Media Matters provides a damning timeline of George Allen's various excuses for his "macaca" comments:
Allen did not know what "macaca" means, and his use of the term was really intended as a play on the word "'mohawk,' a term that his campaign staff had nicknamed Sidarth because of his haircut," which Sidarth characterizes as "a mullet -- tight on top, long in the back." Allen said he "'would never want to demean him [Sidarth] as an individual. I do apologize if he's offended by that. That was no way the point." [The Washington Post; 8/15/06]
From Allen's statement provided to CNN: "[M]y comments at Breaks Interstate Park on August 11th have been greatly misunderstood by members of the media. I ... made up a nickname for the cameraman [Sidarth], which was in no way intended to be racially derogatory. Any insinuations to the contrary are completely false." [National Journal's The Hotline weblog; 8/15/06]
Allen was calling Sidarth a "mash-up" of terms that amounted to "shit-head." "[T]wo Republicans who heard the word used" claimed "macaca" was a combination of " '[m]ohawk,' referring to Sidarth's distinctive hair, and 'caca,' Spanish slang for excrement, or 'shit.' " [The Hotline; 8/16/06]
"For folks to think that I would know what sorts of genus of monkeys are in Eastern Asia -- ascribe a lot more intelligence to me than I actually have." [ABC's Nightline; 8/16/06]
From an August 19 memo Allen campaign manager Dick Wadhams sent to Republican leaders and the Allen campaign leadership: "[T]he news media created what they call a 'feeding frenzy' ... [l]iterally putting words into Senator Allen's mouth that he did not say (by speculating, defining and attributing meanings and motives that simply are not true). ... [T]he Webb campaign and the news media seeming [sic] worked hand-in-hand to create national news over something that did not warrant coverage in the first place. ... Will the Washington Post hold it's [sic] candidate for the U.S. Senate [Webb] to the same standard?" [Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee; 8/19/06]
From Allen's August 22 appearance on ABC Radio Networks' The Sean Hannity Show: "I take full responsibility. I'm not offering any excuses because I said it [macaca], and no one else said it ... It's a mistake. I apologize, and from my heart, I'm very, very sorry for it." [The Washington Post; 8/24/06]
Allen "realized how much he offended [Sidarth] from the comments [Sidarth] made in the media," telling Sidarth he is "sorry he offended" him, and that his apology was "from his heart." [The Washington Post; 8/24/06]
From Wadhams' interview: "It's great to have the president [Bush] in Virginia, raising substantial amounts of money so we can fight off the scurrilous attacks by our opponent [Webb] and his leftist allies. ... I think the [August 19] memo [blaming the media for "putting words into Senator Allen's mouth"] speaks for itself." [The Washington Post; 8/24/06]
"Allen said he made the name up, then said he recalled that he had a niece nicknamed 'Maca Maca.' " [Los Angeles Times; 8/24/06]
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