Cynthia McKinney#Apology

Cynthia McKinney was born and raised in the affluent middle-class historic Collier Heights area in Atlanta, Georgia, the daughter of Leola McKinney, a retired nurse, and Billy McKinney, a law enforcement officer and former Georgia State Representative.{{Cite web|url=http://www.sonoma.edu/pubs/newsrelease/archives/2008/05/former_congresswomen_cynthia_mckinney_to_address_race_sensitivity_and_other_under_covered_issues_in_the_us_presidential_campaign.html|title=News Center: Former Congresswomen [sic] Cynthia McKinney to Address Race Sensitivity and Other Under Covered Issues in the US Presidential Campaign|website=www.sonoma.edu|access-date=April 28, 2016}}

McKinney was exposed to the Civil Rights movement through her father, an activist who regularly participated in demonstrations across the south. As a police officer, he challenged the discriminatory policies of the Atlanta Police Department, publicly protesting in front of the station, often carrying young McKinney on his shoulders. He was elected as a state representative. McKinney attributes her father's election victory, after several failed attempts, to the passage of the Voting Rights Act, which provided for federal oversight and enforcement of voting.{{cite web |url=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1424663692856267230 |title=Insightful Personal Conversation with Cynthia McKinney |access-date=July 19, 2010 |archive-date=July 15, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110715070358/http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1424663692856267230 |url-status=dead }} Most blacks in the South had been disenfranchised by state legislative barriers since the turn of the 20th century.

McKinney earned a B.A. in international relations from the University of Southern California in 1978 and an M.A. in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in 1979.{{Cite web|title=MCKINNEY, Cynthia Ann {{!}} US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives|url=https://history.house.gov/People/Listing/M/McKINNEY,-Cynthia-Ann-(M000523)/|access-date=2022-01-26|website=history.house.gov|language=en}}{{Cite web|title=Cynthia McKinney {{!}} American politician {{!}} Britannica|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Cynthia-McKinney|access-date=2022-01-26|website=www.britannica.com|language=en}} In 2015, McKinney completed her dissertation on Hugo Chavez and was awarded a Ph.D. in Leadership and Change by Antioch University.[http://aura.antioch.edu/etds/208/ "El No Murio, El Se Multiplico!" Hugo Chávez: The Leadership and the Legacy on Race], dissertation by Cynthia Ann McKinney, Antioch University, 2015.

Prior to entering politics, McKinney worked as a high school teacher and university professor.{{Cite web|url=http://natsummit.org/transcripts/cynthia_mckinney.htm|title=Cynthia McKinney|website=natsummit.org|access-date=April 28, 2016}} In 1984, she served as a diplomatic fellow at Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia. She then taught political science at Agnes Scott College in Decatur and at Clark Atlanta University.

McKinney's political career began when her father, a representative in the Georgia House of Representatives, submitted her name as a write-in candidate for the Georgia state house in 1986. Despite the fact that she lived in Jamaica at the time, she received approximately 20% of the popular vote.{{Cite web |last=Kaubisch |first=Barret |date=2008-01-22 |title=Cynthia Ann McKinney (1955- ) • |url=https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/mckinney-cynthia-ann-1955/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240920205856/https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/mckinney-cynthia-ann-1955/ |archive-date=September 20, 2024 |access-date=January 13, 2025 |website=Blackpast |language=en-US}} In 1988, McKinney ran for the same seat and won, making the McKinneys the first father and daughter to simultaneously serve in the Georgia House of Representatives.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cVtFJ5tvINsC|title=Encyclopedia of Women and American Politics|last=Ford|first=Lynne E.|date=May 12, 2010|publisher=Infobase Publishing|isbn=9781438110325|page=306|language=en}} In 1991, she decried the Gulf War in a speech on the House floor; many legislators left the chamber in protest of her remarks.{{cite book |title=Biographical Dictionary of Congressional Women |last=Foerstel |first=Karen |year=1999 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-313-30290-9 |page=[https://archive.org/details/biographicaldict0000foer/page/181 181] |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/biographicaldict0000foer/page/181 }}

In the 1992 election, McKinney was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives as the member of Congress from the newly created 11th District, a 64% African American majority district reaching from Atlanta to Savannah. She was the first African American woman to represent Georgia in the House. She was re-elected in 1994.

In 1995, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Miller v. Johnson that the 11th District was an unconstitutional gerrymander because the boundaries were drawn based on the racial composition of the constituents. McKinney's district was subsequently renumbered as the 4th and redrawn to take in almost all of DeKalb County, prompting outrage from McKinney. She asserted that it was a racially discriminatory ruling, given the fact that the Supreme Court had previously ruled that Texas's 6th District, which is 91% white, was unconstitutional. The new 4th, however, was no less Democratic than the 11th. McKinney was easily elected from this district in 1996. She was re-elected two more times with no substantive opposition.

In her first period in Congress, she served on several committees, including the House Committees on Foreign Affairs, Banking and Finance, and Armed Services. She eventually ascended to the top Democratic spot on the International Relations Subcommittee on International Operations and Human Rights, serving as ranking member. In that role, she became a frequent critic of American foreign policy. Examples include her vocal opposition to President Bill Clinton’s interventionist policies in Kosovo, U.S. sanctions against Iraq, and other policies related to the Middle East.{{cite web |url=https://www.govinfo.gov/content/GPO-CDOC-108hdoc223-3-1.pdf |title=Women in Congress }}{{Dead link|date=October 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

On October 17, 2001, McKinney introduced a bill calling for "the suspension of the use, sale, development, production, testing, and export of depleted uranium munitions pending the outcome of certain studies of the health effects of such munitions." The bill was cosponsored by Reps. Aníbal Acevedo Vilá, Puerto Rico; Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis.; Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio; Barbara Lee, D-Ca.; and Jim McDermott, D-Wash.{{cite news|url=http://www.seattlepi.com/national/95178_du12.shtml |title=Iraqi cancers, birth defects blamed on U.S. depleted uranium |publisher=Seattlepi.com |access-date=July 19, 2010|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081120013734/http://www.seattlepi.com/national/95178_du12.shtml |archive-date=November 20, 2008}}

During the 2000 presidential campaign, McKinney wrote that "Al Gore's Negro tolerance level has never been too high. I've never known him to have more than one black person around him at any given time." Gore's campaign pointed out that its manager, Donna Brazile, was black.{{cite news |last=Suellentrop |first=Chris |date=April 19, 2002 |title=Cynthia McKinney — The rep who cries racism |url=https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2002/04/cynthia-mckinney-the-rep-who-cries-racism.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060411033818/http://www.slate.com/?id=2064530 |archive-date=April 11, 2006 |work=Slate.com}}

McKinney chastised Gore for failing to support the U'wa people of Colombia trying to oppose petroleum drilling near them. In a press release issued on February 22, 2000, entitled "No More Blood For Oil," McKinney wrote that "Oil drilling on Uwa land will result in considerable environmental damage and social conflict which will lead to greater militarization of the region as well as an increase in violence." Addressing herself to Gore, she wrote, "I am contacting you because you have remained silent on this issue despite your strong financial interests and family ties with Occidental."{{Cite magazine|first=Ken|last=Silverstein|url=http://www.thenation.com/article/gores-oil-money/|title=Gore's Oil Money|magazine=The Nation|issn=0027-8378|date=May 22, 2000|access-date=March 16, 2016}}

McKinney and other members of the House of Representatives objected to the 25 electoral votes from Florida which George W. Bush narrowly won after a contentious recount.{{cite web|access-date=January 13, 2025 |archive-date=January 13, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250113202256/https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CREC-2000-11-14/pdf/CREC-2000-11-14-pt1-PgE2102.pdf |date=November 9, 2000 |first=Cynthia |last=McKinney |title=HON. CYNTHIA A. McKINNEY |url=https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CREC-2000-11-14/pdf/CREC-2000-11-14-pt1-PgE2102.pdf |website=United States House of Representatives}} Because no senator joined her objection, the objection was dismissed by Vice President Al Gore, who was Bush's opponent in the 2000 presidential election.{{cite web| url = https://www.c-span.org/video/?161423-1/electoral-college-ballot-count| title = Electoral College Ballot Count {{!}} C-SPAN.org}} Without Florida's electoral votes, the election would have been decided by the U.S. House of Representatives, with each state having one vote in accordance with the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

