and shirley sherrod has a new job office from the usda. she says she needs some time to talk it over with her family before she decides if she will take it. vinita and rob back to you. >> emily schmidt, thank you. what will she decide?n she nd o talks to george stephanopoulos on "good morning america." >>> state employment offices are gearing up ahead of an expected vote in congress today. house members are expected to follow the senate to extend benefits to the long-term unemployed. officials in some states say retroactive payments could go out as soon as next week. in other state, though, the jobless may have to wait a few weeks. >>> president obama has signed into law the weeping overhaul of the financial industry. now, he must decide who will head up the powerful new bureau of consumer protection. elizabeth warren, a harvard law professor, is considered a leading candidate for that job. >>> a tropical storm gathering 1,000 miles from the gulf oil leak is bringing work at the site to a standstill. some ships could start heading to safe

the history of the sherrod story.. you know shirley sherrod's yersonal story. i'm ashamed so many people failed to google her name. >> the only people that could fire her were the hatinistration. ration. news, not the naacp. the only administration could naacp.er. they bear the most culpability here. i think, by a long shot. true.ther thing that's true. what she actually did say gets wh d right back to the last ht back toon. what she did say was that the ivision, she came to nderstand, were really not really black and white but between haves and have nots. that is what turned her around and made her fight for the white farmers. >> and i think except for her, there's enough blame to go aroundfor everyone here. tention.le that maliciously and firsttention misrepresented the dment. i believe in the first amendment. but you wish for joseph welch to say, have you no decency at last? thes from the standpoint of obama and ntion to andration, who are aidse people they should pay attention to and be afraid of? i mean i mean who is glenn beck, bill o'reilly. who is brett

we're going to begin with the shirley sherrod case. by now, i'm sure you know the story, how a heavily edited tape that was taken totally out of context was put on the web. the result was that the administration, without checking to see what the rest of the tape said, fired the woman. then, came a lot of apologies and the offer of a new job. michael eric dyson, you are writing a book about barack obama and race. and it seems to me, after making all of these eloquent statements about race during the campaign, now, when race comes up as an issue, this white house seems to commit some gaffe or stumbles. what do you think is happening here? >> well, i think the unfortunate reality is that there's a kind of gag order imposed on the obama white house when it comes to issues of race. there's an understandable lamentation among the obamaites that we don't want to pigeonhole ourselves into the corner of race, so to speak. but at the same time, what is sacrificed the clear and decisive action on behalf of, i think, valuable principles of racial

always a pleasure. >> up next, the fallout over the firing of shirley sherrod. what does it say about race and politics in america? we'll have the reverend jesse jackson, after this quick break. ♪ [ man ] if it was simply about money, every bank loan would be a guarantee of success. at ge capital, loaning money is the start of the relationship, not the end. i work with polaris every day. at ge capital, we succeed only when they do. whoo! awesome! yes! we've got to get you out of the office more often. ♪ my turn to drive. ♪ (voice 2) how bad is it? (voice 1) traffic's off the chart... (voice 2) they're pinging more targets... (voice 3) isolate... prevent damage... (voice 2) got 'em. (voice 3) great exercise guys. let's run it again. (voice 3) great exercise guys. even responsible people get into accidents, which is why we do all we can to help you move on after one. [ engine turns over ] and when you insure both your home and car with us, we do it for even less. liberty mutual insurance. responsibility. what's your policy? >> chris: with race and politics b

the white house has apologized for the way former agriculture department official shirley sherrod was forced to resign, but denied the president himself was involved. that responsibility fell on the shoulders of agriculture secretary tom vilsack, who also apologized, admitting his decision was "made in haste." nbc's tracie potts joins us live now from washington with more. tracie, good morning to you. >> reporter: lynn, good morning. this story has taken some twists and turns even in the last 24 hours. first fired, now possibly rehired, she's considering a new job with the government. all of this after the government makes an embarrassing admission. >> this is a good woman. she's been put through hell. >> reporter: shirley sherrod's now had apologies from her boss and the white house. >> a disservice was done for which we apologize. >> reporter: she was fired monday after a conservative blog posted an edited version of what she said about helping a white farmer 24 years ago. the clip made her look like a racist when, in fact, she was denouncing racism. >> i'm not angry today. >> repor

