White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders defended Robert E. Lee by comparing him to Washington, Jefferson, JFK, and FDR while ignoring that Robert E. Lee tried to destroy the nation that those presidents led.
Video:
Sanders on Robert E Lee: "All of our leaders have flaws, that doesn’t diminish their contributions to our countryâ€
https://t.co/BvLpUU7Sf7— MSNBC (@MSNBC) October 31, 2017
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Huckabee Sanders defended Robert E. Lee by saying, “Look, all of our leaders have flaws, Washington, Jefferson, JFK, Roosevelt, Kennedy, that doesn’t diminish their contributions to our country, and it certainly can’t erase them from our history, and General Kelly was simply making the point that just because history isn’t perfect doesn’t mean that it’s not our history.â€
Robert E. Lee tried to destroy the United States of America so that black people could remain enslaved in the Confederacy. Robert E. Lee contributed the worst war ever fought on US soil. There is no comparison between Lee and the other presidents that Sanders mentioned. JFK prevented a nuclear war. Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence. Washington led the fight for independence and was the nation’s first president. FDR was the most successful president of the last century and defeated the Nazis in World War II.
Robert E. Lee doesn’t belong in the same galaxy with these presidents, and the comments of Huckabee Sanders only emphasize how this administration is glorifying racism. John Kelly’s comments were bad enough, but Sarah Huckabee Sanders built on them and made the situation a million times worse.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
