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Barbour Calls Virginia Slavery Flap "A Nit"
Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour thinks Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell didn't need to apologize for failing to include a mention of slavery in a declaration of April as Confederation History Month -- and bristled at Michael Steele's claim he was held to a higher standard because he's black.
When CNN "State of the Union" anchor Candy Crowley asked Barbour, a onetime lobbyist and former head of the RNC, if the slavery omission was a mistake, he said, "I don't think so, my legislature has made an active holiday of Confederate Memorial Day... Anyone who thinks that you have to explain that slavery is a bad thing, it goes without saying... It's sort of feeling that it's a nit, it's not significant, it's trying to make a big deal."
In a "State of the Union" interview that aired Sunday, Barbour predicted that Michael Steele, the target of resignation calls, would "be the head of the party through his term," pointedly adding, "His term ends in January of next year."
He said he sympathized with Steele, but disagreed with the RNC's head's contention that criticism of him had anything to do with race:
Steele saying he was targeted because he was black was like Barbour saying he was being slammed because he was "a fat redneck with an accent like this," the governor drawled.
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Sources: ABC News, CNN, Politico, MSNBC, TPM, Youtube, Google Maps
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