Under Pressure From Palin, Rahm Emanuel Apologizes for Calling Liberals Retarded

That Rahm Emanuel is a real class act. His boss must be so proud.

White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel apologized to the head of the Special Olympics today after the Wall Street Journal reported the fiery Chicagoan privately called a group of liberal activists "f---ing retarded."

Last August, Emanuel "showed up at a weekly strategy session featuring liberal groups and White House aides," the Journal's Peter Wallsten reported. "Some attendees said they were planning to air ads attacking conservative Democrats who were balking at Mr. Obama's health-care overhaul. 'F—ing retarded,' Mr. Emanuel scolded the group, according to several participants. He warned them not to alienate lawmakers whose votes would be needed on health care and other top legislative items."

A White House official confirms that Emanuel made the remark and reports that Emanuel called Tim Shriver last week when the Journal story first appeared to apologize to the disabled community and the apology was accepted.

Of course Emanuel's mealy-mouthed apology never would haev happened unless Sarah Palin mentioned it.

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is calling on the White House to fire Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel for using the word "retarded" in a recent strategy session.

In a posting on her Facebook page Monday, Palin blasted Emanuel for calling an idea from some of President Obama's supporters "f---ing retarded" during an August meeting with liberal groups and White House aides.

The Wall Street Journal reported last week that Emanuel made the remarks after some participants said they planned to air ads attacking conservative Democrats who were critical of Obama's health care agenda.

Palin, whose youngest child, Trig, has Down Syndrome, wrote that Emanuel's expletive was "heartbreaking" and said his "degrading scolding" has been "completely ignored by the White House."

"Just as we'd be appalled if any public figure of Rahm’s stature ever used the "N-word" or other such inappropriate language, Rahm’s slur on all God's children with cognitive and developmental disabilities -- and the people who love them -- is unacceptable, and it’s heartbreaking," wrote Palin.

"Rahm is known for his caustic, crude references about those with whom he disagrees, but his recent tirade against participants in a strategy session was such a strong slap in many American faces that our president is doing himself a disservice by seeming to condone Rahm’s recent sick and offensive tactic," she continued.

Considering how Emanuel refers to those of his own party one can only wonder what he says about conservatives.