Obama Calls Cambridge Police Officer, Invites him for a Beer with Gates at the White House

I agree with Laura. What message are the sending to our children? Couldn't they have a discussion over Coke, Pepsi, etc., or maybe even water.

Come over for a beer? How low brow. What trailer are they going to meet in?

I do think there are far more important business matters that should be at the top of the priorities but the first mistake was for obama to even be involved with it than to use a poor choice of words and use in a professional setting a professional adititude should be used. Remeber that old saying if you cant say anything nice keep your mouth shut. And now we are teaching kids to solve our problems by opening a beer. This is another history maker president offering beer for an apology. Where is the love where is the backbone of integrity. Need I say more. Alot of people die from DUI's and this is a not so wise choice from the so called leadership. This country was founded on the Bible and we are still a christian nation.

Law enforcement is over any power from President or professor.

No one has such power or reason can yell or abuse the law enforcement.

This is the hope of this multi-race country and what our tax paid for.

I am sick to death by this event. Professor Gates GROSSLY over-reacts, and we are talking about how we can "learn from this". They're holding commissions and investigations.

I can save them a lot of time: Professor Gates made an idiot of himself. A police officer had probable cause to believe that a felony was in progress and asked for identification. Probable cause is all you need--you don't need a warrant. I think he excersized incredible restraint by keeping his gun holstered.

Professor Gates, here's a teaching moment for you: when a police officer requests your ID, provide it without talking back. That gets most anyone arrested, black or white.

Then, when presented with a Harvard ID, which does not show address and amounts to little more than a glorified hall pass, Officer Crowley calls the Harvard Police to verify Professor Gates is the authorized resident. Nothing unusual there.

However, yell and threaten a police officer, after he has warned you that your behavior was disorderly, even if he is in your own home (remember, probable cause--he has a reason and a right to be there), and that is by definition disorderly conduct.

Nothing wrong here. Just an over-paid elitist black professor making a total fool of himself.

It's telling how quickly now Obama and Gates just seem to want this to disappear...

I just hope that during this "learning moment" that Professor Gates can learn that it's not acceptable in 21st century America to automatically assume that every white police officer you encounter is racist.

ABC News deliberately distorted
my post.
The president had it right when he said
that he didn't know all the facts
of the case!
He acted "stupidly" when he put
himself in the middle of something he
knew little about.
President Obama was sold to the
American People by the Liberal Media
as someone who would transend race.
Well it appears that he should be
having a beer with Rev Wright because
they and their media allies sure
put one over on the American People!

p.s., Bush refused to pardon Libby. After Libby served something like 4 years for a questionable memory of a single call/conversation that occurred years before, with no crime committed, just a question of whether the conversation did or didn't occur and Libby having apparently forgotten it in his initial Grand Jury testamony = 4 years of your life in prison, then Bush commuted the remainder of his sentence. That's a far cry from a pardon.

Someone else's post below: There is no crime described in Crowley's official version of the way Gates behaved. Crowley says explicitly that he arrested Gates for yelling. .... — cops are paid to be professionals, but even the best of them are human and can make stupid mistakes.

Is from the time's article: Viewpoint: The Stupidity of the Gates Arrest
By Lawrence O'Donnell, Jr.

Of course, if you're going to try that one, you ought to also try the counter point -- which I believe has a bit more basis in the law behind disorderly conduct arrests.

Its also times: The Gates Case: When Disorderly Conduct is a Cop's Judgment Call
By Bonnie Rochman Saturday, Jul. 25, 2009

Totally aside from who was right or wrong between the professor and the policeman, on many different levels it was totally inexcusable for Obama to have commented on the situation as he did. He threw huge amounts of gasoline on what was otherwise a small fire. Not just in calling the police stupid, but also with the 'joke' about how he'd get shot if he tried to break into 'his' house {news flash, its OURS not his!}.

He is the President of the United States, representing ALL of our citizens, not just his friends, not black vs white. It is totally inappropriate for the president to use the power of his office and the bully pulpit that comes with it to attack private individuals. Its disgraceful and beneath the dignity of the office.

He is supposedly a lawyer - yet he prejudiced an ongoing legal situation. At the time, Gates was threatending lawsuit - how could they possibly find an unbiased jury after Obama injected himself into the situation as he did?

Obama should offer a REAL apology. As trivial as it seems, Kudo's to McCotter for attempting to use the checks and balances our constitution affords to rein the President in on this one.

