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Under Fire, Presidential Adviser Van Jones Resigns
September 06, 2009 8:20 AM
In a letter released just after midnight Saturday, Van Jones, President Obama's Special Advisor for Green Jobs at the Council on Environmental Quality resigned.
"On the eve of historic fights for health care and clean energy, opponents of reform have mounted a vicious smear campaign against me," Jones wrote. "They are using lies and distortions to distract and divide."
Jones said that he had "been inundated with calls - from across the political spectrum - urging me to "stay and fight. But I came here to fight for others, not for myself. I cannot in good conscience ask my colleagues to expend precious time and energy defending or explaining my past. We need all hands on deck, fighting for the future."
A best-selling author who has been heralded as an innovative thinker in the "green jobs" movement, Jones had come under fire from conservative media and lawmakers for past statements for which he apologized Thursday.
The tipping point for the White House appeared to be Jones' admission earlier this week that he had signed a petition in 2004 calling for congressional hearings and an investigation by the New York Attorney General into "evidence that suggests high-level government officials may have deliberately allowed the September 11th attacks to occur."
In a statement issued Thursday evening Jones said of "the petition that was circulated today, I do not agree with this statement and it certainly does not reflect my views now or ever."
An administration source said Jones says he did not carefully review the language in the petition before agreeing to add his name.
But after that admission, asked if Jones enjoyed the confidence of the president, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs would only say on Fridat that Jones "continues to work in this administration."
A former civil rights activist in the San Francisco area, Jones told the East Bay Express in 2005 that the acquittal of Rodney King's assailants in 1992 in that infamous police brutality case changed him significantly.
"I was a rowdy nationalist on April 28th, and then the verdicts came down on April 29th," he said. "By August, I was a communist."
Jones and other young activists in 1994 formed a group called Standing Together to Organize a Revolutionary Movement, or STORM, rooted in Marxism and Leninsm. Two years later, Jones launched the Ella Baker Center, an Oakland, Calif., based "strategy and action center" which states that it tries to "promote positive alternatives to violence and incarceration."
It was many of the associations formed around this time that served as fodder for conservative critics. In a New Yorker profile of Jones from earlier this year, Jones described his modus operandi as “traditional activism, the politics of confrontation and outrage. I was proud to be hated by the city fathers on both sides of the Bay.”
Over time, Jones focused instead as environmental jobs as a way to lift struggling communities out of poverty, work for which he's been praised as an innovator. Former Vice President Gore told the New Yorker: “I love Van Jones. I love his work. I love his heart and his commitment and his intellect. I love his mission. He has wisely picked a part of this set of interwoven challenges that should have been addressed much more forcefully by me and others long ago.”
But even as Jones lowered his profile in his new position as President Obama's "Green Jobs Czar," critics questioned comments he'd made in his previous incarnation as an activist and advocate for poor and minority communities. What seemed to hurt Jones the most politically, however, was the discovery of his name on the 9/11 "Truther" petition, which suggested President Bush or those in his administration at the very least allowed 9/11 to happen so as to launch wars for oil.
Having expended much time and energy discrediting conservative conspiracy theorists alleging (despite all evidence) that the President was not born in the U.S., and the non-existent "death panels," White House officials found it difficult to justify a top adviser who had associated with similarly fringe sentiments from the Left.
Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind., chairman of the House Republican Conference, said on Friday that given "recent revelations concerning the associations and statements of the president's green jobs czar, Van Jones should resign his position and if he is unwilling to do so, the president should demand his resignation. His extremist views and coarse rhetoric have no place in this Administration or the public debate."
Republicans made it clear that they intended to use Jones as Exhibit A in a political prosecution that the Obama Administration has too many "czars" -- unconfirmed by the Senate, with too much power.
Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo., ranking Republican on the Green Jobs and the New Economy Subcommittee of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, called for a hearing probing Jones' fitness for the job.
Jones, Bond said, "is responsible for directing administration policy and spending on tens of billions of dollars in taxpayer funding regarding environmental policy and green jobs programs. However, since the White House appointed him as a 'czar,' Mr. Jones was able to avoid any oversight or confirmation by the U.S. Senate."
Bond said he was alarmed by Jones' name on the 9/11 "Truther" petition. "Jones in hindsight is embarrassed by the public disclosure of his participation in the petition drive and now asserts he did not read the fine print of the petition," the senator said. "But can the American people trust a senior White House official that is so cavalier in his association with such radical and repugnant sentiments?”
- jpt
September 6, 2009 | Permalink | Share | User Comments (539)
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If he actually called for a re-investigating of 9-11, then he IS on the people's side...
Posted by: Anthony Wrifford | Oct 4, 2009 12:23:10 AM
I am amazed that abc finally came out with this at all. Where were you when Beck broke the story? I googles Jones and learned in 3 minutes what he was "about". Is the media involved in covering up things we as citizens have a right to know. Shame on you ABC!
Posted by: Renee | Sep 11, 2009 10:17:40 AM
And another one bites the dust.
Posted by: Bridget | Sep 9, 2009 11:00:27 PM
It took you a while to report on this.
Where were you weeks ago when Van Jones was appointed? His credentials and attitudes were known back then.
Do you actually do any journalism at ABC?
