I did a thorough search of the threads in this forum and I don't believe this discussion has been posted before. If it has, I apologize. Guess what, people! Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a Republican. "During the civil rights era of the 1960s, Dr. King was fighting the Democrats who stood in the school house doors, turned skin-burning fire hoses on blacks and let loose vicious dogs." "Affirmative action was begun by Nixon to counter the harm caused to blacks when Democrat President Woodrow Wilson in 1912 kicked all of the blacks out of federal government jobs." Check this out!
During King's time, most Republicans were Libertarian-leaning. They tended to be liberal on several social issues (like civil rights) and were mostly concentrated in the Northeast and West Coast. Democrats held onto the "Solid South" and were socially conservative in the South, although their Northern and West Coast colleagues were usually liberal. As several Southern Democrats resisted the slow shift of the party to the left in support of integration, the Dixiecrats formed. When the Civil Rights Act passed, more Republicans voted for it than Democrats, but this marked the beginning of the decline of support for Democrats in the South. Ironically, Republicans would later gain influence in the South and many Dixiecrats would join the Republican party (like Jesse Helms and Strom Thurmond). So, again, during King's time, the Republicans were somewhat socially liberal. In the decades following King's death, however, Republicans would become socially conservative and take on the support of many of the people that King fought. Democrats went in the other direction, but they've lost a lot of the South as a consequence. A lot of the Democrats that maintain their power in the Deep South tend to still be very socially conservative, and their record on civil rights doesn't tend to be favorable.
It doesn't suprise me. The Democratic Party at the time was still divided over the issue of race. You had Southern Conservative Democrats that wanted to maintain white supremacy. However, you also had more progressive Democrats such as JFK and LBJ. Unfortunately, these great leaders were in the minority. As a result, many blacks in the South still supported the Republican Party that acknowledged their rights since the Reconstruction Era.
I believe MLK was a Goldwater Republican. Both parties have changed since King's time, but especially the Republican party. Those who would endorse similar policy and views of that era's Republican party today would be seen by the right as "liberals".
Interesting! Would you classify Herman Cain a "liberal"? He too (just as I do) endorses similar policy and views of that era's Republican party. We want to give our black Americans a hand "up". The Democrats, on the other hand, want to keep them on the "political" plantation by giving them a "hand out"!
Well, MLK was in an interesting position. I think it's doubtful that he actually was a Republican, because he clearly supported socialist economic policies -- something the Republicans were against -- especially Goldwater. On the other hand, I figure his impression of Democrats was mixed. He probably was disgusted by the behavior of a lot of Southern Democrats, but he liked JFK. He actually would have fit in best with European socialist parties.
MLK was a Republican, yet he was a supporter of JFK and LBJ. http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1964/king-bio.html
JFK and LBJ would be republicans today too. Our parents democratic party, simply, no longer exists, its been over run with George Soros funded communists. I can prove it too, if youd like...
I have shared the fact many times that MLK Jr. was a Republican. It was not until Lyndon Johnson teams up with the likes of Jesse Jackson Jr. did the black community buy into the "free lunch" of the entitlement/welfare state which has enslaved them ever since. Malcolm X would have changed parties once he saw the welfare state as well. But, they killed him off too. Here is a fantastic write up on the history and solutions for modern blacks. Modern Enslavement of Black Americans
No need for revisionist history. Let it be. Ironically, the only reason why King would support the Republican Party was due to civil rights. He actually believed in social democracy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther_King,_Jr.
I would actually classify Goldwater as a Libertarian.....and then work from there. Cain's policy is nowhere as clearly defined as yet, but he does have a strong social issue streak that does not fit with Libertarians.....or for that matter, Goldwater. Because of Cain's attention to social issues, I have to categorize him as a modern Republican instead of a Libertarian....or an old school Goldwater Republican.
So what? Does it really make sense to take such an outspoken, singular individual and try to force him in to any ideological box? Martin Luther King was a Martin Luther King. And we wouldn't have shot him.
If you believe in THIS: [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLdA1ikkoEc"]John F Kennedy 'Ask not' - YouTube[/ame] Then you cant believe in THIS: [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P36x8rTb3jI"]Obama Is Going To Pay For My Gas And Mortgage!!! - YouTube[/ame]
Well, I think King was pretty much his own man. His political alliances seemed less philosophical to me and more pragmatic toward the ends of his own agenda. Much in the same way that most huge corporations are less ideologically motivated and really just seek to bet on the winning horse....whoever that is...so that they have a relationship with the party in power at the time.
You are correct. He actually imposed the largest income tax increase since passage of the 16th amendment. It was a 4% increase on the lowest income bracket. However, this is supposedly overshadowed by the 22% decrease on the upper income bracket.
Hey James...Don't know if you ever saw this. [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F64k_INn-Tc"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F64k_INn-Tc[/ame]
Um, what? Are you talking about the LBJ that passed Medicare, fought a War on Poverty, and advocated the "Great Society"? He never would have been a Republican, much less a modern one.
No they were mostly conservative Their stand on civil rights was conservative based on the constitution. Nope they were Populist along the lines of John Edwards.....and segregationist. And went right back to the Democrat Party when they lost the election. The Republican shift didn't come till long after the Civil Rights battle and after it was an issue any longer. The Dixiecrats existed in the late forties and early fifties and once they lost they ALL were reelected as Democrats and most finished out their careers as Democrats. No they were not. King was conservative. They lost because they saw they could buy off the black vote, you know if you can't beat 'em join 'em, through welfare and transfer payments. They tried to atone for their past horrible record on Civil Rights issues and ended up enslaving the black population in another way.
They were POPULIST, they supported "the working man", stood up for unions, against the evil rich and wealthy, believed in big strong state governments. They were also segregationist and racist. And the Democratic Party never kicked them out and welcomed them back after the Dixiecrat split failed.