{"id":1687024,"date":"2022-10-12T16:53:25","date_gmt":"2022-10-12T20:53:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1687024"},"modified":"2022-10-12T16:53:28","modified_gmt":"2022-10-12T20:53:28","slug":"burgess-owens-refuses-debate-moderated-by-racist-salt-lake-tribune-journos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/burgess-owens-refuses-debate-moderated-by-racist-salt-lake-tribune-journos\/","title":{"rendered":"Burgess Owens Refuses Debate Moderated by &#8220;Racist&#8221; Salt Lake Tribune Journos"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fburgess-owens-refuses-debate-moderated-by-racist-salt-lake-tribune-journos%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1687024&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/media.breitbart.com\/media\/2022\/10\/GettyImages-1242325374-640x335.png\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\" alt=\"image\" \/><\/div>\n<p class=\"subheading\"><span>Utah Rep. Burgess Owens (R-UT) will not be attending Utah\u2019s 4th Congressional District debate scheduled for Wednesday night, he recently revealed to Breitbart News, citing his \u201cprinciples\u201d regarding the event\u2019s moderator \u2014 who presides over the <\/span><i><span>Salt Lake Tribune<\/span><\/i><span> paper that published a \u201cracist\u201d depiction of Owens as a KKK member last year and, Owens charged, still \u201cstands behind\u201d it<\/span>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"a8d-pre\"><span>In a video statement shared in advance with Breitbart News on Wednesday, Owens began by describing a \u201clife-changing\u201d incident during his upbringing amid racial segregation that left a lasting impression on him:<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"D-ROS-B1\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B1\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"gmxrevmore\" class=\"H\"><\/figure>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span>As a 10-year-old in the 1960s segregated South, I witnessed a life-changing event. As my mother and little sister were using a \u201cwhite woman\u2019s only\u201d restroom at a service station, two white men attempted to break down the door to pull them out. I watched as my dad successfully fought these men off and afterwards ripped up the card to that gas station chain. Fifty years later, when talking about this event, my dad told me with pride \u201cBurgie, I never bought another drop of gas from that gas station chain.\u201d It was a promise that he made and kept until the day he died.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span>Owens described the event when his father \u201cfought off those two bigots,\u201d as the time he \u201csaw what courage looked like.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n[embedded content]\n<p class=\"a8d-pre\"><span>\u201cFive decades later,\u201d after his father informed him that he had never purchased another drop of gas from that chain since, Owens \u201csaw what principle looked like,\u201d he added.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"D-ROS-B2\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B2\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<p><span>Those values, Owens argued, were crucial in his decision to shun the debate, a move he attributed to a \u201cracist\u201d depiction of him on part of the moderator\u2019s paper.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cLast year, the <\/span><i><span>Salt Lake Tribune<\/span><\/i><span> published a racist cartoon depicting me as a KKK member, the very same hate group that terrorized my family and my race as a youth in the South,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cThe moderator selected by the Utah Debate Commission not only supported this bigoted cartoon, but she doubled down and defended it, even after the entire Utah delegation openly stated their disgust for such an ugly attack,\u201d he added.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/sltrib?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@sltrib<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Patbagley?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@Patbagley<\/a> compare me to the KKK, the radical hate group that terrorized me in my youth, because I am one of many sounding the alarm of the trauma being faced by women and children crossing the border. This is pathetic.  <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/wokeracism?src=hash&#038;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#wokeracism<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/Tzcj4lPixL\">pic.twitter.com\/Tzcj4lPixL<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Burgess Owens (@BurgessOwens) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BurgessOwens\/status\/1382784516134080517?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 15, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"a8d-pre\"><span>After the editorial cartoon\u2019s publication, Utah\u2019s congressional delegation issued a stern condemnation over the matter.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B3\" class=\"a8d adSo\"><\/figure>\n<p><span>In a joint statement at the time, Sens. Mitt Romney and Mike Lee and Reps. Blake Moore, Chris Stewart, and John Curtis called the depiction \u201cbeyond the pale.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"zxx\" dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/y4qjneb98w\">https:\/\/t.co\/y4qjneb98w<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/d6S0AnpIdG\">pic.twitter.com\/d6S0AnpIdG<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Mike Lee (@SenMikeLee) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SenMikeLee\/status\/1382824977993388032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 15, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span>Despite \u201cgood faith efforts\u201d in speaking with Chair Erik Nielsen, Owens claimed the Utah Debate Commission maintains its refusal to remove Lauren Gustus, the executive editor for the <em>Tribune<\/em> as the moderator for the 4th District\u2019s debate.