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The Spectacle Blog
Headline writers are calling Robert Byrd “the orphan who made history.” Byrd did indeed make a lot of history during his 92 years, 58 of which were spent in Congress. He was also on the wrong side of history on a wider range of issues, from race to the Reagan economic program, than just about any comparable figure of consequence.
Byrd had his admirable qualities as a defender of Senate tradition and legislative power under the Constitution; he also had the less than admirable penchant for paving West Virginia with pork. Byrd went from being a member of the Ku Klux Klan to an endorser of Barack Obama. Had he been more conservative, he probably never would have lived down the former or been a viable political figure long enough to do the latter.
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More Blog Posts by W. James Antle, III
http://spectator.org/blog/2010/06/28/robert-byrd-and-history
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nobama2010| 6.28.10 @ 1:00PM
If you have nothing good to say about someone, say nothing at all. So,RIP
Alan Brooks| 6.28.10 @ 1:52PM
Alright, alright.
We will miss him. Okay? we are all so kind today.
Alan Brooks| 6.28.10 @ 1:55PM
... AS is the peace 'n' love site.
Occam's Tool| 6.28.10 @ 1:10PM
Let's be Democratic. Robert Byrd=Richard Weed.
(Richard, as in syn. for John Thomas, Rod, Peter)
Margie| 6.28.10 @ 1:29PM
"Had he been more conservative he would have never lived down the former."
Huh? I think I'm experiencing political dyslexia. Somehow those two things just don't work in my brain.
W. James Antle III | 6.28.10 @ 6:34PM
If Byrd had been a conservative, he would have had a much harder time living down his racist past.
Margie| 6.28.10 @ 8:58PM
Thanks. :^) I was half kidding though. Conservative and racist just don't go together in my book. But I get your gist. If one of us repented from being a former KKK, lotsa luck.
Which, actually did he ever really repent of it? I hope so, but I don't really know. He was such a curmudgeon.
Bob Miller| 6.28.10 @ 1:54PM
When push came to shove earlier this year, Senators were bought off wholesale, despite their many wonderful traditions. Unless, maybe, that was one of them.
Sean| 6.28.10 @ 2:48PM
Are all the politicians saying nice things about Byrd going to end up on BET explaining themselves ala Trent Lott?
WELL BYE| 6.28.10 @ 3:12PM
well, bye
CalMark| 6.28.10 @ 4:28PM
Good riddance to a nasty old partisan hack.
Byrd is being lauded by some in the media as a defender of the Constitution. Even a cursory examination of his votes in the Senate disproves this immediately.
Robert Byrd was a nasty, partisan, self-righteous old corruptocrat. His family may miss him, but the nation will not.
victor| 6.28.10 @ 10:50PM
I hear some of the right wing pundits are going to perform their own special send-off to the late senator.
Yes, it's going to be one night only of:
"Bye-Bye Byrdie"
Nick| 6.29.10 @ 1:44PM
Ha-ha!
Good one, Victor!