Kerry thinks the Confederate flag should be on trucks...

Kerry latest Democrat hopeful to visit state
Sun, Feb. 02, 2003


JULIE HALENAR
Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. - Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry says he respects a compromise by the state Legislature that took the Confederate flag from the Statehouse dome to the capitol's grounds, but he said he would rather see the flag in a museum.

Kerry, who is one of five official candidates in what will be a crowded Democratic presidential primary next February, said Sunday he respects Confederate soldiers, but can't respect they were fighting to destroy his country.

(snip)

The Confederate flag "belongs in a museum and belongs in private homes or elsewhere," Kerry said.

(Ed: Like trucks? LOL)

(snip)

None of the Democratic candidates support flying the flag anywhere at the Statehouse. But most of the candidates, including Kerry, aren't as decisive on whether they support the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People's call for a boycott of the state until the banner is put in a museum.

http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/5090428.htm

Hmmmm....Kerry sure didn't seem too wound up about the Confederate flag then, huh? Gee...nothing about racism, symbols, etc...must of had a epiphany since then....

Can we have one election in South Carolina without the Confederate Flag being an issue?

its kind of a windfall for us. It will be an issue as long as its on any state property IMO.

:D It is way past time to move forward. IMHO.

Ever since the "Is Kerry a liar, or just delusional" thread, reading your Kerry threads has been infotainment for me. Maybe Drudge is hiring?

:-)

<>

rushing "to be the candidate for guys with Confederate flags in their pickup trucks."

continue voting repub? That's a winning strategy. :eyes:


BTW- I don't think this is legitimate criticism of Kerry any more than it is of any other candidate. I understand why you posted it sfecap, bit it's no more helpful than the drivel that's been posted about Dean lately.

It "shows", by the standard that Kerry and others have been applying to Dean, that Kerry advocates the display of the Confederate flag in private homes.

In reality, Neither Dean nor Kerry advocated anything of the kind, but many Democrats are acting as if Dean did. It is a dumb political strategy.

Kerry advocates the Bill of Rights. He didn't say that he wanted those people to vote for him, did he? What's wrong with the Confederate Flag being in a museum? It is kind of an important period in our nations history.... just a little bit... Are you suggesting that it would have been better for Kerry to have said that the Confederate Flag must be abolished from private homes? That we should erase it from our history? This is just a non-issue. You're making something where there is nothing. And people say Kerry is getting desperate.

Peepers

You can see a pseudo-issue when the target is your candidate, but you can't when the target *isn't* your candidate? :think:

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I'm here, and plan on staying.

Give me good, solid, logical arguments to refute what I said.

Peepers

He just said that he wanted to also be the candidate of people with flags on their pickups, because they should be voting Democrat for economic and educational reasons.

My point isn't that Kerry made an incorrect statement. My point is that Kerry's statement is closer to advocating the flying of the confederate flag than Dean's, and yet Kerry attacked Dean for his statement.

Neither statement actually advocates the confederate flag.

to any mention of actually flying the confederate flag. He's got no problem with people having a confederate flag in their private residences, and having confederate flags in museums. That's not relevant to flying the Confederate Flag, it's relevant to the Bill of Rights. Why didn't Dean just say he wanted to be the candidate of white southern voters who should be voting democratic for economic and educational reasons? Just because you've got a flag on your truck dosn't mean you're poor white trash, and not every southerner who is in bad shape with the economy and education has a flag on their truck. He phrased it entirely wrong, he should retract that statement.

Peepers

to stop voting based purely on the flag, and start looking at economic issues, etc. The mention of the flag and race division was the whole point....It was a statement telling white southerners to stop allowing themselves to be manipulated by that issue and to start thinking about the things that really matter.

Repubs are always wrapping themselves in that flag at election time.

would admit that far, far too many Southerners vote based on flag issues. At least enough to defeat him and many other decent Dems.

Maybe they actually do agree with the President. There are people who do that, you know.

Peepers

Dean '04...

Yep, just a bit important.

peepers

Let's get the republicans to vote for our candidate... then that would be great! How can we do that? Oh... by abandoning our liberal values. I'd rather lose their vote than lose our liberalism.

peepers

we should abandon our liberal values? Do a search, because you won't find that. What I've said, and the implication of what Dean said, is that these people should be voting with us *because* of our values. We need to be better at getting our message out and explaining what our platform really is rather than allowing these people to make their decisions based on repub soundbites. Because in case you haven't figured it out yet, repubs are defining the political debate in this country- but most especially in the South.

And so you know, Dean certainly isn't the first one to suggest that Dems need to go after these voters- he's just the first one to use the confed flag shorthand. Years ago, Molly Ivins wrote one or several columns about how we needed to go after these voters and to pull them back into the Dem fold. In her shorthand, I think she referred to them as the Redneck Dems. By and large, we're talking about the same group of people. But maybe it was ok for her to say it because she's Southern? I dunno.

in fact, we should try to alienate as many voters as possible.