shirley sherrod talks about being oppressed by a system. if she were to escape from that system she wouldn't have the same criticisms that -- >> but that's not the tape that they used. that's not fair. you said it was out of context. what was played was definitely out of context because they took her in the middle of her explaining, a story of 24 years ago, and only put that out like it was present. they didn't use the part about health care. they didn't use the part about oppression. you go to other parts of the speech. >> and that was the worst part of it. >> but have you cannot have a difference of facts. the facts is the two minutes they put out was totally out of context. >> but the fact is, if you don't agree with other places. the fact that she says something you don't agree with other places does not excuse if that first two minutes -- when i first is off it i was not aware she was talking about 24 years ago and that seems like a vital piece of information. >> she was in the past tense with everything. you could hear her building up

shirley sherrod, the agrictu >>> we are back. shirley sherrod culture official wrongly accused of harboring racist views and fired on those ak su sagss became an unlikely household name this week. there is plenty of blame to go around, but one question hung in the air this week, weren't discussions about race supposed to get better in the obama era? >> reporter: it was during the presidential campaign of 2008 that senator obama set an example for how to discuss race. he had to explain controversial remarks his former pastor wright made from the pulpit. obama's point -- you are to put someone's views in the context of their life experience. >> even for those blacks that did make it, question of race and racism continue to define their world view in fundamental ways. for the men and women of reverend wright's generation, the memories of humiliation and doubt and fear have not gone away. nor has the anger and the bitterness of those years. >> reporter: ironically, that is is exactly what sherrod was trying to say in the speech that

the man who fired shirley sherrod, agriculture secretary tom vilsack, soon popped up on tv himself and offered her another job. all this while the nation watched her watch them. we begin tonight with jan crawford in washington. jan, this is a very bizarre two- day drama. >> reporter: oh, yes, katie. and we heard today the kind of thing you seldom here from the this white house or any white house. >> without a doubt ms. sherrod is owed an apology. i would do so certainly on behalf of this administration. >> reporter: that was a 180- degree turn from what administration officials said less than 24 hours ago when agriculture secretary tom vilsack abruptly fired shirley sherrod. >> i made this decision. it's my decision. >> reporter: after officials saw this edited clip of her speech. >> i was struggling with the fact that so many black people had lost their farm lands and here i was faced with having to have a white person. >> reporter: late this afternoon vilsack talked to sherrod >> again, i express my deep regret. >> reporter: the controversy consumed almost the entire briefing by pres

shirley sherrod talks about being o preszed by a system. if she were to escape from that system she wouldn't have the same criticisms that -- >> but that's not the tape that they used. that's not fair. you said it was out of context. what was played was definitely out of context because they took her in the middle of her explaining, a story of 24 years ago, and only put that out like it was present. they didn't use the part about health care. they didn't use the part about oppression. you go to other parts of the speech. >> and that was the worst part of it. >> but have you cannot have a difference of facts. the facts is the two minutes they put out was totally out of context. >> but the fact is, if you don't agree with other places. the fact that she says something you don't agree with other places does not excuse if that first two minutes -- when i first is off it i was not aware she was talking about 24 years ago and that seems like a vital piece of information. >> she was in the past tense with everything. you could hear her building up

first, it has been a whirlwind couple of days for shirley sherrod. she was wrongly branded a racist. fired from her job. and then yesterday came the apology from the white house and others. now she says that she has had time to think. jan crawford joins us with the latest. this story will keep you on your toes. >> you know what we saw yesterday, something that hardly ever happens in this town. a flat-out no strings apology. >> without a doubt miss sherrod is owed an apology. >> reporter: that about-face came wednesday afternoon and less than one day after agriculture secretary tom vilsack abreeders cuply fired shirley sherrod. part of the speech last spring to the naacp. but that wasn't the whole speech or the whole story. as. >> as it was unfolding, my whole thought was this is so unreal. >> reporter: vilsack apologized to sherrod and offered her another job. >> i express my deep regret. >> reporter: late last night sherrod responded. >> i was satisfied with it. i told him i appreciated the apology. >> reporter: the controversy started three days ag

vilsack fired shirley sherrod after a blogger posted a video of sherrod making racist remarks it turned out the remarks were highly edited and involved an incident almost a quarter of a century ago. jan crawford reports. >> reporter: it starts by a speech usda official shirley sherrod, describing her attitude 24 years ago toward a white farmer. >> and i was with a white person save their land. so i didn't give him the full force of what i could do. >> reporter: that comment and the speech to the naacp lit up the blogosphere after a conservative website this week aired it and suggested there was reverse racism in the administration. agriculture secretary tom vilsack reacted swiftly. he says the usda has zero tolerance for discrimination and fired sherrod for those comments. >> when i saw the statements and context of the statements, i determined it would make it difficult for her to do her job as development director. >> reporter: as with so many issues of race, there's a lot more to this story. sherrod said later in the same speech she was wrong and ultimately helped the man save his fa

