Labour Senator takes to twitter to defend comments, insults all around him

Donegal Labour Senator Jimmy Harte's twitter account sought to defend his earlier comments telling a Polish woman to go home.

Many of you will be aware of the ongoing controversy over the Irish Independent's "interpretation" of an article in a Polish newspaper yesterday which has ignited some controversy both here on Politics.ie and elsewhere. The most surprising of all things yesterday was the comment from Senator Jimmy Harte saying that the woman in question should "go home". In fact Senator Harte offered to buy the ticket himself.

I was one of many people who was, to put it mildly, a little surprised at Senator Harte's comments that the woman in question should "go home".

https://twitter.com/#!/davidcochrane...35780696915968

It ignited much attention, and it was very quickly established before 10am that the article was incorrectly translated. Whoops!

The Indo piece sparked much criticism, including from the Polish Embassy. TheJournal.ie sought (and got) a comment from the Polish Ambassador to Ireland criticizing the Indo's article.

The Irish Independent has this morning sought to clarify their article yesterday now saying that the Polish article was "inaccurately translated". and this morning's edition of Morning Ireland included an interview with the Polish Ambassador who criticised the Irish Independent over the remarks. Morning Ireland host Cathal Mac Coille said the critism was soundly based, saying that it wasn't Morning Ireland's "intention to misrepresent what was said or to needlessly offend any Polish people listening".

But people were offended by yesterday's show. Especially with Senator Harte's comments. There were many people on Twitter which found his comments surprising, many of those tweets included his twitter handle, so he could see the comments. Which is what we assume he did, just after 1am last night. His account (right now we're assuming it was him) responded late last night in defence - from about 1am to just before 2am. At least, we think he was defending his comments, or at least trying to.

The tweets, which we have screenshots of, tells one user to "go back up the mountain you came down from", tells another to "get a life", asks another if they've ever had a non-national in their home (we didn't get that either). The last tweet on the account has a go at a users saying "with a face like yours I would nt advertise your pict". Harte calls another a "FF lackey" that "looks like Dunphy". Other tweets by Harte accuse twitter users of being xenophobic and anti-Donegal.

This particular exchange with one user is my personal favourite.....

The tweets have all since been deleted with no comment from the account. We've reached out to Senator Harte via the Labour Press Office asking for a comment on what happened. Harte told the Donegal Daily that he had withdrawn his comments as the translation of the article was wrong. Harte said it was the Irish Independent that approached him for a comment in yesterday's piece.

We spoke to Labour at 9.30am and asked them for a comment, we're still awaiting a reply, once we have that, we'll share it here.

Update at 1.35

Labour has tweeted an apology on behalf of Senator Harte for his remarks on twitter last night.

https://twitter.com/#!/labour/status/165063962092777473

I wish to apologise for comments I made on Twitter last night following the Irish Independent article on a Polish resident in Donegal.

The comments were made in the heat of the moment and went well beyond an acceptable level of online interaction.

I accept full responsibility for what I said, and fully withdraw my remarks. I unreservedly apologise for any offence they may have caused.

Senator Jimmy Harte

Categories:
Labour Party

89 Comments

Clanrickard - 2nd February 2012, 10:36 AM
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1am? hmm..........

Harmonica - 2nd February 2012, 10:39 AM
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The dangers of cheap alcohol.

Sierra - 2nd February 2012, 10:45 AM
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Someone was tanked up last night one would imagine.

wee slabber - 2nd February 2012, 10:47 AM
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Oh dear! What a Twit. Someone remove his keyboard quickly. And he's a Senator! Lord preserve us from such "intellectuals"!

eoghanacht - 2nd February 2012, 10:48 AM
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Originally Posted by Harmonica

The dangers of cheap alcohol.

.............and easy access to the world wide web.

riven - 2nd February 2012, 10:49 AM
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Interesting. Will he say the same to Johnny standidle who has been claiming for years while getting work under the table?

MacBeth - 2nd February 2012, 10:50 AM
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Another reason to abolish the senate?