McKinney gained national attention for her remarks following the September 11 attacks in 2001. She asserted that the United States had "numerous warnings of the events to come" and called for an investigation. She enquired in a radio interview: "What did this administration know and when did it know it?"{{cite news|last=Eilperin|first=Juliet|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/2002/04/12/democrat-implies-sept-11-administration-plot/258355b8-b645-43ab-b84c-d5bd500af172/?noredirect=on|title=Democrat Implies Sept. 11 Administration Plot|newspaper=The Washington Post|quote="Did she say these things while standing on a grassy knoll in Roswell, New Mexico?"|date=April 12, 2002|access-date=January 7, 2019}} She said that US President George W. Bush may have been aware and allowed them to happen.{{cite news|last=Barone|first=Michael|url=https://www.usnews.com/usnews/opinion/baroneweb/mb_020829.htm |title=Lessons from Rep. Cynthia McKinney's defeat|work=U.S. News & World Report |date=August 29, 2002 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020903222124/http://www.usnews.com/usnews/opinion/baroneweb/mb_020829.htm |archive-date=September 3, 2002 |df=mdy-all }}{{cite news |title=Archived on archive.org |url=https://www.usnews.com/usnews/opinion/baroneweb/mb_020829.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020903222124/http://www.usnews.com/usnews/opinion/baroneweb/mb_020829.htm |archive-date=September 3, 2002 }} She made allegations about the earlier president, George H. W. Bush: "It is known that President Bush's father, through The Carlyle Group, had—at the time of the attacks—joint business interests with the bin Laden construction company and many defense industry holdings, the stocks of which have soared since September 11." A spokesman for the Carlyle Group rejected her hypothesis. In a statement in April 2002, McKinney told The Washington Post: "I am not aware of any evidence showing that President Bush or members of his administration have personally profited from the attacks of 9–11. A complete investigation might reveal that to be the case."

In the month that followed the attacks, McKinney published an open letter to the Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal.{{cite news|last=Raspberry|first=William|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/opinions/2001/10/22/wrong-time-wrong-place/9ca75929-ee12-41ab-9da7-35441af42f2b/|title=Wrong Time, Wrong Place|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=October 22, 2001|access-date=March 16, 2019}} The New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani had refused to cash a $10 million check written by Saudi Prince because of the Prince's suggestion that the attacks were an indication that the United States "should re-examine its policies in the Middle East and adopt a more balanced stand toward the Palestinian cause."{{cite news |url=http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/10/11/rec.giuliani.prince/ |title=Giuliani rejects $10 million from Saudi prince |website=CNN |date=October 12, 2001 |access-date=October 5, 2007|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071209092439/http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/10/11/rec.giuliani.prince/ |archive-date=December 9, 2007 |df=mdy }} In the open letter, she expressed her disappointment at Giuliani's action: "Let me say that there are a growing number of people in the United States who recognize, like you, that U.S. policy in the Middle East needs serious examination...Your Royal Highness, many of us here in the United States have long been concerned about reports by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch that reveal a pattern of excessive, and often indiscriminate, use of lethal force by Israeli security forces in situations where Palestinian demonstrators were unarmed and posed no threat of death or serious injury to the security forces or to others."{{cite web|url=http://www.ratical.org/co-globalize/CynthiaMcKinney/news/pr011012.htm|title=Letter to His Royal Highness Prince Alwaleed bin Talal|access-date=September 3, 2008|author=McKinney, Cynthia}}

In 2002, McKinney was defeated in the Democratic primary by DeKalb County judge Denise Majette.{{cite news |url=http://archives.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/08/20/primary.preview/index.html |title=Barr, McKinney lose in Georgia primaries |publisher=CNN |date=August 21, 2002 |access-date=April 30, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080610134709/http://archives.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/08/20/primary.preview/index.html |archive-date=June 10, 2008 |df=mdy-all}} Majette defeated McKinney with 58% of the vote to McKinney's 42%.{{cite news|last=Engel|first=Matthew|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/aug/22/usa.matthewengel|title=Pro-Palestinian congresswoman ousted|work=The Guardian|location=London|date=August 22, 2002|access-date=January 7, 2019}}

McKinney protested the result in court, claiming that thousands of Republicans had voted in the Democratic primary, the real contest in the district, in revenge for her anti-Bush administration views and her allegations of voter fraud in Florida in the 2000 presidential election. Like 20 other states, Georgia operates an open primary: voters do not align with a political party when they register to vote and may participate in whichever party's primary election they choose. Thus, relying on the Supreme Court's decision in California Democratic Party v. Jones, which had held that California's blanket primary violated the First Amendment (despite the fact that the Court explicitly differentiated—albeit in dicta—the blanket primary from the open primary in Jones), on McKinney's behalf, five voters claimed that the open primary system was unconstitutional, operating in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, the associational right protected by the First Amendment, and various statutory rights protected by § 2 of the Voting Rights Act.{{cite web |url=http://brian.carnell.com/archives/years/2002/10/000015.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930184547/http://brian.carnell.com/archives/years/2002/10/000015.html |archive-date=September 30, 2007 |title=Brian.Carnell.Com |access-date=June 3, 2011}}

The district court dismissed the case, in the judgement stating the plaintiffs had presented no evidence in support of the 14th Amendment and Voting Rights Act claims, and lacked standing to bring the First Amendment claim. It interpreted the Supreme Court's Jones ruling to hold that the right to association involved in a dispute over a primary—and thus, standing to sue—belongs to a political party, not an individual voter. On appeal in May 2004, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals upheld this result in Osburn v. Cox,{{cite web |url=http://www.ca11.uscourts.gov/opinions/ops/200314349.pdf |title=369 F.3d 1283 |date=May 17, 2004 |access-date=July 19, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100528045256/http://www.ca11.uscourts.gov/opinions/ops/200314349.pdf |archive-date=May 28, 2010 |df=mdy-all}} assessing that not only were the plaintiffs' claims meritless, but the remedy they requested would likely be unconstitutional under the Supreme Court's decision in Tashjian v. Republican Party of Connecticut. On October 18, 2004, the Supreme Court brought an end to the litigation, denying certiorari without comment.Osburn v. Georgia, [{{SCOTUS URL Docket|04-217}} 04-217] (cert denied, 541 U.S. __).{{cite web|url=https://www.supremecourt.gov/orders/courtorders/101804pzor.pdf |title=Order List – October 18, 1004 |access-date=July 19, 2010}}

