JREGrassroots > Leading GOP senator ignites outcry

Teresa22

Mar 7 2005, 06:28 PM

QUOTE

3/7/2005
Exclusive: Leading GOP senator ignites outcry over comments about “getting over” Lincoln

GOP senator Graham rankles some over comments on Lincoln

By John Byrne | RAW STORY Editor

Senator Lindsey Graham has ignited a new furor in Washington over comments he made over the weekend referring to his state’s difficulty in “getting over” President Abraham Lincoln, with apparent reference to Lincoln’s role in the civil war and the freeing of American slaves, RAW STORY has learned.

“We don’t do Lincoln Day Dinners in South Carolina,” Senator Graham told a Lincoln Day gathering in Tennessee Saturday. “It’s nothing personal, but it takes awhile to get over things.”

According to a Knoxville News Sentinel article published Sunday, Graham entertained an amicable crowd and joked about his predecessor in the Senate, former Sen. Strom Thurmond.

“In theory, I have 50 more years left in the Senate,” Graham remarked.

The article, titled “GOP senator has unifying message,” was picked up upon by the progressive Washington blog DC Inside Scoop.

The Democratic National Committee said Sen. Graham’s remarks were inappropriate and that they echoed comments made by former Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (`R-MI`), which resulted in Lott’s removal as Senate leader.

view complete article at:
http://rawstory.com/news/2005/index.php?p=158

beinlicht

Mar 7 2005, 07:36 PM

This is unusual. Judy has posted many good things about Lydsey. I don't know what to make of his comment. I was beginning to see him as a more moderate repug. He voted I believe against that B.S. bill of Santorums today.
The Civil War has been over 140 years. How long does it take to admit the south LOST. He was not thinking before he spoke. :?

judykratochvil

Mar 7 2005, 07:59 PM

QUOTE(beinlicht)

This is unusual. Judy has posted many good things about Lydsey. I don't know what to make of his comment. I was beginning to see him as a more moderate repug. He voted I believe against that B.S. bill of Santorums today.
The Civil War has been over 140 years. How long does it take to admit the south LOST. He was not thinking before he spoke. :?

I am not sure what to make of this comment yet either other than he was poking fun at the South's refusal to move on from the past. He has a sense of humor that if you are unfamiliar with it many comments he makes will upset you. He has joked in other ways about southern culture and heritage.

Can we wait for more context before we attack him too harshly. I am sure that if after we recieve the context of the comment we are still not satisfied amd are offiended I truly believe that he will apologize for the comment. He is just that kind of man.

On Santorum's Amendment he voted Yea.

I appreciate your comments beinlicht.

Melissa

Mar 7 2005, 08:19 PM

Thank you for addressing this, Judy. I was waiting for your reply. I really didn't know what to make of it.

After thinking about it, I don't think he meant anything racist. He was making statements like I hear everyday, but still don't like. I'm only guessing here. Only he knows for sure.

Also, be sure to read the editor's note at the bottom.

judykratochvil

Mar 7 2005, 08:38 PM

QUOTE(Melissa)

Thank you for addressing this, Judy. I was waiting for your reply. I really didn't know what to make of it.

After thinking about it, I don't think he meant anything racist. He was making statements like I hear everyday, but still don't like. I'm only guessing here. Only he knows for sure.

Also, be sure to read the editor's note at the bottom.

You are welcome, Melissa. I am still unsure myself, but I am working on getting more information. I am trying to get a transcript or at least someone to tell me what he said before and after this comment.

Only he knows for sure, this is true. I am sure it is not racist. In fact during the campaign, aftter DeMint made his comments about gays Mr. Graham said the following:

QUOTE

\"People should be judged on their conduct and not their status. The better able we are to
disagree with each other and to accept our differences, the stronger we will be as a nation.\"

Monk, John. (2004) "DeMint's remarks latest in SC's long tradition." The State Online, 11 Oct. Columbia, SC.

Graham has alos advocate for the party to reach out to minorities.

judykratochvil

Mar 8 2005, 08:51 PM

I just spoke with Bryan Mitchell the reporter who wrtoe the article GOP Senator has Unifying message (free subscription) in the Knox News Sentinel. We had a 10 minute conversation where I found out that the Lincoln comment was a stand alone and meant to say that his state needs to get over the Civil War. The reference had to do with the attack on Fort Sumter which started the Civil War. There was no racist intent. I also tried to reach the Knox County GOP which did not return my phone call.