Right after Obama said "I don't have all the facts" the next words should have been "it would be entirely inappropriate for me to comment." and that would have been that. Coming from the President, his comments were inappropriate, inexcusable, knee-jerk reaction (or agenda based), inflammatory, and racially biased.

As to Gates {Professor} v. Crowley {Sergent/Policeman}. Certainly there are police who abuse their power. There are also those with chips on their shoulders or alterior motives, who are happy to abuse police who are NOT acting inappropriately. It goes both ways.

As to the charges being dismissed. Maybe the police decided it was an over-reaction. However, I gather the majority of those sorts of charges are dismissed, the arrest itself having calmed the situation and ensured it didn't escalate, and seen as enough of a punishment for a minor incident. Or maybe higher powers forced the dismissal inappropriately. Would be interesting to know which, but who knows. It certainly doesn't prove Gates case as many have claimed it does.

One might want to seriously consider that Gates has ALREADY talked about doing a documentary on this issue TO INCLUDE IN A LARGER DOCUMENTARY HE IS ALREADY DOING ON RACIAL PROFILING. That was awfully quick. Gates surely had something to be gained were he the victim of racial profiling, before the officer ever arrived. Gee, I wonder if the president of the US commenting on this in a prime time news event might help that documentary along?

Furthermore, its quite interesting that almost immediately after the police department stated that they were considering releasing the 911 call AND recordings from Sgt. Crowley's keyed mic while he was at the scene, suddenly Gates goes from screaming about racial profiling and threatening lawsuit to "move along, nothing to see here." Suddenly he thinks this has gotten enough attention and its time to move on. Interesting. Goes a long way towards removing any benefit of the doubt I had extended towards Gates, and increases the benefit of the doubt I give Sgt. Crowley. I hope the police DO publicly release those tapes. I doubt they will, but one can hope.

Further note that one of the people who had congregated at the scene, a neighbor of Gates, has stated on the record that Gates was acting belligerently outside the house prior to the arrest.

Further note that there were police officers there not only from Sgt. Crowley's department, but also Harvard -- and one of the officers with Sgt. Crowley was black, another Hispanic. The black officer has stated, on the record, that he supports Crowleys' actions 100%, and that Gates was behaving strangely.

Fortunately this one isn't likely to be a he said vs. he said -- or even a he said vs. police said, since the neighbor (a woman) who called in the apparent burglary along with 6 or 7 other neighbors all wound up there and witnessed the arrest.

Oh, and a neighbor sees two people trying to force my front door, calls the cops, and the cops show up suspecting I'm a burglar? Cops suspicious and careful to protect themselves reasonably too? I'm HAPPY. Maybe nervous until the cops are sure that I do belong there, and I'd certainly make sure they saw I was no threat to them, and then I'd explain and it was me forcing my own door and show ID to prove it. For heavens sake, I WANT my neighbors looking out for my property against possible thieves, just as I would for theirs. I sure WANT the police to respond to 911 burglary calls and then making SURE that the people they are talking to belong there and aren't burglars!! So Obama's "we'd all be mad if it was in our house" WRONG. Most of us would NOT, we would be GLAD.

Ripper SAID "Why did Bush pardon 'Scooter' Libby, convicted felon, tried by an American jury and found guilty? Why were so many Bush administration officials deathly afraid to take the oath and testify?"
------------------------------------
You, my friend are right on! Scooter Libby is the tip of the iceburg when it comes to the past administration. I would love to see a full investigation of all their activities. Like Cheney's comment that we went to Iraq to create a democracy. Isn't that nation building? I thought we went because there were all those weapons of MD. The truth is coming out and will continue to come out. There never were any weapons. Think about it. Iran is sitting next door working on nuclear capability. All your neighbors hate your guts. Would you not pretend to have weapons so that they would not know you cannot defend yourself? That is exaclty what Saddam Hussein did. He knew he could not win another war with Iran. The big question is did Bush and company know that. I want an investigation to find out. 5,000 dead and thousands maimed is too many not to know what we went to war for.

It seems that the only professional one out of the three in this situation was the police officer. The rest seem to be flying by the seat of their pants. Get with it you two. We have enough issues without you both creating more.

