Hannity Sez KKK Members Should Be Banned from Public Office

[CO Liberal]

He directed his reference to Robert Byrd, who joined the Klan briefly early on in his political career, and quit over 60 years ago. But does Hannity realize how many RepubliKKKans would be removed from office if his idea were to come to pass?

:shrug:

[underpants]

1. Byrd was in the KKK? Hmm I had never heard that

I sure am glad that you happened to catch Hannity talking about that the one time that he did (consider the odds) and now I have learned something new today.

[olacan]

5. Was

he referring to current active members or if anyone had ever been a member? Do you know where I can get a copy of the entire statement?

[CO Liberal]

54. He Implied It Should Be a Lifetime Ban...

...for anyone who ever belonged to the Klan.

I think his next book-signing tour down South will be very interesting.....

:-)

[GainesT1958]

2. So I guess this means that Sarcastic Sean doesn't support...

A good ol' boy like Trent Lott anymore, huh?:eyes:

B-)

[Fenris]

3. What I love is that the Klan is hardly a political juggernaut.

If one were to say that maybe Council of Conservative Citizen members should be banned from office for being racists, you'd have to throw out the entire southern Republican contingent.

[porphyrian]

4. Who cares? Who Listens to Hannity? - n/t

[Tosca]

6. Sean

Hannity sez he can blow bubbles out of his ass.

[ThePandaBear]

7. I agree with Hannity

Byrd needs to go. By being such a well known democrat, and being an exclan member, he makes the whole democrat party look bad. I am not saying we should ban ex KKK members from serving, butfor God's sake, don't vote for them.

[Fenris]

9. Son, you just stepped into an antbed

Prepare to have your ass handed to you by a small army.

[NMDemDist2]

29. LOL fenris, how right you are! n/t

[Name removed]

10. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[MrBenchley]

14. Worth noting

Byrd quit and publicly condemned the KKK about the time Truman whipped Dewey's sorry butt.

[Fenris]

15. Facts are stupid things

As the Gipper would say. ;)

[MrBenchley]

26. You'll notice the scummy Hannity

did not say anything about racists being barred...but then he's made a point in his "career" of dredging up every racist piece of shit he can find to guest on his radio show where he fawns all over them (paging Richard Barrett).

[Fenris]

28. The Party of Jefferson Davis.

;)

(I know that isn't historically accurate, but politically it sure as fuck is.)

[MrBenchley]

39. Sometime look at the neoConfederate rag Southern Partisan

just about every GOP bigwig around (Ashcroft, Lott, etc.) gave them big fawning interviews.

And let's not forget Bob Jones University.

[PeanutFarmer]

47. Bob Jones isn't clan related.

[jdsmith]

48. But BJ Jr's embrace of Ian Paisley is certainly anti-Catholic

They're fellow travelers. (Or is that the wrong term for the RW?)

[goclark]

50. Bob J 's fits the bill

in my book for being racist and ultra conservative.

[jdsmith]

59. And recall its part in the 2000 elections

A BJU prof started the "illegitimate black baby" rumor about McCain.

[MrBenchley]

53. But it's a hotbed for bigots...

You may recall that scummy old Reagan and Trent Lott tried to work out a tax break for BJU, which at the time did not admit blacks at all. When he was caught at it by CBS news, the Gipper said "I didn't know there were stillsuch things as segregated schools."

[CO Liberal]

58. Bob Jones Is Barely Related to Humans

:-)

[noiretextatique]

67. white supremacists unite!

When I was a UAW member, I went to its annual civil rights conference. I still have the poster they gave us...it's a poster that connects the dots between all the white supremacist organizations in this country. The poster is several years old now, but i love it because it includes some seeming "respectable" outfits, like Bob Jones University, and other xtian racist groups.

[Cheswick2.0]

86. It sure is filled with Klan thinking and members though

!

[jdsmith]

38. We had a local talkshow guy who'd cut off his fans for using the n-word

That allowed him to say that he wasn't racist.

But every damned thing that came out of his mouth was the most virulent stuff imaginable--just not "that word."

[Booster]

93. Right, and I think we should ban...

Republicans who's IQ is the same as their belt size from ever holding office anywhere.

[redqueen]

12. lol

awww, Clinton's book sales must have people in all kinds of fits nowadays.

:evilgrin:

"Democrat" party, indeed!

[Name removed]

13. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[trotsky]

18. So you're saying no one is able to see the error of their ways,

repent, and make amends?