Mr. Mitchell also complimented Sen. Graham's sense of humor saying that "he was very funny" and also that I should never be afraid to approach the senator with anything because he is "very approachable."

suswah

Mar 8 2005, 09:17 PM

I am skeptical. Look at it this way - Senator Graham was appearing before "Republicans" wasn't he? I wonder who might have fueled this fire by reporting it to the DNC and then Raw Story.

This is how KR does it.

judykratochvil

Mar 8 2005, 09:20 PM

[quote=suswah]I am skeptical. Look at it this way - Senator Graham was appearing before "Republicans" wasn't he? I wonder who might have fueled this fire by reporting it to the DNC and then Raw Story.

This is how KR does it.

I agree. Yes he was appearing before the Knox County GOP.

The DNC? What? That SOB! GRRRRRRRR! :twisted:

Teresa22

Mar 8 2005, 09:26 PM

You know, I've given this some thought today. I have sort of a unique perspective here....I was born and have lived my whole life in the north, but my parents were both born in the south. We would be lying if we said that there were not cultural differences...and one main variance we have is our different perspectives on the Civil War.

I don't believe that Sen. Graham was making any kind of reference to slavery....but I do know that many people in the south still feel as if they should be apologetic every day for slavery having existed and if we want to build bridges we have to accept that at this point in time there is probably as much racism in the north as there is in the south....otherwise southern people will continue to view the north as being hypocritical and judgmental.

The Civil War did happen, and I don't believe we should ask those in the south to ignore the traumatic event that it was for them....thats not the same as wishing slavery back or even making an issue out of the Confederate flag....

judykratochvil

Mar 8 2005, 09:35 PM

QUOTE(Teresa22)

You know, I've given this some thought today. I have sort of a unique perspective here....I was born and have lived my whole life in the north, but my parents were both born in the south. We would be lying if we said that there were not cultural differences...and one main variance we have is our different perspectives on the Civil War.

I don't believe that Sen. Graham was making any kind of reference to slavery....but I do know that many people in the south still feel as if they should be apologetic every day for slavery having existed and if we want to build bridges we have to accept that at this point in time there is probably as much racism in the north as there is in the south....otherwise southern people will continue to view the north as being hypocritical and judgmental.

The Civil War did happen, and I don't believe we should ask those in the south to ignore the traumatic event that it was for them....thats not the same as wishing slavery back or even making an issue out of the Confederate flag....

Good points Teresa. I hope I was not coming off as judgemental in anyhting I said.

Barbara

Mar 8 2005, 10:08 PM

QUOTE(Teresa22)

The Civil War did happen, and I don't believe we should ask those in the south to ignore the traumatic event that it was for them....thats not the same as wishing slavery back or even making an issue out of the Confederate flag....

From someone who was born and raised in NC, I can tell you that we were still feeling the effects of the "War of Nawthun' Aggression" over 100 years after it ended. The northern carpetbaggers did more damage than any other group until Hitler and the Third Reich! We were in a deep depression decades before the rest of the country and some areas in the south have yet to recover.

Get over the Civil War? That all depends on where you live.

judykratochvil

Mar 8 2005, 10:14 PM

Barbara,

I was told by a friend to refer to the Civil War as the "War of Northern Agression" when I am down South.

I am just staring to learn much of the ecnomic history and facets other than the military actions. My history classes in High School and college have been woefully inadequate because they are only from one perspective: the northern perspective. We downplayed Sheman's March and did not say much about Fort Sumter either. We got the perspective that it was all about the issue of slavery and that is not true. there is always more than one cause to war.

Barbara

Mar 8 2005, 10:19 PM

QUOTE(judykratochvil)

Barbara,

I was told by a friend to refer to the Civil War as the \"War of Northern Agression\" when I am down South.

I am just staring to learn much of the ecnomic history and facets other than the military actions. My history classes in High School and college have been woefully inadequate because they are only from one perspective: the northern perspective. We downplayed Sheman's March and did not say much about Fort Sumter either. We got the perspective that it was all about the issue of slavery and that is not true. there is always more than one cause to war.

Slavery didn't get thrown into the mix until after the start of the war. It started as a boundry dispute between MD and PA, slavery was brought in as an issue to get more folks fired up. It was a publicity stunt! In fact, slavery had already started winding down as a way of life on the farms by the time the war started.

judykratochvil

Mar 8 2005, 10:23 PM

QUOTE(Barbara)

Slavery didn't get thrown into the mix until after the start of the war. It started as a boundry dispute between MD and PA, slavery was brought in as an issue to get more folks fired up. It was a publicity stunt! In fact, slavery had already started winding down as a way of life on the farms by the time the war started.

