Washington (AP)— Republicans constantly focusing on the past while arguing for the future. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis spent the summer in controversy over new school standards that require teaching slaves learned abilities that “could be applied for their personal benefit.”
Last month, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley failed to blame slavery for the Civil War. Last Sunday, former President Donald Trump called the Civil War “so fascinating” and suggested it could have been “negotiated,” ignoring slavery.
Such events illustrate GOP stress as the 2024 primaries approach. The GOP ended slavery, won the Civil War, and began Reconstruction. At a time when they feel under assault from the left amid the push to remove Confederate monuments and names from institutions, some in the party's conservative Deep South base are more ready to ignore unpalatable Civil War truths.
Others worry the dispute will hinder the party's efforts to win over nonwhite voters who may be turned off by diminishing slavery. Republicans are growing agitated and trying to blame Democrats ahead of Monday's Iowa caucuses.
At the state party's annual legislative breakfast Tuesday, Iowa Republican Party head Jeff Kaufmann remarked, “Quite frankly, I'm getting damn tired of the re-interpretation of history that I hear from Democrats Republicans formed because Democrats wouldn't give up slavery.
At a time when the next president faces two major conflicts and a home economic recovery many people don't feel, slavery and the Civil War's strong involvement in the GOP primary is remarkable. As Arab American, Black, and Latino leaders increasingly say President Joe Biden is vulnerable among voters of color, some worry the party may lose the chance to win his support.
Biden and Democrats want to emphasize GOP mistakes. Biden said it was a “lie” that the Civil War was about states' rights Monday at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina, where a white supremacist slaughtered nine Black parishioners in 2015. “Let me be clear, for those who don’t seem to know: Slavery caused the Civil War,” he stated. “No negotiation about that.”
Vice President Kamala Harris visited Florida immediately after DeSantis passed the new history standards to denounce the rules and call Florida Republicans “extremists” who “want to replace history with lies.” Republican officials are aware of the criticisms and want to refute claims that the party has abandoned its abolitionist origins.