just this morning shirley sherrod says she is now getting hate mail and is thinking about conserving the blogger who started the controversy. >> in 48 hours, shirley sherrod went from a forced resignation to a reinforced public apology. >> this is good woman and she has been put through hell. i asked for her forgiveness. >> miss sherrod has earned an apology. i would do so on behalf of this administration. >> the about-face developed as quickly, as conservative blogs and cable tv talked about a farmer who needed her help. >>> based on the speech they asked her to resign without pressure from the white house, but it turns outer the speech continued with how she helped the farmer and still has his support today more than 20 years later. >> i've come a long ways. >> what happened, it took too long but it makes me feel better. >> he visited the congressional black caucus where they said shirley sherrod needs a new place in government. >> she is going to talk it over with the family whether deciding the take with it. >> in concord, health officials are giving away free vaccines this eveni

today shirley sherrod, fired by the u.s.d.a., got the call and another apology. are illegal immigrants raising the crime rate? some argue yes; others no. we'll give you the facts. and happy thursday-- or is it? tracking the mood of america tweet by tweet. captioning sponsored by cbs from cbs news world headquarters in new york, this is the "cbs evening news" with katie couric. >> couric: good evening, everyone. a tropical storm has just formed in the caribbean and by saturday it could be churning through the site of the massive oil spill in the gulf of mexico, disrupting the cleanup for days, even weeks. some cleanup boats were sent back to port today. the large oil recovery ships may follow. tropical storm bonnie is north of cuba right now, and over the next few days it's projected to pass through the florida keys and then into the gulf. even so, federal officials said today they will keep the cap on that ruptured well. and the white house said the president, who's been urging americans to visit the gulf's still-open beaches, will take the first family to the gu

shirley sherrod has gotten an apology and the offer of another job. >> the growing controversy over sherrod's forced resignation has ignited another embarrassing firestorm for the white house over race. here's diana alvear. >> reporter: two days after shirley sherrod was forced to resign, she got a public apology and the promise of a new job from her former boss. >> i started off by extending to her my personal and profound apologies for the pain and discomfort that has been caused to her and to her family. >> reporter: agriculture secretary tom vilsack's about-face followed a white house briefing that revealed the president's perspective. >> that a disservice had been done here and that an injustice had happened. >> this is my decision and it's a decision i regret having made in haste. >> reporter: it all started with this internet video. >> here i was faced with having to help a white person save their land. so, i didn't give him the full force of what i could do. >> reporter: at first it sounded like the usda employee was admitting to racist behavior. it turned out sherrod was talking abou

and andrew's smear on shirley sherrod is -- >> this was not about shirley sherrod. >> apologize to her. >> this was not about the tea party. this was not about shirley sherrod. it's about the smears that have gone about the tea party. including the primary one that led the charge that got reinstigated by the naacp, condemning the tea partying saying "n" words were hurled at congressmans carston, lewis and cleaver. when i showed four videos that it did not happen, the mainstream media would not happen. it was meant to hurt the tea party. >> this was during the health care debate. >> the day before. >> it showed the members of congress. >> they were walking down the steps. congressman carson said when he was walking down the steps that the "n" word was said 15 times by 15 different people. 400 people gathered around him. he thought there would be rocks thrown at him. the police finally interceded. when they isolated that it happened on those steps, we found four videos that show them walking down briskly. cleaver, who says that he was with them, is not in the video. but congressman john

posted on a conservative website, it shows shirley sherrod, a georgia-based official with the u.s. department of agriculture and obama administration appointee, at a naacp dinner in march of this year describing her initial reluctance to help a white farmer who came for aid. >> i was struggling with the fact that so many black people had lost their farmland, and here i was faced with having to help a white person save their land. so i didn't give him the full force of what i could do. >> reporter: sherrod says the incident she was describing occurred more than 20 years ago, before she worked for the usda, a story she told as an example of overcoming her own prejudices. >> that's when it was revealed to me that it's about poor versus the people who have. >> and telling that story, how i changed while working with him, i used that to help others to see it's not about race. >> reporter: but the reaction was swift and certain. the usda asked her to resign. sherrod said she was driving when she got the call from an agriculture official in washington. >> she said, well, they want you to

