From the “can you imagine what would have happened” file at the New Hampshire Journal, we have a follow-up to the story of state representative Nicole Klein Knight (D-Manchester). In January, Klein Knight made all of the wrong sorts of headlines after she got into a confrontation with an 18-year-old Black activist named Jonah Wheeler, who had just finished testifying before a House committee regarding a pending piece of legislation. During the argument, which was described as “accosting” the activist, she used the n-word multiple times, though not in direct reference to Wheeler. As a result, she was removed from the House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee and lost her leadership position in the Progressive Caucus. And now, judgment has been passed on Klein Knight. The House decided to issue her… a letter of caution.

Democratic state Rep. Nicole Klein Knight (D-Manchester), an outspoken progressive in the New Hampshire House, has received an official “Letter of Caution” from leadership over her use of the “n-word” during a State House confrontation.

“The Co-Chairs of the Speaker’s Advisory Group considered the issue and have recommended to me that a letter of caution be sent to you regarding the matter,” Speaker of the House Sherman Packard (R-Londonderry) wrote to Klein Knight in a February 10 letter. “As Speaker, I take very seriously any conduct which adversely reflects on you as a legislator or on the General Court as a whole and, as such, concur with the Co­-Chairs’ recommendation.”

The recommendation was the result of a review of the “n-word” incident by the Speaker’s Advisory Group. Packard thanked Klein Knight for participating in the review, while at the same time raising questions about the accuracy of her claims.

That’s what you get for shouting the n-word at a Black person who came to speak before a House committee and doing so in that public space? A “letter of caution?” The House Speaker managed to say that he was “deeply disappointed” by Klein knight’s behavior. That certainly must have stung, right?

The representative made matters worse by apparently attempting to lie about what she did. She told the Speaker that she had only used the word once, while witnesses reported that she had said the word repeatedly. She later tried to excuse her behavior by saying that she had been under a lot of stress because of all of the antisemitic abuse she herself had received inside the House. (Klein Knight is Jewish.)

Apparently, there are still a lot of Democrats who don’t practice what they preach. I think that we’ve all been informed of the unwritten laws that apply to this situation by now. Nobody who is white is ever allowed to use the n-word under any circumstances whatsoever. (Hey, folks… we don’t make the rules here. We just report on them.) And Kline Knight appears to be almost painfully white in the few photos of her I was able to locate. I also see no record of her belonging to any minority caucuses.

So why isn’t she being ejected from office or receiving official demands for her resignation? Instead, she’s been given a letter where the House leadership states that her behavior “reflects poorly on the New Hampshire House as a whole.” That should really show her, eh?

While it has become tiresome to have to keep doing this, I’ll close with what is the obligatory question each time we see these types of incidents taking place. Can you imagine what would have happened if a white, male Republican had done this? I’m sure you don’t need any help with that query. He would have been immediately ridden out of the state on a rail.