Chris Matthews Plays Hardball On Morning Joe

This morning Chris Mathews set the record straight by calling out RNC Chairman Reince Priebus on their “Obama’s not one of us” campaign strategy. Interestingly, the Morning Joe segment started with a clip of Romney’s birth certificate comment at a campaign stop in Michigan. The clip shows CBS Scot Pelly accusing Romney of taking a swipe at President Obama. Romney however denies such action responding that he has said over and over again that President Obama was born in this country. Further he attempts to portray his actions as just being humorous. Nothing else was said about the clip until Chris Matthews went non stop on the subject some twenty minutes later.

A joke is what Priebus tried to push this morning on Morning Joe. Chris Matthews however was not having it. Chris made his point by also calling the attention to welfare without work attacks on the Obama administration. Also in response to Whining Joe’s question on racism, Mathews made it clear that he thought the attacks by Republicans were wrought by racism.

Tom Brokaw who was also in the segment pointed out that the campaign has been blatantly silent on the attacks which implies that President Obama is un-American.

Brokaw, Whining Joe Scarborough, as well as Mika Brzezinski thought that Romney’s comment was a joke gone bad.

Obviously, they have not read with any clarity the U.S. Supreme Court opinion of Dred Scott v. Sandford, 60 U.S. 393 (1857). Dred Scott, was an African American slave in the United States who unsuccessfully sued for his freedom and that of his wife and their two daughters in the case of 1857, popularly known as “the Dred Scott Decision.”

Republican comments pertaining to President Obama’s citizenship rings the sentiments of U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Roger B. Taney who wrote the infamous majority opinion in the Dred Scot case. That opinion is why we have the 14th Amendment, which has come under attack by the Tea Party.

It is sad that Mr. Romney has chosen this strategy. Mr. Romney’s religion is constantly under attack as a cult whose members wear magic under wear. These attacks are no different than the “he’s not one of us” comments and I would think that Mr. Romney would not want to have anything to do with such foolishness.

Obviously Chris Matthews feel the same way. Take a look at the video showing the exchange between Chris Matthews and RNC Chairman Reince Priebus and read the Dred Scott decision to see if you agree.

You can also twitter the febone_blog

Umaru Yar’Adua International Man Of Mystery

President Umaru Yar’Adua of Nigeria, who has not been seen in public since Nov. 23 has become the real “international man of mystery”. Yar’Adua’s disappearance has touched off a firestorm of controversy in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation. Experts say government in the major oil-producing nation has basically ground to a halt.

Nigeria’s media is filled with contradictory accounts, with some saying Yar’Adua, who has a history of ill health, is on the mend, while others say he lies in a coma in a hospital in Saudi Arabia. Outside experts say they don’t know what to believe and are concerned that Nigeria could descend into political chaos if the mystery of the president’s whereabouts is not solved soon.

‘A Country That Matters’

“We are talking about a country that matters,” says John Campbell, Ralph Bunche Senior Fellow for Africa Policy Studies of the Council on Foreign Relations, who served as U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria from 2004 to 2007. Campbell reckons Yar’Adua is probably not dead, but he is not sure what to believe. “Since he has been there (at the hospital), virtually no one has seen him except his wife,” he says.

The president probably is still alive because If Yar’Adua were to die, his Muslim faith would require an almost immediate burial, Campbell adds. Yar’Adua is unusual as Nigerian politicians go. For one thing, he only has one wife. Yar’Adua also is the first Nigerian president to have a university degree. Experts say he is not especially popular,

For now, the Obama administration seems to be remaining on the sidelines. A spokesman for the U.S. State Department had no immediate comment. Royal Dutch Shell Oil Plc. (RDS.A), whose presence in Nigeria dates back seven decades, and Chevron Corp (CVX), which has extensive offshore interests there, declined to comment to DailyFinance as did Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM). The head of a delegation from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce visiting Nigeria this week could not immediately be reached.

No Impact On Oil Production, Yet

“So far there is no immediate sign of the President’s absence having any impact on Nigeria’s oil production or exports, although it is clearly provoking political controversy in the country,” says Platts Chief Editor Richard Swann, in an email to DailyFinance.

A group of Nigerian politicians recently asked Saudi King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud about President Yar’Adua’s rumored presence in the kingdom, demanding information on the state of the president’s health. Some media reports said Yar’Adua recently spoke to several political leaders.

But as the Daily Nation of Kenya points out on its website “none of the three key officials of the Yar’Adua administration spoke directly on the said telephone conversations, which allegedly took place with the President.”.

