Cheney Makes Incest Joke About West Virginians

***UPDATE*** Akers reports that Cheney has now apologized for his West Virginia incest joke:

Vice President Dick Cheney has apologized through his spokeswoman for making an offhand joke during a speech at the National Press Club Monday stereotyping West Virginia as a state prone to incest.

Cheney spokeswoman Lea Anne McBride tells us, "The Vice President's offhand comment was not meant to hurt anyone. On reflection, he concluded that it was an inappropriate attempt at humor that he should not have made. The Vice President apologizes to the people of West Virginia for the inappropriate remark."

Mary Ann Akers of the Washington Post asks if West Virginia was just handed to the Democrats when Dick Cheney made an incest joke at West Virginians' expense:

Cheney was at the Press Club to congratulate this year's winners of the Gerald R. Ford Journalism Prize for Distinguished Reporting on the Presidency. During a question-and-answer session toward the end of the luncheon, someone asked the vice president about his wife Lynne Cheney's revelation on MSNBC last year that "Dick and Barack Obama are eighth cousins."

The questioner jokingly asked the vice president if he and Obama were going to have a family reunion, to which Cheney replied he would "have no objections" though he said he doubted Obama would want one - "certainly not before November."

Then came the offensive punch line. Cheney explained that during the course of researching his family lineage for Lynne's memoir "Blue Skies, No Fences" last year, he learned there were Cheneys on both his father's and his mother's side of the family. There was a Richard Cheney on his mother's side, the vice president said.

"So I had Cheneys on both sides of the family and we don't even live in West Virginia," Cheney quipped.

Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia was not amused:

"That a man who has ascended to the seat of Vice President of the United States would openly display such contempt and astounding ignorance toward his own countrymen is an insult to all Americans. Now that he or the Administration he represents no longer needs their vote, Mr. Cheney apparently feels that he is now free to mock and belittle the people of West Virginia. With his trademark arrogance, the Vice President even added 'You can say those things when you're not running for re-election.'"

"This pitiful comment is not entirely surprising when you consider the source. Vice President Cheney's words reflect the attitude of an administration and a party that says what they must to get elected and then turns their backs on those they promised to represent."

Comments

[tgood]

I see the same type of "incest" jokes quite often posted by Obama fans here at HuffPo. It's ugly and vile whenever it's done, from Jay Leno who is famous for his stereotypical "jokes" of "hillbillies" to columns written in so called highly regarded newspapers. Ignorance is never funny.

[lunyboy]

As a West Virginian and an ObamaBot (very catchy), I am both saddened and surprised at the level of ignorance and bigotry being displayed HERE, not so much from the vice-president.

I would expect it from the Bush cabinet and frankly, the majority of that party, I thought more of the folks who frequent this site.

I guess I was wrong. I don't judge you based on you geographic disposition, nor your skin color, religion*, and especially not your inability to form a coherent argument. I would expect the same consideration.

*Except Scientology, those folks are Bat-Shit Crazy!

[sturgis54]

This should be a stark lesson to citizens in states like West Virginia about who the real elitists are in this year's election. The GOP uses rural/depressed southern states to gain their majorities and then ridicules their people and ways of life. This is usually done behind the scenes, but occasionally, it pops out in public as it did in Cheney's remarks about incest. Sadly, these people buy the hype and the spin and feel like they will be better served by the GOP when that is demonstrably not the case. At least one polling site predicts that John McCain would beat Barack Obama by almost 20 points in West Virginia this November. I haven't heard John McCain renounce and reject Cheney's view of West Virginians as inbred, incestuous dopes (don't hold your breath for that...). Wake up, red states... you are being played by a bunch of rich, selfish fat cats who don't give a damn about you.

[lunyboy]

Try living here and explaining that to anyone. The low-information voter rules here, but the majority of the blame goes to the gutless media and Fox News, the Ministry of Information.

[frantaylor]

I wanna see everyone who voted for this idiot to apologize to the rest of us.

[SHOPARAZZI]

actually, cheney has NOT apologized. his spokesperson apologized on his behalf. there is a vast difference.

like the iniquitous comments he made came out of his own mouth. a sincere apology should come out of HIS mouth, too.

[talkingclock]

This is Cheney, as we have seen making a disgusting comment, but no gumption to apologize himself, that = poor excuse of a man.

