August 4th marks the 95th anniversary of the birth of the legendary White House reporter and columnist Helen Thomas. After covering every president from Kennedy to Obama and asking them all tough, sometimes impertinent questions on behalf of all Americans, Helen's storied career came to a messy and abrupt end in 2010.
A brief and edited conversation the nearly 90 year old Thomas had with a rabbi, in which she said the Jews should "get the hell out of Palestine," was released on YouTube. The reaction was swift and largely negative, and Thomas had little choice but to resign her post as a columnist for the Hearst Corporation and give up her front row seat to history.
It's unfortunate that Thomas's flippant response to a question about Israel has tarnished her legacy in many people's minds. Personalllly I have mixed feelings about what happened but one thing I feel strongly: for me the messy, ugly end does not negate the fine, necessary and even patriotic sum of her life's work.
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