I don’t mean to dwell on this controversy, but Dean’s near-apology for his Confederate flag remark didn’t quite make sense.
In a speech at Cooper Union in New York, Dean sought to quell the firestorm by denouncing the Confederate flag and explaining that his remark was a poorly-worded attempt to begin a frank discussion about race in America.
“I believe that the flag of the Confederate States of America is a painful symbol and reminder of racial injustice and slavery, which Lincoln denounced from here over 150 years ago,” Dean said. “And I do not condone the use of the flag of the Confederate States of America. I do believe that this country needs to engage in a serious discussion about race, and that everyone must participate in that discussion. I started this discussion in a clumsy way.”
Dean added, “This discussion will be painful, and I regret the pain that I may have caused either to African-American or southern white voters in the beginning of this discussion. But we need to have this discussion in an honest open way.”
This is certainly a sentiment I can agree with, but I’m afraid it’s a non sequitur for the matter at hand. Dean’s original Confederate flag quote had nothing to do with “a serious discussion about race,” but rather was in response to a John Kerry attack on guns and the NRA.
As a regular reader in Iowa reminded me yesterday, it’s worth re-reading the original Des Moines Register article that started this controversy in the first place.
As the article explains, Kerry was going after Dean for his endorsements from the NRA and Dean’s opposition to the assault weapons ban in the early 1990s.
“Howard Dean, during the time we were trying to pass [the assault weapons ban in 1994], was appealing to the NRA for their support,” Kerry told the Register. “We don’t need to be a party that says we need to be the candidacy of the NRA. We stand up against that.”
When the Register contacted Dean for a response, he said, “I still want to be the candidate for guys with Confederate flags in their pickup trucks.”
To be sure, Dean has made several missteps since then, including blaming the media, lashing out at his rivals, insisting that he’s said this before without incident, going on the defensive, etc.
But with the original context in mind, Dean’s “apology” yesterday seems intellectually dishonest.
Looking over the Cooper Union speech, Dean appears to suggest that his desire to represent pickup-driving, Confederate-flag waving Southerners was just a “clumsy way” to start a much-needed discussion about race.
But the truth is, the context of Dean’s original remark was completely different from what he would have us believe now. This wasn’t a “clumsy” way to begin a dialog about race relations, it was a “clumsy” defense for Dean’s long-standing support from the National Rifle Association.
Expressing “regret” may help end the fiasco, but a closer look at Dean’s comments suggests he still has some explaining to do.