Forum Post: Priebus: Obama's our Capt. Schettino | I Saw This Cretin on the News and Asumed he was some GOP Cult Intern

Priebus: Obama's our Capt. Schettino | I Saw This Cretin on the News and Asumed he was some GOP Cult Intern

[This is just another blatant reason why today's GOP is not fit to govern.]

(CNN) - The chairman of the Republican National Committee unveiled his latest attack on President Barack Obama on Sunday, comparing him to the captain of the wrecked Costa Concordia cruise ship.

When asked if the infighting in the GOP presidential primary race would harm the eventual nominee's chances against Obama in November, Reince Priebus said the party would unite by then in an effort to win the White House.

Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

"In a few months, this is all going to be ancient history and we're going to talk about our own little Captain Schettino, which is President Obama who's abandoning the ship here in the United States and is more interested in campaigning than doing his job as president," Priebus said on CBS' "Face the Nation."

Priebus added the president is "fleeing the American people," just like Schettino allegedly fled his cruise liner.

The ship rolled onto its side in shallow waters off an island on Italy's Tuscan coast on January 13. Seventeen people are confirmed dead and 15 people remain missing while Francesco Schettino is under house arrest and faces possible criminal charges of manslaughter, shipwreck and abandoning ship.

Following the jab, CBS host Bob Schieffer seemed caught off guard by Priebus' comment, asking with a laugh: "What did you just say? What did you call President Obama?"

Priebus was defiant in his response.

"I called him Captain Schettino, you know the captain that fled the ship in Italy," Priebus said. "That's our own president who's fleeing the American people and not doing his job and running around the country and campaigning."

Also see:

Herman Cain endorses Gingrich

Romney picks up Gingrich attacks

Gingrich justifies debate performances

L.L. Bean heiress backs Paul

Filed under: 2012 • President Obama • Reince Priebus

January 30, 2012 2:29 PM

Print
Text

Wasserman Schultz blasts Priebus for comparing Obama to cruise ship captain Francesco Schettino

By Lucy Madison Topics In The News

52 Comments Have Your Say
Email StorySend to a Friend
Share ThisTell Your Friends
Tweet ThisTweet This
MoreShare It

.

Del.icio.us
Facebook
Stumbleupon

Newsvine
Yahoo bookmarks
Mixx

Digg
Reddit
Google Bookmarks

Twitter
LinkedIn

Democratic National Committee Vice Chairwoman Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL). (Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) Democratic National Committee (DNC) chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz on Monday blasted her Republican counterpart, Republican National Committee (RNC) chair Reince Priebus, for comparing President Obama to the captain of the Costa Concordia cruise liner, which ran aground off the coast of Tuscany earlier this month and resulted in the deaths of at least 17 people.

"Unbelievable comparison," Wasserman Schultz, who is also a Democratic congresswoman from Florida, said in an interview with Fox News. "The captain of the Costa Concordia has been charged with manslaughter and for the RNC chairman to compare the president of the United States to someone who has been charged with manslaughter shows a dramatic level of insensitivity to the families of those victims."

"I'm not going to give any credence to those incendiary remarks," she said.

Priebus, speaking to Bob Schieffer on CBS' "Face the Nation" on Sunday, made the comment while downplaying the rough-and-tumble nature of the Republican presidential campaign, currently waging in Florida, which holds its primary on Tuesday.

"In the end, in a few months, this is all going to be ancient history and we're going to talk about our own little Captain Schettino, which is President Obama who is abandoning the ship here in the United States," Priebus said. "He's more interested in campaigning than doing his job as president."

In the weeks since the accident, Francesco Schettino has been disgraced for his behavior both leading up to and during the crash, and has been charged with multiple manslaughter and abandoning ship in Italy. He allegedly deviated from the ship's computer-programmed route to do a sail-by the island of Giglio, where the liner crashed into submerged rocks.

In a statement on Monday, Wasserman Schultz added that Priebus' remarks demonstrated an inappropriate "a lack of respect" for Mr. Obama, and said he should be "ashamed" of them.

DNC Chair calls Romney "extreme"

"Chairman Priebus should be ashamed of his comments comparing President Obama to the captain of the wrecked Italian cruise ship," she said. "That he would compare the President of the United States with a man now charged with manslaughter for his actions shows a lack of respect for the President that is beyond the bounds of appropriate political discourse. More importantly, it shows a galling lack of sensitivity for the victims of this tragedy and their families, as well as those still living in anguish because their loved-ones are still missing.

She added: "Chairman Priebus crossed the line. People died, and he is exploiting and making light of a tragedy for political purposes. I call on Chairman Priebus to apologize for his comments and for the hurt he may have caused in making them."