The Republican who saved Civil Rights:Behind the scenes:A Must Read

[tinydancer]

This is an amazing piece I found at Politico. The story is quite riveting.

I thought at first about putting it in the Race relations/Racism forum but no this is a fabulous political story on how this conservative Republican literally saved the Civil Rights Act and got it passed.

The intrigue is just awesome, President Kennedy, the Republican, heck even Mayor Daley in the "behind the scenes" tale.

Now before those who even want to try to attempt to shoot down this well researched piece I'm going to put up the letter written by a woman who would know first hand what happened at the time when she found out this Republican was retiring.

Her name. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

McCulloch’s name is hardly a household one — even in Ohio. But one witness to the role he played in forcing the country to live up to its founding creed bore passionate, private testimony to his importance.

“Please forgive the emotional tone of this letter,” Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis wrote from aboard the yacht Christina, when she got word in 1971 of McCulloch’s planned retirement from Congress. “But I want you to know how much your example means to me.”

“I know that you, more than anyone, were responsible for the civil rights legislation of the 1960s,” she continued.

“You made a personal commitment to President Kennedy in October 1963, against all the interests of your district.

When he was gone, your personal integrity and character were such that you held to that commitment despite enormous pressure and political temptations not to do so.

There were so many opportunities to sabotage the bill, without appearing to do so, but you never took them. On the contrary, you brought everyone else along with you.


“And as for my dear Jack, it is a precious thought to me that in the last month of his life, when he had so many problems that seemed insoluble, he had the shining gift of your nobility, to give him the hope and faith he needed to carry on.”


The Republican Who Saved Civil Rights - Todd S. Purdum - POLITICO Magazine

 

[rightwinger]

I enjoy these posts that remind people what a great party Republicans used to be

 

[tinydancer]

Here's a bit of the fight to get it passed.

When it heated up the Democrat who had worked on the bill caved into pressure from fellow Dems and went overboard.

And truly take the time to read the whole piece.

In the end, Celler could not resist his fellow liberals’ entreaties or their increasingly sharp attacks. When the detailed drafting on H.R. 7152 began in earnest in closed hearings of Celler’s subcommittee, he rammed through a raft of changes that strengthened the Kennedy bill — by extending its voting rights protections to state and local elections, by allowing the attorney general to intervene in cases in which a person was denied access to virtually any public facility operated by any state or local government, including parks and libraries, and by forcing the desegregation of virtually every kind of business, including private schools and law firms.

Civil rights groups were jubilant, but Bill McCulloch was livid.

For weeks, he had been working to avoid just this outcome. “It’s a pail of garbage,” he told the Wall Street Journal.

President Kennedy was almost as distraught. He had been receiving upbeat reports that a more moderate bill was on track, and his frustration with the purists boiled over in a meeting with the head of the National Council of Churches.

“The fact of the matter is, as you know, that a lot of these people would rather have an issue than a bill,” the president complained. “But, as I said from the beginning, to get a bill, we got to have bipartisanship.”

And the key to that — the key to getting the needed Republican votes — was Bill McCulloch. “McCulloch can deliver 60 Republicans,” Kennedy said. “Without him, it can’t be done.”


The Republican Who Saved Civil Rights - Todd S. Purdum - POLITICO Magazine

 

[tinydancer]

I enjoy these posts that remind people what a great party Republicans used to be

Ditto Dems. If you read the piece wait till you see what Mayor Daley does to kick ass. Now the D double crossed him but *cough* he never ran again.



Methinks we need a few more Mayor Daleys to reach true bi partisanship in Washington.

 

[rightwinger]

I enjoy these posts that remind people what a great party Republicans used to be

Ditto Dems. If you read the piece wait till you see what Mayor Daley does to kick ass. Now the D double crossed him but *cough* he never ran again.



Methinks we need a few more Mayor Daleys to reach true bi partisanship in Washington.

Reminds me of why I used to vote Republican

 

[kidrocks]

Yawn.

 

[Moonglow]

I enjoy these posts that remind people what a great party Republicans used to be

me too, brother, me too..

 

[KNB]

What's the point here? That southern racists actually supported the Civil Rights Act of 1964 because of Bill McCulloch?

 

[JakeStarkey]

Indeed give credit to certain GOP members who voted for the bill.

 

[tinydancer]

Indeed give credit to certain GOP members who voted for the bill.

I love this guy! He had the mindset that I admire. He wasn't a politician. He was a servant of the people.

This was a wild ride and this man from Ohio who engineered the bill and got it passed is just such a great read.

You'll like this quote Jake.

McCulloch had an unusually considered view of his job.

“The function of Congress is not to convert the will of the majority of people into law;

rather its function is to hammer out on the anvil of public debate a compromise between polar positions acceptable to a majority,” he would tell his House colleagues on the eve of his retirement in 1972, contrasting their work with the direct democracy of a town meeting, in which one position always prevails and the other loses.

“In a republic, representatives vote for the people. There is discussion and debate. There are amendments. There is opportunity for compromise. It is less clear that there is a losing side.”


The Republican Who Saved Civil Rights - Todd S. Purdum - POLITICO Magazine

 

[Unkotare]

This has long been the story of the relationship between democrat oppression and Republican championing of real justice and equality.



He stood up while others sat - The Denver Post

 

[tinydancer]

What's the point here? That southern racists actually supported the Civil Rights Act of 1964 because of Bill McCulloch?

Here are the votes by region. Note the Nays. In the House, most Southern D's and R's were against the bill. In the Senate both D's and R's prevailed to pass the bill. But the southern D's were seriously against it.

