Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Gibbons apologizes on camera for aired ‘communist’ remark

Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., stared straight into a television camera Wednesday and apologized for referring to opponents of corporate-funded presidential inauguration parties as communists, a remark that was aired nationally last month by NBC.

In an interview on "Face to Face With Jon Ralston," which was broadcast on Las Vegas ONE Cox Cable channel 19, Gibbons said he shouldn't have made the remark that aired Jan. 19 on NBC's "Nightly News With Brian Williams."

NBC reported on critics who have said that corporate donations for inaugurations represent a way to buy influence with President Bush and the Republican Party. On the subject of corporate donations for inaugural parties, Gibbons told NBC reporter Lisa Myers: "Anybody who is against that obviously must be a communist."

At the time critics blasted the remark, with one calling it "absurd" and "ridiculous."

Gibbons hadn't directly addressed the criticism himself until Wednesday when he told Ralston that while he shouldn't have made the remark, it was also taken out of context.

"Well, should I have said that? You know, no," Gibbons said. "I mean it was a statement that wasn't actually played properly back because we were talking about those people that supported democracy and I said, 'If you're opposed to democracy and these people are opposing democracy, then they must be communists.'

"Should I have said that? No. And if I offended anybody in Nevada, I apologize."

NBC News was not immediately available for comment.

Gibbons has formed an exploratory committee to consider a 2006 gubernatorial bid in Nevada. Whether Gibbons' remark to NBC and his subsequent apology have any bearing on a possible run for governor remains to be seen.

UNLV political science professor Ted Jelen said he doubted the "communist" remark would haunt Gibbons should he run for the statewide office next year.

"Once the apology has been extended that's basically the end of it, especially since there is no policy implication," Jelen said.

Jelen said, though, that it might be easier for Gibbons to get away with such a remark in his "homogeneous" Northern Nevada congressional district than it would be in Las Vegas.

"So I think he will have to be a little more temperate in what he says if he runs for governor," Jelen said. "This is an easy lesson and he's a smart guy."

Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus, D-Las Vegas, a possible Democratic gubernatorial foe, called Gibbons' original remarks "ridiculous," but commended him for apologizing. His initial remarks could still be used against him in a campaign, she said.

"It will just show how out of sync he is and how out of touch with reality and Nevadans he is," Titus said.

But Eric Herzik, a political science professor at the University of Nevada, Reno, said Gibbons' "communist" reference was old news the day after he said it and that neither that remark nor the apology would have any bearing on the governor's race.

"This is a statement that was really blown out of proportion," Herzik said. "It shows the poisonous atmosphere of the partisan divide when any remark is taken as 'You're unqualified to serve.' "

Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., played coy when asked about how Gibbons' comments might affect Gibbons' expected campaign for governor.

"What campaign?" Reid said with a smile.

When pressed later, Reid said he thinks Gibbons has a "good reputation" in Washington.

"I work with him," Reid said after his speech to the state Legislature. "I like him. The governor's race isn't going to be determined by who I like or dislike."

Democratic Party spokesman Jon Summers said the party is glad that Gibbons apologized but wished he would have done it sooner. The issue still could come up in the election, he said.

"It's certainly not going to help him," Summers said.

If Gibbons meant the comment at the time, Summers said, it shows "what he feels isn't what the rest of Nevada feels."

Claiming that an embarrassing quote was taken out of context is a well-worn crutch for politicians, said Brad White, director of investigations for watchdog group Public Citizen, who tracks Congress.

"What context is there for calling someone a communist? There are certain things, regardless of context, that you just don't say," said White, a former news reporter and former Senate staff investigator.

"You know what always surprises me about public officials? How they can never just say, 'I really messed up,' and say it immediately and clearly. Why does it have to be so complex?"

Gibbons reminded Ralston's viewers that he fought in two wars -- as a combat pilot in the Vietnam and Persian Gulf wars -- to give protesters the right to protest.

"And I fought through two wars to give me the right to say what I've said and you the right to say what you've said," Gibbons said. "Should I have said it? No. I apologize for it and let's move on."

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