controversial content on his Facebook page has come to light. Since his “wheelchair moment,” we’ve obtained screen captures of other tidbits from Mr. Ewing’s Facebook wall that have since been removed.
He not only took a shot at the physically and/or developmentally disabled, but also undocumented immigrants, suggesting we”seal the border with our troops, and shoot to kill.”
And Muslims.
This one was copied and pasted from a viral right-wing email, debunked by Snopes as having been written by Jeff Foxworthy. The last item on the list, 11) “You find this offensive, or racist and you don’t forward it… You may be a Muslim,” was left off. There’s no bigotry like plagiarized bigotry.
And finally, he also had some words for the Alaska Republican Party, its current Chair Randy Ruedrich, and his opponent in the primary, fellow Wasilla conservative Lynn Gattis whom he jabbed repeatedly, hitting part-time Wasilla resident Sarah Palin squarely in the eye – and shooting himself in the foot.
Alaska’s legislative primary will be held Tuesday, August 28 when we will find out if Mr. Ewing’s penchant for calling it like he sees it, helps or hurts in his efforts to be elected to the State House.
So I see Ewing poked a stick at one of The Quitters den of friends… Gattis!
LOL
While Ewing is a tool with half a brain, Gattis is hoping to slink on by without anyone noticing her ties to WGE and those cut rate state AG loans. Ewing probably knows Gattis is touting less gov like a teabagger, while living off of state loan funds with huge forgiving non payment situations… your friends with the AG board…
Ewing is right, no on likes a quitter, unless your like Gattis and want some more state AG loans.
Gattis’s term as school board member is rather interesting. She likes to take names and license plate numbers… of those she thinks oppose her… sound familiar?
I’m missing where you talk about when the quotes about quitting were made…. Maybe I need my glasses?
In sports, there are lots of players on teams at lots of high schools across the nation. The best players from those teams move on to play at the next level, college. From there, only the best of the best are selected to play in the pros. It’s a culling process — you start with a huge pool and from that, through judicious selection, end up with the Absolute Best.
So, what I can’t figure out is: if folks like Councilman Mark Ewing made it through the ‘culling’ process and was elected (to *anything*!), what must the players/field he was up aganst, have been? I shudder to think… beth.
So – he’s a shoo-in with Wasilla Republican voters?
Whatta loada!
Have to say the sideswipe at whatzername, intentional or not, made me smile .
The rest is pure stupidity bordering on insanity.
Dear Wasilla (including my relatives there)-
Please take note of these deleted posts/comments of Mr Ewing’s along with the squabble with the Frontiersman when you get ready to vote.
Someone who changes his story/narrative more often than the rest of us change their underpants is likely not going to work out as a servant for the people of your district- if for no other reason than he won’t be able to remember which doofus and/or disgusting notion he shot his mouth off about yesterday.
And , also, too, someone who has such simplistic (and stupid ) notions about how to “fix” America at the national level hasn’t got a clue about what faces us as a state either – you see the mixed
socialist lefty /protectionist right wing stuff in the “shoot to kill” comments, don’t you?
Sincerely hoping you drop him in the 1st round, Pi
Mr Ewing will fit right in here in Arizona once he loses…
We have one of those in Iowa too.
Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) vice chair of house immigration subcommitte, compares immigrants to DOGS!
http://americasvoiceonline.org/blog/rep-steve-king-r-ia-vice-chair-of-house-immigration-subcommittee-compares-immigrants-to-dogs/
Forgot to add that Christie Vilsack (Dem) is running againist.
This guy (King)——- needs to GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Christie Vilsack is the wife of Tom Vilsack—-Secy of Agr.
Lacy Lady,for fun go to the Sioux City Journal Opinion page and see for yourself how delusional rwnj and King supporters are. A word of caution. Most of King’s ding-a-lings don’t make points or rebut others. They like to call people names and blame Obie. Sound familiar.I spend some time there rebutting nutters and defending the Potus where possible. Fake noise talking points are the order of the day for nutjobs.
“…We need to educate our children, but there are certain individuals that are just not going to benefit from an education.”
Gee, was he looking in the mirror?
or perhaps at the Palins? …”Um, all of ’em, any of ’em that, um, have, have been in front of me over all these years.”
Lord love a duck.
Sounds like a real winner. Where do these people keep coming from?
P i W, I don’t live in and have never been to Alaska,yet,but I figured out where these creatures come from. In Alaska there are fishers(furry little animals worth money for their hides) and fissures(from the ’64’ Anchorage earthquake and tidal wave) that opened the gates of hell so creatures with worthless hdes,like Ewing,can slither out to infest America. Since Alaska is prone to seismic activity,even if you could find their hidey-holes,more would just open up.If you get there,try not to feed them and maybe they will go away.This was rated mostly true by Moi.
Gee, someone should check the water out there…