, ng the mailbox belonging to -- >> shirley sherrod. is - is full, and cannot accept sages at thi at this time. time.porter: white house fficials tried again today. thisly, the two connected at sident had readrnoon. by then, the president had read the full transcript of her march speech, in which she described overcoming her own subject the pr had writtenect the president told her he had written about in his memoir, "dreams from my father." and george, this evening, herrod landed in atlanta and cccccld reporters there that she's not sure yet about that job offer. this has his has been a whirlwind, she needs some down time and she has george? yet to see the job offer in u. ting. e said? >> okay, jake, thank you. >>> as we said earlier, president obama talked exclusively to abc news after that phone call with shirley shirod. he told elisabeth leamy the cidentincident shows what happens when people jump to conclusions. and one of those people, of forced sherrodama's own agriculture secretary, tom vilsack, who forced sherrod to resign. >> h

which brings me to the story of ousted agriculture department official shirley sherrod, who was fired based on a single piece of internet video that was edited out of context and posted on a conservative website and air on fox news and bought lock, stock, and barrel by the obama administration. >> for someone to think i was a racist, someone who has worked against racism all my life, really hurt. >> a good woman has gone through a very difficult period. i will have to live with that for a long time. >> tom vilsack apologizes. at the white house, robert gibbs apologizes. on fox, bill reilly apologizes but finally, the president himself calls shirley himself. colby, what you make of this? >> it is a sad commentary on where we are as a country. if you listen to the speech, it was a good speech, made the exact opposite point that the right-wingers tried to make out of it. but everybody behaved bad up and down the line, including the president. i wrote an article that set the administration showed its two colors -- true colors, which is yellow. >> perhaps you ought to apologize for saying

well, the president became the latest public official to personally apologize to shirley sherrod today. in a seven-minute phone call this afternoon, the president also encouraged her to take a new agriculture department job that's been specifically designed for her. from his private study just off the oval office, the president phoned shirley sherrod to try to extinguish what's become a fire storm. >> obviously she's got a remarkable story. he expressed his apologies for the events of the last several days. >> reporter: during their media blitz, the former agriculture department worker has been on tv in back-to-back interviews and the president struggled to get ahold of her. >> the white house operator tried on at least two occasions last night and was both unable to reach her and unable to leave a voicemail. >> reporter: this morning sherrod indicated she wanted to speak to mr. obama, not to receive an apology, but to share her experiences. >> people at the grassroots level, people who live out there in rural america, people who live in the south. i know he does not have that kind of

. >> the head of the agriculture department now says he will reconsider shirley sherrod' resignation, after learning more about what she actually said. jake tapper reports. >> reporter: it was combustible. a conservative website posting a video clip of department of agriculture official shirley sherrod at an naacp event talking about meeting with a white farmer. >> i was struggling with the fact that so many black people have lost their farmland. and here i was faced with having to help a white person save their land. so, i didn't give him the full force of what i could do. >> reporter: an obama administration official called sherrod in her car and demanded she pull over and type a resignation letter in her blackberry. agriculture secretary tom vilsack said in a statement that there is zero tolerance for discrimination at his agency. none of them bothered to learn that the incident in question happened 24 years ago when sherrod worked for a nonprofit. the question is, why would you look at the white farmers differently than you looked at the black farmers? >> because i always, up to t

it was quick vindication for shirley sherrod. this morning she is considering a job offer from the agriculture department, not to mention apologies from the obama administration. all of this just days after sherrod was fired for what appeared to be racist remarks. tara mergener is in washington with much more on this story. boy, things have changed in a matter of, what, 24 hours, tara? >> reporter: that's right, betty. good morning. after accepting apologies from both the white house and the a agriculture secretary, sherrod weighs her option but the controversy rages on. shirley sherrod is still deciding on whether to go back to the department of agriculture. >> she has a unique set of skills which would lend assisting usda as we deal with trying to turn the page on our civil rights chapter. >> reporter: secretary tom vilsack offered to rehire the 62-year-old wednesday for a new role, just days after firing her over this speech. >> and here i was helping a white person save their land. >> reporter: the edited clip posted online b

the point is, george, all you had to do was simply google sherrod to know that shirley sherrod has an extraordinary life story of commitment to justice, civil rights, fairness for all people. it is one of the saddest chapters i've seen in this small but very unique period of history under president obama when no one simply picked up the phone to call this wonderful woman or her husband and say, what's up? >> you know, i think you make a good point here. nicolle, let me bring you in good point here. nicolle, let me bring you in here. thehie ha department picks up the phone and makes the phone call. inexcusable. on the other hand, in some ways, understandable given the hair trigger that everyone's on now because of the way the stories fly ahe inet. yedi k goi he unrelated. i think this is a white house that to me appears very brittle. it's a white house that's created a climate at their agencies where everyone is so eager to protect and promote the white house's political interests that they're overreacting. now i think we may have done -- >> they thought they were doing the white house

