Gibbons: Controversial speech wasn’t his own

Kirsten Searer

Friday, March 4, 2005 | 10:55 a.m.

Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., already was taking heat this week for recent comments he made to a Republican group in Elko.

But it turned out Thursday that the words weren't even his own. Gibbons issued a statement admitting that he pulled much of his text from a copyrighted speech given by the Alabama state auditor in 2003.

The Elko Daily Free Press reported that Gibbons brought a crowd to "near feverish pitch" on Friday night when he said that people who oppose the war in Iraq are "liberal, tree-hugging, Birkenstock-wearing, hippie, tie-dyed liberals."

They support abortion but fight for animal rights, he said, according to the paper's account of the evening. They're the same people who want to go to Iraq to become human shields, he said.

"I say it's just too damn bad we didn't buy them a ticket," Gibbons said.

The speech originally angered state Democrats, who stated that the comments were a personal attack against people who disagreed with the Iraq war.

"Last time Jim Gibbons said his 'communist' comment was 'taken out of context' and essentially blamed the reporter," said Jon Summers, communications director for the Nevada State Democratic Party, in a statement. "What excuse will he use this time?"

This time, however, the text came almost word-for-word from a well-publicized speech Alabama state auditor Beth Chapman gave to a "Stand up for America" rally in 2003.

The speech, entered into the Congressional Record, generated enough buzz over the Internet that Chapman eventually wrote a book titled "The Power of Patriotism: The Speech Heard Around the World."

Gibbons used 15 paragraphs out of the 21-paragraph speech virtually word-for-word, according to the Elko Daily Free Press.

On Thursday, Gibbons' office issued a statement saying he did not intentionally plagiarize the speech. Rather, he said, he received it in an e-mail and saved the text.

"I don't remember who sent me the e-mail or when I received it exactly ... only that I found the words to be reflective of my deep concern about the morale of our troops," he said in the statement.

Gibbons said he is concerned that troops returning from the war in Iraq will be treated like Vietnam veterans were when they got home from the war.

"I certainly didn't know the text was a speech or that it was copyrighted," he said. "When I found out, the first thing I did was call Ms. Beth Chapman to apologize. We had a nice chat and she was very cordial and understanding." Chapman, a Republican, said she was pleased that her message had been conveyed publicly.

Chapman said she was flattered that her message has gone around the world and, now, was used by a congressman. But she pointed out that it was written at a different time, right before the country went to war and Hollywood stars were vocal about not going into Iraq. The four-minute speech, she said, was written in response.

"People are judging something that was written and given two years ago under different circumstances," she said. "... That's not to say they still don't ring true."

Chapman said she's received plenty of e-mails from Nevadans, which she said were mostly positive. She said she received about 8,000 e-mails from all over the world since she originally gave the speech in February 2003.

Looking back, Gibbons said, he should have said he was using words taken from an e-mail.

The controversy comes one week after Gibbons apologized for saying on national news that people who think the government should limit how much corporations can give to a presidential inauguration are "communists."

Gibbons is widely viewed as one of the front-runners for the 2006 gubernatorial race, though he hasn't officially announced his candidacy yet.

Thursday night, Summers appeared on "Hannity and Colmes" on Fox News to criticize the statements. When asked if he was offended, Summers said, "we are very offended by this, as every American should be."

Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, another potential gubernatorial candidate, said the comments were bad enough, but news that they were taken from someone else makes them worse.

"Not only did he not show any leadership in his speech, he wasn't intellectually honest with his audience," Perkins said.

Another potential candidate for governor, Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus, D-Las Vegas, said Gibbons "isn't very creative, apparently, if he has to steal other people's words."

"I'm a professor," said Titus, a political science professor at UNLV. "I always believe in footnoting."

Nevada Republican Party chairwoman Earlene Forsythe said she wasn't worried about the fallout of Gibbons' speech.

"It was refreshing to be able to hear a politician -- Republican or Democrat -- to come out and say what they truly believe," she said.

Candidates in tight primary races, such as the upcoming one for governor, will have to talk to their political base, she said.

"They have to come out and they have to appeal to their inveterate voter," she said.