Obama Marks Memorial Day at Arlington, Sidesteps Racial Controversy Over Confederate Monument

So have these people written letters to other presidents asking them not to lay a wreath on the Confederate monument? And have there not been wreaths on the African American monument before? Neither should be overlooked. He did the right thing, in my eyes. I think all soldiers need to be recognized.

All American soldiers who fought in any war should be honored. Race, religion and ideology don’t make much difference, they are all American. We honor early presidents, most of whom owned slaves including Washington, Lincoln and Grant. Why shouldn’t we honor Confederate soldiers most of whom didn’t own slaves? We should honor African American soldiers and Native American soldiers as well as white soldiers. We should honor all Americans who have fought and died to build a nation. We should also honor those who serve today.

Confederate soldiers were democrats where as African American soldiers that fought for the union would have been and were Republicans since Republicans were the Party founded to abolish slavery.
There is a separate Memorial Day for Confederates, established by the democrats, which Obama chose to ignore instead using this Memorial Day to use a token show of respect to confederates as a stepping stone to honor those Black Republicans that served in the Union Army.
I would have rather he gave the confederates their due on the day his party chose for that purpose.

Honoring Confederate Veterans? Duh, of course Preaident Obama should recognize their sacrifice, as many previous Presidents’ have! As I read the letter from the 60 “professors” complaining about Obama’s wreath laying at the Confederate Memorial, two words came to mind: “liberal elitists!” Why aren’t these elites complaining about the Wall Street Bankers, International Financiers, and Multinational Corporations who have continually exploited the American working and middle class through the pursuit of greed? Why didn’t they more actively oppose the BUSH administrations’ rush to war in Iraq? To make the case, that the Civil War was only about slavery, is a crude misunderstanding and misreading of history! The war also was a way for the federal government and northern industrial elites (i.e. the controllers of credit) to force thier way upon the people in the southern United States. These same elites are the very people who protested the Vietnam War, brought about acceptance of the drug culture, eroded the family structure, oppose reference to God in any public place, tore/tear down traditional marriage, and generally look down upon and despise any reference to traditional, patriotic, national values, THAT CAN AND SHOULD BE SHARED BY ALL citizens (Black, white, hispanic, gay, straight, Jew, Christian, etc…) Decent, average American citizens wake up….your government, your economy, and your way of life have been hijacked by these elites–cultural, political, social, economic, military, and educational! They have one interest and only one interest: self preservation!

Confederates were Americans, but treasonous ones. Traitors should not be honored.

Actually, I think President Obama handled this particular hot potato very deftly. Yes, Ryan_C, jhw, etc., I approve of this Obama action.
The professors who signed that letter make me crazy. (And note that Bill Ayers was one of them) There were no mainstream, heavy-weight Civil War historians on the list, you will note. These were lightweights trying to get their names in the paper for “speaking truth to power.” It failed, and I am pleased. I thought the clever decision to send a wreath to the Black soldiers’ memorial was fitting and an appropriate move by our first black president. He also sent wreaths to a couple of other memorials, including the one for the USS Maine. It was wonderful that he did not do the “politically correct” thing he was asked to do but instead made a point of honoring all war dead.
And I agree that no self-respecting American historian would argue so simplistically that the civil war was just about slavery. It was complex, and slavery was at the heart of the matter, but it was not that simple.

He did this 129 times in the Illinois State Senate.
Posted by: drjohn | May 25, 2009 5:04:18 PM
You must be running low on idiotic right-winger talking points.

Actually I agree that he did good.
The only snide remark I can think of is that he was so presidential he even forgot to mention that it was Lincoln’s and Andrew Johnson’s mess that he has to straighten out ;)

Noah, sounds like you and your daughter had a wonderful, memorable day. Thank you for your service!

It ought to noted that Obama, through his mother, is descended from Conderate soldiers including local Newton Co., Ark. hero, Capt. Larkin C. Bunch.

I think you should leave the judging up to god and Obama shouldn’t have done the judging.

The U.S. was never reluctant to send these Southerners to their deaths in subsequent conflicts.. in U.S. uniforms.

What a slap in the face to all soldiers to have a president do This!!!!!!!!!!!

Excellent Move By the Pres. ignoring the requests to not lay a wreath at these soldiers monument, They ALL need to be “Memorialized” every year for their service and sacrifice,,,,,,,,
No`matter`what side they fought on !!

I admire him for doing what he did. Didn’t vote for him, yet am seeing the good in a lot of the things he does.

Mike—-
George H. W. Bush actually was the first president to start sending the wreath to the Confederate monument on Memorial Day. Prior to that it was sent on Jefferson Davis’s birthday.