To everyone convinced that the Bob Etheridge they saw in the ?Who Are You?? video bears no relationship to the man they?ve known for decades as a county commissioner, state legislator, state school superintendent, and congressman, I?m going to pass along something you don?t want to hear: you didn?t really know him.
From the Southern Pines Pilot:
Brandon Leslie, who moved away seven years ago and is now an attorney
in Oxford, Miss., said he had an encounter with the now seven-term
Democratic congressman from Lillington almost 14 years ago.In the fall of 1996, when Leslie was a senior at Pinecrest High
School, he said he met Etheridge at a Pinecrest football game. Etheridge
– then the state superintendent of public instruction – was challenging
incumbent Republican David Funderburk for his congressional seat. At
the time, Moore County was part of the 2nd District, which Etheridge now
represents.Leslie said he introduced himself to Etheridge and asked him about
his stance on a particular education program. He said Etheridge didn’t
answer his question, so he pressed him two more times.“And that’s when he grabbed me by the shoulders, he shook me, and
I’ll never forget it, he said, ‘Son, you need to learn to respect your
elders,'” he said by phone on Wednesday. “I was just so taken aback, I
think my jaw just dropped, and he walked off.”
By the way, Leslie is a liberal Democrat who does, indeed, support the Obama agenda. He just doesn?t support politicians acting like jerks.