Nemesiscorporation - 2nd February 2012, 10:52 AM
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Harte needs to apologise for his racist comments.

He also needs to make clear to the Polish community that not only his comments were out of line, but so was the Irish Independant.

As someone who grew up around Donegal, I can safely state that Donegal has never had an elected politician of any note whatsoever.

My personal opinion regarding politics in Donegal is that ever four or so years we vote for the most annoying and useless person in Donegal, so as to get rid of them for four years to give our heads peace, from there inane gibberish.

Tomas Mor - 2nd February 2012, 10:55 AM
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Hi What about the Indo that started all this racism. They are refusing to come on radio to clarify. Lost in Translation ?

topcat4 - 2nd February 2012, 10:55 AM
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Originally Posted by MacBeth

Another reason to abolish the senate?

No, another reason to reform the Senate. We need to get rid of these party hacks from the Senate, and get democraticly elected Senators into it.

Just read the tweets here on P.ie, jaysus what a clown, any statement from the Labour party yet??

MacBeth - 2nd February 2012, 10:55 AM
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Originally Posted by Nemesiscorporation

Harte needs to apologise for his racist comments.

He also needs to make clear to the Polish community that not only his comments were out of line, but so was the Irish Independant.

As someone who grew up around Donegal, I can safely state that Donegal has never had an elected politician of any note whatsoever.

My personal opinion regarding politics in Donegal is that ever four or so years we vote for the most annoying and useless person in Donegal, so as to get rid of them for four years to give our heads peace, from there inane gibberish.

Some would say Pearce Doherty has been quite successful and good on national issues.

But the Labour Party in Donegal seems to be a bit of a joke. Remember Frank McBrearty Jnr?

shoneen - 2nd February 2012, 10:55 AM
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Hacked, surely ....

Seanie Lemass - 2nd February 2012, 10:56 AM
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Originally Posted by MacBeth

Some would say Pearce Doherty has been quite successful and good on national issues.

But the Labour Party in Donegal seems to be a bit of a joke. Remember Frank McBrearty Jnr?

Ah Frank! Missing him already. Apparently he told some woman at a door during the bye election what 'she needed'. Well, you can imagine what Frank thought she was in need of The care bears in Labour must be mortified by all this stuff.

That in itself makes it so wonderful

RobertW - 2nd February 2012, 10:57 AM
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So this is the standard required to become a Labour Party Senator?

Close the Senate.

Furthermore the Labour Party are proving themselves to be a serious bunch of amateurs in opposition and government -

From Gilmore for Taoiseach to Balanced Government - It's only fair [i.e. Gis a go] to Labour's way or Frankfurts way to the many cuts they have no problem supporting in Government but denounced in opposition.

A crowd of shysters and spoofers

topcat4 - 2nd February 2012, 10:58 AM
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Originally Posted by shoneen

Hacked, surely ....

For his sake, you would hope, he will hardly survive if he wrote that drivel.

Libero - 2nd February 2012, 11:01 AM
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This clown makes Jim McDaid look respectable.

IrishBrit - 2nd February 2012, 11:02 AM
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Unbelievable ************************e, the man speaks for the vast majority of people in this country when he said she should go home.

The polish sponger came here paid sweet fa to the tax system then quits her job to sponge of the state. Jail time and deportation is what she should get.

Anyone who defends her is a fe kin twit.

TheYouthVote - 2nd February 2012, 11:03 AM
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Isn't it rule 1 of being a politician that you don't rise to peoples insults? Never mind insulting them back?

RobertW - 2nd February 2012, 11:03 AM
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Originally Posted by IrishBrit

Unbelievable ************************e, the man speaks for the vast majority of people in this country when he said she should go home.

The polish sponger came here paid sweet fa to the tax system then quits her job to sponge of the state. Jail time and deportation is what she should get.

Anyone who defends her is a fe kin twit.

Another racist has just joined P.ie by the looks of things!

Hugo7 - 2nd February 2012, 11:04 AM
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Senator Jimmy Harte-
B.A. in Psychology at University College Dublin, 1980-
A credit to The Senate and third level education in Ireland.