[DELICIOUS]

JUST SHOWS HOW SHALLOW REPUKLICANT ARE.

[readyfornewleadership]

This will make a nice democratic commercial to play in West VA.

[AERO]

Seriously folks, who among us hasn't made a joke about West Virginia? Or Arkansas for that matter.

[CEDobson]

Me.....not a one.

[wm1066]

Living in Minnesota its Iowa jokes, and visa versa.
But no one gets mad about it. What Cheney did was "one step beyond". and it had meaness all over it.

[billkarwin]

Aww, when Cheney's smiling, he's rather cute, don't you think? Put a red suit on him, and he looks just like Santa Claus.

So now we know: he's taken a public office with no official power and used it to ruin the world economy, plunge the U.S. and dozens of its allies into an unjust war, kill thousands of Americans and tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians, and even commit treason by exposing a CIA agent's name -- all by using his irresistible boyish charm!

No wonder Harry Whittington couldn't stay mad at him.

[Dantana]

Todd Purdum said that heart surgery changed Bill Clinton. Cheney's multiple heart surgeries turned him into a non-human.
Cheney's statements about defecits dont matter early on, now look at where their reckless spending has got us. His secret energy policy meetings with big oil will come out in the end that we were all duped by the Bush administration. Care to guess how much money they've all made in so-called blind trusts investing in oil? They knew what was going to happen and the weak dollar just exaserbated it. Cheney was the most delusional about AlQueda in Iraq (last throes), which he didn't really believe at all, it was a rouse to keep American money flowing into KBR and Halliburton accounts while good soldiers are dying. Those who say a trillion dollars out of the US treasury dont have any effect on our economy are either oblivious to the truth or are making money on the war themselves.

[trish74]

My cynical self says that Cheney's "heart surgeries" were ploys to make him a sympathetic figure.
His real heart is big black and cold.

[Einstein44]

Let us see----if FOX News,Hannerty,O'Reilly,Limbaugh,and other Right wingers will talk about this
stupid remark by Cheney over and over..Oh!! I forgot ...that is one of their boys...This will pass, but if Obama or Clinton stated this remark...it will be replay over and over by these hypocrites...I hope West Virginians will wake up....Are you listening Indiana and Kentucky ??????

[kesiac]

They will hear this, and excuse it, and even laugh. Whatever it takes to make them feel they are part of this group. They dare not be offended. If they admit that to themselves, they will have to admit, that Bill Cheney, and the like do not see them as one fo their own. Then where will they go, where will they fit in. Would they relate more to the working blacks, the working hispanics? Would they be no better than them? No, they cannot be offended by this "joke".

[lunyboy]

Who the hell is Bill Cheney? Jackass, read a book.

[Buddly]

Since Dickie Bird seems to understand incest so well as to make light of it. I was who really impregnated Mary? With the repugs track record it would not surprise me at all if Mr Snear had something to do with it

[hippieforlife]

That is truly a disgusting thing to say!

[rjlwis]

In my mind one of the biggest "missed" opportunities of the 2004 Presidential election was the VP candidates debate when Edwards did not jump on Cheney with his attorney background. If he wasn't "restrained" by the Kerry "experts" he could have exposed him for what he really is. A manipulative liar who has done more damge to this country than anyone in recent memory.

[CVale]

Amen and amen!

[BPCentrisAmerican]

A. The old punk could not apologize in his own words. Why do low educated under paid people vote for Republicans any way? My father mined coal in PA before the war and he figured out that Republican’s suck early on.

[jashu51]

Where'd your father mine coal in PA? My father and grandfather mined in W-B. To them, Republicans were like Protestants---you had nothing to do with them.

[knowhelpnow]

I told my father he would vote for the devil himself if he ran on the Republican ticket and he did come close these last two times. I have no idea why he votes the way he does I mean he is or was just a working man. I asked him one time why he was a Republican and he said they have morals, I just laughed and said you don't read much and watch Fox news to much you need to check other kinds of news. He won't but he still talks about me saying that to him.

[hippieforlife]

So, are you saying that ALL people who vote Republican are "low educated under paid people"?

Do you think that the people who vote Democratic are all high educated over paid people?

Nothing is ever all black and white.

[ICanHasDemocracy]

"Through his spokeswoman"....meaning HE didn't apologize, his handlers did. Just like when he shot that attorney-friend in the face.
He doesn't know how. Cheney is the Devil's own.