“Let’s be honest and go through some of the words and actions of a few Democrats.”
The Democratic-controlled U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday passed a bill to remove statues honoring those who upheld slavery or backed the Confederacy from the Capitol building, which displays statues selected by all 50 states.
The statues and busts targeted by the “Remove Hate” bill include one honoring former U.S. Chief Justice Roger Taney, who authored a key decision supporting slavery. They also include leaders of the rebellious Confederacy.
Taney’s bust would be replaced by one of former Supreme Court Associate Justice Thurgood Marshall, the first Black man to serve on the high court.
House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy used the floor vote as an opportunity to remind the country of the Democrat Party’s long history of racism.
“The statues that need to be removed were sent to the Capitol by states controlled by Democrats, to a House that was controlled by Democrats.
“Today the party is desperate to pretend they have progressed from their days of supporting slavery, pushing Jim Crow laws and supporting the KKK.
“But let’s be honest and go through some of the words and actions of a few Democrats.
“Just a few years ago, then-Vice President Joe Biden praised Democrat Senator Robert Byrd, the Exalted Cyclops of the Klu Klux Klan. In his eulogy for Byrd he said, ‘For a lot of us he was a friend, a mentor and a guide.’ Another leading Democrat who praised Byrd was Speaker Pelosi. She called Byrd ‘a friend, a great person, and a great American patriot.’
“Today’s Democrats are doubling down. They are replacing the shameful history of racism of the past with the racism of Critical Race Theory. They continue to look at race as the primary means of judging the person’s character.
“I agree with Senator Tim Scott. America is not a racist country. America must reject critical race theory for the simple reason, state sponsored racism is wrong, and always will be. It was wrong when it was segregated lunch counters of the Jim Crow. It was wrong, when it was segregated classrooms.
“Our nation was built on a unifying vision from the beginning. As Lincoln said, we were conceived in Liberty, and dedicated the proposition that we all vote for this bill today, just as I voted for before the Madam Speaker, if we have not learned anything. We should not divide our nation based on race.”
It is the second year in a row that the House passed the bill, which the then-Republican-controlled Senate in 2020 declined to take up. Democrats now have a razor-thin Senate majority, which could allow them to force a vote on the measure, which would need the support of 10 Republicans to pass.
The bill passed the House 285-120 with all the votes against the measure coming from Republicans.
Catherine Mortensen is Vice President of Communications for Americans for Limited Government.
