Weeks after a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, shot and killed an African American teenager, spurring weeks of riots, Hillary Clinton, presumptive 2016 Democrat candidate for president, has finally spoken out about the matter.
After taking criticism for over two weeks for staying silent on the incident, Clinton at last called for a “thorough and speedy investigation” of the shooting.
She also chimed in with a belated comment on the militarization of our police, saying, “We don’t want to see our streets look like a war zone. Not in America. We are better than that.”
The former senator and secretary of state also insisted that there are “inequities that persist in our justice system.”
Even as President Obama has endured much criticism for his slight efforts in Ferguson and his reticence to comment, Clinton praised Obama’s handling of the incident. “I applaud President Obama for sending the attorney general to Ferguson and demanding a thorough and speedy investigation.”
Protest leader and MSNBC talk show host Al Sharpton criticized Clinton by name for staying silent on the shooting, stating that he was “amazed” that so few potential presidential candidates had spoken out.
Clinton was also criticized on Twitter for taking so long to comment on Ferguson. After Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren made a Twitter comment about the Michael Brown shooting, some wondered why Warren was speaking out but Clinton was silent.
Even The Huffington Post’s political editor Igor Bobic, who is usually supportive, criticized both Obama and Clinton for partying while Ferguson burned.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston or email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com.
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