Other factors in McKinney's defeat included her allegations of Bush's involvement in 9/11,{{cite news |url=http://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=7141808 |title=Faith, race and Barack Obama|newspaper=The Economist |date=July 6, 2006}} her opposition to aid to Israel, a perceived support of Palestinian and Arab causes, and open antisemitism in her comments.{{cite news|last=Alexander|first=Edward|url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2001999939_alexander09.html|title=The Democratic Party's anti-Semitism problem|work=The Seattle Times|date=August 9, 2004|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040814142330/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2001999939_alexander09.html|archive-date=August 14, 2004|url-status=dead|quote=She also, as The New York Times said in reporting her victory, had made 'a series of other incendiary, often racial comments.' This is The New York Times{{'}} delicate way of alluding to the stridently anti-Semitic character of McKinney's 2002 campaign, in which 'Jews' were repeatedly blamed for her faltering in the polls and for her eventual defeat.}}{{cite news|last=Preston|first=Bryan|url=http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/preston200407270210.asp|title=The Female Michael Moore|work=National Review|date=July 27, 2004|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070518094252/http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/preston200407270210.asp|archive-date=May 18, 2007|url-status=dead|quote=McKinney ended up losing the Democratic primary in 2002 to Denise Majette. Majette rode to victory largely on the negative publicity that flowed McKinney's way both when the 'Bush KNEW' accusation made national news and when her anti-Semitic and pro-Islamist beliefs were exposed.}}{{cite journal|last=Leibowitz|first=Rebecca|url=http://www.jcpa.org/phas/phas-leibowitz-s05.htm|title=Defeating Anti-Israeli and Anti-Semitic Activity on Campus – A Case Study, Rutgers University|journal=Jewish Political Studies Review|publisher=Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs|volume=17|issue=1–2|date=Spring 2005|quote=in the past McKinney has been accused of making anti-Semitic comments during interviews and speeches.|access-date=November 7, 2008|archive-date=August 27, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200827193131/http://www.jcpa.org/phas/phas-leibowitz-s05.htm|url-status=dead}}{{cite book|last=Heineman|first=Kenneth J.|title='God Is a Conservative: Religion, Politics, and Morality in Contemporary America|date=August 1998|location=New York City|publisher=New York University Press|page=234|isbn=978-0-8147-3554-1|quote=A year later, Representative Cynthia McKinney, a black Georgian Democrat, ran and anti-Semitic campaign against her Jewish opponent.}} On the night before the primary election, McKinney's father stated on Atlanta television that "Jews have bought everybody. Jews. J-E-W-S." Cynthia McKinney had been through a long contentious relationship with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).{{cite news|last=Nigut|first=Bill|url=http://www.atljewishtimes.com/archives/1999/110599cs.htm |title=Deconstructing Cynthia McKinney|work=Atlanta Jewish Times|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090311002755/http://www.atljewishtimes.com/archives/1999/110599cs.htm|date=November 5, 1999|archive-date=March 11, 2009}} Georgia political analyst Bill Shipp addressed McKinney's defeat saying: "voters sent a message: 'We're tired of these over-the-top congressmen dealing in great international and national interests. How about somebody looking out for our interests?'"{{cite news |last=Welch |first=William |date=August 21, 2002 |title=Crossover vote helped tilt Ga. races |url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2002-08-21-ga-candidates_x.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080918040818/http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2002-08-21-ga-candidates_x.htm |archive-date=September 18, 2008 |access-date=January 4, 2009 |newspaper=USA Today}}

File:CynthiaMcKinneycrop2006.jpg

During 2003 and 2004, McKinney toured the US and much of Europe publicly speaking about her defeat, her opposition to the Iraq War, and the Bush administration.

In 2004, McKinney served on the advisory committee for the group 2004 Racism Watch.{{cite web|url=http://www.commondreams.org/news2004/0331-04.htm|publisher=Common Dreams|title=2004 Racism Watch Calls on Bush-Cheney Campaign to Change or Pull Offensive Ad|access-date=October 4, 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120927035344/http://www.commondreams.org/news2004/0331-04.htm|archive-date=September 27, 2012|df=mdy-all}}

Having made no secret that she wanted to return to Congress, McKinney turned down the Green Party's nomination for president in the 2004 presidential election.{{Cite web|url=http://www.democracynow.org/2004/1/13/headlines/report_cynthia_mckinney_to_run_for_congress_again|title=Report: Cynthia McKinney To Run For Congress Again|website=Democracy Now!|access-date=August 22, 2016}}

Majette declined to run for re-election to the House, opting instead to become a candidate to replace retiring Senator Zell Miller, a conservative{{citation needed|date=December 2022}} Democrat. According to a report in The New York Times, John Lewis believed it was "going to be a real battle" for McKinney to return to Congress. It was feared McKinney's previous comments would have a negative effect on her chances.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/11/us/a-fiery-ex-congresswoman-hopes-to-make-a-comeback.html|title=A Fiery Ex-Congresswoman Hopes to Make a Comeback|work=The New York Times|agency=Associated Press|date=April 11, 2004|access-date=March 17, 2019}} Since it was taken for granted that victory in the Democratic primary was tantamount to election in November, McKinney's opponents focused on clearing the field for a single candidate who could force her into a runoff election.{{Cite web|url=http://word.world-citizenship.org/wp-archive/1114|title=World People's Blog » Blog Archive » Cynthia McKinney – USA|website=word.world-citizenship.org|access-date=April 28, 2016|archive-date=March 5, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170305015248/http://word.world-citizenship.org/wp-archive/1114|url-status=dead}}

McKinney hosted the first delegation of Afro-Latinos from Central and South America{{Cite web|url=http://atlantablackstar.com/2013/09/04/who-run-the-world-10-black-women-who-could-do-it/3/|title=Who Runs the World? 11 Black Women Who Could Do It – Page 3 of 6|last=Tracy|date=September 4, 2013|website=Atlanta Black Star|access-date=September 30, 2016}} and worked with the World Bank and the U.S. State Department to recognize Afro-Latinos. She stood with Aboriginals against Australian mining companies.{{Cite web|url=https://faculty.virginia.edu/.archived/ejus/Trampled.htm|title=HUMAN RIGHTS TRAMPLED IN AUSTRALIA – PROFITS OVER PEOPLE|date=July 12, 1999|website=University of Virginia Environmental Justice Website|access-date=March 18, 2017}} She was one of the 31 in the House who objected to the official allotment of the electoral votes from Ohio in the 2004 United States presidential election to incumbent George W. Bush.{{cite web |url=http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2005/roll007.xml |title=Final Vote Results for Roll Call 7|date=January 6, 2005 |publisher=U.S. House of Representatives |access-date=August 25, 2010 }}

McKinney was one of the 31 House Democrats who voted not to count the 20 electoral votes from Ohio in the 2004 presidential election, despite Republican President George W. Bush winning the state by 118,457 votes.{{cite web|title=Final Vote Results for Roll Call 7: On Agreeing to the Objection|url=http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2005/roll007.xml|publisher=U.S. House of Representatives|access-date=December 24, 2012|date=January 6, 2005}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/29/politics/ohio-recount-gives-a-smaller-margin-to-bush.html|title = Ohio Recount Gives a Smaller Margin to Bush|newspaper = The New York Times|date = 29 December 2004|last1 = Salvato|first1 = Albert}} Without Ohio's electoral votes, the election would have been decided by the U.S. House of Representatives, with each state having one vote in accordance with the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

On July 22, 2005, the first anniversary of the release of the 9/11 Commission Report, McKinney held a briefing on Capitol Hill about the attacks. The day-long briefing featured family members of victims, scholars, former intelligence officers and others who critiqued the 9/11 Commission account of 9/11 and its recommendations. The four morning panels addressed flaws, omissions, and a lack of historical and political analysis in the commission's report. Three afternoon panels critiqued the commission's recommendations in the areas of foreign and domestic policy and intelligence reform. An Atlanta Journal-Constitution editorial{{cite web|last=Kemper |first=Bob |url=http://www.ajc.com/news/content/news/stories/0705/23natmckinney.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050727004640/http://www.ajc.com/news/content/news/stories/0705/23natmckinney.html |archive-date=July 27, 2005 |title=McKinney reopens 9/11 |access-date=July 19, 2010}} said that the purpose of the event was to discuss whether or not the Bush administration was involved in the 9/11 attacks, expressing surprise that McKinney was once again taking on the issue that was believed to have cost her House seat. The Journal-Constitution declined to publish McKinney's reply.{{cite web |url=http://list.nowar-paix.ca/pipermail/nowar/2005-August/000834.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070208140230/http://list.nowar-paix.ca/pipermail/nowar/2005-August/000834.html |archive-date=February 8, 2007 |title=[NOWAR/PAIX] A Message from Rep. Cynthia McKinney regarding 'The 9/11 Commission Report One Year Later: A Citizens' Response – Did They, Get it Right?' |access-date=June 4, 2011}} The 9/11 Commission has sealed all the notes and transcripts of some 2,000 interviews, all the forensic evidence, and both classified and non-classified documents used in compiling its final report until January 2, 2009. McKinney's interest in 9/11 relates specifically to what she expresses as her opposition to excessive government secrecy,{{cite web |url=http://www.counterpunch.org/mckinney0517.html |title=Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney: Terrorist Warnings |publisher=Counterpunch.org |date=May 17–19, 2002 |access-date=July 19, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100616110714/http://counterpunch.org/mckinney0517.html |archive-date=June 16, 2010 |df=mdy-all }} which she has challenged with numerous pieces of legislation.