[Fenris]

20. In that case, Bush is still a fucking obnoxious drunk

[LittleApple81]

19. Come on. Byrd has lived the length of two lives already. And his second

life "apres KKK" is a lot better than the lives of Santorum, Frist, Hatch, Delay, etc. etc. These repugs have caused so many deaths with their policies that if they had done it overtly like the horrible, criminal, overt KKK, there would not be enough trees to use the branches to display the bodies.
The KKK is an institution that is too debased (and its ceremonies are kind of ridiculous...now that we know what is behind the masks: stupid white humans) even to try to describe... I cannot understand how a sentient person could have belonged to it. I am glad that Byrd has rejected it. I don't admire him for having belonged to it but what he has been doing in the last years goes a long way to redeem him.

[eyesroll]

21. And we hold people's long-repudiated views from 60 years ago against them

because? People are incapable of change?

[CO Liberal]

60. According to the Dittoheads.....

...anyone who changes their position is guilty of flip-flopping.

They forget that St. Ronnie started as a liberal Democrat, and them became a conservative Republican - the ultimate flip-flop.

[MrBenchley]

70. And that the Gipper stopped being a Democrat

about the same time Strom Thurmond did...and for exactly the same reason...

[oasis]

24. Robert Byrd's service to America and to the Democratic Party cannot

be diminished by the mutterings of a few of right wing, hypocrite shitheads who are more closely aligned to KKK ideology.

[Hubert Flottz]

82. I'll vote for Senator Byrd again if he runs!

If it wasn't for him over the past three and a half years life would have been a HELL of a lot worse than it is now! He stood up to Bush's stampede when others ran and hid! The record will show what Robert Byrd has done for the country! A man that cannot change is not a leader of men, but he is damned a fool!

Inflexibility = Poor Judgment! A real leader is able to Improvise, Adapt and Overcome.(flip flop)

[tishaLA]

35. We in the "democrat party" [sic]

found Sen. Byrd's objections to Chimpy's illegal war positively noble. I'd rather have an ex-Klanner in my party than a current asshole

[nostamj]

36. proof positive that Hannity

is NOT the most idiotic human on the face of the earth.

bravo!

you're not fit to lick Byrd's shoes.

:puke:

and, btw, these are gonna be ON FIREants...

[Duncan Grant]

41. Sometimes you just got to let the words speak for themselves.

<By being such a well known democrat, and being an exclan member, he makes the whole democrat party look bad. >


"Why can this President not seem to see that America's true power lies not in its will to intimidate, but in its ability to inspire?" - Senator Robert Byrd

Case closed. 9_S_F

[argyl]

43. What else do you agree with Hannity about? Just curious.

[CO Liberal]

55. The World Was Different in the 1940s

Robert Byrd joind the Klan back then because it was expected of anyone who had political ambitions. A lot has changed in the years since.

[Yupster]

73. Not true Co Liberal

By the time Byrd joined the Klan in the 1940's it had been completely discreditted by FBI infiormants, high profile court cases and even sex scandals.

By the mid-40's the Klan had declared bankrupcy and its membership had fallen from millions in the 20's to just a few thousand nationally. It had also started splintering into tiny groups that were gone before the FBI even knew they were there.

You can see people on DU say what you said quite often. Just look up Ku Klux Klan in your encyclopedia and you'll see the dates are wrong.

Joining the Klan in the 1940's was not expected anywhere and was certainly not a way to get political power either.

[CO Liberal]

77. I respectfully disagree with you.

In some parts of the country (especially the South and Appalachia), the KKK was more of a mens club, and membership was required if someone wanted to advance politically.

[CO Liberal]

84. Did a Google Search on ["Robert Byrd" + KKK]

And found the following:

Byrd was a member of the Ku Klux Klan for a period of time in the early 1940s. In a letter he wrote in 1946, he said, "The Klan is needed today as never before and I am anxious to see its rebirth here in West Virginia." However, by the time he ran for Congress in 1952, he announced, "After about a year, I became disinterested, quit paying my dues, and dropped my membership in the organization. During the nine years that have followed, I have never been interested in the Klan."

In other words, he has been out of the Klan for about nine years more than I've been alive - I was born in 1952, and am 51.

http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/Robert%20Byrd

[Cheswick2.0]

89. In the fourties it certainly was expected in the south

Sorry but you are just wrong.

[VHamrick]

65. It's the Democratic Party

which I think implies inclusion. You're saying that a political body shouldn't accept change. Sen. Byrd changed 60 years ago and says things that illuminate all that is wrong with the corporate government we have experienced during the present administration.

Maybe it would better to bash Lott, Delay and Hatch then malign a true statesman.

