And I take every opportunity I get to remind them that the slave owners, Confederates and segregationists were RATs, and that the Abolitionists became "The Republicans".
If we Conservatives are going to be consistent, the attitudes and actions of long dead Democrats are no more relevant today than is the fact that many of today's blacks have ancestors who were slaves (of whites or of other blacks).
We Conservatives should have the motto, "Judge me by my character & actions. I will do the same for you."