Rep: Recession Victims Not Minorities, But 'Good Americans'

Dem Kanjorski comments spark uproar
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 25, 2010 2:50 AM CDT

Pennsylvania's Democratic Congressman Paul Kanjorski is under intense fire for remarks contrasting "minorities" and "good American people." People helped by a Pennsylvania foreclosure prevention program "are not minorities, and they're not defective, and they're not all the things you like to insinuate that these programs are about," Kanjorski said during a debate on financial reform. "These are average, good American people."

The Republican candidate running against Kanjorski said the "outrageous" remark "shows how out of touch Kanjorski is with the real world," ABC News reports. Kanjorski quickly went on the defensive. A spokesperson said his remarks had been taken out of context, and the congressman circulated a letter for his minority colleagues to sign. "We know that Congressman Kanjorski is a strong supporter of minorities and all Americans, and we are deeply outraged by political opportunists who have twisted his words," the letter read. (More Paul Kanjorski stories.)

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