=\V/=

[Cheswick2.0]

85. WTF is the democrat party?

My voter registration says Democratic Party.

In addition Byrd is a hero of the democratic party. He evolved long ago while most of the old time bigots switched to the republic party and continue to be as fucking stupid as they were 50 years ago.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

94. Deleted. (the thread development was actually somewhat interesting)

[Sandpiper]

8. The Klan is an empty shell of its former self

In terms of strength and political clout.

The new home of the white supremacist voting block is Council of Conservative Citizens.

[HootieMcBoob]

37. Check out their website : Council of Conservative Citizens

Holy Hell! They might as well just call themselves the Klan! Click on "The Browning of America" for a real eye opener of who these people are - the first person the guy thanks in his speech is former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke. Trent Lott and Bob Barr have both spoken there.

http://www.cofcc.org/

Here's what the Antidefamation League has to say about them: http://www.adl.org/learn/ext_us/CCCitizens.asp?xpicked=3&item=12

[phillybri]

11. Wasn't a white supremacist group one of his sponsors?

I feel like I saw a story to that effect here @ DU...

[ThePandaBear]

16. Why is everyone hating on me?

I spoke my opinion and I am entitled to it. Politics is an career based on public apperance more than any thing else. Please stop with the personal attacks. If you disagree with me fine, but don't tell me "Fuck You" or call me a troll.


And No I am not a newt lover, I am a far Leftist. I am just not a big fan of the "good ole boys" like Byrd.

[phillybri]

22. Democrat party is Newt-speak....

You're the first "liberal" I've met that sinks to using the Right's buzzwords against other Democrats...:eyes:

[ThePandaBear]

27. What the fuck are you talking about?

Democrat Party? Newt speak? What the hell is that supposed to mean? and quit insinuating that I am some sort of Conservative Counter spy or whatnot until you have some God damn proof.

[phillybri]

32. You said "Democrat" party, not me...

...the only people that say that are conserviatives.

Everyone here supports the DemocratIC party...

[ThePandaBear]

33. Yes I did?

OK OK OK, now I get it, because I say democrat instead of democratic, i am a Newt Gingrich lover? What kind of stupid bullshit is this?

[jdsmith]

46. "Democrat" as an adjective was used by Senator Taft back in the fifties

as a way of baiting members of the Democratic party. He'd say "Democrat party," "Democrat senator," and so on.

It's been part of the snarky right's sarcasm ever since. Some of the older and in some ways more respectable (this is a relative thing) Republicans have tried to use it: Bob Dole, for instance--but he seemed pained to do something so juvenile and stupid.

Lesson: "Democrat party" is often a surefire SIGN.

[ThePandaBear]

49. Listen I am only 18 years old

I wasn't alive back then. I don't know this. during the 1996 election I was only 10 so I didn't pay enough attention.

[redqueen]

56. Fair enough

you've received a decent flaming for using right-wing lingo in the same post that you agreed with Hannity in, so now you know.

BTW, Welcome to DU!

:hi:

[jdsmith]

57. Nor was I alive when Taft was up to this nonsense

It's in books.

[redqueen]

61. The kid's 18

I say let's take them at their word and go from there.

[ThePandaBear]

64. Thanks someone finally stuck up for me.

I did not relize that republicans and democrats are supposed to use different grammar.


I did not totally agree with Hannity BTW. I dont think byrd should be banned from public office. Im just saying I wouldn't vote for him But it is not always wrong to agree with the right wingers on the radio. Rush has been making excellent points lately about how the FCC needs to get out of the censorship business. He is claiming some sort of democratic conspiracy to make republican speech Hate speech and offensive. A far fetch concept, but I agree with him that FCC has no right to censor TV and radio. Too bad that is the only thing I can think that I agree with him on.

[tishaLA]

66. So this wasn't you pushing Hannity's flip flop meme

in this thread? http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=551209#552423

[ThePandaBear]

71. Yes that was me.

I am not a big Fan of John kerry. I don't know what hannity has to do with it, but whatever. I stick by that statement. Kerry is a flip flopper. It is a well known fact. I would have rather Wesley Clark won the primaries, but John Kerry is "the lesser of two evil." I wish we had a instant run off instead of the election system we currently have.


But I most likely will be voting for Kerry, despite his recent leanings to the center. That should be a good enough answer.

[tishaLA]

74. So tell me then

what precisely are Sen. Kerry's flip flops? On which two issues?