Observers Questioned His Election

According to the Times of London, Nigerian opposition leaders are demanding “visual proof that the Nigerian President is still alive and fit to govern.” Rumors abound in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, that Yar’Adua’s cronies are doing his work for him, such as signing the country’s budget. A lawsuit in Nigeria seeks to get a court to rule that it is unconstitutional for a president to travel abroad to seek medical attention without transferring power to the vice president.

Yar’Adua is a chemist by training who came into power in 2007 in elections that outside observers claim were not fair. The European Union claimed that 300 people died during the campaign, according to the BBC. He along with Nigerian Vice President Goodluck Jonathan, a Christian, were hand-picked by former military ruler Olusegun Obasanjo.

Muslims and Christians share Nigeria’s top job in an unofficial understanding, meant to preserve peace in the country of more than 115 million, which may be undermined by the president’s absence, according to Campbell.

Disappearance Comes At Critical Time

Worry about Yar’Adua’s whereabouts comes at a tricky time in U.S.-Nigerian relations. A Nigerian man has been charged with trying to blow up a U.S. airliner on Christmas Day. President Obama also is counting on Nigeria to help fight Al-Qaeda’s growing influence in the region. None of these policy goals of the U.S. government would be possible without a political leader in Abuja.

Unfortunately, as Richard Downie of the Center for Strategic and International Studies notes, no one has a clue where he is or even if he is still alive at a time when the U.S. is increasingly dependent on Nigerian oil.

What’s Your Take On The Matter? Register and/or sign in and sound off!

You can also twitter the febone_blog

Donnie McClurkin Calling Out “Pimpin” Preachers

Febone1960.net would like to thank Rich McClain for the following article.

This past week, popular preacher, recording artist and pastor, Donnie McClurkin, pastor of the Perfecting Faith Church in Freeport, New York, went on record to declare his deep disappointment with what he sees as pastoral abuses in the body of Christ.

Pastor McClurkin’s comments have raised a legitimate question about abuse and excesses in the body of Christ and has brought attention to a topic that has largely been ignored in the church community.

In an article appearing in Essence this past week Pastor McClurkin is quoted as saying:

“As pastors, we have to link arms and have bi-partisanships. The [Black] church has always been the face of the community. Now we have to take on the responsibility of becoming true servants to the people from all walks of life. I get so mad when I see these pimpin’ preachers driving Rolls-Royces, Bentleys, flying around in their private jets, and making it seem like prosperity and money is the way of God when 90 percent of your congregation is on Section 8 or can’t figure out how they are going to keep their lights on or feed their kids. I’m big on perception, and what would it look like for me to live so lavishly if the people in my church are struggling?” says Pastor McClurkin in the article.”

In venting his frustration over the behavior of some in the church community, Pastor McClurkin reveals his own humility and sense of service to God and God’s people, by outlining his own relationship, financial and otherwise, with his church and his refusal to take revenue from a congregation that he has built from the ground up.

“I’ve done great in gospel music, and only a few of us have accomplished what I have, and guess what? I live in the ‘hood, not some place on the outskirts of the ‘hood. There ain’t no gate around my house; I have a white fence because the people I pastor live in that community. I have one vehicle and it’s not a Mercedes, it’s a Lincoln Navigator. I don’t receive a dime-not an Abraham Lincoln copper coin-and haven’t for the last seven-and-a-half years because I’m okay.” He tells Kenya Byrd of Essence Magazine.

As such, Pastor McClurkin has become a model and an example for others to emulate. His mentality and actions, that places a greater emphasis on service than profit, can only be admired by all of those who love the Lord and are seeking to do His will to the best of their ability. Pastor McClurkin makes it clear that he has options, but chooses to live a modest and humble lifestyle because that’s what God has called him to do.

If I wanted to buy a Phantom or Bentley I could and not hurt my pockets, but I’m okay with what I have. I can sing and work and I have all that money go back into the church so we can buy the delicatessen on the corner, or the house next door to make it state-of-the-art low-income housing. We’ve trained our people to put their leaders on pedestals, and some people want to live vicariously through their pastor and say, “My pastor has this and he’s on television and so on,” but then what do you have? How have you prospered and grown? So when I hear other pastors say, “My people take care of me,” I’m thinking, But you’re supposed to be taking care of the people. I just don’t get it. Pastor McClurkin goes on to say.

