Posted on 10/01/2006 12:03:15 PM PDT by wagglebee
West Virginia GOP senatorial candidate John Raese slapped back at Senator Robert Byrd’s reference to Raese’s deceased father in a West Virginia public television profile which aired Thursday night.
In a transcript of the program obtained by the Raese campaign Thursday afternoon, Byrd says, “(Raese’s) father was my friend. I think his father would have been … somewhat ashamed. His father would be supporting me today I feel if he were alive.”
Raese fired back, saying, “It is Senator Byrd who should be ashamed for smearing my father – and my family by extension – when he knows my father is deceased and cannot speak for himself. I am astounded at the disgusting arrogance of Senator Byrd in suggesting that my father would support ever him over his own son. Senator Byrd has a nasty habit of saying outrageous things and this is just another example of that arrogance,” Raese said.
Raese said the contrast between his father and Senator Byrd’s father is a lesson to remember.
“When I was a boy, my father was taking me to basketball and baseball games, and to Dairy Queen after the game,” said Raese.
"By contrast, according to Senator Byrd’s autobiography, his father was taking him to Ku Klux Klan meetings. Years later, when I was 34, I was running for the United States Senate. Senator Byrd was, at that same age, by his own account, recruiting members to the KKK,” he said.
Added Raese, “I know who my father would be ashamed of, and it wouldn’t be me.”
The KKK was not a sunday social club.They did criminal activities like lynchings, murders and violence...and to be a member back then would have meant you were in a criminal conspiracy to do these things.....What is the statute of limitations on these crimes?.....has Byrd ever fessed up to these types of activities.........or has anyone ever asked him if he participated in such events or had knowledge of these types of events? Lastly ,how many lynchings in his state occured during his reign in the klan....does anyone know?
Disgusting tactic by Byrd. The arrogance of these Rats knows no bounds.
Raese's comments are ABSOLUTELY on-target. It is inspiring to see this kind of quick-thinking, hard-hitting reaction from a Republican. If we did more of this, we'd be a much stronger party. Buy that man a Miller.
He's a dumb-o-crat, did you expect something truthfull and plesent? Those words do not exist the this bunch.
Considering Byrd is a Democrat, I am surprised he would consider mere death a limitation of Raese Senior's support.
" I thought the deceased were off limits in politics?"
They still vote in democratic precincts.
"There are white niggers. I've seen a lot of white niggers in my time. I'm going to use that word."
Fox News Sunday, March 4, 2001
I wonder why Byrd is attacking Raese if he has no chance. It is interesting. I think Raese has a real chance. He just needs to take the gloves off and knock the old geezer Moveon.org preacher out of his Senate Rocker.
ping
Yeah, but this is Democratic politics we're talking about. "Limits" is a nonsequeteur in that context.A Republican who said that a Democrat's deceased father woulda been ashamed of him would end his political career.
I know a lot of the folks here are good people and have common sense...it's probably a feeling of resignation that keeps Byrdbrain in power. The previous Republican governor we had, Bob Wise, was a real lightweight. It would literally take an act of God to kill the Democratic Party in WV.
John Raese: YOU GO BOY!!!
Robert Byrd: Is that old fart gonna live forever? He needs to go on home to be with The Lord.
Oh, if only it were true!
Byrd is 89.
Kinda embarassing that he won't retire.
You know what happens when you make an assumption :)
But he was still a goofball. Remember the photos of him? He looked like John Astin as Gomez Addams.
Byrd tried to sell his soul to the Devil so that he could be in the Senate forever, but the Devil said, "Keep it. It's so shriveled up it's practically worthless to me anyway. But I'll go ahead and give you your wish. We've got enough politicians down here as it is."
The deceased aren't off limts to the dems. Funerals are their favorite place for political rallies, remember Wellstone? And those people who have permanent residence in cemetaries are an important block of their voting base. My father who was from WV always said Kennedy carried the state due to whisky bought miners and dead people.
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