How this man can still be respected in his professional capacity is beyond me.
Posted by: antoinette

hey, if the country was able to elect/be selected old 'W' for president, anything is possible..
Bush was the least respected man in the world next to Saddam, Kim, and Bin Laden

This meeting shouldn't happen unless it's made perfectly clear that the wrongdoing was on Gates and Obama's part. They cannot use Sgt. Crowley as a stand-in for historical wrongs. Law enforcement needs to be respected, and the president has already conveyed the idea that it's understandable for African Americans to be uncooperative with law enforcement, and that he will back them up. He needs to correct that misperception.

An "honest" dialogue on race can't happen as long as whites are assumed at the outset of being racist, and made to prove they are not. Gates will be lucky if Crowley doesn't sue his pants off for the defamation.

There is no crime described in Crowley's official version of the way Gates behaved. Crowley says explicitly that he arrested Gates for yelling. Nothing else, not a single threatening movement, just yelling. On the steps of his own home. Yelling is not a crime. Yelling does not meet the definition of disorderly conduct in Massachusetts. Not a single shouted word or action that Crowley has attributed to Gates amounts to disorderly conduct. That is why the charges had to be dropped.

In classically phony police talk, Crowley refers to "[Gates'] continued tumultuous behavior." When cops write that way, you know they have nothing. What is tumultuous behavior? Here's what it isn't: he brandished a knife in a threatening manner, he punched and kicked, he clenched his fist in a threatening manner, he threw a wrench or, in the Gates house, maybe a book. If the subject does any of those things, cops always write it out with precision. When they've got nothing, they use phrases that mean nothing. Phrases like tumultuous behavior.

Unless you confess to a crime,or threaten to commit a crime, there is nothing you can say to a cop that makes it legal for him to arrest you. You can tell him he is stupid, you can tell him he is ugly, you can call him racist, you can say anything you might feel like saying about his mother. He has taken an oath to listen to all of that and ignore it. That is the real teachable moment here — cops are paid to be professionals, but even the best of them are human and can make stupid mistakes.

So, Obama spoketh with Sergeant Jim Crowley adn comments, “I have to tell you that, as I said yesterday, my impression of him was that he was a outstanding police officer and a good man, and that was confirmed in the phone conversation. And I told him that.”, but then says that the officer who was making sure his house was safe and not being burglarized came out and verbally attacked him was right and the officer was wrong to have arrested a man whom was by accounts of other officers was out of control, was wrong. Good job Obama. Way to go. Thanks for revealing what you really are more succinctly. Some folks said you were to bring change or were different or mend race relations. Well, nobody mentioned that you would side with obvious race baiters. Well, some people did, but others said these people were wrong and you were not that way, but hahaha…. You proved them wrong. You were exactly the racist we were warned of. When rev Wright was exposed as the white hating racist he was and everyone knew he was your religious mentor, some told us that you are a product of Wright’s two decades of indoctrination in Black Liberation Theology. Others said, “Nah, just because Obama chose to worship this man’s racist religion doesn’t mean Obama believes it!” Wrong. It’s not the coincidence we were told it was. Obama spent half his life being taught in Wright’s church. It shows.

I hope the good Sgt. won't be agree to this until both Mr. Obama and Mr. Gate agree to make an unconditional apology. Other wise he cooperates in a moral blurring of the situation. Let's hear the tapes!

Don't feel sorry for Gates. he will be a big hero at his meetings for the next 6 months, be a star on Oprah next week, publish his new book in August, and be awarded a Nobel Peac Prize for his work in rece relations by the end of the year. If he dose not make $1 million off this I will be surprised.

I think disappointed best describes how I feel. Disappointed in a president that I had such high hopes of moving this nation past this issue. To watch two highly educated, respectable, law abiding men (Gates and Obama) both respond in the manner they did both amazes and saddens me.

The press conference with the president's statement showed me that race does matter and clouds good judgment. Sadly the president just proved all the racists correct. The trust and hopes I placed in this president are gone and nothing he can do will ever change that.

I notice the esteemed Prof. Gates has agreed to a beer so this incident can help out "racial profiling?". Did it ever occur to this so called intelligent professor that if he had been white the situation would have had the same outcome? He grew belligerent and followed the officer outside when it could have been over and then blames the whole thing on "racial profiling". How this man can still be respected in his professional capacity is beyond me. Please officer do not accept this invitation. This idiot will obviously use it to lord it over you and try to make you out as a fool.