Read this and you decide...
The Senator Wore White
And then there is Robert C. Byrd, Democratic senator from West Virginia (and George Mitchell's predecessor as Senate Majority Leader). He voted against the nomination of new Supreme Court Associate Justice Clarence Thomas on October 15th on grounds (among others) that Thomas had "mounted his own defense" during his nomination hearings "by charging that the [Senate Judiciary] committee proceedings were a high-tech lynching of uppity blacks." Byrd branded it "an attempt to fire the prejudices of race hatred."
Senator Byrd has first-hand knowledge of racism. When he was running for Congress in 1952, his campaign was nearly derailed when a tough primary opponent revealed that Byrd had once belonged to the Ku Klux Klan. During a subsequent radio broadcast, Byrd acknowledged that he had been a member of the Klan from "mid-1942 to early 1943" because he was young (24) and because it "offered excitement." But he claimed: "After about a year, I became disinterested, quit paying my dues, and dropped my membership in the organization. During the nine years that have followed, I have never been interested in the Klan."
Byrd, who was praised for his "candor" and "forthrightness" regarding the issue, won the primary handily to secure the Democratic nomination. But just prior to the final election, a letter surfaced (in Byrd's own handwriting) which confirmed that his association with the Klan had been far more cordial, for a far longer time, than he had claimed. Dated April 8, 1946 (three years after his alleged break with the Klan), the letter was addressed to Klan Imperial Wizard Samuel Green of Atlanta. It stated in part: "I am a former kleagle of the Ku Klux Klan in Raleigh County and the adjoining counties of the state .... The Klan is needed today as never before and I am anxious to see its rebirth here in West Virginia .... It is necessary that the order be promoted immediately and in every state of the Union. Will you please inform me as to the possibilities of rebuilding the Klan in the Realm of W. Va .... I hope that you will find it convenient to answer my letter in regards to future possibilities."
So the same Robert Byrd who railed against Clarence Thomas for raising the spectre of racism and lynching was actively promoting the Klan years after he told voters he had severed all ties with it. He was nevertheless elected, as he has been six times since.
Clearly, when it comes to the Ku Klux Klan, the Democrats now pillorying Republicans about David Duke have a full hamper of their own dirty bedsheets. Admittedly, the former memberships of other public officials in the Klan should have absolutely no bearing on the significance of Duke's recent membership. But history shows that major media exposures of "racism" can be very selective. In the media's eyes, not every Klansman is the same.