McKinney has said that she "remain[s] hopeful that we will learn the truth" about 9/11 "because more and more people around the world are demanding it."Mckinney, Cynthia (April 8, 2010) [http://archive.lewrockwell.com/orig11/mckinney2.1.1.html Leaders' Lack of Respect for Rule of Law Makes Us All Victims of 9/11], LewRockwell.com

McKinney was an advocate for victims of 2005's Hurricane Katrina and a critic of the government's response to it. Over 100,000 evacuees from New Orleans and Mississippi relocated to the Atlanta area, and many have now settled there.

During the Katrina crisis, evacuees were turned away by Arthur Lawson's Gretna police when they attempted to cross the Crescent City Connection Bridge between New Orleans and Gretna, Louisiana.{{cite news |url=http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/09/09/BAGL1EL1KH1.DTL |title=Police made their storm misery worse|work=San Francisco Chronicle |date=September 9, 2005 |first=Chip |last=Johnson}}{{cite news |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-bridge-to-gretna/ |title=The Bridge to Gretna|work=CBS News |date=December 18, 2005}} McKinney was the only member of Congress to participate in a march across the Crescent City Connection Bridge on November 7, 2005, to protest what had happened on that bridge in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.{{cite news |url=http://www.now.org/issues/diverse/neworleansmarch.html?printable |title=Marchers Cross New Orleans Bridge to Protest Racism |publisher=National Organization for Women |date=November 7, 2005 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070807082513/http://www.now.org/issues/diverse/neworleansmarch.html?printable |archive-date=August 7, 2007 |df=mdy-all }}

In response, McKinney introduced a bill{{cite web |url=http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=109_cong_bills&docid=f:h4209ih.txt.pdf |title=H.R. 4209, 109th Congress, 1st Session |work=United States House of Representatives |date=November 2, 2005}} on November 2, 2005, that would temporarily deny federal assistance to the City of Gretna Police Department, Harry Lee's Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office, and the Crescent City Connection Police Department, in the state of Louisiana. The bill was referred to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, but was not acted on. However, in August 2006, a grand jury began an investigation of the incident.{{cite news |url=http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?/base/news-6/115475739198060.xml&coll=1 |title=Bridge blockade goes to grand jury |publisher=New Orleans Times-Picayune |date=August 5, 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930154609/http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?%2Fbase%2Fnews-6%2F115475739198060.xml&coll=1 |archive-date=September 30, 2007 |df=mdy-all }}{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/04/AR2006080401348.html |title=La. Police Who Turned Away Katrina Victims Face Inquiry|newspaper=The Washington Post |date=August 5, 2006}} On October 31, 2007, the Grand Jury ruled not to charge anyone. The Grand Jury accepted Gretna Police Chief Arthur Lawson's explanation, "Some of the people in the crowd acted aggressively and threatened to throw one of the officers off the bridge, the chief said. The shot was fired over the officer's shoulder and over the side of the bridge.Michael Kunzelman.'No charges in Katrina Bridge Blockade'"USA TODAY" October 31, 2007. Retrieved June 22, 2011: https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-10-31-3360763218_x.htm

McKinney chose to be an active participant in the Select Bipartisan Committee to Investigate the Preparation for and Response to Hurricane Katrina, although the Democratic Party leadership called for Democratic members to boycott the committee. She submitted her own 72-page report.{{cite news |url=http://katrina.house.gov/index.htm |title=A Failure of Initiative: The Final Report of the Select Bipartisan Committee to Investigate the Preparation for and Response to Hurricane Katrina |publisher=U.S. House of Representatives |date=February 15, 2006 |access-date=December 20, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051227033028/http://katrina.house.gov/index.htm |archive-date=December 27, 2005 |url-status=dead }} She sat as a guest along with only a few other Democrats. In questioning Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, McKinney referred to a news story in which the owners of a nursing home had been charged with negligent homicide for abandoning 34 clients who died in the flood waters. McKinney asked Chertoff: "Mr. Secretary, if the nursing home owners are arrested for negligent homicide, why shouldn't you also be arrested for negligent homicide?"{{cite web |url=http://www.ajc.com/search/content/auto/epaper/editions/thursday/news_3475a3b25396f1e10006.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060308150444/http://www.ajc.com/search/content/auto/epaper/editions/thursday/news_3475a3b25396f1e10006.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=March 8, 2006 |title=MicKinney roils hurricane panel |work=Atlanta Journal-Constitution |access-date=June 4, 2011|df=mdy-all }}

The Congressional Black Caucus' Omnibus Bill (HR 4197) was introduced on November 2, 2005, to provide a comprehensive response to the Gulf Coast residents affected by Hurricane Katrina. The second title of the bill was submitted by McKinney, seeking a Comprehensive Environmental Sampling and Toxicity Assessment Plan, or CESTAP, to minimize harm to Gulf Coast residents from the toxic releases into the environment caused by the hurricane.{{cite news |url=http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=109_cong_bills&docid=f:h4197ih.txt |title=Hurricane Katrina Recovery, Reclamation, Restoration, Reconstruction and Reunion Act of 2005|publisher=Government Printing Office |date=November 2, 2005}}

At the request of McKinney, the Select Bipartisan Committee to Investigate the Preparation for and Response to Hurricane Katrina,{{cite web |url=http://katrina.house.gov/index.htm |title=Select Bipartisan Committee |publisher=Katrina.house.gov |access-date=July 19, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100707093846/http://katrina.house.gov/index.htm |archive-date=July 7, 2010 |url-status=dead }} chaired by Thomas M. Davis, held a previously unscheduled hearing titled "Voices Inside the Storm" on December 6, 2005.

McKinney, in collaboration with Rep. Barbara Lee (CA), produced a{{cite web |url=http://lee.house.gov/uploads/katlegsum.pdf |title=Hurricanes Katrina and Rita: Summary of Congressional Legislation |author=Offices of Rep. Barbara Lee and Rep. Cynthia McKinney |date=June 6, 2006 |publisher=United States House of Representatives |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070328191340/http://lee.house.gov/uploads/katlegsum.pdf |archive-date=March 28, 2007 |df=mdy-all }} "Katrina Legislative Summary," a chart summarizing House and Senate bills on Hurricane Katrina. On June 13, 2006, McKinney said on the House floor that only a dozen of the 176 Katrina bills identified on the chart had passed into law, leaving 163 bills stalled in committee.

On August 2, 2007, McKinney participated in a press conference in New Orleans to launch an International Tribunal on Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, which she described as an effort to seek justice for the victims of those hurricanes and their aftermath.

Until 2000, McKinney served on the House International Relations Committee, where she was the highest-ranking Democrat on the Human Rights Subcommittee. McKinney worked on legislation to stop conventional weapons transfers to governments that are undemocratic or fail to respect human rights.

