Visitor logs reveal Cora Masters Barry, a Washington, D.C., city official, has visited the White House on at least two occasions after the Biden government claimed she had been banned for praising anti-Semite Louis Farrakhan. In mid-2022, Barry—who serves as the CEO of the city’s Recreation Wish List Committee—lauded Farrakhan, calling him a “friend,” and “member of the family,” adding, “I love you more than words will ever say.”
In response to the remarks, Joe Biden‘s deputy press secretary, Andrew Bates, said the capital city official would no longer be welcomed back at the White House. “The president has unequivocally condemned Louis Farrakhan and the hate he represents for decades and co-sponsored bipartisan legislation doing so,” Bates told Fox News in October of 2022. He added: “He also denounces any praise of Louis Farrakhan or his repugnant, antisemitic values, including in this case.”
TWO VISITS DESPITE BAN.
Despite the ban, the official visitor logs—which document individuals who attend official meetings and events at the White House—indicate Cora Masters Barry was welcomed back to the White House on at least two occasions, in June and December 2023. In June 2023, Barry attended a Juneteenth event on the White House lawn, which featured remarks from both Biden and Kamala Harris. The December 2023 event appears to be an evening reception attended by one hundred or more other individuals.
Cora Masters Barry is the widow of Marion Barry, who served as the mayor of Washington, D.C., from 1979 to 1991 and again from 1995 to 1999. In an infamous incident in 1990, Barry was arrested during an FBI sting after being caught on a hidden camera smoking crack cocaine with a prostitute. In the video of his arrest, Barry could be heard repeatedly muttering, “Bitch set me up.”
WHITE HOUSE’S FARRAKHAN PROBLEM.
This isn’t the first Farrakhan-connected individual to have been a frequent guest at the White House or to have influence in the Biden government. The National Pulse reported in late March that a Washington, D.C. environmentalist nonprofit, whose staff has ties to Farrakhan, has made numerous White House visits. In addition, the group’s CEO, Lennox Yearwood, has received public praise from Biden’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
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