[finnbow]

Originally Posted by whell

Wrong again, Finn.

From the AP:Byrd evolved from segregationist to liberal hero

From the NY Times: Robert C. Byrd, a Pillar of the Senate, Dies at 92

And then there's Hillary: Hillary Clinton Remembers ‘Friend and Mentor’ Robert Byrd

These are eulogies, dimwit. The true heroes of the Democratic Party are FDR and JFK. Byrd was recognized for his length of service and his willingness to stay with the party when LBJ helped turned the party's back on its racist past and then fight for civil rights (unlike the other Dixiecrats who switched to the GOP in disgust of LBJ's civil and voting rights initiatives). Byrd is only revered as a hero in West Virginia and that's for his pork barrel prowess, not his ideology.

He was appreciated for his willingness to renounce his racist past and become a true warrior for the cause of civil rights. In the words of the NAACP following his death, “Senator Byrd reflects the transformative power of this nation. Senator Byrd went from being an active member of the KKK to a being a stalwart supporter of the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act and many other pieces of seminal legislation that advanced the civil rights and liberties of our country."