Schiller, the NPR exec who was caught on tape spouting anti-Tea Party bigotry and nodding along pleasantly to his lunch companion’s anti-Semitism, has offered this, um, apology:
“While the meeting I participated in turned out to be a ruse, I made statements during the course of the meeting that are counter to NPR’s values and also not reflective of my own beliefs. I offer my sincere apology to those I offended. I resigned from NPR, previously effective May 6th, to accept another job. In an effort to put this unfortunate matter behind us, NPR and I have agreed that my resignation is effective today.”
Why start off by pointing out that you got caught in a ruse, as if it’s some sort of mitigating circumstance? Imagine if somebody said, “While the prostitute I solicited turned out to be an officer of the law…” Well, yeah, that’s how the whole undercover thing works. Be petulant all you want that you didn’t get your happy ending, but it doesn’t change what you did.
And then: “I made statements that are not reflective of my own beliefs.” Could you be more specific, Ron? Do you want to change your lunch order? Sheesh. He’s like a 4-year-old kid with his hand in a cookie jar. “I wasn’t gonna eat it, Mommy, honest! This is not reflective of my beliefs!”
NPR is still trying to get its story straight, whether Schiller’s firing or resignation or whatever has anything to do with the tape. It’s probably just a coincidence, right?
It’s also fun watching the left try to regain its footing. The big scoop right now is that James O’Keefe’s ersatz Muslim group also fooled Pamela Geller. Fair enough: let’s take away her government funding as well.
A couple of other links: O’Keefe tells Hugh Hewitt that the sting was in reaction to Juan Williams’ firing. And Williams responds to this complete vindication of what he’s been saying ever since.
P.S. Correction: I said Schiller merely nodded along to his lunch companion’s anti-Semitism, but it was more explicit than that. As our own Matt Boyle wrote yesterday:
When the ersatz Islamists declare they’re “not too upset about maybe a little bit less Jew influence of money into NPR,” Schiller responds by saying he doesn’t find “Zionist or pro-Israel” ideas at NPR, “even among funders. I mean it’s there in those who own newspapers, obviously, but no one owns NPR.”
P.P.S. Wow. Now Vivian Schiller (no relation) is out at NPR. This is probably because James O’Keefe has no credibility and the teabaggers really are a bunch of racists and besides, she was going to quit anyway.
P.P.P.S. Byron York has pointed out yet another hole in the facade. WaPo‘s Paul Farhi writes:
[Ron Schiller] goes on to say that NPR “would be better off in the long run without federal funding.”
The latter sentiment is often expressed privately by people at NPR, who would prefer that the news organization have no financial ties to federal sources.
But wait. What happened to “Schiller doesn’t represent NPR’s views, or even his own”? Who are these “people at NPR”?
P.P.P.P.S. Of course, none of this matters because Ron Schiller is going to go work for the Aspen Institute. Also, Ron Schiller is not going to go work for the Aspen Institute.