Posted by: Mark | Sep 8, 2009 11:17:57 PM
Jake, You forgot to mention that he was a self confessed COMMUNIST! Is this a minor detail you just overlooked?? How about researching the other CZARS.
Posted by: wheresmymoney | Sep 8, 2009 6:18:17 PM
BY HIS OWN WORDS VAN JONES IS A HATER. DO WE REALLY NEED MORE HATERS IN THIS ADMINISTRATION. HE WANTS TO DESTROY THE U.S. AS WE KNOW IT. JUST LIKE OBAMA.
Posted by: J.Cooper | Sep 8, 2009 12:19:50 PM
"...by appointing people without first learning about past associations."
You honestly believe that President Obama wasn't aware of the past associations? What makes you think these appointments weren't made BECAUSE of the past associations!
Posted by: James Danley | Sep 8, 2009 10:27:41 AM
President Obama's vetting of people in his administration continues to be a problem. What makes it even worse is that these peoples past can easily be found out in today's information age.
One need only do a search on Van Jones and you will find more than enough fodder in which to blemish the president's appointment to this position. Cronyism has been a hallmark of Chicago politics and the president coming from that environment continues that, by appointing people without first learning about past associations.
The president is fast becoming his own worst enemy.
Posted by: indymind | Sep 8, 2009 8:47:48 AM
ANOTHER LOSER GONE - LEGIONS MORE TO GO. WHAT THE HELL DOES A CZAR DO IN OUR GOVERNMENT? WHAT A BUNCH OF BULL!!!
Posted by: Manitu | Sep 8, 2009 6:04:19 AM
There's no excuse for this. And whoever argues otherwise is succumbing to the socialist agenda of the current white house. Obama refused to wear the American flag pin on his suit, until a disabled veteran gave him one before a speech, so he felt obliged to wear it. Textbook do-good'ers are all suckered....
Posted by: John Doe | Sep 7, 2009 10:32:00 PM
SHAME, SHAME, SHAME - - - What would John Charles Daly say if he knew that ABC ignored such an important story as this Van Jones fiasco or more importantly the obvious lack of vetting by the Obama White House!!
Posted by: Ken | Sep 7, 2009 9:32:12 PM
Presidents tend to appoint people of like mind. 1 Communist down, hundreds to go.
Posted by: Truth | Sep 7, 2009 8:42:34 PM
"CNN Alex Berker said the hiring will drop the president approval ratings even more than the 27 point slide since May.”
27 point slide since May? What poll is that? Even Rasmussen has him down by only 10% during that period.
Posted by: Numeros | Sep 7, 2009 8:22:00 PM
Funny how the racist White House is now dealing with a double edge sword. CNN, CBS, ABC, and others are saying the White House is under attack and the American public is paying attention. CNN Alex Berker said the hiring will drop the president approval ratings even more than the 27 point slide since May.
Posted by: Arrow | Sep 7, 2009 7:33:25 PM
The real story?
The shameful failure of the MSM to do its job in reporting on the Obama administration.
Posted by: WhereWasThePress? | Sep 7, 2009 6:41:58 PM
Is this an attempt at unbiased journalism? If so, it falls short. Why not mention the other comments this man uttered? Poor blacks being poisoned,by whites, hmm, it is in the past, he is a changed man, since Feb of this year? Go ahead , Google this guy,,,,
How can we trust an administration that is this inept to take care of the things that really count? It is really scarey,,,They break their own rules, change their own rules according to their desires,throw away most of our Constitution and are working on our Bill of Rights. What is next? hmm,,,the media? The media better start doing their job or they will lose in the end too. Investigate, ask questions, demand answers, you are supposed to be the watchdogs,,,Don't be afraid to tell the whole truth,good and bad, as long as you let them know you are watching them.
Posted by: Cheryl | Sep 7, 2009 5:48:19 PM
I'm noticing a lot of angry dems on here. Angry their guy got caught yet again doing something something unethical. Seems to be a pattern.
Posted by: rose | Sep 7, 2009 5:41:34 PM
Glenn Beck said the director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, "has proposed forcing abortions and putting sterilants in the drinking water to control population."
So when are you Constitutional Watchdogs gonna sic ‘im?
Posted by: WWW | Sep 7, 2009 5:12:17 PM
Van Jones is the tip of the iceberg.
There's over 30 "czars" with supernumerary powers no one knows what they are except the White House.
The *compensation czar* says he can retroactively "claw back" salaries and bonuses from private workers in private businesses and industries from years ago "under the law"? We don’t normally have laws that apply to the past.
What law are these? Administrative law comes from exec. edicts (emergencies), case law (court rulings), and statutory law (legislation). What laws are czars functioning under?
What law gave the former "green czar" the law to mandate changes in energy development and use in regards to employment?
Our Constitution LIMITS government’s intrusion in citizens' lives. Czars have no such limitations.
Bork'em. Call Congress relentlessly--Nobama. 202-244/255-3121.
Posted by: Renny | Sep 7, 2009 4:45:48 PM
Van Jones was arrested for inciting a riot after Rodney King...he proudly describes the looting and destruction of Asian businesses of that terrible day..and night. He was/is proud of how he was able to work thugs into a frenzy of looting, burning and smashing private property. He like so many of BOs buddies, is a racist thug.
Posted by: mjishernameo | Sep 7, 2009 4:40:03 PM
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