[ThePandaBear]

76. Many Many Many

Iraq war- Does he support it or does he not, I wish he didnt but I dont know


gay rights - he was for gay marriage now he is for "state's rights"

Death penalty- used to not support it now he does, Stick to your original position

All politicians are flip floppers, and so is Kerry. Kerry is not perfect. He is not looking out for you, he is an oppurtunist, just like any presidental candidate who has ever made it to the general election. You do not become president by being honest. With that said, I am voting for Kerry, because Bush is still the worst president we ever had. This should be enough for now.

[tishaLA]

79. Those are Hannity's lies, not the truth

Kerry has always been against a gay marriage amendment. He voted against the Defense of Marriage Act and he has said repeatedly that states can make up the decisions for themselves. There is NO contradiction in his position.

His position on Iraq has always been clear. He thought Hussein was a brutal dictator and should be out of power--Clinton's position, too--but he disagrees with the way Chimpy went about this whole misadventure, especially the way they have not sufficiently internationalized the forces and have intentionally worked to undermine our traditional allies. If you really "don't know" his positing, it's because you haven't been listening to him.

BTW, I don't need Sen. Kerry to "look out for me." I'm sure Mr. O'Really would like to do that instead.

[ThePandaBear]

81. I notice how you didn't mention the death Penalty

John kerry has said he has support civil unions, but not marriage, then states rights, then said the defense of marriage act was unconstitutional, then changed his mind.


I noticed you didn't mention the death penalty, that is a very clear Flip Flop.

And on Iraq, his position is very very unclear. Why couldn't he have just been like Dean and been against it from the first place?

[tishaLA]

92. Actually, his position IS clear

on Iraq; the right wing just muddles it because they can't figure out anything beyond binaries. Maybe you should read his position on johnkerry.com so you don't try to spread disinformation about his position any longer.

And his position on gay marriage is perfectly consistent. He PERSONALLY supports civil unions, not gay marriage, but he believes that states should do what they want, including gay marriage. If he said DoMA is unconstitutional--I don't remember his saying this--he is right IMHO.

As to his position on the death penalty, I don't know about a previous position, but I wouldn't doubt it. People's opinions change over time, as they should.

[redqueen]

69. Not grammar

using "Democrat" instead of "Democratic" isn't necessarilty a grammatical error, it's just an example of how Reich-wing propoganda has become widespread due to media complicity with their goals.

[Yupster]

75. He's been my pet peeve for years Panda Bear

Why Progressives would support a relic like Byrd for anything is beyond me. What? There isn't another Democratic candidate who could take West Virginia?

[BraveMan]

87. Young Panda is quite correct.

He should have been gone long ago. Trouble is, when you're the unabashed King of Federal Pork, it's not hard to get re-elected by your constituents.

"They call me 'The Pork King,' they don't know how much I enjoy it." - Sen. Robert Byrd

Appropriations for the ranking chairman of the Appropriations Committee? Let's add them up, shall we?

Robert C. Byrd Drive, from Beckley to Sophia (Byrd's hometown)
Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center of West Virginia
Robert C. Byrd Cancer Research Center
Robert C. Byrd Technology Center at Alderson-Broaddus College
Robert C. Byrd Hardwood Technologies Center, near Princeton
Robert C. Byrd Bridge between Huntington and Chesapeake, Ohio
Robert C. Byrd addition to the lodge at Oglebay Park, Wheeling
Robert C. Byrd Community Center, Pine Grove
Robert C. Byrd Honors Scholarships
Robert C. Byrd Expressway, U.S. 52 near Weirton
Robert C. Byrd Institute in Charleston
Robert C. Byrd Institute for Advanced Flexible Manufacturing
Robert C. Byrd Visitor Center at Harpers Ferry National Historic Park
Robert C. Byrd Federal Courthouse
Robert C. Byrd Academic and Technology Center
Robert C. Byrd United Technical Center
Robert C. Byrd Federal Building
Robert C. Byrd Hilltop Office Complex
Robert C. Byrd Library and Robert C. Byrd Learning Resource Center
Robert C. Byrd Rural Health Center
Robert C. Byrd Clinical Addition to the veteran's hospital in Huntington
Robert C. Byrd Industrial Park, Hardy County
Robert C. Byrd Scholastic Recognition Award
Robert C. Byrd Community Center in the naval station, Sugar Grove
Robert C. Byrd Locks and Dam
Robert C. Byrd Aerospace Tech. Center
Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope


Let's not forget Sen. Byrd has set a new standard for taxpayer-funded narcissism by convincing the West Virginia Legislature to erect a statue of himself in the state Capitol.