On November 18, 2005, McKinney was one of only three House members to vote for H.R. 571, introduced by Duncan Hunter, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, on which McKinney sat. Hunter, a Republican, offered this resolution calling for an immediate withdrawal of U.S. forces in Iraq in place of John Murtha's H.J.Res. 73, which called for redeployment "at the earliest possible date." In her prepared statement, McKinney accused the Republicans of "trying to set a trap for the Democrats. A 'no' vote for this Resolution will obscure the fact that there is strong support for withdrawal of US forces from Iraq ... In voting for this bill, let me be perfectly clear that I am not saying the United States should exit Iraq without a plan. I agree with Mr. Murtha that security and stability in Iraq should be pursued through diplomacy. I simply want to vote 'yes' to an orderly withdrawal from Iraq."{{cite web|url=http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/article_2282.shtml |title=McKinney: Republicans seek to silence dissent on Iraq war |publisher=Finalcall.com |date=Nov 18, 2005|access-date=July 19, 2010}}

{{see also|Efforts to impeach George W. Bush}}

At the end of the 2006 legislative session, McKinney introduced articles of impeachment against President George W. Bush as (H Res 1106), which made three charges against Bush:{{cite web|url=http://www.gnn.tv/articles/2791/BREAKING_Congresswoman_McKinney_Files_Articles_of_Impeachment |title=GNN.tv |publisher=GNN.tv |date=December 8, 2006|access-date=July 19, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070205072249/http://www.gnn.tv/articles/2791/BREAKING_Congresswoman_McKinney_Files_Articles_of_Impeachment |archive-date=February 5, 2007 |url-status=dead}}

• Failure to uphold the constitution, specifically that "George Walker Bush ... in preparing the invasion of Iraq, did withhold intelligence from the Congress, by refusing to provide Congress with the full intelligence picture that he was being given, by redacting information ... and actively manipulating the intelligence on Iraq’s alleged weapons programs by pressuring the Central Intelligence Agency and other intelligence agencies.
• Abuse of office and executive privilege, "obstructing and hindering the work of Congressional investigative bodies and by seeking to expand the scope of the powers of his office."
• Failure to ensure that laws are faithfully executed, specifically by a program of illegal domestic spying and circumvention of the FISA Act.

The second article also made charges against Vice President Dick Cheney alleging he manipulated intelligence in order to justify the Iraq War, and against Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice alleging that she knowingly made false statements concerning Iraq's weapons of mass destruction program.

McKinney's bill was abandoned when it failed to clear the House Committee on the Judiciary.{{cite web|url=http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=hr109-1106 |title=H. Res. 1106 [109th]: Articles of Impeachment against George Walker Bush, President of the United States of America,... |publisher=GovTrack.us |access-date=July 19, 2010}}

{{Main|Cynthia McKinney–Capitol Hill police incident}}

On the morning of March 29, 2006, McKinney entered the Longworth House Office Building's southeast entrance and proceeded past the security checkpoint, walking around the metal detector. Members of Congress have identifying lapel pins and were not required to pass through metal detectors at the time. The officers present failed to recognize McKinney as a member of Congress because she was not wearing the appropriate lapel pin and had recently changed her hairstyle. She proceeded westward down the ground floor hallway and about halfway down the hallway was stopped by United States Capitol Police officer Paul McKenna, who states that he had been calling after her: "Ma'am, Ma'am!"; at that time it is reported that McKinney struck the officer. Two days later, Officer McKenna filed a police report claiming that McKinney had struck "his chest with a closed fist".

In the midst of a media frenzy, McKinney made an apology{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/04/06/mckinney/ |title= McKinney apologizes for scuffle with officer |publisher=WXIA-TV ATLANTA |date=March 30, 2006}} on the floor of the House of Representatives on April 6, 2006, neither admitting to nor denying the charge, stating only that: "There should not have been any physical contact in this incident."

Though McKinney was not indicted for criminal charges or subjected to disciplinary action by the House, the president of the Fraternal Order of Police said of Officer McKenna, "We're going to make sure the officer won't be harassed. We want the officer to be able talk to experts, who can look at his legal recourses, if he needed to."{{cite news |url=http://www.wsbtv.com/news/8646957/detail.html |title=Officer Considers Lawsuit Against McKinney |publisher=WSBTV Atlanta |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060413234549/http://www.wsbtv.com/news/8646957/detail.html |archive-date=April 13, 2006 |df=mdy }}

In the wake of the March 2006 incident with the Capitol Police officer, McKinney was in the news, and her office invited the media to attend one of her monthly "District Days," where she spends one full day meeting with constituents to discuss issues of concern. At her April 23, 2006, "District Days" event, McKinney was being interviewed by WGCL's Renee Starzyk, who repeatedly questioned her about the March 29 scuffle with a Capitol police officer. Frustrated, McKinney stood up and apparently forgot she was still wearing the microphone. Her offscreen comments were captured on tape. She was heard saying, "Oh, crap, now you know what ... they lied to [McKinney's senior aide Coz Carson], and Coz is a fool."{{cite news |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna12464118 | title=Station catches McKinney bad-mouthing staffer | agency=Associated Press|website=NBC News|date=April 24, 2006}} McKinney returned on screen with the microphone, this time with instructions on what parts of the interview the station was allowed to use: "anything that is captured by your audio ... that is captured while I'm not seated in this chair is off the record and is not permissible to be used ... is that understood?"[http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/23/sm.01.html CNN Sunday Morning Transcript]. CNN. April 23, 2006.

McKinney submitted to Congress two different versions of the same bill, the "MLK Records Act" (one in 2003, the other in 2005), which, if signed into law, would release all currently sealed files concerning the 1968 assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.{{cite news |url=http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=109_cong_bills&docid=f:h2554ih.txt |title=Martin Luther King, Jr., Records Collection Act of 2005 |publisher=Government Printing Office|date=May 23, 2005}} These records were sealed in 1978 and are not due to be declassified until the year 2028. The 2005 version of the MLK Records Act, HR 2554 had 67 cosponsors by the time McKinney left office at the end of 2006. A Senate version of the bill (S2499) was introduced by Senator John Kerry and was co-signed by Sen. Hillary Clinton. The bill has also received numerous endorsements from former members of the House Select Committee on Assassinations.{{citation needed|date=October 2014}}

Documents relating to the death of rapper Tupac Shakur, in which McKinney took an active interest, would be released under another bill she would introduce. In a statement, McKinney explained her reason for the bill: "The public has the right to know because he was a well-known figure. There is intense public interest in the life and death of Tupac Shakur."{{cite news |title=Congresswoman floats 2Pac bill |work=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2005-dec-03-et-quick3.3-story.html |date=December 3, 2005}} Legislation demanding release of records is a more direct route than requesting their release through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).{{Cite web|url=http://archives.allthingscynthiamckinney.com/mckinney.house.gov/list/press/ga04_mckinney/PrsRlsTupacBill.html|title=McKinney – News Briefs|website=archives.allthingscynthiamckinney.com|access-date=March 16, 2016|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081127053126/http://archives.allthingscynthiamckinney.com/mckinney.house.gov/list/press/ga04_mckinney/PrsRlsTupacBill.html|archive-date=November 27, 2008|df=mdy-all}}

{{Main|2006 Georgia's 4th congressional district election}}

McKinney finished first in the July 18, 2006 Democratic primary, edging DeKalb County Commissioner Hank Johnson 47.1% to 44.4%, with a third candidate receiving 8.5%.{{cite news |title=Georgia Election Results: Official Results of the July 18, 2006 Primary Election |publisher=Georgia Secretary of State |date=July 16, 2006 |url=http://www.sos.state.ga.us/elections/election_results/2006_0718/0001410.htm |access-date=August 8, 2006 |archive-date=July 22, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120722015749/http://sos.georgia.gov/elections/election_results/2006_0718/0001410.htm |url-status=dead }} However, as McKinney failed to get at least 50% of the vote, she and Johnson were forced into a runoff.