the strange tale of shirley sherrod. captioning sponsored by cbs from cbs news world headquarters in new york, this is the "cbs evening news" with katie couric. >> couric: good evening, everyone, president obama welcomed britain's new prime minister to the white house today, but there wasn't much time for pleasantries. there's a bit of tension between the two allies, in part because of the b.p. oil spill, but also because of the decision last year by a scottish court to release a libyan terrorist. and questions about the role b.p. might have played in that. chip reid is our chief white house correspondent. chip, the president and the prime minister are off to a bit of a rocky start. >> reporter: well, katie, the plan was for president obama and prime minister cameron to focus on the special relationship between america and great britain. instead, they focused on the not-so-special relationship between america and b.p. british prime minister david cameron came to the white house to find common ground with president obama

you'll remember our story yesterday about shirley sherrod. so, what happened today? here's jake tapper. >> reporter: late this afternoon, agriculture secretary tom vilsack apologized to shirley sherrod. >> this is a good woman. she's been put through hell. and i asked for shirley's forgiveness and she was gracious enough to extend it to me. >> reporter: the public mea culpa came after president obama privately expressed strong regrets about the whole affair. >> he talked about the fact that an injustice had happened, and that because the facts had changed, a review of the decision based on those facts should be undertaken. >> reporter: actually the facts had not changed. it's just that the obama administration finally learned all of them. the story started when a conservative blog, and then cable tv, ran this video clip of sherrod at an naacp dinner earlier this year talking about a meeting with a white farmer seeking her assistance. >> so i didn't give him the full force of what i could do. >> reporter: but that clip did not tell the full story. the meeting with the

he blamed the media for the resignation of shirley sherrod. he admitted the administration was at fault. >> a lot of people overreacted including people in my administration. >> he also talked about vacationing with the family and he talked about the flip side. >> well, where do i begin here. country is under a tough stretch since i took office. the oil spill, we've had two wars but you think the american people have gone through. >> he put his faith in economic turnaround. >> the reason i seem calm all the time, even if sometimes we're going through turbulence, i try to take the long view. >> critics say the message may not resonate as planned. >> they say enough about me, now about you. i don't think it's going to play well. >> but it's gives him an opportunity to go beyond politics. >> and then you tweet? >> i don't tweet. i don't tweet on a regular basis. i think there is an official president tweet. >> he says he won't be a guest at chelsea clinton's wedding. >>> he does keep his personal blackberry. >> still cloud hanging around the bay.

he blamed the media for the resignion of shirley sherrod. he admitted the administration was at fau. >> a lot of people overreacd including people in my administration. >> he al talked about vacationing with the family and he talked about the flip side. >> well, where do i begin here. country is under a tough stretch since i took office. the oil spill, we've had two wars but you think th american people have gone through. >> he put his faith in economic turnaround. >> the reason i seem calm all the time, even if sometimes we're going throug turbulence, i try to take the long view. >> critics say the message may not resonate as planned. >> the say enough about me, now about you. i don't think it's going to play well. >> but it's gives him an opportunity to go beyond politics. >> and then you tweet? >> i don't tweet. i don't tweet on a regular basis. i think there is an official president tweet. >> he says he won't be a guest at chels clinton's wedding. >>> he do keep his personal blackberry. >> still cloud hanging around the bay. you have fli

. >>> i'm sorry an apology today from the president to shirley sherrod. she's the woman at the center of a video clip controversy that sparked heated debate over race and the media. it remains unclear what will happen next. >> from president obama a phone call, and an apology to shirley sherrod. her ouster has sparked a political firestorm. >> talked about experiences he had and written in his book, that in some ways were similar to the experiences she has written, talked about. >> reporter: hours earlier, sherrod laid out what she would like to discuss with the president. >> i would like to talk to him about the experiences of people like me, people at the grassroots level. people who live out there in rural america, who live in the south. i know he does not have that kind of experience. >> reporter: pushed out after a conservative blog posted edited video that seemed to show a racial virus. she's getting support from both sides of the political aisle. >> this whole episode has been unfortunate, and i think this lady's been through hell and back. this is

