Reasonoid and occasional TAS contributor Dave
Weigel has a fine post about
the possible transition Ron Paul supporters might make to Bob Barr
if the latter jumps into the race for the Libertarian Party
nomination. I should just link to it and shut up. But being me, I
will instead quibble with this passage: "George Wallace's 1968
campaign spurred the GOP to take the Southern position on civil and
states' rights."
Certainly, Richard Nixon carried the Wallace vote in 1972 and
incorporated most of the Alabama governor's support into the
Republican base. He also took some positions, like opposing forced
busing and nominating Southerners to the Supreme Court, that
addressed Southern civil and states' rights concerns. But if we
define the "Southern position" as being George Wallace's circa
1968, that was certainly not the position Nixon ever took.
In fact, Nixon played a large role in the desegregation of
Southern schools, presided over the nationalization of the Voting
Rights Act of 1965, implemented the Philadelphia Plan, expanded
affirmative action, and gave aid to historically black colleges at
a time of dire need. It's undeniable that Nixon did all of these
things with more sensitivity to the concerns of white Southerners
and Northeastern white ethnics than most liberals would have
preferred. But this wasn't the Wallace '68 platform.
topics:
Supreme Court