What is best gleaned from the wisdom and honesty of Pastor McClurkin is his healthy attitude about the church and who it belongs too. His “ecclesiology”, which is worthy of our consideration, perhaps best represents what Christ had in mind when He gave pastors to the body of Christ in the first place.

I don’t have a church, but I do have a church that I pastor. I can’t name something the Donnie McClurkin Temple because the people do not belong to me and if they did that would mean I have slaves. I am simply a vessel to deliver God’s word. At the end of the day, it’s God’s church, not mine advises Pastor McClurkin.

AMEN! AMEN! AMEN! AMEN!

What’s Your Take On The Matter? Register and/or sign in and sound off!

You can also twitter the febone_blog

Disgraced Minister Refuses To Accept The Will Of The People

MEMPHIS — A day after losing his bid to regain the presidency of the National Baptist Convention, the Rev. Henry J. Lyons sent a letter to the organization challenging the election.

The letter was read Friday to hundreds of delegates gathered at the Memphis Cook Convention Center. Lyons said he was challenging the results for several reasons, including the discrepancy in voting totals that showed him losing by such a large margin, garnering only 18 percent of the 5,032 votes.

His request for an investigation was denied through a standing vote of delegates. Lyons and his wife were the only two people who stood in favor of opening an investigation.

The disgraced preacher who wanted to regain leadership of the National Baptist Convention, lost his bid to stop the organization’s election.

Lyons filed a lawsuit in a Washington, D.C., court alleging that new bylaws governing the election violate the National Baptist Convention’s constitution.

Lyons complained that the bylaws limit the number of representative members eligible to vote and give some additional votes if they are designated as representative members by more than one church, association or state convention. The suit claimed that such changes constitute a breach of contract.

Lyons was in the courtroom Wednesday afternoon when Judge Jeanette Clark denied his motion for a temporary restraining order.

The judge “basically said that Rev. Lyons did not follow the convention’s procedures and did not suffer irreparable harm,” said the Rev. Wendell Griffen, parliamentarian for the convention and a member of the board of directors.

The judge added that Lyons “knew that the procedures had been in place since September 2006 and he sat and he waited until the last minute to file a lawsuit rather than going to the convention and complaining about the procedures,” Griffen said.

The judge also ruled that there were no inconsistencies between the bylaws that Lyons was complaining about and the convention’s constitution, he said.

The election for president of the convention, said to be the largest African-American religious group in the United States, went on as planned in Memphis.

Lyons, 67, was running against the Rev. Julius R. Scruggs, 67, of Alabama, the current vice president at large. It’s a paid position. The outgoing president, the Rev. William Shaw of Philadelphia, earns $100,000 a year.

Lyons’ effort to retake the convention’s presidency had been divisive. Supporters said he should be forgiven. Others, however were saying forgiveness does not mean another chance to lead the organization.

Henry Lyons’ problems began in July 1997, after his then-wife, Deborah, started a fire at a $700,000 Tierra Verde home he owned with another woman. The incident set off an investigation into his finances, and Lyons was eventually convicted on state racketeering and grand theft charges.

Delegates at the National Baptist Convention decided overwhelmingly Thursday not to give the Rev. Henry J. Lyons a second chance to lead the organization he was forced to leave in disgrace 10 years ago.

Lyons received just 924 votes of 5,032 ballots cast — about 18 percent — at the group’s annual convention. The Rev. Julius R. Scruggs, the group’s vice president-at-large, was elected president of what is said to be the largest African-American religious organization in the nation.

After the results were announced Thursday night, Scruggs thanked group members for trusting him to lead.

“I do not take your trust lightly,” he said. “I will do everything in my power to seek to live up to your trust.”

Lyons could not be reached for comment after the vote.

“I was surprised by how resounding the victory was,” said the Rev. Ronald Bobo, one of Lyons’ supporters. “But this is the will of the people and we will move forward.”

The Rev. Vincent Mitchell, 47, of Greenville, S.C., said he was not surprised by Scruggs’ victory.

“The election was based on trust and not on forgiveness,” Mitchell said. “All of us have something to be forgiven for, but we need someone we can trust.”

Lyons had spoken to the convention Tuesday, and told members that God had forgiven him, said Beverly Burnett, a convention member from Virginia. She was not impressed. “He wasn’t humble,” she said.

Then Lyons filed a lawsuit against the convention claiming election bylaws were not fair, didn’t go over well with some members.

Hundreds of members converged in a room at the Memphis Cook Convention Center late Thursday night to await the results. Many men were dressed in Sunday best suits, many women in glittering dresses.

