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Editor’s note: Political Smackdown is a weekly Friday column on the major political battle of the week, whether it is among elected officials, political parties, or members of the media.
Fox News host Bill O’Reilly took on White House senior adviser Valerie Jarrett Thursday night over President Obama’s “My Brother’s Keeper,” a White House initiative that seeks to create more opportunities for young men of color.
“You shocked a lot of people,” O’Reilly told Jarrett. “People were fainting when I walked in.”
Obama spoke of “a culture of cynicism” on the streets that saps young people of motivation to get ahead, O’Reilly said, adding that it’s not just black communities affected but also poor, low-income neighborhoods of all ethnicities.
“You’re going to have to get people like Jay-Z, Kanye West, all of these gangsta rappers, to knock it off,” he said. “Listen to me. You gotta get where they live. They idolize these guys with the hats on backwards.”
The boys need positive role models, Jarrett said.
“We have to take what’s working and take it to scale.”
O’Reilly accused her of blowing off his idea.
“You got to get them in there to tell these kids that you’ve got to stop the disruptive behavior or you’re going to wind up in a morgue or in prison,” O’Reilly said.
Agencies/Canadajournal