In the runoff of August 8, 2006, McKinney received about the same number of votes as in the July primary, even though there were about 8,000 more votes cast in the runoff than in the primary. Johnson won with 41,178 votes (59%) to McKinney's 28,832 (41%). McKinney's loss was attributed to a mid-decade redistricting, in which the 4th had absorbed portions of Gwinnett and Rockdale Counties, as well as her run-in with a police officer in the March 29, 2006, Capitol Hill police incident.

CNN reported that during her concession speech, McKinney hardly mentioned her opponent but praised the leftist political leaders elected in South America. She also questioned the efficacy of voting machines and criticized the media.{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/08/09/congress.mckinney/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060831231915/http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/08/09/congress.mckinney/ |archive-date=August 31, 2006 |title=CNN.com – McKinney beaten but unbowed – August 9, 2006 |publisher=CNN.com |date=August 9, 2006|access-date=July 19, 2010}}

{{Main|Cynthia McKinney 2008 presidential campaign}}

{{Wikinews|Wikinews interviews U.S. Green Party presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney}}

File:Cynthia mckinney presidential candidacy.jpg, January 2008]]

McKinney was a Green Party candidate in the 2008 presidential election.

McKinney appeared at the July 15, 2007, Green Party National Meeting in Reading, Pennsylvania, where she suggested that the Green Party could become a progressive political force. "[T]he disgust of the American people with what they see before them—all they need is the blueprint and a road map. Why not have the Green Party provide the blueprint and the road map?"{{Cite web|url=http://gpus.org/annual-national-meetings/2007-redding/|title=2007 • Green Party National Meeting {{!}} Green Party of the United States|website=gpus.org|language=en-US|access-date=January 26, 2017}}

At an August 27, 2007, peace rally in Kennebunkport, Maine, McKinney confirmed the depth of her disenchantment with the Democratic Party, urging San Francisco voters to replace Nancy Pelosi with antiwar activist Cindy Sheehan. On September 10, in a letter to the steering committee of the Green Party of the United States, McKinney stated she would not seek the Green Party nomination for president.{{cite web|url=http://www.allthingscynthiamckinney.com./node/100 |title=Cynthia Withdraws Name From Consideration for Green Party Presidential Nomination |author=McKinney, Cynthia |publisher=All Things Cynthia McKinney |date=September 10, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080904011759/http://www.allthingscynthiamckinney.com/node/100 |archive-date=September 4, 2008 |df=mdy}} However, in early October it appeared that McKinney was making moves toward declaring herself an official Green Party candidate.{{cite news |title=Cynthia McKinney to announce bid for the White House |first=Luke |last=Thomas |date=October 5, 2007 |work=Fog City Journal |url=http://www.fogcityjournal.com/news_in_brief/overheard_071005.shtml}}

On July 9, 2008, she named as her running mate journalist and community activist Rosa Clemente{{cite web|url=http://www.ballot-access.org/2008/07/09/cynthia-mckinney-names-v-p-running-mate/ |title=Richard Winger, "Cynthia McKinney Names V-P Running Mate" Ballot Access News |publisher=Ballot-access.org |date=July 9, 2008 |access-date=July 19, 2010}} and clinched the party's nomination three days later at the 2008 Green Party National Convention.[http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/stories/2008/07/12/mckinney_green_nomination.html "McKinney wins Green Party nomination"], The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, July 12, 2008

On September 10, 2008, McKinney joined a press conference held by third-party and independent candidates, along with Ralph Nader, Chuck Baldwin, and initiator Ron Paul.{{cite magazine|url=http://www.thenation.com/article/naders-debate?page=full#axzz2dH5jYNNX|title=Nader's Debate|magazine=The Nation|date=October 24, 2008|access-date=August 28, 2013|last1=Weigel|first1=David|archive-date=April 6, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190406001136/https://www.thenation.com/article/naders-debate/?page=full#axzz2dH5jYNNX|url-status=dead}} The participants agreed on four basic principles:

• An early end to the Iraq War, and an end to threats of war against other countries including Iran and Russia.
• The safeguarding of privacy and civil liberties, including a call for the repeal of the Patriot Act, the Military Commissions Act, and FISA legislation
• No increase in the National Debt
• A "thorough investigation, evaluation and audit of the Federal Reserve System."

On November 4, 2008, McKinney received 161,797 votes, 0.12% of the total votes cast, placing her behind Obama, McCain, Nader, Barr, and Baldwin.{{cite web |url=http://www.fec.gov/pubrec/fe2008/tables2008.pdf |title=2008 presidential vote |access-date=February 3, 2009|date=December 7, 2008 |publisher=Federal Election Commission}}

In March 2009, McKinney was present at a gathering of Holocaust deniers in London. In postings on the Green Party website, she said former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad was "one of my heroes". She described David Pidcock as "my London friend". Pidcock is an individual whom the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Anti-Defamation League have described as an "anti-Semitic writer".{{cite journal|last=Rob Waters|first=Rob|url=https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/intelligence-report/2009/former-democratic-congresswoman-cynthia-mckinney-flirts-holocaust-deniers|title=Former Democratic Congresswoman, Cynthia McKinney, Flirts with Holocaust Deniers|journal=Intelligence Report|publisher=Southern Poverty Law Center|issue=Winter 2009|date=November 30, 2009|access-date=18 October 2021}}{{cite news|url=https://www.adl.org/resources/backgrounders/cynthia-mckinneys-anti-israel-campaign|title=Cynthia McKinney's Anti-Israel Campaign|work=Anti-Defamation League|date=2009|access-date=October 18, 2021}} In one post she related the conspiracy theory that individuals such as George Soros and Alan Greenspan (both Jewish) have plotted to create a "one-world government". In discussing this notion, she was drawing on a book entitled, The Shadow Money-Lenders by Matthias Chang, an advisor to Mahathir. McKinney praised the work.

On December 30, 2008, McKinney was aboard the ship Dignity when it attempted to enter the Gaza Strip, which had its coastal area declared a "closed military zone" by Israel, while on a humanitarian mission by the Free Gaza Movement from Cyprus. Aboard were physicians, medical supplies, and activists, including Caoimhe Butterly. The Israeli Navy confronted the ship at night in international waters. Members of the crew claimed that the ship was rammed, gunfire was directed at the water, and the ship was forced to dock in Lebanon after taking on water.{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/12/30/gaza.aid.boat/index.html |title=Gaza relief boat damaged in encounter with Israeli vessel |access-date=December 31, 2008 |publisher=CNN |date=December 30, 2008}}{{cite news |url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/babylonbeyond/2008/12/gaza-aid-boat-d.html |title=Gaza Strip: Aid boat docks in Lebanon after being damaged |access-date=December 31, 2008|work=Los Angeles Times |date=December 31, 2008}} Israeli officials claimed that the collision was accidental and occurred after the ship was informed they would not be allowed to enter Gaza and tried to outmaneuver the patrol boat; they decried McKinney's actions as being irresponsible and provocative for the sake of propaganda.{{cite web|last=Malone |first=Julia |url=http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/dekalb/stories/2008/12/29/cynthia_mckinney_gaza.html |title=McKinney relief boat reportedly attacked by Israel |work=Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=December 29, 2008 |access-date=July 19, 2010|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110503235749/http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/dekalb/stories/2008/12/29/cynthia_mckinney_gaza.html |archive-date=May 3, 2011 }}

On June 30, 2009, McKinney was aboard the Greek-flagged Free Gaza Movement's ship Spirit of Humanity carrying 21 activists including Irish peace activist Mairead McGuire, medical supplies, a symbolic bag of cement, olive trees and toys, when it was seized by the Israeli Navy {{convert|18|mi|km|abbr=on}} off the Gaza coast. It was unclear whether they were in international waters or in Gazan waters, which is subject to the Israeli blockade of Gaza.{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/06/30/israel.gaza.mckinney/index.html |publisher=CNN |title=Israel navy intercepts boat with ex-U.S. Rep. McKinney |access-date=April 30, 2010 |date=June 30, 2009}}[http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1246296538815&pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull Jerusalem Post]{{dead link|date=December 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Although both the Cypriot and Israeli authorities were officially informed the destination was Gaza before the vessel's departure, according to the Cypriot government the ship "was given permission by the competent Authorities of the Republic of Cyprus to sail off the port of Larnaca in Cyprus on the basis of its declaration that its intended destination was the port of Port Said in Egypt."