Two women wearing T-shirts that said “Yes we can re-elect Henry J. Lyons” drew stares from some attendees.

The Rev. Dwight Montgomery, 59, who pastors a church in Memphis, said he has been playing the role of mediator, especially since the city is where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. lost his life.

“I have been advocating unity and brotherhood,” he said.

But he gave a hint about the way he might have voted when he went on to praise the outgoing president, the Rev. William J. Shaw, under whom Scruggs was vice president. He said Shaw had done a great job of establishing a convention of vision, integrity, structure and accountability

“And because of that, I certainly want the convention to continue in that vein,” Montgomery said.

Lyons served nearly five years in state prison for swindling more than $5.2 million from the organization’s corporate partners. He is now pastor of New Salem Missionary Baptist Church in Tampa, Fla.

About 20,000 to 30,000 people gathered for the convention this week, less than the 40,000 or so who normally attend, said Deacon Nathaniel Crook, media relations coordinator for the convention. He blamed the economy for the lower numbers.

The organization claims a membership of about 7.5 million.

The Rev. Robert Perry of Union Baptist Church in Stamford, Conn., had voted by early afternoon. He cast his vote for Scruggs and said he is embarrassed by the Lyons candidacy.

“I feel as though it puts a blemish on the convention in terms of its leadership. We have overcome the scandal,” under Shaw, he said.

What’s Your Take On The Matter? Register and/or sign in and sound off!

You can also twitter the febone_blog

Authorities Warn Pastors As They Search For Killer(s)

ANADARKO, Okla. — Authorities warned pastors in a town where a preacher was brutally killed inside her own church that they should take precautions at their buildings.

District Attorney Bret Burns, who described the killing as “horrific,” held a closed-door session with about two dozen pastors, along with members of law enforcement.

“We talked about security issues within their churches and their congregations,” Burns said. “We asked them to remain vigilant and be aware of their surroundings and their church locations.”

He did not say why the meeting was held just with pastors rather than the community at large, or what kind of a threat the clergy might face.

But new information about investigation findings now explains the authorities concerns.

Police in Anadarko, Okla., have issued shocking new details about the murder of a local pastor. Newly released documents report that the victim, 61-year-old Carol Daniels, was not only brutally attacked and murdered. She also received multiple post-mortem injuries before the perpetrator posed her nude body in an unnatural position.

According to police documents, authorities received a call on the afternoon of Aug. 23, asking them to come to the Christ Holy Sanctified Church. The callers, an elderly couple, said they were concerned because the reverend’s vehicle was parked out front, but the doors to the church were locked. Their repeated knocking on the door went unanswered, and they feared that the reverend might have had an accident.

When officers entered the building, they were shocked to discover Daniels’ nude and battered body lying behind the church altar, stretched out in a “crucifix position.”

“I’ve prosecuted over 50 murders, [and] this is the most horrific crime scene I’ve ever witnessed,” District Attorney Bret Burns told the Associated Press.

Video surveillance footage retrieved from a nearby store shows that Daniels arrived at the church at about 10 a.m. Unfortunately, the footage does not show her attacker entering or leaving the church, suggesting that he or she entered through a back door. As a result, authorities have removed the back door from the building in an attempt to recover the perpetrator’s fingerprints.

According to an eight-page medical examiner’s report, Daniels died as a result of “multiple sharp force injuries.” Severe lacerations were found on her back, chest, hands, neck and stomach. Several of the wounds had been inflicted post-mortem – after she died. The depth of the injuries to her throat had nearly decapitated her, whereas the injuries to her hands indicate that she had fought with her attacker. The autopsy report also noted that Daniels’ hair was burned.

Daniels’ clothes were not found at the crime scene, suggesting her killer took them either as a trophy or in an effort to hide possible evidence. In addition, chemicals found around Daniels’ body suggest the killer attempted to destroy DNA evidence, perhaps to hide a sexual assault or to cover up injuries he or she could have sustained during the attack.

Authorities say they do not believe the murder is linked to a cult; however, they also admit that they do not know who is responsible.

“We have no suspects,” Capt. Dwaine Miller of the Anadarko Police Department told Newsok.com. “We have no idea who did this.”

In an effort to help track down the killer, Miller has requested the assistance of the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and the FBI. Both agencies have declined to comment on the status of the investigation.

” she said. “I’m not going to hide out or anything, but I’m going to make sure my door is locked at night.”

What’s Your Take On The Matter? Register and/or sign in and sound off!

You can also twitter the febone_blog