Romney and "the flag"

The Palmetto Scoop -- I wasn't going to write anything on the CNN/YouTube Republican presidential primary debate. That is until a question came up from a young man in Houston, Texas about the Confederate battle flag and whether it represented heritage or racism.

And poor Mitt Romney gave about the worst possible answer for someone looking to earn votes in South Carolina — a very painful soundbite that will probably cost him about 10 points in this state.

Some parts of this country may be able to "go beyond that kind of stuff," but a large number of GOP voters in South Carolina aren't among that contingency. They don't want to be, and they don't want a Massachusetts governor telling them they should be.

Let's not forget what happened to John McCain in 2000 when he merely said the flag is seen by some as offensive. Romney's statement that he thinks the flag shouldn't be shown, that Americans are better than what it represents, and that we have rightly chosen not to fly is immeasurably more "anti-flag" than McCain's; and it will play about as well here as the Clemson fight song in Williams-Brice Stadium.

He may also want to pay closer attention next time he's in Columbia, because "that flag" does fly here on the Statehouse grounds. Oh, and don't be surprised if Romney's campaign stops play host to a new group of party crashers.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Mitt_Romney
• flip-flop
• Confederate_flag
• Romney
• Confederate
• battle
• flag

[rickenbanger]

The fact is Mitt Romney has no more idea what that flag stands for than your average federally indoctrinated high school student. The flag which was erroneously referred to as the "Stars and Bars" is actually the Confederate Naval Jack. It isn't divisive, only those who wish to cast aspersions on it are divisive, and Mr. Romney is a coward for trying to weasel his way out of giving an honest answer to the question posed.

[coydiddy]

Mitt Romney can get the hell out of town.

[MandragGanon]

@DukeofWellington91 A long period of reeducation and villainization of the South has associated secession, the Confederacy, and slavery. We didn't just lose a war. In the peroid afterwards we were indoctrinated and effectively brainwashed and neutered along with the rest of American society. Robert E. Lee predicted it perfectly. "The consolidation of power at the federal level will lead to despotism at home and tyranny abroad."

[DukeofWellington91]

@MandragGanon 1) I do not understand why the South didn't fight a guerilla war like the colonials did against the British, the North could never have occupied the South effectively had this been the case.

2) Regardless of what happened in 1865, once the slaves were freed what was the North going to claim it was fighting for the second time around? America joined WW1 to fight for "self-determination" you really think they could have denied the South the very same thing, what about today?

[MandragGanon]

@DukeofWellington91 We havent' gone our own way because the last time we tried that we lost about 300,000 people and tons of infrastructure. The War of Northern Aggression was used to destroy the concept of 'secession'. It centralized power and began the fall into the mess that America is in today. If the South had won things would have been so much better.

[notube2007]

This shows he does not know history. The roots of the problems he talks about can be traced back to Dishonest Abraham. I will not vote for him not matter what. I hate to hear yankess talk anyway.

[DukeofWellington91]

@rickenbanger They do it in Britain too, the flag of St George is characterised at racist by the media and metropolitan elites.

[DukeofWellington91]

"The people of our country have decided not to fly that flag", now you see as an impartial Brit, there was me thinking that when the South tried to fly that flag and ones like it, they were attacked by Lincoln and several hundred thousand southerners died. If only all consensus decisions could be made so easily. Genuinely i do not know why the South hasn't gone its own way already the amount of crap they put up with from patronising and morally superior Yankees.

[catsareweapons]

At least stupid Democrats have the balls to give a definite "Racist" answer. Mitt can't even make a good "depends on who you ask" answer.  Typical Yankee pussy.

[copperheadmarine]

Well......South Carolina voted last night!! I hope Mitt heard us loud and clear?

[dauph59]

@rickenbanger The moderator is the one who referred to it as the Stars and Bars, not Romney.

Mitt Romney was the governor of Massachusetts. Why would he care about that flag? I am from the south, "bone-and-bread", as were every generation of my family since they came over in 1683. The flag has a meaning for me, but if it doesn't hold the same meaning for someone from Massachusetts, that's fine. I'm not offended in the least by his response. He is correct, there are bigger issues to worry about.