[CO Liberal]

63. If That's The Case, Panda.....

...log off the computer and go read something. You've got a lot to learn about the world.

(Speaking as the father of two kids - 29 and 27.)

[Cheswick2.0]

91. I knew when I was 18 that I was registering for the democratic party

I guess I will judge your liberalism when you post something besides right wing talking points.

[MrBenchley]

30. Want to see some more?

Peek in the gun dungeon (J/PS) sometime...we've got "democrats" down there posting crap from Newsmax and the like on a regular basis, expecting it to be taken seriously.

[Bridget Burke]

34. Because you deserve it.

Nobody who really a leftist calls themselves "far Leftist". "Democrat Party" is a dead giveaway that you've been listening to Limbaugh too long. And you heard this on Hanity?

Byrd made some bad choices very early in his life. He put that behind him and has became one of the most eloquent critics of Bush & his ilk. I can understand why you guys want to shut him up.

[ThePandaBear]

40. What ever happened to innocent until proven guilty?

That's a liberal viewpoint to have. TO not condemn people until you have absolute proof. But you don't seem to have this viewpoint. You want to condemn me just because of my grammer. Just because I say "Democrat Party" I have right wing views? How the fuck does my grammer innsinuate my politics? Go read some of my previous posts, and you will see I really am a far leftist. Far too leftist for the Democrat (Im saying this just to piss you off now) party.

[Jacobin]

44. Methinks thou dost protest too much

[ThePandaBear]

45. What?

[jdsmith]

51. It's a reference to _Hamlet_

the _Mousetrap_ scene. Gertrude says it about the Player Queen's overacting.

[kodi]

17. another conservative who wants to penalize people's private associations?

what next from adolf hannity, cavorting with "homos" makes you ineligible for public office too?

guilt by association is the name of hannity's game.

[genius]

23. Howabout KKK sympathizers like Hanity?

[ThePandaBear]

25. Hannity sucks.

I've seen his television program before and it is nothing more than non stop Bush ass kissing.

[Jacobin]

42. Nice try

:-)

Tell me, how's Smirky's invasion of EyeRack goin' for ya?

[radwriter0555]

31. Then drug addicts should be banned from the airwaves....

doncha think?

Remember, David DUKE was on their team.

[Realityhack]

52. What Hannity fails to see is...

what a horible road that is to traval down. I won't whine that he found some dirt on someone... thats as close to responsible reporting as he will ever get. But this like his other ideas is juvinile reactionism. I have a feeling that he is so angry and dimwited/ignorant (in fairness it isn't clear wich) that he really cant see why that might be a stupid idea.
I supose one could say that after becoming as popular as he is with such a hateful message that he has a reason to have lost faith in the system but that would require actual knowlege of the system and an understanding of the problem at hand.

RH

[in_cog_ni_to]

62. I think

Catholic, Loud Mouthed, RW, egomaniac, Rush wannabe, dark haired assholes should be banned from radio and TV. :grr:

[noiretextatique]

68. surely this doesn't apply to current members

cause they'd all be republicans. perhaps hannity should focus his outrage on current members of the CCC instead.

[CO Liberal]

72. That Wouldn't Work...

...because the CCC members are all RepubliKKKans.

[noiretextatique]

90. exactly... what a twit

it's amazing to me that anyone takes this idiot (and others just like him) seriously.

[Yupster]

78. Removing Republikkkans

Hannity probably doesn't know of all the Republicans in the congress who were once Night Riders.

Why don't you make a list for him.

I can't help because I don't know of any.

I do know Lott, Thurmond, and Helms were never in the Klan though. I have a feeling if there were other congresscritters who were once members of the Invisible Empire, we'd probably have heard of it. Don't you?

[merh]

83. Don't know if Lott has ever admitted to being in the Klan,

but while a cheerleader at OleMiss, he & fellow frat brothers, armed themselves and demonstrated when the 1st black man, James Meredith, was enrolled and appeared on campus. He has also spoken at meetings of the CCC (council of conservative citizens), which is as close to the klan as one can get. Check out their website and tell me if you think they are similar. Better yet, tell me if you find any differences.

http://www.cofcc.org/

[cmayer]

80. Hannity should move to WV...

and register to vote. Then he can register his positon as the Constitution allows.

It sounds like he is proposing a "political purity" litmus test before people are allowed to run for public office.

Why doesn't he just say that people must be Rethuglicans before they are allowed to vote.

[sendero]

88. I believe anyone...

... can have a real change of heart. I'm not about to ban anyone from holding public office if they meet the legal requirements, and membership in a legal organization cannot be grounds for a ban.