Totals are in "Yea–Nay" format:

By party and region

Note: "Southern", as used in this section, refers to members of Congress from the eleven states that made up the Confederate States of America in the American Civil War. "Northern" refers to members from the other 39 states, regardless of the geographic location of those states.

The original House version:

Southern Democrats: 7–87 (7–93%)
Southern Republicans: 0–10 (0–100%)

Northern Democrats: 145–9 (94–6%)
Northern Republicans: 138–24 (85–15%)

The Senate version:

Southern Democrats: 1–20 (5–95%) (only Ralph Yarborough of Texas voted in favor)
Southern Republicans: 0–1 (0–100%) (John Tower of Texas)
Northern Democrats: 45–1 (98–2%) (only Robert Byrd of West Virginia voted against)
Northern Republicans: 27–5 (84–16%)


Civil Rights Act of 1964 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[kidrocks]

This has long been the story of the relationship between democrat oppression and Republican championing of real justice and equality.



He stood up while others sat - The Denver Post

Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa ha ha Thanks, I needed that laugh.

 

[kidrocks]

What's the point here? That southern racists actually supported the Civil Rights Act of 1964 because of Bill McCulloch?

Here are the votes by region. Note the Nays. In the House, most Southern D's and R's were against the bill. In the Senate both D's and R's prevailed to pass the bill. But the southern D's were seriously against it.

Totals are in "Yea–Nay" format:

By party and region

Note: "Southern", as used in this section, refers to members of Congress from the eleven states that made up the Confederate States of America in the American Civil War. "Northern" refers to members from the other 39 states, regardless of the geographic location of those states.

The original House version:

Southern Democrats: 7–87 (7–93%)
Southern Republicans: 0–10 (0–100%)

Northern Democrats: 145–9 (94–6%)
Northern Republicans: 138–24 (85–15%)

The Senate version:

Southern Democrats: 1–20 (5–95%) (only Ralph Yarborough of Texas voted in favor)
Southern Republicans: 0–1 (0–100%) (John Tower of Texas)
Northern Democrats: 45–1 (98–2%) (only Robert Byrd of West Virginia voted against)
Northern Republicans: 27–5 (84–16%)


Civil Rights Act of 1964 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Yes but those "Southern D's" were staunch conservatives. A very important part your kind always leave out of the debate.

 

[tinydancer]

This has long been the story of the relationship between democrat oppression and Republican championing of real justice and equality.



He stood up while others sat - The Denver Post

Thanks for that article. I had never heard of Governor Carr. His brave stance is today what we call having "testicular fortitude". Pleased to see he was honored in the end.

 

[bendog]

Thanks for the link, and it was indeed stolid Midwestern gopers who provided the votes.

McCulloch had an unusually considered view of his job. “The function of Congress is not to convert the will of the majority of people into law; rather its function is to hammer out on the anvil of public debate a compromise between polar positions acceptable to a majority,” he would tell his House colleagues on the eve of his retirement in 1972, contrasting their work with the direct democracy of a town meeting, in which one position always prevails and the other loses. “In a republic, representatives vote for the people. There is discussion and debate. There are amendments. There is opportunity for compromise. It is less clear that there is a losing side.”

Read more: The Republican Who Saved Civil Rights - Todd S. Purdum - POLITICO Magazine

 

[Unkotare]

This has long been the story of the relationship between democrat oppression and Republican championing of real justice and equality.



He stood up while others sat - The Denver Post

Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa ha ha Thanks, I needed that laugh.

Are you laughing at something in particular, or just giggling because you're baked again? Is Ralph Carr funny to you? Are FDR's concentration camps a source of mirth for you? Are you really that much of an un-American low-life punk?

 

[bendog]

I'm afraid the thread went over someone's head. LOL

 

[JakeStarkey]

What's the point here? That southern racists actually supported the Civil Rights Act of 1964 because of Bill McCulloch?

Here are the votes by region. Note the Nays. In the House, most Southern D's and R's were against the bill. In the Senate both D's and R's prevailed to pass the bill. But the southern D's were seriously against it.

Totals are in "Yea–Nay" format:

By party and region

Note: "Southern", as used in this section, refers to members of Congress from the eleven states that made up the Confederate States of America in the American Civil War. "Northern" refers to members from the other 39 states, regardless of the geographic location of those states.

The original House version:

Southern Democrats: 7–87 (7–93%)
Southern Republicans: 0–10 (0–100%)

Northern Democrats: 145–9 (94–6%)
Northern Republicans: 138–24 (85–15%)

The Senate version:

Southern Democrats: 1–20 (5–95%) (only Ralph Yarborough of Texas voted in favor)
Southern Republicans: 0–1 (0–100%) (John Tower of Texas)
Northern Democrats: 45–1 (98–2%) (only Robert Byrd of West Virginia voted against)
Northern Republicans: 27–5 (84–16%)


Civil Rights Act of 1964 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"southern" Democrats and Republicans were seriously against it.

The issue was geography not party affiliation.

 

[tinydancer]

Thanks for the link, and it was indeed stolid Midwestern gopers who provided the votes.

McCulloch had an unusually considered view of his job. “The function of Congress is not to convert the will of the majority of people into law; rather its function is to hammer out on the anvil of public debate a compromise between polar positions acceptable to a majority,” he would tell his House colleagues on the eve of his retirement in 1972, contrasting their work with the direct democracy of a town meeting, in which one position always prevails and the other loses. “In a republic, representatives vote for the people. There is discussion and debate. There are amendments. There is opportunity for compromise. It is less clear that there is a losing side.”

Read more: The Republican Who Saved Civil Rights - Todd S. Purdum - POLITICO Magazine

Whether an elected official is an R or a D it's the mindset that makes the man and boy oh boy do I love that quote of his. And to him they weren't just words. He kept true to his core beliefs.