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>As a result, the former Oakland Raiders Super Bowl champion described his decision to snub the event as due to the \u201cracist\u201d depiction of him, and the role of the moderator behind its publication.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"a8d-pre\"><span>\u201cI will not, in good conscience, have anything to do with the racist <em>Salt Lake Tribune<\/em> and will therefore not participate in this debate,\u201d he said. \u201cI expect bias from such a liberal outlet, but racism is where I draw the line.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B4\" class=\"a8d adSo\"><\/figure>\n<p><span>\u201cI will also not be bullied into participating in a forum with unabashed bigots,\u201d he added.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Addressing Democrat nominee Darlene McDonald, Owens insisted that \u201cwhile we may disagree politically,\u201d he harbors \u201cnothing but respect\u201d for his political opponent.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cThe constituents of District 4 deserve not only to hear our voices but also to have them discussed in our district,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cI have held numerous town hall meetings across our district and would love for you to join me and share our political views in person and directly with the voters of our district,\u201d he added.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>However, Owens offered an alternative forum for the event.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cWe have allotted time on both October 22 and 29 to make this happen. Our teams can work together to work out the details, but I hope we can share a stage together over the closing weeks of this campaign,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Calling the move on the part of the Utah Debate Commission both \u201ctotally tone deaf\u201d as well as a \u201cdisservice to the voters of the 4th District,\u201d Owens described what the <em>Salt Lake Tribune<\/em> previously \u201cpublished and still stands behind\u201d concerning him as \u201cappalling.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The incumbent Utah Republican concluded by explaining the importance for his constituents \u201cto hear from me why I will not turn my back on the injustices that my family and my race have experienced.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cTo participate in this sham of a debate would be doing just that,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cI look forward to debating Darlene in a setting not regulated by the partisan Utah Debate Commission,\u201d he added.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Owen\u2019s remarks come as the Utah Debate Commission <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sltrib.com\/news\/politics\/2022\/10\/11\/will-burgess-owens-show\/\"><span>published<\/span><\/a><span> a statement that he had yet to confirm his attendance for the Wednesday evening event to be held at the University of Utah.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Owens has previously <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2022\/07\/15\/rep-burgess-owens-slams-lefts-racist-attacks-says-justice-clarence-thomas-should-be-revered-not-ridiculed\/\"><span>accused<\/span><\/a><span> the \u201chard left\u201d of encouraging \u201cracism, inequality, [and] inequity.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Last month, following Vice President Kamala Harris\u2019s claims that the US-Mexico border is \u201csecure,\u201d Owens <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2022\/09\/15\/exclusive-rep-burgess-owens-rips-bidens-open-border-policies-an-unprecedented-crisis-every-american-paying-the-price\/\"><span>slammed<\/span><\/a><span> President Biden and \u201cBorder Czar\u201d Harris for the \u201cunprecedented\u201d humanitarian crisis every American is \u201cpaying the price\u201d for due to the administration\u2019s open border policies.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>He also warned of the unprecedented number of illegal border crossings as well as the proliferation of deadly fentanyl across the country.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Recently, Owens <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2022\/08\/19\/burgess-owens-launches-pac-supporting-gop-minority-candidates-break-democrat-partys-radical-agenda\/\"><span>announced<\/span><\/a><span> his launching of a PAC supporting conservative minority candidates nationwide running for Congress in a bid to \u201cbreak\u201d the Democrat party and its \u201cradical agenda.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The new political committee, known as the \u201cJust Win Baby\u201d PAC, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/justwinbabypac.com\/\"><span>seeks<\/span><\/a><span> to defeat Democrats and \u201ccontinue the fight\u201d in 2022.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><em>Follow Joshua Klein on Twitter\u00a0<a class=\"x5l\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/joshuaklein_\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">@JoshuaKlein<\/a>.<\/em><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Utah Rep. Burgess Owens (R-UT) will not be attending Utah\u2019s 4th Congressional District debate scheduled for Wednesday night, he recently revealed to Breitbart News, citing his \u201cprinciples\u201d regarding the event\u2019s<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1687024","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1687024","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1687024"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1687024\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1687024"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1687024"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1687024"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}