Jargon watch: the uproar over Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin's June remarks comparing the abuses at Guantanamo prison to the crimes of Nazi Germany reminded us once again of what should be a hard and fast rule of politics: Nazi/Hitler comparisons--while always tempting--are never a good idea."If I read this [a list of abuses at Guantanamo prison] ... and did not tell you that it was an FBI agent describing what Americans had done to prisoners in their control, you would most certainly believe this must have been done by Nazis, Soviets in their gulags, or some mad regime--Pol Pot or others." --Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), on abuses at Guantanamo, June 14, 2005 Apology made: 3 days later; "I have learned from my statement that historical parallels can be misused and misunderstood." "The audacity au·dac·i·ty n. pl. au·dac·i·ties 1. Fearless daring; intrepidity. 2. Bold or insolent heedlessness of restraints, as of those imposed by prudence, propriety, or convention. 3. of some members to stand up and say, 'How dare you break this [filibuster filibuster, term used to designate obstructionist tactics in legislative assemblies. It has particular reference to the U.S. Senate, where the tradition of unlimited debate is very strong. It was not until 1917 that the Senate provided for cloture (i.e. ] rule' It's the equivalent of Adolf Hitler in 1942 saying, 'I'm in Paris. How dare you invade in·vade v. in·vad·ed, in·vad·ing, in·vades v.tr. 1. To enter by force in order to conquer or pillage. 2. me. How dare you bomb my city. It's mine.'" --Sen. Rick Santorum “Santorum” redirects here. For other uses, see Santorum (disambiguation). Richard John Santorum (born May 10, 1958) is a former United States Senator from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. (R-Pa.), on the filibuster debate, May 16, 2005 Apology made: 2 hours later, "It was a mistake, and I meant no offense." "Sixty years ago in Nazi Germany, it was state policy [that] in order to perfect humanity, it would be required to destroy humanity. And the medical experiments at Auschwitz were carried out for that explicit purpose." --State Sen. Bruce Chandler (R-Wash.),on stem cell stem cell In living organisms, an undifferentiated cell that can produce other cells that eventually make up specialized tissues and organs. There are two major types of stem cells, embryonic and adult. research, March 15,2005 Apology made: 3 days later; "The references made to the Holocaust were regarded by some, understandably, as insensitive and inappropriate." "Hitler never abandoned the cloak of legality le·gal·i·ty n. pl. le·gal·i·ties 1. The state or quality of being legal; lawfulness. 2. Adherence to or observance of the law. 3. A requirement enjoined by law. Often used in the plural. . He recognized the enormous psychological value of having the law on his side.... That's what the nuclear option seeks to do." --Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.), On the nuclear option, March 1, 2005 Apology made: None yet, although Santorum called for one, charging that Byrd's comments were "inexcusable." "Now forgive me, but that is right out of Nazi Germany. I don't understand ... why all of a sudden we are passing laws that sound as if they are right out of Nazi Germany?" --Sen. Phil Gramm William Philip "Phil" Gramm (born July 8, 1942, in Fort Benning, Georgia, USA) served as a Democratic Congressman (1978–1983), a Republican Congressman (1983–1985) and a Republican Senator from Texas (1985–2002). (R-Texas), on a Democratic tax proposal, Sept. 5, 2002 Apology made: Not only did Gramm not apologize, he also repeated the analogy a few minutes later. |
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