Phil Hare on his BKAD appearance: Constituents’ response “overwhelmingly positive”

From the Quad-Cities Online:

Hare on ‘Colbert Report’: No regrets
Posted online: March 26, 2007 12:09 PM
Print publication date: 03/27/2007

If I were U.S. Rep. Phil Hare, D-Rock Island, I’m not sure I would have taken the bait and appeared on “The Colbert Report” on Comedy Network. But then, I’m not the congressman, and he says he has no regrets.

Interestingly, on March 15, the day Stephen Colbert’s taped interview with Hare was broadcast, a story on TheHill.com, the online version of the Washington, D.C.-based The Hill, reported that U.S. Rep. Rahm Emanuel, D-Chicago, the House’s Democratic Caucus chairman, “has told new Democratic members of Congress to steer clear of Stephen Colbert, or at least his satirical Comedy Central program.”

. . .

Tim Schlittner, spokesman for Hare, said Colbert met Hare at a retreat for the congressional freshman class at Harvard late last year. A show producer later followed up with Schlittner.

The congressman, Schlittner said by e-mail, has “no regrets whatsoever. Rep. Hare’s constituents have had an overwhelmingly positive reaction to his appearance. They understand that it’s a comedy show.”

Schlittner also said Emanuel never spoke to Hare about the appearance beforehand and still hadn’t nearly a week after it aired.

“Rep. Hare greatly respects Rep. Emanuel’s opinion, but as I said, has no regrets about doing the show,” Schlittner said.

Full text of article

I’m grinning and figuratively thumbing my nose at Rahm Emanuel right now.

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