a capacity to be made more perfect. >> reporter: shirley sherrod possesses that capacity. don't we all? race exists but racism doesn't have to. maybe we could all decide to listen more, talk less, and just get the facts. >> osgood: commentary from nancy giles. now to bob schieffer in washington for a look at what's ahead on cbs news "face the nation." good morning, bob. >> schieffer: good morning, charles. we're going to talk about race in america with cornell west and two conservative columnists michael gerson and john fund. >> osgood: thank you, bob schieffer. we'll be watching. ahead now here on sunday morning,. >> here is the unadult rated truth. >> osgood: mo rocca's read.... >> in such terms that even a fool can understand what i'm talking about. >> osgood: on celebrity tell- alls. fire was fire. and the first language, the language of chemistry, was universal and eloquent. and the unique ability of chemistry to change everything has never changed. it is still the hope of human history to come. it is still the bond in partial between the elements. hydrogen, oxygen, c

what started out as a simple speech about racial healing by shirley sherrod ended with apologies all around from the white house and the full obama administration. >> this is a good woman. she's been put through hell. and i could have done and should have done a better job. >> reporter: a humbled agriculture secretary, tom vilsack, took full responsibility for the fires. >> these types of decisions require time. i didn't take the time. i should have. and i will have to live with that for a long, long time. >> reporter: vilsack said late this afternoon he called sherrod to apologize and discussed bringing her back to the department in a new capacity. >> she has a unique set of skills which i think would lend themselves to assisting and helping usda as we deal with trying to turn the page on our civil rights chapter. >> reporter: vilsack said a history of racial discrimination at the department of agriculture contributed to his hasty decision on monday. >> i was very sensitive and remain sensitive to the civil rights issues involving this department. >> reporter: two days after shirley

shirley sherrod is with us from atlanta. ms. sherrod, good morning to you. >> good morning. >> what a 24-48 hours you've had. i mean, let's go through it here. you were vilified, forced to resign and when the most elementary investigation was put toward your situation, what i like to call the oops began, the naacp which originally came out against you, apologized saying they made a mistake, and now i even understand the agriculture secretary who originally stood by his decision has said he's willing to see more information. can you describe your emotions as we sit here and talk this morning? >> you know, it's so hard. looking at the last 24 hours, when the department -- when this first came to light, i said to them you need to look at the whole thing, that's not the message i was putting out there. and for them all day yesterday to say they were standing by their decision, and now at this late hour, to be saying they are now willing to look at the facts, you know, it's hard to take at this point. >> what's outrageous about this

now shirley sherrod plans to suit blogger who posted the video that started it all. sherrod was asked to resign after conservative blogger andrew breitbart posted a clip of a speech in which he appeared to make a racist comment. but when the video was released in its entirety, many agreed her words were taken out of context. the usda has offered her a new job but she is not sure if she is going to accept it. >> i just put an apb out to recruiters i knew and my other friends and other consultants. >> still to come, how this week's jefferson award winner provides hope in the form of job leads. >> and still to come, a warmer temperature, yes, in the bay area. they are on the way. i see them! any day now. i have your seven-day forecast coming up. ,, with my friends we'll do almost anything. out for drinks, eats. i have very well fitting dentures. i like to eat a lot of fruits. love them all. the seal i get with the super poligrip free keeps the seeds from getting up underneath. even well fitting dentures let in food particles. just a few dabs of super poligrip free is cl

. >> former usda ploimy shirley sherrod says she plans to sue the conservative blogger that posted an edited video that made her appear racist. >> he had to know he was targeting me. at this point you know he hasn't apologized. i don't want it. at this point. and and he'll just... >> sherrod resigned after the blogger posted the editing video online. it made it appear sherrod didn't want to help a white farmer. she was talking about overcoming racial prejudice. she's been offering a new job in the agriculture department. but hasn't decided whether to accept it. >> president obama broke tradition by appearing on late-night talk shows, today making television history once again, appearing with the ladies on "the view". it's something never happened before. commander in chief on a daytime tv talk show. the president discussed economy, jobs, afghanistan and racial tensions in the u.s.. he blames the media for the forced resignation of shirley sherrod last week but admitted his administration was at fault for condemning statements before viewing the speech on race relation autos a lot of p

sherrod's firing and her naacp speech and democratic congressman charlie rangel's ethics charges. david gregory is preparing for tomorrow's "meet the press." he joins us now for some insight. i know the president would have liked us to be talking about the passage of financial reform. how much did the sherrod story knock him off his economy and jobs message? >> quite a bit. this was major piece of legislation the president achieved. it's part of what they are calling recovery summer. yet they are still deluged with headlines and not quite a distraction. it's more substantive than that, the fact jobs are still not being created in this economy, it's much more sluggish than anyone thought it would be even if there is an economic recovery going on. all that concentration wiped away because of the sherrod story. it's something they very much want to get back to. the president will do that. he and other democrats want to try to campaign on the message of financial reform being the beginning of a real turnaround for the economy. >> got to ask you about the charley rangel story. the char

