Initial Statement. Response.

Rep. Lynn Westmoreland, a Georgia Republican, released the following statement in defense of his having called Barack Obama "uppity": "I've never heard that term used in a racially derogatory sense."

Of course this is the guy who couldn't name the ten commandments despite being behind the push to have them hung in the House and Senate chambers, so maybe ignorance is his best defense.

But note how carefully the Obama campaign has to tred with this stuff:

The Obama campaign, asked about the quote, did not note any racial context.

"Sounds like Rep. Westmoreland should be careful throwing stones from his candidate's eight glass houses," said Obama spokesman Tommy Vietor.

If he complains about obvious racism, he's 'playing the race card'. But they can say all the crap they want.

Similarly, if anyone questions anything about Sarah Palin, even her abuse of power in firing librarians that wouldn't ban books for her or the trooper who wouldn't fire her ex brother-in-law, they are sexist, but Hillary Clinton was a whiner.