McKinney was held at the Givon immigration detention center in Ramle, until her release on July 5.{{cite web|last=Cook |first=Rhonda |url=http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/dekalb/stories/2009/07/05/mckinney_israel.html |title=McKinney released, returning to United States |work=Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=July 5, 2009 |access-date=July 19, 2010|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091001023139/http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/dekalb/stories/2009/07/05/mckinney_israel.html |archive-date=October 1, 2009 }} McKinney initially refused to sign the deportation papers because they were written in Hebrew and that the papers would require them to admit that they were in violation of Israel's blockade, which they denied.[https://www.foxnews.com/politics/cynthia-mckinney-remains-imprisoned-in-israel-after-gaza-bound-boat-is-seized/ Cynthia McKinney Remains Imprisoned in Israel After Gaza-Bound Boat Is Seized] Fox News July 2, 2009{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/07/02/mckinney.israel.gaza/ |publisher=CNN |title=McKinney held in Israel, to be returned to U.S. |access-date=April 30, 2010 |date=July 2, 2009}}{{cite news|url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics// |title=Fox News |publisher=Fox News |date=April 7, 2010 |access-date=July 19, 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090709113436/http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/07/07/report-mckinney-released-israeli-jail-returning/ |archive-date=July 9, 2009 }}{{cite web|last=Cook |first=Rhonda |url=http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/dekalb/stories/2009/07/05/mckinney_israel.html |work=Atlanta Journal-Constitution |title=McKinney released, returning to United States|date=July 5, 2009 |access-date=July 19, 2010}} According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Israeli officials stated that the "Palestinian Authority and the rest of the international community had agreed to the off-shore blockade to prevent arms smuggling into Gaza."{{cite web|last=Cook |first=Rhonda |url=https://www.ajc.com/news/local/mckinney-still-jail-expected-see-judge-sunday/VG69FFms2dMIO3TeJZogSO/ |work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |title=McKinney, still in jail, expected to see judge Sunday|date=July 4, 2009 |access-date=July 19, 2010}} The Palestinian Chronicle reports that such an agreement to the off-shore blockade never happened. "No Palestinians have agreed nor did the international community agree to a blockade of Gaza by land or Sea."{{cite news|last=Lamb|first=Franklin|journal=Palestinian Chronicle|title=How Cynthia McKinney Honored America|date=July 6, 2009|url=http://www.palestinechronicle.com/view_article_details.php?id=15263|access-date=July 12, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110617013326/http://www.palestinechronicle.com/view_article_details.php?id=15263|archive-date=June 17, 2011|url-status=dead}} On June 17, 2009, a group of United Nations agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) called for an end to Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip.{{cite web|publisher=United Nations|title=UN, aid agencies call for end to Israel's two-year blockade of Gaza|date=June 17, 2009|url=https://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=31174|access-date=July 15, 2009}}

On July 7, 2009, McKinney was deported to the United States.{{cite news |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2009/0707/1224250170719.html |title=Israel deports Nobel laureate |work=Irish Times |date=July 7, 2009 |access-date=July 19, 2010 |archive-date=May 3, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110503154748/http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2009/0707/1224250170719.html |url-status=dead }} The Israeli government indicated it would deliver the supplies via land.

On May 21, 2011, McKinney appeared on state-run television in Libya and stated that United States participation in military intervention in the 2011 Libyan civil war was "not what the people of the United States stand for and it's not what African-Americans stand for".{{cite news|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/05/21/libya.mckinney/index.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110525101153/http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/05/21/libya.mckinney/index.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 25, 2011|title=Former U.S. congresswoman McKinney speaks on state TV in Libya |publisher=CNN|date=May 21, 2011|access-date=March 16, 2019}} In the same interview, McKinney stated: "On a previous visit to Libya, I was able to learn about The Green Book, and the form of direct democracy that is advocated in The Green Book."{{cite web|title=Memri|url=http://m.memri.org/70182/show/30cebcaa3f0c3e94f3cdcd3c8d24a2e1&t=20320d97cb30b6845cb6422bedb5dfbe|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120326014558/http://m.memri.org/70182/show/30cebcaa3f0c3e94f3cdcd3c8d24a2e1%26t%3D20320d97cb30b6845cb6422bedb5dfbe|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 26, 2012|work=Former US Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney on Libyan TV: I Offered Qadhafi-Style Direct Democracy to Solve Problems of America|access-date=June 24, 2011|df=mdy-all}}

Around the same time, during her first visit to Iran, McKinney was interviewed by Iran's state-run channel, Press TV: "it is clear that the people of Iran have one thing in mind, and that is that they are a revolutionary state. And as a revolutionary state, they understand colonialism, neo-colonialism, and imperialism. They understand being under the foot of oppression and occupation—even if it is mental occupation—from an outside force or outside power, and that is what centers the resistance".{{cite news|last=Franke-Ruta|first=Garance|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2011/05/cynthia-mckinney-blasts-us-on-libya-tv-and-pro-israel-groups-in-iran/239298/|title=Cynthia McKinney Blasts U.S. on Libya TV, and Pro-Israel Groups in Iran|work=The Atlantic|date=May 23, 2011|access-date=August 11, 2020}}

McKinney announced in April 2012 that she would run for the 4th congressional district against Hank Johnson on the Green Party ticket.{{cite web|url=http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local/cynthia-mckinney-back-and-running-for-her-old-cong/nQTFT/|title=Cynthia McKinney back and running for her old congressional seat|access-date=November 22, 2012|archive-date=August 20, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160820203009/http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local/cynthia-mckinney-back-and-running-for-her-old-cong/nQTFT/|url-status=dead}} However, in August she failed to qualify for the ballot. Nevertheless, she received 58 write-in votes in the general election.[http://sos.georgia.gov/elections/election_results/2012_1106/writeincd4.pdf 2012 "2012 Congressional District 4 Certified Write-In Report"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130627120846/http://sos.georgia.gov/elections/election_results/2012_1106/writeincd4.pdf |date=2013-06-27 }}, General Election Certified Write-In Report.

In 2016, McKinney released a statement via Twitter accusing Israelis of conducting the 2016 Nice truck attack in France and the Würzburg train attack in Germany, she did not provide any evidence for either claim.{{cite news |title=Ex-congresswoman Suggests Israel Responsible for Europe Terror Attacks in Tweet |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2016-07-25/ty-article/former-congresswoman-suggests-israel-responsible-for-terror-attacks/0000017f-e87d-df2c-a1ff-fe7dc3220000 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220912204528/https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2016-07-25/ty-article/former-congresswoman-suggests-israel-responsible-for-terror-attacks/0000017f-e87d-df2c-a1ff-fe7dc3220000 |archive-date=September 12, 2022 |website=Haaretz |language=en}} In May 2020, The Algemeiner Journal and other media outlets reported that McKinney released a series of statements via Twitter questioning the true number of Jewish people murdered during The Holocaust. In the tweets (in which she misrepresented an article from Haaretz) she stated: "So, the figure wasn't six million after all?? What about those punished and even imprisoned for saying so?? Is this a "You can't say, but I can" kind of thing??".{{cite web |title=Algemeiner |url=https://www.algemeiner.com/2020/05/18/in-tweets-ex-us-congresswoman-cynthia-mckinney-questions-number-of-holocaust-victims/}}{{cite web |last1=Blecker |first1=Alex |title=Why are Georgia Roadways Honoring Anti-Semites? |url=https://www.atlantajewishtimes.com/why-are-georgia-roadways-honoring-anti-semites/ |website=Atlanta Jewish Times |date=8 June 2020}}