but -- >> the mailbox belonging to shirley sherrod is full and cannot accept new messages at this time. >> reporter: white house officials tried again. finally the two connected. by then the president had read the full transcript of her march speech in which she described overcoming her own biases, a subject the president told her he had covered in his memoir "dreams from my father." she told reporters she's not sure if she's going to accept the job. this has been a whirlwind, she needs some down time, she has yet to see the offer in writing. jake tapper, abc news, the white house. >>> a congressional panel has charged new york democrat charles rangel with violating house rules. their two-year investigation centered on his real estate holdings, fund-raising and financial disclosure. rangel gave up leadership of the house ways and means committee in march because of a sepate in marchhiccause of a sepate elc e c to prove his innoc >> i feel extraoriy that my supporters over 40 years will be able to evalua >> specific cha rangel will be revealed at public hearing on t >>> an openly gay ar

he's done it again with his out of context video clip that got shirley sherrod fired. but how does andrew breitbart manage to cause political chaos wherever he goes? wherever he goes? we went to find out. >> announcer: from the global resources of abc news, with terry moran, martin bashir and cynthia mcfadden in new york city, this is "nightline," july 21st, 2010. >> good evening, i'm cynthia mcfadden. we begin with business, and rather, remarkable news at facebook, which announced today that it had signed up its 500 millionth user. not bad for a website that didn't exist until six years ago. the story of its creation by founder mark zuckerberg has become almost mythological. soon a movie will bring that story to life. butch as the movie makers say, you don't get to 500 million friends without making a few enemies. so, who is mark zuckerberg? diane sawyer went to facebook's headquarters to find out what makes the 26-year-old ceo tick. >> reporter: 500 million. that's the mind boggling number of users facebook hit this week. to give you an idea of how many people that i

i mean, we are all kind of mixed up. >> reporter: as for shirley sherrod, she said today she's still thinking about that job offer from the administration, but she said she definitely plans to sue andrew breitbart, the conservative blogger who first posted excerpts of her speech. brian? >> savannah, thanks for all of that. savannah guthrie, our white house correspondent. >>> when our broadcast continues in just a moment, protesters angry about arizona's tough new immigration law being blocked by the judge. >>> and later, the books that have become an unlikely worldwide sensation. on the trail tonight of "the girl with the dragon tattoo." girl with the dragon tattoo." anncr: there are engines... and then there's the twin-turbocharging, 365-horsepower-generating, ecoboost engine in the taurus sho from ford that has the thirst of a v6 with the thrust of a v8. the most innovative full-size sedan in america... is now highest ranked in initial quality. the taurus sho, from ford. drive one. i'm more confident and i love this. [ male announcer ] to keep doing what you love, keep your heart h

white house officials say the decision to fire this official, shirley sherrod was solely at the discretion of the agricultural secretary, tom vilsack. the president was briefed afterwards and fully supports the decision. it's the video that became an overnight cable and internet sensation. >> the first time i was faced with helping a white farmer save his farm. >> reporter: posted on a conservative website, it shows shirley sherrod at an naacp dinner in march of this year describing her initial reluctance to help a white farmer who came for aid. >> i was struck by the fact that so many black people had lost their farmland. and here i was faced with having to help a white person save their land. so i didn't give him the full force of what i could do. >> reporter: sherrod says the incident she was describing occurred more than 20 years ago, before she worked for the usda. a story she told as an example of overcoming her own prejudices. >> that's when it was revealed to me that it's about poor. versus those who have. in telling that story how i changed while working with him. i used that to h

so who is shirley sherrod and why is she so suddenly famous? >> she's a lifelong rural development expert from southwest georgia. who gave a very remarkable speech to an naacp group in march in which she argued that it's poverty, not skin color, that divides americans. which was also then twisted by a conservative website. into making her seem like a racist. and when word of that doctored video reached the white house earlier this week, someone there, we're not sure her, who, seemed to move with unusual dispatch to make sure that people at the usda fired her that day. later that night as she drove home from work she pulled over to the side of the road and resigned by email. the next morning, it's only tuesday, when the full context of that speech to the naacp became known it was clear that she was anything but a racist. and the apologies began. and until yesterday, they were still continuing. it was a ghastly 48 to 72 hours in which no one looked good and proved that an environment that's already pretty toxic politically and an attitude to shoo