Thanks Barbara. I appreciate the historic correction. I wish we could take politics and sectionalism out of history. I think we should all be proud of our states individually and our country as a whole. In fact I would say that personally, I am as proud of NC, SC, or anyother state as I am of Illinois. We are all in this together.

suswah

Mar 8 2005, 11:04 PM

QUOTE(Teresa22)

The Civil War did happen, and I don't believe we should ask those in the south to ignore the traumatic event that it was for them....thats not the same as wishing slavery back or even making an issue out of the Confederate flag....

Tinfoil hat time.

Teresa, I actually started a post in reply to this topic with "the Civil War Did Happen" but I didn't post it because I was too tired to keep my thoughts straight last evening.

And I appreciate your thoughts since it is exactly the same idea that I was going to try to express. You did it beautifully.

One thing I will add - the effects of WAR last for generations. I think it's like anything that you LOSE - it's much harder to recover from loss don't you think? No one needs much time to "recover" from winning - unless of course you have a fear of success, but that's another topic.

Southerners lost the war and several generations later we are still licking our wounds. I think Northerners might not always "get that" since they were the winner. Of course you can say all of America lost since brothers killed brothers and cousins killed cousins fighting on opposite sides - but the reality is that people don't always philosophize in the most "logical" ways. And the South is still psychologically wounded to a certain extent so many generations later. It's still in the stories being told by grandmothers and grandfathers to the next generation. And as long as these stories are told, it will remain part of the tapestry and psychology of the region.

And anyone (like Senator Graham) who might express humor about losing the Civil War is doing so as a way of connecting with the audience and the heritage of the region. It is not necessarily an expression of nostalgia about the days of slavery. Quite the contrary - it is a way of continuing the "grieving" process that is still necessary because of the pain experienced so many years ago - the pain of WAR and the loss of so many lives. :cry:

ksanders

Mar 9 2005, 01:35 PM

QUOTE

Slavery didn't get thrown into the mix until after the start of the war. It started as a boundry dispute between MD and PA, slavery was brought in as an issue to get more folks fired up. It was a publicity stunt! In fact, slavery had already started winding down as a way of life on the farms by the time the war started.

Posted this on another topic here, but I was basically stating (like Barbara) that the civil war didn't even start because of the issue of slavery, it started because of economic issues (see above). Taxes in particular. Southerners felt they were being unfairly targeted with high taxes, etc, so they wanted to leave the union. Wish more people in the north knew more of the actual history surrounding the war.
I've always thought that the issue of slavery was sort of just a red herring for most of the people in the north, a publicity stunt is a good way to put it! Also, it's not like most southerners had slaves. Most, in fact, did not. It's just that the ones who did often had very large plantations, and a large number of slaves.

judykratochvil

Mar 9 2005, 01:50 PM

ksanders

we need to have better history education in the highschools. There are northerners who think southerners have an incorrect view of the Civil War. I think the only thing that happened is that we each only teach about our sectional history where the Civil War is concerned. We tlak only about northern wins and in regard to Fort Sumter I was actually not taught that the Rebels fought and got the northern garisson there to surrender. We gt one sided an inaccurate history. I am only learning some of this now because of this discussion.

ksanders

Mar 9 2005, 02:25 PM

I agree that high school education is lacking in general, but definitely as far as history goes. Perhaps I had better history classes than most (AP courses), but I feel that I got a pretty unbiased education about the civil war. We certainly weren't taught that the south won battles that they actually lost, etc. There was one book that I had to read, titled The Killer Angels- really good book about the civil war. Reads like a novel b/c it is from the perspective of soldiers (on both sides), but it's very informative as well. It's actually on my list of books to read again now that I don't *have* to, haha.
I really wish everyone could do some sort of study abroad, whether in college or high school. It's so enlightening to study history in other countries, I know I found out things about WWII that I was never taught here.

judykratochvil

Mar 9 2005, 05:13 PM

QUOTE(ksanders)

I agree that high school education is lacking in general, but definitely as far as history goes. Perhaps I had better history classes than most (AP courses), but I feel that I got a pretty unbiased education about the civil war. We certainly weren't taught that the south won battles that they actually lost, etc. There was one book that I had to read, titled The Killer Angels- really good book about the civil war. Reads like a novel b/c it is from the perspective of soldiers (on both sides), but it's very informative as well. It's actually on my list of books to read again now that I don't *have* to, haha.
I really wish everyone could do some sort of study abroad, whether in college or high school. It's so enlightening to study history in other countries, I know I found out things about WWII that I was never taught here.

I would love to come down to the South for a term of study. I think I would learn alot.

I will check out the book.