That rising star in the GOP, Virginia's Governor Bob McDonnell, continues to make national news over the fallout from his proclamation that April is "Confederate History Month." Apparently, the Governor finally talked to someone outside of his pro-Confederacy bubble because he's back-pedaling:
After a barrage of nationwide criticism for excluding slavery from his Confederate History Month proclamation, Virginia Gov. Robert F. McDonnell (R) on Wednesday conceded that it was "a major omission" and amended the document to acknowledge the state's complicated past.McDonnell has cemented his legacy as the guy who brought back the celebration of the confederacy. Maybe that will help him in GOP politics. But, it's basically been a disaster.
A day earlier, McDonnell said he left out any reference to slavery in the original seven-paragraph proclamation because he wanted to include issues he thought were most "significant" to Virginia. He also said the document was designed to promote tourism in the state, which next year marks the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War.
However, Wednesday afternoon the governor issued a mea culpa for the document's exclusion of slavery. "The proclamation issued by this Office designating April as Confederate History Month contained a major omission," McDonnell said in a statement. "The failure to include any reference to slavery was a mistake, and for that I apologize to any fellow Virginian who has been offended or disappointed."