but president obama did tell abc news, about his phone call with shirley sherrod. after landing in atlanta after her frenzied media tour, shirley sherrod said she was thinking about her job offer from the agriculture department. >> this has been a whirlwind. and i need a little downtime to -- and i really have not seen the offer in writing yet. >> reporter: in a rare moment of bipartisan agreement, both democrats and republicans, including house republican leader, john boehner, expressed sympathy for her. >> the whole episode has been unfortunate. and i think this lady has been put through hell and back. >> reporter: in an exclusive interview with "good morning america's" consumer correspondent, elisabeth leamy, president obama explained how he told sherrod he related personally to her speech. the full one, not the unfairly edited excerpt. >> one of the things i shared with ms. sherrod was the fact that the stories that she was telling about her own biases and overcoming them, those are actually good lessons for all of us to learn because we all have biases. i've w

the controversy started when a two-decades-old speech by shirley sherrod was posted online. in the speech sherrod appeared to indicate that she favored black farmers over white farmers when it came to giving help out. >> i was struggling with the fact that so many black people had lost their land and here i was faced with having to help a white person save their land. so i didn't give him the full force of what i could do. >> but now it appears those comments were taken out of context. the head of the agriculture department says he will reconsider forcing sherrod to resign. >>> it was an extremely frightening flight for passengers aboard a washington, d.c. to l.a. flight. their plane had to make an emergency landing in denver after a bout of severe turbulence. larry jacobs has that story. >> reporter: severe turbulence diverts a cross country flight and sends 25 people to various hospitals. united flight 967 took off from washington, d.c. tuesday night and was headed to los angeles when, according to united airlines, the wide body jet was shaken by heavy turbulence somewhere

it's been an interesting 48 hours for shirley sherrod. she's accepted apologies from the without and the secretary of agriculture, but is she ready to take a new job within the same administration that demanded her resignation just three days ago? >> it is a decision that she is mulling over this morning after agriculture secretary tom vilsack admitted he should have done a better job of investigating the video that started the controversy. so is she ready to put it all behind her? does the president himself owe her a personal apology? well, she's sitting right over there. i'm going to talk with shirley sherrod right ahead. >> also a storm brewing in the caribbean has brought efforts to permanently plug the busted oil well in the gulf to a near standstill. we're going to get the latest on that story and a rare view of the disaster as crews use a submarine to search for oil beneath the surface. we're going to take you live to the gulf in just a couple of minutes. and check in with kerry sanders. >> and plus-sized and proud. the model who i

well by now you've probably heard about the resignation of agriculture department official shirley sherrod her comments about apprehensive lee helping a white farmer have surfaced and ultimately led to the white house calling for her to resign over her racist comments and by now most people also know this video was captured years ago and when it was leaked to fox news they only showed a small little snippet of the entire story which debunks their claim that she was actually making any kind of racist comments so now that we know sharon's real story let's turn our attention to the white house how can we not call out the white house for acting too quickly for taking action before they learned all of the facts and you know why now that i think about it this isn't the first time this has happened how about former white house our van jones word spread that he sided with nine eleven truth and fox news hopped on that bandwagon pretty quickly van jones called republicans and not a name in february of this year well then jones has apologized he's sorry he said the word about republicans he's not sor

sherrod story to tell. my rant on that's coming up and again the obama white house lost their media message due to that story so we're asking is this president and is his staff could they all be competent a panel discussion on that coming up. first. to be soon which we're trying to. move from science to pressure. starts on t.v. dot com. on yesterday's show we first brought you the story of surely sure she was forced out by the white house under false pretenses only to end up getting a grand apology and an even better job offer they want she had before now while this show agrees that iraq should not have been asked to resign in the first place i do think that the mainstream media has taken this story a little bit too far like i said yesterday this is not the first time that a white house staff member has been unfairly fired but the media is acting like this has never happened before and making some very grandiose comparisons in the meantime and they're dedicating plenty of airtime to sympathizing with my fav

. >>> that ander quick snippets from a speech from shirley sherrod with a accidentally posted on a tea party acvist. here is the problem, the words had been taken out of context. sherrod was taken about an incident that took place 24 years ago that transformed her perspective on race and a complete speech proves that. >> she needs her job back. i give her job back in a minute. >> after first reporting her firing, naacp is campaigning to have her reinstated. sherrod says she is not sure she wants r old job back. >> how will i be treated once i'm ba there. i have would to be reassured on that. >> the conservative blogger that posted it getting sherrod fired was neve his intent. he merely wanted to show that people in the audience was applaudi when she talked about her perception of the white farmer. >> governor swzenegger nominate the first philippine woman to appellate court. she is the next chief justice. she would give the state preme court a female majority for the first time in its history. 50-year-old sacramento native is a graduate of u.c. davis school ofaw and a republican. if ap