McKinney has been accused of spreading Covid-19 misinformation when in 2021 she falsely claimed that Hank Aaron's death was due to the Covid-19 vaccine.{{cite news |last1=Torpy |first1=Bill |title=OPINION: Conspiracy theories endanger lives and democracy. Believe it |url=https://www.ajc.com/opinion/columnists/opinion-conspiracy-theories-endanger-lives-and-democracy-believe-it/TZILKWNWUZG7RHV4HY3DIJQFCQ/ |website=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |language=English}}

The Jerusalem Post reported that on June 28, 2021, McKinney posted a meme to Twitter that depicted the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center as a puzzle with the "final piece of the puzzle" having the word "Zionists" on it. When adding that piece to the puzzle, the image read: "Zionists did it." New York Congressman Jamaal Bowman condemned McKinney's post as anti-semitic.{{cite news|last=Silkoff|first=Shira|url=https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/former-democratic-congresswoman-claims-jews-caused-911-on-twitter-672338|title=Former Democratic Congresswoman claims Jews caused 9/11 on Twitter|work=The Jerusalem Post|date=June 29, 2021|access-date=June 30, 2021}} The ADL in a tweet objected to McKinney continuing "to repeat an offensive #antisemitic trope falsely blaming Jews/Zionists for the terrorist attacks on 9/11."{{cite news|last=Bandler|first=Aaron|url=https://jewishjournal.com/news/338257/former-dem-congresswoman-cynthia-mckinney-deletes-tweet-claiming-zionists-behind-9-11/|title=Former Dem Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney Tweets That Zionists Were Behind 9/11|work=Jewish Journal|date=June 29, 2021|access-date=June 30, 2021}} The Washington Post noted that, amid a sitewide increase in hate speech following Elon Musk's purchase of Twitter, McKinney had prominently amplified and made tweets in 2022 containing an antisemitic hashtag mainly used by neo-Nazis to imply a conspiracy of Jewish people in positions of power.{{Cite news |last=Menn |first=Joseph |date=2023-01-22 |title=Attacks on U.S. Jews and gays accelerate as hate speech grows on Twitter |language=en-US |newspaper=Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/01/18/hate-speech-antisemitism-antigay-twitter/ |access-date=2023-02-20 |issn=0190-8286}}

On February 19, 2023, McKinney participated in the Rage Against the War Machine rally.{{Cite web |date=2023-02-09 |title=Cynthia McKinney – Rage Against the War Machine |url=https://rageagainstwar.com/cynthia-mckinney/ |access-date=2024-01-09 |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Rage Against the War Machine Recap (April 2023) – Libertarian Party of North Carolina |url=https://www.lpnc.org/rage_against_the_war_machine_recap_april_2023 |access-date=2024-01-09 |website=www.lpnc.org}} She gave remarks at the rally by video, where she claimed that there are "criminal elements" within the federal government of the United States, that the Democratic Party had become a "war party," that the Federal Election Commission can "control U.S. election outcomes," and more.{{Citation |title=Cynthia McKinney – Rage Against the War Machine | date=February 20, 2023 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4m8weboILx0 |access-date=2024-01-09 |language=en}}

On September 11, 2023, McKinney promoted a livestream called "Can Black People and White People Work Together to Defeat Our Common Enemy" with the Star of David, indicating that the "common enemy" is the Jewish people. The livestream was hosted by Ayo Kimathi, the author of Jews Are the Problem and described by the ADL as an "anti-Semitic and an anti-LGBTQ+ Black nationalist extremist"{{cite web |title=Ayo Kimathi |url=https://www.adl.org/glossary/ayo-kimathi |website=ADL}} and David Duke, a white-supremacist, former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard and anti-Semite.{{Cite tweet |user=cynthiamckinney |number=1701163148168900643 |title=I know where I'll be and what I'll be watching at 6:00 pm EASTERN time today!}} In the livestream, Kimathi explicitly advocated for ties with White nationalists to actively eradicate "the Jew."{{cite web|last=Kimathi|first=Ayo|url=https://inblackandwhite.net/dukeayo/|title=CAN BLACK PEOPLE AND WHITE PEOPLE WORK TOGETHER TO DEFEAT OUR COMMON ENEMY?|date=September 11, 2022}} The Green Party condemned McKinney for promoting such an event while noting that she is not affiliated with the party and has not been for several years.{{cite web |title=Green Party of Washington Stands Unequivocally Against Anti-Semitism |url=https://www.gp.org/green_party_of_washington_stands_unequivocally_against_anti_semitism |website=www.gp.org}}

McKinney is an assistant professor at North South University.{{cite web |title=Dr. Cynthia McKinney |url=http://www.northsouth.edu/faculty-members/shss/pss/cynthia.mckinney.html |access-date=April 14, 2024 |work=North South University}}

In 2024 she appeared in the movie Occupied by Stew Peters where she expressed support for Adolf Hitler's elimination of pornography.{{Cite web |date=28 November 2024 |title=Occupied (statement made at 1:02:51) |url=https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1djxXrOAmgjGZ |access-date=8 December 2024 |website=X}}

On June 14, 2000, a part of Memorial Drive, a major thoroughfare running through her district, was renamed "Cynthia McKinney Parkway," but the naming has come under scrutiny since her primary defeat in 2006 as well as previous controversial statements that she had made.{{cite web |last=Dell'Orto |first=Giovanna |title=Naming places after living politicians can be embarrassing |work=The Florida Times-Union |date=March 15, 2007|url=http://www.jacksonville.com/apnews/stories/031507/D8NSF63G0.shtml |access-date=August 8, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304043153/http://jacksonville.com/apnews/stories/031507/D8NSF63G0.shtml |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}

In 2007, McKinney moved from her longtime residence in the Atlanta suburb of Stone Mountain to California.{{cite news|url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,311518,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071114094902/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,311518,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=November 14, 2007 |title=Cynthia McKinney Moves-McKinney Parkway Fate in Question |publisher=Foxnews.com |date=November 13, 2007 |access-date=July 19, 2010}}

{{Main|Electoral history of Cynthia McKinney}}

• List of African-American United States representatives
• List of federal political scandals in the United States
• Women in the United States House of Representatives

{{reflist|30em}}

{{Wikiquote}}

• [https://books.google.com/books?id=naNuDwAAQBAJ&q=How+the+Us+Creates+%22sh*thole%22+Countries How the US Creates "Sh*thole" Countries] Clarity Press, 2018. {{ISBN|9780999874721}}.

{{CongLinks|congbio=m000523}}

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20081205054302/http://query.nictusa.com/cgi-bin/can_detail/P80004930 Presidential campaign FEC disclosure report]
• [https://archive.org/details/cynthia Cynthia McKinney: Live in Brooklyn]. QuickTime Video. 11:30 minutes. Directed by Stephen Marshall. Guerrilla News Network. 2003. Retrieved May 12, 2005.
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20060407195116/http://www.newsmeat.com/campaign_contributions_to_politicians/donor_list.php?candidate_id=H2GA11016&li=a Cynthia McKinney's campaign donor list] newsmeat.com
• [http://www.ontheissues.org/GA/Cynthia_McKinney.htm/ Cynthia McKinney on the issues]
• Rudy Reichstadt, [http://www.conspiracywatch.info/Cynthia-McKinney-icone-du-conspirationnisme-post-11-Septembre_a518.html Cynthia McKinney, icône du conspirationnisme post-11-Septembre], Conspiracy Watch, April 25, 2010
• {{C-SPAN|26197}}

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{{s-ttl|title=Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
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{{s-ttl|title=Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
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{{s-ttl|title=Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
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{{s-ttl|title=Green nominee for President of the United States|years=2008}}

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{{s-end}}

{{Cynthia McKinney}}

{{2008 United States presidential election}}

{{Green Party of the United States}}

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